Bastrika: Creating the Fire of Change

We all know that yoga stretches the body and creates strength and physical balance, but what is really responsible for the astounding changes that happen to us? If we look deeper into what influences us, you will realize that it is prana that is the essence of what we are and why we are the way we are.

Prana is power, essence, energy and the force that keeps us alive. Whatever happens to our prana then manifests in the body, mind and energy as noticeable changes. When we move, it changes our prana; when we breathe, it changes our prana; when we think, it changes our prana also. So, everything we do influences our prana. This is a fundamental reality that we must understand if we are going to get the best results from our yoga.

Yoga works by activating our prana with consciousness and intention. The first part of yoga training is the effort to activate our energy and bring it into connection with our mind and our willpower. Then we start to increase our personal prana and work with it more intensely. When we can do this, more parts of the practice become available to us and we can do yoga that truly changes our lives.

For example, if we do not have stable, powerful prana, we cannot concentrate well or stay connected during the practice. Our minds might wander or our body rebels against the poses and we lose energy. When we activate the prana on a higher level of intensity and awareness, the changes have a lasting and positive effect.

Traditionally, the key to yoga is in the breath. The way we breathe has a most direct influence on the quality of the prana. Yoga has its special method of breathing called Pranayama. There are quite a number of Pranayama techniques and each one has a special effect. One of the most effective techniques in yoga is the breath called Bastrika: the bellows breath.

A bellows is the air pump that was used to blow air onto a fire to make it hotter. The force responsible for change in the human body (and in the universe) is called Agni, which means fire of all types. Breathing is the main way to stoke our personal fire and make it hotter, thus creating the opportunity for change. Ujjayi breathing is the most common way to stoke our inner fire, but it works more gently and slowly than some of the more intense Pranayamas.

Bastrika is a powerful breath that creates a heightened intensity on both inhale and exhale, just like the bellows that stokes a blacksmith’s fire. At some point in the practice, especially early on, it’s important to increase the heat of our internal fire. You can use movement to bring the heat up, or a heated room, but the best way is to use Bastrika.

Here is one way you could approach it: after some Sun Salutes and heating poses, sit down on your heels and touch your fingertips to your shoulders. Exhale strongly and twist to one side and inhale strongly and come back to centre. Then do the other side. Do it fairly quickly with rapid, intense breath. It sounds and feels a lot like Ujjyai but faster and stronger. Keep going like this for 20-50 cycles with strong Bastrika breathing. The movement is already heating, but adding the intensity of inhale and exhale will stimulate the prana and increase the internal agni.

After you are finished with the Bastrika, return to the neutral centred position and go back to Ujjayi and simply feel the intensity of the prana and its movement. You will know you have done it right when you feel, after you stop the Bastrika, that the feeling in the body and prana is quite different than it was before you started. This is how you know that you are accessing deeper levels of pranic transformation. Stay in the neutral position and breathe until you feel the prana has gone back towards its normal state. Then continue the rest of your practice.

This is a way to gradually go deeper and increase your personal power and prana. Whenever you feel a deep change in the prana, be sure to stop for a short while and really experience what is happening. Through this method, you will get a deeper connection to prana and the power of yoga practice.

If you want to learn more about prana and the energetic aspects of yoga, be sure to join us on our Prana and Pranayama Advanced Module where you will learn many ways to work deeply into the hidden power and beauty of yoga practice. If you have not done a 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training, join us on our Foundations of Swara Yoga Teacher Training to learn the essence of integrated yoga practice. See you on the mat!