The word ‘Pranayam’ ¼izk.kk;ke½ comprises of two words Praan ¼izk.k½ and Aayaam ¼vk;ke½. The meaning of the word Prana in common use does not express itself fully. It is either used to indicate consciousness or the breath we inhale. Consciousness enters the body of a living being with the first breath and departs with the last. In reality Prana is the carrier of consciousness and not the consciousness itself. Therefore the meaning attached to this word is only synonymous. The reference of the meaning to the breath we inhale and exhale is correct but it represents only one of the five major and five deputizing functions of the entire energy complex known as Prana. The five major Prana energies ¼izk.k’kfDr½ are Prana ¼izk.k½, Apaan ¼viku½, Vyaan ¼O;ku½, Udaan ¼mnku½ and Samaan ¼leku½ and the five deputizing Prana energies are Naag ¼ukx½, Koorma ¼dweZ½, Krukar ¼d`dj½, Devdatta ¼nsonRr½ and Dhananjaya ¼/kuat;½. These energies are ever active in your body and at the same time keep you active throughout your life span. The word Aayaam means dimension and in a wider sense it means constraints and extents both. Thus collectively Pranayam means not only breathing to your optimum capacity but also the optimum utilization of all the Prana energies while maintaining their relative balance within desirable limits.

You start breathing right from the moment you are born and continue doing so till your end yet you seldom give any thought to this process. It is a spontaneous process that continues automatically without your awareness. However, due to ignorance many people breathe incorrectly. Breath control is an essential tool for concentration, mental cool, courage and good health. Techniques of controlled breathing enable you to breathe deeply, slowly and at a uniform pace. In the deep breathing process downward pressure and movement of the diaphragm provides a healthy massage to every organ in the abdominal region, which in turn ensures richer blood supply and hence, purification of these organs. This is a natural and essential secondary function of the breathing process. Shallow breathing causes insufficient supply of oxygen to the body, thereby causing many a functional disorders of circulatory, digestive and nervous systems. Every normal and healthy child breathes naturally in a correct manner however, in the process of growing when he picks up wronged thought forms and habits he switches over to incorrect breathing, which manifests negative repercussions in his life. Regular practice of Pranayam restores good physical and mental health.

A normal human being sitting in a physically and mentally relaxed state inhales and exhales sixteen times every minute inhaling half a liter of air each time. This means that in such a relaxed state a normal human body needs approximately eight liters of air per minute. If you are agitated physically by some action or mentally by some emotion, your rate of breathing starts increasing. You can compensate this additional requirement of oxygen either by inhaling more air per inhalation or by breathing faster than sixteen cycles per minute. Usually you choose the second option but if the agitation continues longer, you are soon out of breath. Now the entire crux of Pranayam lies in the fact that though you breathe half a liter of air per inhalation, the average capacity of your lungs is more than three liters. If you start inhaling one liter or even two liters per inhalation your rate of breathing will drop to eight or four times per minute instead of sixteen. You are fully aware that when you are physically exerting, tired, sick, angry, anxious, nervous or afraid your breathing rate becomes faster because it is the barometer of your physical and mental health. Pranayam brings down your breathing rate considerably because of optimum utilization of your breathing capacity, thereby helping you maintain your mental cool amidst every turmoil.

Your lungs are two large balloons inflating and deflating with every inhalation and exhalation within the chest cavity. They need enough space for expansion during inhalation and enough contraction to squeeze out maximum quantity of used air during exhalation. A tough muscular curtain called diaphragm separates the chest and abdominal regions. When relaxed it is domed upwards within the chest cavity. During inhalation the dome flattens and pushes the diaphragm downwards and compresses the entire abdominal region, which in turn pushes the outer wall of the stomach and abdomen outwards. This provides space for the lungs to expand. In addition to this the outward expansion of the ribcage expanding the chest and upward movement of the collarbones also provide space for lungs to expand. All these three expansions put together afford the optimum expansion of lungs. During exhalation the stomach contracts, pushing the diaphragm upwards in the dome shape, ribcage caves inwards and the collarbones move downwards contracting the lungs within the chest cavity causing them to release the used air. From this explanation it must be clear to you now that for breathing to your optimum capacity you must allow your stomach, ribcage and collarbones to expand fully within their comfortable limits while inhaling and contract them fully while exhaling. More emphasis is laid on abdominal breathing because the downward movement of diaphragm contributes up to 65% of the expansion capacity of lungs, which works out to two liters and at the same time it massages all the organs in the abdominal region. The ribcage and collarbones contribute only 25% and 10% of the expansion capacity respectively.

Padmasan Vajrasan

Clothing and Environment: Wear light and loose clothes that do not restrict free movement of abdomen, chest and shoulder blades. Practice Pranayam in open air or a well-ventilated room, free from impure air and stink. You should practice Pranayam early in the morning on empty stomach and empty bladder and in the evening when at least four hours have lapsed after your last meal. Do not forget to urinate before Pranayam. Do not eat or drink for at least half an hour after Pranayam.

Awareness: Stay aware of every inhalation, exhalation and every movement of your stomach, ribcage and collarbones. Stay aware of everything you do through the entire practice. Your mind may want to wander everywhere and you must keep track of it. Don’t fight the tendency of your mind to roam but gently ask yourself a question; "Why am I thinking of things that are irrelevant to this practice, which is so important for my well being?"

Nadi means the psychic passage of Prana energies through entire body and Shodhana means purification. This technique purifies the passages of Prana energies and frees them from all obstacles. It harmonizes the entire metabolism, calms the mind thereby improving concentration.

Sit in Vajrasan or any other comfortable posture that allows your spine, back, neck and head remain relaxed but upright. Close your eyes and observe your breath, observe how air flows in and out of your nostrils.

Close your right nostril with your thumb. Slowly inhale through the left nostril allowing first your abdomen to expand freely to its maximum, then the rib cage and finally the collarbone. Avoid using force unnecessarily. Do not tense your neck, back or shoulder muscles. Be aware of the entire process. When your lungs are full close your left nostril with ring finger and open the right. Exhale through the right nostril slowly first contracting the abdomen to its maximum, then the rib cage and finally the collarbone. When you have emptied your lungs fully inhale slowly through your right nostril staying aware of the expansion of your abdomen, ribcage and collarbone. Close your right nostril with the thumb and open your left nostril. Exhale through the left nostril slowly staying aware of the contraction of abdomen, ribcage and collarbone. Stay aware of the entire process.

Inhaling from left and exhaling from the right and then inhaling from the right and exhaling from the left completes one cycle of Nadi Shodhan. Repeat this cycle five times. Gradually increase the number of cycles up to ten over a period of one month. You do not need to increase beyond ten. Read the technique several time till you understand it perfectly. Never, ever, never ever, never begin your Pranayam with the right nostril.

Anulom, Vilom means spontaneous reversal. Prana Shuddhi means purification of the flow of Prana through the entire body. The technique is the same as explained in Nadi Shodhan except the difference that Nasagra Mudra is not applied with this technique. You have to control the flow of air through left and right nostrils with awareness. This is an advanced technique and difficult in the beginning but when mastered with some initial efforts it enhances your concentration manifolds, totally relaxes your body and mind and helps induce a state of deep meditation.

Sit in Vajrasan as explained earlier and observe the breathing process. Be aware of every inhalation and exhalation. Close your eyes and be aware of the inside of the bridge of your nose and your left nostril. Feel as though you are breathing in and out through your left nostril only. Feel the air touching the edge of your left nostril, then the bridge and the nasal tract, the glottis and insides of your lungs. While exhalation trace the passage of air backward to your left nostril. With the help of concentration and patience you will succeed. Don’t feel too proud as almost everyone can do it, instead shift your awareness to your right nostril and concentrate on breathing in and out of the right nostril only.

Once you have achieved this much start alternating your breath from left to right and right to left nostril. Inhale from left nostril and exhale from the right. Then inhale from the right nostril and exhale from the left. Inhaling from left and exhaling from the right and then inhaling from the right and exhaling from the left without using Nasagra Mudra completes one cycle of Anulom-Vilom. Repeat four cycles.

After completing four cycles of Anulom-Vilom practice one round of Prana Shuddhi as explained hereunder. In this process you breathe in and out through both nostrils simultaneously. This is much simpler than Anulom-Vilom. Imagine the airflow from the two nostrils as two arms of an inverted ‘V’ converging at the bridge of the nose while inhaling and the airflow from inside diverging from the bridge into the two nostrils while exhaling.

Practice as many cycles of Anulom-Vilom and Prana Shuddhi as possible. Once you get used to it you will not need any specific posture and you will be able to practice it while standing, travelling or studying. At that juncture you will realise what the power of concentration means.

Mahat means the most important or the greatest. This name lives its reputation by way of cleansing your blood and entire respiratory tract, removing all toxins from your body, filling you with energy and bringing a glow of good health on your face. Young ladies will save a lot of money on facials if they practice this technique regularly.

In this technique you need to use three Bandhas namely Moolabandh ¼ewycU/k½, Udian Bandh ¼mfM;ku cU/k½ and Jalandhar Bandh ¼tkyU/kj cU/k½ and one Mudra called Saptadwar Mudra ¼lIr}kj eqnzk½.

Moolabandha: Contracting your rectum tightly and keeping it contracted for awhile causes Moolabandha. It is called so because it controls the Mooladhar Chakra ¼ewyk/kkj pdz½, which is located at the centre of perineum, the space between your anus and genitals. Application of Moolabandha induces bravery, control over your instincts and brings energy.

The Technique: Sit in Vajrasan as explained earlier. Relax and observe your breath. Press your right nostril and breathe in deeply through the left allowing your stomach, abdomen, ribcage and collarbones to expand to their full capacity. Hold your breath. Apply Moolabandha, Udian Bandha, Saptadwar Mudra and Jalandhar Bandha sequentially. Lifting of your elbows upwards as far as possible will ensure a perfect Jalandhar Bandha. Hold in this position and apply pressure from within as though you want to exhale but do not exhale as far as you can hold while holding all Bandhas and Mudra at the same time. When you feel a great urge to exhale beyond which you can’t hold, release all Bandhas and the Mudra simultaneously and exhale. If you have held the air inside long enough, and applied the Bandhas correctly the breath will come out like a shot.

Relax and feel the blood rushing to your face and feel your body becoming lighter than before. Allow your breath to attain an even pace and repeat this exercise thrice.

It does not take more than twenty minutes to practice all the above techniques. However, these twenty minutes will compensate themselves by indirectly adding two extra hours to your day through enhanced concentration, energy and efficiency.