You can discover your state of mind by the quality of your breath—is it ragged or tight, shallow or rapid? . . . Whenever things get fraught or scattered, you can always return to the breath for as long as you need to ground yourself again.

Joan Jiko Halifax (1942 CE-), Joan Jiko Halifax is an American Zen Buddhist teacher, anthropologist, ecologist, civil rights activist, hospice caregiver, and the author of several books on Buddhism and spirituality. She currently serves as abbot and guiding teacher of Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a Zen Peacemaker community which she founded in 1990.