By Victor M Fontane
Pranayama is an ancient breath technique that originates from yogic practices in India. It involves controlling your breath in different styles and lengths. It has more recently gained popularity in the western world because of the many health benefits that come from a pranayama practice.
In Sanskrit, prana means "vital life force", and yama means to gain control. In yoga, breath is associated with prana, thus, pranayama is a means to elevate the prana shakti, or life energies. Pranayama is described in Hindu texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.
Breathing is the link between body and mind in the yoga practice. The breath can lead the body toward wellness and the mind toward calmness. In truth, breathing is a foundational link between body and mind, period.
Breathing is an involuntary process that is also partly voluntary. We have no direct control over other involuntary body functions such as digestion, hormone secretions, or our immune system, but we do have a degree of voluntary control over the breath. Furthermore, breathing is a vital life function. This is a unique combination. Thus breathing is a voluntary doorway to the involuntary body, a conscious doorway to the subconscious mind.
According to Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, pranayama is a preparatory practice, required prior to the more advanced techniques of pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses), dharana (concentration) and dhyana (meditation), leading to the ultimate stage of samadhi (enlightenment). There are four types of pranayama (modification of inhalation, modification of exhalation, stoppage of breath as a modification, and the fourth which transcends the subject matter of inhalation and exhalation).
PRANAVA MUDRA FOR PRANAYAMA (BODY GESTURES & MENTAL ATTITUDES)The first two fingers of the right hand palm are to be curved and last two fingers are to be kept straight and to be held together. Now straighten the thumb and bending the right hand in the elbow, place the curved fingers in such a way that they come near the lips. Keep the hand from shoulder to elbow glued to the chest. Keep the right hand thumb on the right side of the nose and last two fingers on the left side of the nose. Now by pressing the thumb, the nasal cavity on the right side can be closed and by pressing the last two fingers left side cavity can be closed. The pressure should be light and on just below the nasal bone, where the fleshy part begins. With this arrangement of the fingers, one can close any of the two nasal cavities. Here only the movement of thumb and the last two fingers is expected.
Movement of other parts should be avoided. The face should be kept quite gay and relaxed in order to practice breathing more effectively. Further, in order to practice the cycle of inhaling and exhaling, six supplementary types are given. In all these types, the speed of breathing is more. These are actually the types of quick breathing. While practicing these types one should first sit in one of the following Asanas: Padmasana, Vajrasana or Swastikasana. Then, the left hand should be kept in Dhyana Mudra and the right hand in Pranava Mudra. The eyes should be closed and the whole attention should be concentrated on breathing so that it will be possible to acquire it. Type - 1 Keep both the nostrils open and then inhale and exhale with both the nasal passages. This type is nothing but quick breathing with both the nasal cavities. One should inhale and exhale with as much speed as possible and for as much time as feasible. Type - 2 Take up Pranava Mudra and close the right nostril with the help of the thumb of the right hand, and inhale with left nostril and also exhale through the same nasal passage. In brief this type can be described as quick breathing with the left nostril. Type - 3 In this type left nostril is to be closed and the quick breathing is done with the right nostril. Type - 4 In this type close the right nostril, and inhale with the left nostril, and then immediately close left nostril and exhale with the right nostril. In this way try quick breathing by changing the nostrils. Type - 5 This type of breathing is just opposite the previous one, that is, the left nostril is closed and inhaling is done with the right nostril, then immediately closing the right nostril, exhaling is done with the left nostril. Type - 6 This type of breathing is designed by combining previous two types i.e., type 4 and type 5. First inhale with left nostril and exhale with right one, then inhale with right nostril and exhale with left nostril. Later continue the same process i.e. inhaling & exhaling with left and right nostrils alternately. Further switch to fast breathing by increasing the speed of breathing. After sufficient practice the speed of breathing can be increased immensely. Initially one should start with eleven cycles of breathing, and it should be increased to one hundred and twenty one without any fear. However, later the breathing should be made a part of daily practice of other Asanas, and be practiced for two to three minutes. All these types can also be practiced with slow inhalation and exhalation. Here it is important to note that practicing these types of breathing does not mean doing Pranayama. This is simply a preparation of the actual practice of Pranayama.
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