What do all these have in common?
The number 5.5 is the unusual key. The result being that prayer heals. Really, from a physiological perspective! I’m not alluding to the content of a prayer, although intent is a powerful driver of healing. Instead, it is the necessary timing of our breath that is the resultant during specific prayer practices to which I’m referring.
Curious? Let’s look at a few examples, first:
- The Gregorian Rosary Chant in its original Latin version, as repeated, half by priest and half by the congregation,
- The words “Ohm Mani Padme Hum”, as chanted by Buddhist Monks
- “Sa Ta Na Ma”, the Kundalini yoga chant,
- “Chway, Hoo Shee, Her Hsü & Sss” in varying combinations as uttered in Taoist practice,
- Native American sacred spirit chants (often accompanied by drumming), which are expressed as simple diaphragmatic vowel sounds,
- and in many other cultures’ spiritual chants, found throughout history and today.
So, what do these chants (or prayers) all have in common? They each have the exact same breath rate, which when analyzed can be repeatedly broken down to the number 5.5. Here’s what research has turned up, as quoted from James Nestor’s book, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
“By various means, in various ways, in various eras of human history, all these [peoples] discovered the same thing. They discovered that the optimum amount of air we should take in, at rest, per minute, is 5.5 litres. The optimum breathing rate is about 5.5 breaths per minute. That’s 5.5-second inhales and 5.5-second exhales. THIS is the perfect breath.”
What research tells us, is that whenever slow breathing like this is practiced, blood flow to the brain increases and heart rate, circulatory and nervous systems coordinate to peak efficiency. This ultimately creates a feeling of peace and wellbeing – a connection to that which we worship or believe.
So, whether we pray in church, practice yoga, meditate in nature, or we dance & drum with the ancestral guardians of Turtle Island; we all adopt this same breathing pattern of 5.5 seconds inhale, 5.5 seconds exhale ≅ 5.5 breaths per minute. This results in intake of 5.5 litres of air per minute.
THIS is prayer in its universal form.
Isn’t humanity wonderful? We have so much in common without realizing it.
Until next time… ~ Breathe ~ Move ~ Unwind ~
