Pranayama and Radiance
It’s an established fact that the breath is the foundation of life. The yogis have often said that the average person can go for 2 weeks without water, 1 week without food but only a few minutes without breath. It’s our most vital and influential function, but not just to keep our physical body operating. The influence of breath and the corresponding prana (life-force) touches every part of our worldly existence, from levels of energy and enthusiasm to the functioning of our perceptions and thoughts.
Yogis were not content to just let nature assume its meandering course, because life can so easily take humans into imbalance (and even illness) if we are not deeply aware of our habits and patterns. Thus, the Yogis developed a system called Hatha Yoga, which was designed to teach seekers how to grab ahold of their breath, energy, health and consciousness and influence it in a positive and wise way.
It is Hatha Yoga that we all practice when we jump on the mat and start moving and breathing. However, there is much more to Hatha Yoga than most of us suspect because we get such a limited exposure to its transformative powers. Asana is actually the second step in a 5-layered approach to transformation. The first step is actually s process of physical and energetic purification called Shatkarma, the 6 actions. These are 6 major cleansing techniques that drive illness and toxins out of the body. Some are well-known such as the nasal cleaning called Neti and the purifying ‘breath of fire’ called Kapalabatti. Others are lesser known and have fallen out of favor.
The purification is an essential first step if one wants to grab ahold of one’s health and start to create conscious transformation and spiritual revolution. The second step is opening and strengthening through Asana, which is what most of us practice when we do yoga. The main purpose of Asana is not to stretch and strengthen the body but actually to refine and strengthen the flow of vital life force in the subtle body. The body functions due to the prana flowing in the channels and how well the body functions is dependent on how well the prana flows.
Asana is actually a preparation for the practices which directly work with prana, which is called Pranayama. This is much more than simply breathing, but breathing is where it begins. Most of us do not breathe particularly well overall. Good breathing supports life and poor breathing hampers it. Pranayama starts with teaching us how to breathe well and then goes on to teach us how to work directly with life force by changing the nature of the breath through specialized breath techniques.
Pranayama is a very powerful and fascinating stage of Hatha Yoga practice. It demands a lengthy and thorough investment of time and energy to unlock its secrets. There are 2 major parts to yogic breathwork: one of which involves increasing the time one can spend with the breath in stillness (kumbhaka) and the other being the refinement of the flow of the breath through the nostrils (with practices like Nadi Shodhana.) This type of breathing gives the Yogi access to special and unique flows of prana which actually transform the very nature of the prana and thus the nature of the entire being.
Yogis are historically known to be people who have access to states of radiant, glowing health (called ‘prabhu’) as well as access to states of higher consciousness. These manifestations of heightened existence are largely due to the practice of Pranayama and the refinement of prana. Most of us live ordinary lives due to the fact that we don’t practice anything extraordinary. Pranayama is one of the most amazing practices available to us and can be learned by anyone, if they simply take the time to learn and explore it.
In another blog post we will discuss the later stages of Hatha Yoga and how they work. Stay tuned!
At Swara Yoga Academy, we have created a system of Pranayama practice that makes breathwork easy for anyone to learn, practice and teach. We call this method ‘Swara Yoga’. Through our step-by-step Swara Yoga method, students can explore the fascinating universe of yogic energy cultivation and truly and permanently change the way the flow through and experience the world. We begin with purifications and then develop breath-based asana practice. From there, we unlock the wonders of Pranayama, Bandhas, Mudras and Mantras as well as meditation and other hidden practices. Join us on our Prana and Pranayama Yoga Teacher Training and immerse yourself in this hidden world!
