SPIRITUM

"Spiritum" is the Latin word translated as "breathe."

It means to live, to be animated. 

The English word "spirit" reflects this meaning. 

Genesis 2:7  

And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

What does it mean to breathe? 




Simply and scientifically, it means:

We measure our lives in breaths.

"Older children and adults, when resting, usually breathe about 12-20 times per minute. Over the course of a day, that adds up to 17,000-30,000 breaths per day — or more!"  

Or we don't.

We talk of conscious breathing as an act of grounding, 

to remind ourselves of our worth and purpose.

When we want to feel united, we talk of "breathing together."

In some cultures, people exchange breath as a sacred greeting.

"The honi is a Polynesian greeting in which two people greet each other by pressing noses and inhaling at the same time. This is very honorific as this represents the exchange of the ha-- the breath of life--, and mana-- spiritual power between two people. This act and the concepts behind it are very unusual to western audiences and care should be taken to explain the spirituality and sacredness of this simple act of greeting."
 --Renee Bishaw, Hawaiian Greeting/Protocol 

 

When we fall in love, we want to share the same breath. 

And of course, everything can change in a breath.

“From the house of unbelief
to true religion
is a single breath;

From the world of doubt
to certainty
is a single breath;

Enjoy this precious single breath,

for the harvest
of our whole lives

is that same one breath.” 


--Omar Khayyam, Quatrains- Ballades

The harvest of our our whole lives is that same one breath.

In the spirit of the Hawaiian culture,
Mahalo
[Ma = In] + [hâ = breath] + [alo = presence, front, face]
"(May you be) in (Divine) Breath.