Refining the Breath
with Sincere and True Practice

A1: People who practice Tao Breathing properly do not feel drowsy. When the breath is even and balanced, there is no reason to feel sleepy or fatigued. Even if tiredness arises, it can be relieved simply by returning your attention to the breath.
Drowsiness often indicates that the Small Heavenly Circulation (Sojucheon, Step 16 of Bongwoo Tao Breathing) is not functioning smoothly. In other words, when Tao Breathing is not being practiced correctly, sleepiness tends to occur.Breathing smoothly is essential.
However, if someone who normally holds their breath for 30 seconds forces themselves to extend it to 40 seconds, they will naturally become strained and exhausted.

A2: Yes—not only that, but many different experiences can arise during practice. You are not mistaken. Do not consider it strange; simply stay focused on your breathing.
If you keep paying attention to what appears, other sensations or images may continue to arise. Instead, wait until your breath naturally reaches about 50 seconds to one minute.
Then, concentrate fully on your breathing and allow whatever appears to pass on its own.If you focus on what you see, it is easy for a 50-second breath to shorten even by one second, and you may end up chasing distractions.
Therefore, whether you see such phenomena or not, as long as you continue your breathing practice, you will be fine.

A3:Some practitioners in the Breathing meditation community say that nighttime is better than daytime.
However, Tao Breathing can be practiced at any time of day—whenever you have free time.
People often say that practicing at night is not ideal and that early morning is better. Still, regardless of the time, the most important factor is to practice when your body is well-rested and your mind is clear.

A4:A casual practitioner can't practice for long periods of time. Even if you simply practice long, smooth, and evenly, the time is short and you won't make much progress. So, don't set aside an hour or two for a set period of time, just practice whenever you have time. If you have time, practice for 30 minutes or an hour. If you keep doing this, you'll notice improvements without even realizing it. Once you've increased your practice to 40 or 50 seconds, you can even practice while you sleep.

A5:No problem. The practitioner's breathing is the issue, not the other way around.

A6: Practicing with your eyes fully closed can easily lead to distracting thoughts and drowsiness, which can interfere with your practice.
Instead of forcing your eyes to remain half-open, relax them naturally and gently direct your gaze toward a point just beyond the tip of your nose. This will naturally bring your eyes into a calm, half-open state.Also, do not stare or fixate on what you see, thinking, “What is that?” Simply observe and keep your awareness centered on your breath.
Otherwise, your eyes may become tense, which can cause redness, watering, or even discomfort and pain.
You should be aware that even in countless Buddhist statues, none have their eyes closed. This is because they represent breathing practice. In other words, you should understand that the foundation of Buddhist practice lies in breathing meditation.

A7: The first principle of breathing practice is to keep the mouth closed. Therefore, you should breathe with your lips gently sealed and breathe only through the nose.
Traditionally, it is taught that your breathing should be so soft and quiet that even if you placed a small amount of flour or a thin feather—such as a goose feather—under your nostrils, it would not move.
In short, keep your mouth closed and breathe only through your nose.

A8: It is best to let it happen naturally. The tongue should not be forced upward. When you relax and allow it to rest naturally, it will usually settle comfortably in the middle on its own.

A9: You should not close your eyes completely. Instead, keep them gently half-open. The teaching is: “Let the eyes look toward the nose, and let the nose look toward the heart. ”When it says the eyes should look toward the nose, it does not mean you should cross your eyes as if staring at your nose. Rather, it means lowering your gaze slightly so that the tip of your nose is within your field of view. When it says the nose should look toward the heart, it means directing your breath and awareness downward—toward the navel area.
Some people take this instruction too literally and practice with their head bent deeply forward. That is not the intention. It simply means to tilt the head slightly downward. If you relax naturally, your head will gently incline forward on its own.

A10: Saliva naturally accumulating in the mouth is normal. When it happens, do not spit it out. Simply swallow it naturally. It does not matter whether you are inhaling or exhaling.

A11: To some extent, you need to endure minor discomfort while practicing. However, if the pain becomes strong enough that you can no longer focus on your breathing, do not push yourself. Instead, relax and loosen your body first, and then sit down again.When sitting, you do not need to force a full lotus posture or keep your back perfectly straight. Simply sit naturally. When you do, your body will not be rigidly upright; it will naturally lean slightly forward. In that position, the lower back usually does not hurt.If you force your spine to stay perfectly straight, it is unavoidable that your back will become painful.

A12: Inhaling and exhaling should be balanced.
You should not inhale more and exhale less, nor inhale less and exhale longer. Both the duration and the amount of air moving in and out should be equal.
In the beginning, it is helpful to count. If you prefer, you may also place a clock in front of you and quietly observe the time while practicing. Listening to a steady sound—such as the ticking of a clock—can also be useful.
Once your breathing develops to about 20 seconds, you will naturally understand the rhythm—for example, inhaling for 10 seconds and exhaling for 10 seconds.
Therefore, until you reach about 20 seconds, it is recommended to count or use a clock.
After you pass 20 seconds, the balance becomes natural, and you no longer need to count or watch the time. At that stage, even if you feel you could inhale a little more, do not force it. Simply continue practicing naturally as you are.

A13: Whether a thousand years ago or a thousand years from now, if someone is able to unify the mind easily when first beginning breathing practice, that person has already succeeded in their training. If mental focus came quickly, how could practice ever feel difficult?When you practice, all kinds of thoughts arise—this thought, that thought, countless thoughts.
Even when you try not to think, the mind continues to produce thoughts. Over time, those thoughts should gradually fade away.
It is unrealistic to expect that thoughts will suddenly stop all at once. Distracting thoughts disappear little by little.
In the past as well, there was not a single person who practiced without distractions. Such thoughts do not vanish overnight.It is like sweeping a dusty room: you sweep again and again, and when some dust remains, you sweep once more. In the same way, you must gradually clear distractions on your own, step by step. There is no instant method to eliminate distracting thoughts immediately. Simply continue focusing on the practice. As your concentration deepens, distracting thoughts will disappear one by one, and your training will naturally progress further.

A14: When you develop genuine interest in the breathing practice, drowsiness disappears. Sleepiness keeps coming because you have not yet found enjoyment in the practice—and because you are still fatigued. Once you begin to experience even a small sense of interest—when certain phenomena arise and you feel that something is happening—you will naturally want to continue practicing to see what unfolds.
At that stage, people often practice for hours without sleeping, and even while sitting still for a long time, they do not feel tired.However, if the practice feels dull and you are simply breathing in and out without any engagement, sleepiness is unavoidable.
When you become truly engaged, there is no time to feel sleepy.Among practitioners with more advanced breathing—those who can breathe for 40 or 50 seconds, or more than a minute—there are virtually none who are unable to practice due to drowsiness. As your breathing naturally extends toward 40 seconds, 50 seconds, and close to one minute, you no longer feel fatigued even without sleep.
On the other hand, people with shorter breathing times tend to become tired more easily, and that is why sleepiness arises.Also, when you feel sleepy, lying down “to meditate” will only make you fall asleep even more. Instead, when drowsiness comes, it is better to do some light stretching or movement to loosen the body, and then return to practice.

A15: In reality, your breathing has not actually stopped. Even if it feels as though it has paused, there is no problem.
However, you should never stop the breath intentionally. This practice is not about deliberately holding the breath. If the transition between inhaling and exhaling happens a little more slowly, that is not a serious issue. These days, many places teach breath-holding as a method of training.
However, holding the breath is not Dahnhak breathing.
In Dahnhak practice, the one thing we avoid most is Paesik—holding the breath and stopping it. Paesik refers to inhaling and then not exhaling, keeping the breath trapped inside.
If you do Paesik while practicing Josik (Tao Breathing), it will ruin the training. Once you hold the breath, Tao Breathing is essentially lost. Breath-holding is something used in forceful “kiai” breathing practices. It has nothing to do with cultivating clarity of mind and heart. In such methods, a person inhales, holds the breath strongly, and pushes the lower abdomen outward.
This is commonly seen in practices such as Japanese sumo training. Some performers even demonstrate holding their breath for one or two minutes while lying down, allowing a heavy mortar to be placed on their abdomen, and still remaining unmoved.
That kind of breathing belongs to those performers—it is not our breathing. No matter what others may say, do not practice Paesik. If you hold the breath, Tao Breathing will be completely discarded.

A16: No, that is not Tao Breathing (Josik).
Tao Breathing does not mean becoming completely blank or entering a state of “無念無想 no thought, no awareness.”
Rather, it means 無他念無他想 mu-ta-nyeom mu-ta-sang—in other words: “Do not follow other thoughts, and do not hold other intentions. Keep only the awareness of the breath as it is.” If you are not even aware of whether the breath is coming in or going out, then how could that be Tao Breathing?

A17:
It does not work well from the beginning.
If your breathing is currently 10 seconds and you want to extend it to 20 seconds, you would need to increase both the inhalation and the exhalation by about 5 seconds each. No matter how confident you may feel, this cannot be achieved in just one or two weeks.
It usually takes at least a month to reach a stable 20-second breath. If someone is able to achieve a consistent 20-second breath within one month, that person has practiced very well. To go beyond 20 seconds and develop 30- or 40-second breathing, it typically takes around six months.
For someone who has only been breathing for 10 seconds, reaching a one-minute breath may seem very far away. However, do not rush. If you practice steadily without stopping, it is not as distant as it appears. Progress comes little by little, in small steps.
As your breath becomes longer and more even—both on the inhale and the exhale—the “mind amd heart-wave” (the subtle fluctuations of the mind and heart) becomes steady and no longer sways.
If the inhalation is 10 seconds, the exhalation should also be 10 seconds. If the breath wavers as it comes in and goes out, what can be reflected within it? When you look at water, calm and still water can reflect distant mountains and even your own face clearly. But water that is constantly rippling cannot reflect anything clearly.
This is why we emphasize that the mind and heart-wave must become even and stable. To prevent such inner waves from arising, you must breathe quietly, gently, finely, and for a long duration. When this is achieved, the mind becomes clear and sharp—so much so that even reading something once can imprint it in the mind as if a photograph had been taken.

A18: For beginners, there is no need to worry about whether the breath is thin or thick. Simply breathe in the way that is natural for you.You should not try to force the breath to become thin. As the length of your breathing gradually increases, the breath will naturally become finer on its own.

A19: Yes. You should not practice forcefully. Practice gently. The breath should be fine, light, and long. If you use the same amount of breath but make it finer, it naturally becomes longer.
When you breathe long and evenly, the breath will naturally extend, and the mind and heart-wave will become quiet and still.

A20: When your head feels clear, it means Tao Breathing (Josik) is working well. When your head feels tight or painful, it means the Tao Breathing is not flowing as smoothly.

A21: When you force the breathing—especially when you push the energy down into the lower abdomen too strongly—it can create Ki(qi, life energy) stagnation, meaning the energy becomes blocked.
This happens because Tao Breathing (Josik) is not being done correctly. When Tao Breathing is practiced properly and the inhalation and exhalation are kept even and balanced, this kind of tightness does not occur.
However, if you push too hard, tightness and discomfort will arise. Practice Tao Breathing gently and evenly.

A22: Return to Tao Breathing (Josik) and practice it correctly again, while also reflecting on your approach. If you correct it and practice properly, you will be able to return to the right path and continue progressing forward.

A23: Even if you engage in demanding mental work, it will not interfere with your breathing practice.

A24: Yes, it is fine. Whether your blood pressure is high or low, once your breathing becomes even and balanced, your blood pressure naturally returns to a normal level.
In that state, blood pressure no longer becomes unstable.

A25: Even if you have undergone a kidney transplant, you are living with a functioning kidney now, aren’t you?
As long as you are alive and stable, there is no reason you cannot practice breathing. It should not interfere with your training.

A26: Yes. Whether the exercise is intense or gentle, it does not matter. You may do any type of exercise without concern.

A27: When running a marathon or any middle- to long-distance course, most people become short of breath and end up breathing more frequently—sometimes as often as once every second.However, for someone who can sustain a 40-second breath, each inhalation and exhalation can last more than 10 seconds.
If such a person maintains this 10-second rhythm while running, there is no reason for them to feel breathless or thirsty. They can run calmly and steadily. This can be confirmed immediately through direct experience.If you ask someone whose 40-second breathing is truly stable to run a middle- or long-distance course, they will not pant. And if a person can breathe close to one minute, there is no reason they would be unable to complete the full marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers due to breathlessness.
No matter how much modern science claims to be scientific, it often overlooks this one science of breathing.
That said, not feeling short of breath does not automatically mean someone can run well. Strong legs are also necessary.
In our tradition, there has long been physical conditioning training designed to strengthen the legs. With proper conditioning, a person can run not only 40 kilometers, but even 400 kilometers, without being unable to continue due to leg pain.

A28: It varies from child to child, but in general, it becomes effective from around six years old.
When children practice breathing training, their minds become clearer, their memory improves, and minor illnesses tend to decrease.

A29: Whether a person is 生而知之 saeng-iji-ji (born already knowing—like a genius), 學而知之 hak-iji-ji (coming to know through dedicated study and practice), or 困而知之 gon-iji-ji (coming to know after much hardship), once you truly know, the knowing is the same.In other words, whether you know from birth, learn through training, or come to understand only after great difficulty, the result is still knowledge. Even if it is gained through hardship, knowing is still knowing—it is not ignorance.Practice is not something that only certain people can do well. It is not determined by past lives. Anyone can achieve results according to their effort.

A30:Who would say such a lie? Even if someone were to be offered a reward, a dignified and sincere person would not speak that way. Only someone lacking maturity would say such things.Confucius said that whether one is saeng-iji-ji (born knowing), hak-iji-ji (knowing through learning), gon-iji-ji (knowing through hardship), or geup-gi-ji-ji (knowing through effort), in the end, the knowing is the same(生而知之, 學而知之, 困而知之, 及其知之, 一也).
Even if a person is not born with strong natural talent, they can simply apply more effort than someone who has slightly more talent.
If others practice for one hour, you can practice for two. The more you practice, the more results you will receive—so how could it be said that you cannot succeed?
A great person is one who illuminates the world. A truly mature person, regardless of fate, reshapes their destiny through goodness—by doing what is right, being beneficial, and helping others.
There may be differences in natural disposition—some people have more ability, some less. However, no one is born with a fixed limit, and no one is branded from birth as someone who cannot progress in practice.

A31: Breathing practice is the same for women and men. You can practice in exactly the same way.

A32: If possible, it is better not to completely let go of the practice during daily life.
If you practice only one hour a day and then breathe however you like for the rest of the day, it becomes difficult to maintain what you gained during that one hour.
This does not mean you must practice all day long. However, if possible, it is beneficial to practice a little more whenever you can. Just as a student cannot study all day long, but the student who studies more tends to achieve better results, breathing practice also produces greater benefits the more you practice.

A33: If you try it, you will know immediately.
If someone can comfortably maintain a 20-second breath during practice, they can also do a 20-second breath in daily life.
However, it happens when you intentionally keep awareness on the breath and try to do it that way.
It does not mean that you will automatically breathe at the same length in everyday life while living without any awareness.

A34: If you fully indulge in everything you like and hate everything you dislike, it will interfere with your practice. Since these emotions cannot be eliminated all at once, you must gradually reduce them over time.
They do not disappear completely from the beginning.
You should continue to lessen these emotions little by little, so that during breathing practice you do not spend much time caught in distracting thoughts.

A35: With an ordinary 10-second breath, you may be able to extend it to about one minute, but extending it to 20 or 30 minutes is not possible.
For someone who can achieve a one-minute breath through Tao Breathing, it becomes possible for a single breath to last five minutes—and in advanced cases, even up to thirty minutes.
However, with only the amount of air used in a typical 10-second breath, it is not possible to sustain breathing for that long.In such cases, a larger volume of air must be taken in.

A36: That is something said by someone who only knows how to breathe with the lungs. Even if you breathe for two minutes, or even if you practice one breath a day, the basic movement of air in and out of the lungs is essentially the same. However, Danjeon breathing is not based on that principle. It is not the same as ordinary lung-based breathing, and it is not dependent on simply pulling in more air and pushing out more air.

A37: Ki(Qi; Life Energy) does not accumulate automatically or blindly. Rather, as the breath becomes longer, Ki(Qi; Life Energy) naturally begins to accumulate.
However, this does not mean that simply holding the breath for 10 minutes or 20 minutes will cause Ki(Qi; Life Energy) to build up. Breath-holding (jisik) is not related to spiritual practice. It is only useful for force-based practices, such as breaking techniques in martial arts.

A38: When you inhale, the abdomen naturally engages to the extent that the breath comes in. When you exhale, that engagement naturally decreases as the breath goes out. Since the breath is moving in and out, this is completely natural.

A39: You must consciously gather your mind and heart.
If you practiced without any awareness, why would we reduce a 20-second breath and train it as 7 seconds in and 7 seconds out—making a 14-second breath? We do that in order to practice Tao Breathing properly.

A40: You should only direct it with intention—by thought, not by force. If you push strongly with physical effort, the Ki(Qi; Life Energy) may not stop naturally at the Dahjeon and can easily be driven too far downward.
Also, if you exhale sharply before inhaling—blowing all the air out with a “huh”—then there will be nothing left inside, right? At that moment, close your mouth, pinch your nose shut with your fingers, and try gently pushing your abdomen outward.
You will notice that you can push the abdomen outward, and you can also draw it inward. 
In other words, even without breathing, you can make it move outward or inward simply through abdominal motion. That is why you should not try to force it while inhaling. Simply breathe evenly. When you do, it will naturally fill. When the breath becomes long, it will naturally begin to circulate. And when your breathing reaches one or two minutes, strength in the lower abdomen will arise naturally on its own.

A41: You should only guide it down as far as the lower dahnjun, just below the navel.
If you push it down too strongly, it won’t stay below the navel—it can simply drop further downward. In men, this can cause the testicles to feel as if they are burning, making them jump up in pain.
That is how damage can occur, and it happens because the energy has been forced downward too much.
If this happens, simply return to calm, natural breathing and guide the energy only to the level of the navel. From there, gently begin to guide it upward little by little, and nothing will be wrong. You must not force it downward.

A42: If you keep trying to force the energy downward simply because you are breathing for a long time, it will not circulate well and can become stagnant.
Some people insist that it must be sent all the way down as low as possible, but that is not the correct principle. The place called Kihae (氣海) is located just below the navel. It is called the “Sea of Ki(Qi; Life Energy)” because it is considered the reservoir where energy is gathered. From a modern scientific point of view, one might say, “If you breathe in and collect something, isn’t that the lungs? Why would it be there?” But the ancient masters did not name it Kihae without reason. That is the place where Ki(Qi; Life Energy) is collected. There is no need to forcefully gather a large amount. It is enough to gather it gently and naturally.

A43: You can find the answer very quickly.
If you block your nose and try to inhale, the breath will not come in—so naturally, it is Ki(Qi; Life Energy) that comes in from the outside. Ki(Qi; Life Energy) then circulates within that space.

A44: Some traditions claim that one can extract Ki(Qi; Life Energy) and give it to someone else, but we do not do that here. Ki(Qi; Life Energy) is not something you lend to others or borrow from them. It is cultivated through one’s own long breathing practice—like breathing one breath a day. Those who practice very deeply may even breathe only once a day. So, although one may breathe for a very long time, that breath (Ki) is not something that is given to or received from another person.

A45: It gathers there only because you are using force.
If you do not use force, it will not gather. It is perfectly fine if you feel nothing at all, and it is also fine if you feel as though a lump or a mass is forming.
People suggest gathering it and circulating it simply because practicing without any “visible result” can feel boring. But what they really mean is that you should breathe for a long time. They are not truly insisting that you must circulate it—they are insisting that you must lengthen the breath.
Circulating is done in order to make the breathing longer. Therefore, if someone breathes very gently and for a long time, it does not matter. The instruction to circulate was given mainly so that a lump or a “core” would not form—not because circulation is absolutely required.

A46: If you forcefully gather it, it becomes warm. If you do not forcefully gather it, you may not even know whether it feels warm or cold. However, it does not become cold. Even if you sit for hours in a place where ice and snow are piled up, when you stand up, your hands are not frozen, your abdomen is not frozen, and there is nowhere in your body that feels chilled.
Therefore, the best state is when the breath comes in gently and goes out gently, and you feel nothing at all. If people are told to practice that way from the beginning, they often start doing other unnecessary things—so they are told to “circulate the energy.” Simply moving the energy up and down is fine, even for just one or two minutes.

A47: Yes, that can happen. When the breathing flows smoothly, there is no vibration. But when the breathing becomes obstructed, vibration occurs. When the Ki(Qi; Life Energy) becomes stagnant—when the Ki(Qi; Life Energy) is “stuck”—the body may begin to shake. This happens when the practice of regulating the breath (Josik: Tao breathing) is not yet fully refined. Some people shake their head; there are many different kinds of reactions. When that happens, you simply need to return to steady, balanced breathing.

A48: I practiced there simply because I lived at the foot of Gyeryongsan mountain. As for the place of practice, whether it is Gyeryongsan mountain, Bukhansan mountain, or any other mountain, you can practice wherever you feel drawn. There is no particular mountain that is “especially good.” People often say that certain mountains have better places for practice, or that one location is better than another. But in my experience—having practiced in many different places—the time when my practice went the best was when I was in prison for seven months.
The guards in the detention center do not ask why you are sitting. Even if they do ask, you can simply say you are sitting in a formal meditation posture. My practice was best there.
So, in truth, you could say there is no such thing as a “special” place for practice. You can practice well anywhere, as long as you practice diligently.
However, if you are practicing spells associated with actual magical incantations (Jwa-do), you must choose the place very carefully.
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Note:Master Bongwoo was imprisoned several times during the Japanese colonial period(1910-1945) because of his support for Korea’s independence.

A49: When you begin serious practice, sexual intercourse tends to be postponed for about fifteen days. For example, if someone was able to breathe for 30 seconds, after intercourse it may drop to about 25 seconds. Then, after about two weeks, it returns to its original level.
Among the Tao practitioners of the past, there were none who had no descendants. The fact that they had children shows that married life itself is not a major problem. The real issue is whether one engages in excessive indulgence or not. Having intercourse to the extent of having children makes no difference at all. It is fine as long as it is not done excessively.
In breathing practice, masturbation is just as harmful as intercourse. However, nocturnal emission (wet dreams) is not related to breathing practice.
Although the body releases semen in the same way, it happens naturally—it is not something you intentionally released. Even if a practitioner has a nocturnal emission, it does not reduce their breathing capacity.

A50: If you are practicing with focused awareness, it does not matter whether what appears in front of you is a blue flame or a red flame. Sometimes it appears, and sometimes it does not—those are temporary phenomena. Whether you sit ten times or twenty times, the one thing that should always appear each time you sit is Hoegwang Dojeon (回光導前 — “turning the light back to guide what lies ahead”).Now, the true ray of light is beginning to emerge.

A51: There is nothing to brag about. But young people often find such experiences fascinating, so they keep talking about them. Just remain quiet, observe what comes next, then observe what comes after that, and continue practicing.

A52: Don’t rush to attain Chogye; it is more urgent to master the breathing first.
If, through Tao breathing (Josik), you can maintain even one full minute, then when you open a book and close it right away, you will remember it immediately. Even if you only glance at it once and close it, if it contains twenty characters, all twenty characters enter at once, as if they were captured in a photograph.
When you reach that level, your training has begun to show real progress. If you cannot do that, you should understand that your practice is still insufficient.
As your ability increases further, you will be able to read five or six pages. After slowly reading those five or six pages, you close the book and sit quietly.
Then it appears before you as clearly as if you were seeing it with your eyes open. At that level, it can be called Chogye—the first level of enlightenment. If it is not like that, then it is not Chogye.