According to Patanjali, "Pranayama is the regulation of the incoming and outgoing flow of breath with retention. It is to be practiced after perfection in asana is attained." (II.49) Whoa. Wait, what? I have to perfect asanas before I do pranayama? So that will be like...forever? Well...no. This is one of those chicken and the egg conundrums. You must attain stillness of the mind (perfection in asana) in order to practice pranayama, and you must practice pranayama to stabilize energy and consciousness and to prepare the mind for concentration. And so, we practice both.
I believe the best explanation is experience so I'm going to save the rest of the theory for a later date. Here's a simple pranayama practice. Try doing this daily, before bed, for a week and see how you feel. You may want to find a private place to do this if your family is around (or include them!).....it admittedly looks a little ridiculous.
Brahmari Pranayama
- Sit in any comfortable posture with the spine and head erect.
- Close your eyes gently and relax all your muscles.
- Keeping your lips closed, relax your jaw. Your teeth should be slightly separated throughout the practice.
- Spend a few moments being aware of your natural breath as it passes in and out of the body.
- Bring your hands up to your ears, with the elbows pointed out to the side, and plus your ears with the index fingers.
- Bring awareness to the eyebrow center (third eye)
- Inhale and exhale deeply through the nose and make a smooth and steady buzzing sound from behind the throat bringing the sound through the nasal passages.
- Focus your awareness on the vibrations inside the head space. Do it consciously and slowly.
- Practice for 10 minutes.
I'd love to know how it goes! =) Share your experiences! I'll let you know in a week what the benefits of this practice are "supposed" to be.
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