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Pranayama has gone mainstream

In the past few years, I’ve come across all kinds of professionals—from doctors to school teachers—who are telling people to breathe. Deepen your breath and count to four, for example, as you inhale. Hold for four. Exhale for four. Hold for four. That’s known as box breathing.

A few breaths are often just what we need to feel better in body, mind, and spirit. Controlled breathing gives us time to pause, rest, and think more clearly.

What does pranayama mean?

The meaning of the Sanskrit word prana is energy (not breath). The word yama has many definitions. Interestingly, in many Eastern traditions, Yama is the name given to the god of death. What is the difference between life and death? It is our breath.

But generally, yama is translated as restraint or control, particularly in context of the yogic practices. So pranayamameans energy control.

Think about how energized you feel after taking a walk in the fresh air. Or, if you’re suddenly angry, a few deep breaths will help you calm down. Pranayama=energy control.

Crying is a way for us to deepen our breath when we are overcome by sadness. The release helps to bring us back into balance again. We sigh out automatically when we feel stress, we gasp when we’re scared, and we yawn when we’re tired. This is how our autonomic responses help us regain equilibrium.

In yoga, we apply our minds to the breath, consciously, to steady our energy levels. We are at our best when we are neither under-stimulated nor overstimulated. Breath control is a way to achieve a comfortable and awakened energetic state. That is the purpose of pranayama.

Observe the breath

My teacher Felicia Pavlovic says, “the body is a shadow of the breath.” In yoga, we purposefully move to the rhythm of our inhalations and exhalations. If our movements are too quick, our breath will be shallow. That’s a sign that something is out of balance. As we deepen and lengthen our breath, our bodies will slow down and relax.

Try to observe your breath, just as it is naturally, and see what it tells you about how you’re feeling. When you wake up in the morning, is your breath deep and long? Do you feel refreshed and relaxed?

As you go about your activities of the day, notice if your breath becomes shallow and rapid. Is your body stiffening up? Are there spaces between your breaths? Do you hold your breath if you’re concentrating or distracted? As your breath naturally cycles through different depths and rhythms, notice how your mood, clarity of mind, and physical sensations change as well.

The practice of pranayama

In future posts and videos, I’ll describe some of the main types of pranayama used in yoga. These include:

  • ujjayi (wave breath)
  • nādī śodhana (alternate nostril breathing)
  • sītalī (cooling breath)
  • kapālabhāti (skull shining breath)

By making breath work a regular practice, you’ll see that the more we’re able to control our breath, the more control we have over our energy, our physical body, and our moods.

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