BREATHING TECHNIQUES

Articles In This Section:

· YOUR BODY CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT AIR

· PHYSIOLOGY OF BREATHING

· YOGA HELPS WITH YOUR BREATHING

· PRANAYAMA ISN'T ALL OF THE BREATHING

· YOGA METHOD FOR BREATHING

· YOGA POSES

· MASTERING THE YOGA TECHNIQUES

· BREATHING TECHNIQUES

· ADVANCED YOGIS

Sit tailor fashion or stand relaxed, fold the tongue so that its tip touches the upper palate, and draw air through the mouth with a hissing sound. Retain the breath briefly without discomfort. Afterwards exhale through both nostrils. Another method for exhaling is again through the mouth, with teeth closed. Repeat three times, then rest. Neither this nor the exercise which follows should be done out-of-doors or in a chilly room, because of the mouth-breathing involved. Shalt is an exercise for purification of the blood. It is done as follows: Protrude the tongue slightly and fold it like a tube.

Again, draw the air in through the mouth with a hissing sound, retain briefly, then exhale through both nostrils. Three times daily is enough. The Yogis say this practice "cools the system," and helps the body get rid of dyspepsia, fever, bilious disorders and the effects of poison. Bastrika relieves inflammation of the throat, clears the sinuses, cures diseases of the nose and chest and gets rid of asthma, as well as strengthening the lungs. It destroys the germs which give rise to upper respiratory disorders and gives warmth to the body in cold weather—surely a boon to those of us who live in vast, crowded urban centers with their air pollution and smog. Here is how it is practiced:

Sit tailor fashion on the floor. Start a brief rapid succession of expulsions of breath, one after another. Having done ten or twelve, draw in the breath with the deepest possible inhalation. Then suspend breathing for a few seconds, but not long enough to feel strain. Repeat three times. Like other Yoga breathing practices, this exercise must not be continued to excess.

Later on, as you learn to assume Yoga poses, or asana, you may choose to do your breathing exercises while practicing one of them. This, however, is not at all necessary. What is necessary is for you to feel comfortable and relaxed when you start. This means that your clothes must be loose and never binding, that you shut out all unnecessary noise and that there be no disturbing influences in the room.

The more you increase your supply of prana, the greater will be your sense of well-being. In time, as you gain confidence in your ability to control self, you may even be able to achieve what the Yogis do—utilize prana for healing by consciously directing its currents to any unhealthy part of your body. What the exact process is by which this vital force acts to marshal the resources of the human body we cannot, of course, attempt to define. Nevertheless with practice even a Western student should be able to close his eyes—this in order to concentrate more perfectly—and by fixing his mind upon the sick area effect an improvement.