Introduction to Pranayama

Master your Prana, Master your Life

“As the rising sun slowly disperses the darkness of night, pranayama removes the impurities & refines the sadhaka and prepares his body & mind to become fit

for concentration (dharana) & meditation (dhyana)”

-Patanjali Yoga Sutra, II, 52, 53.

Prana = Universal life force. Ayama = Extension, expansion or control

Inhaling & exhalation of breath purifies & cleanses us.

• The breath can be used to energise us when we are tired.
• It can also be used to calm us down when agitated/stressed.

In short, we can always be in control of how we feel, by regulating the breath, it is the bridge between our body & mind.

This is WAY better than using stimulants because they have side effects.

Breathing is 100% natural & Pranayama fills your body with fresh clean energy!

Performing Pranayama before meditation is a surefire way of calming the mind and turning our attention inward, making meditation effortless.

SOME BASICS FIRST

Our breath consists of four parts.

• Inhale (Puraka)
• Exhale (Rechaka)
• Pauses between both (Kumbhaka).

The pause after inhaling is Antar Kumbhaka.

The pause after exhaling is Bahya Kumbhaka.

All pranayama techniques are based on variations of these 4 elements (inhale, exhale & 2 pauses).

Our breathing ratio

We should be aware of our breathing ratio…the length of inhale, pause, length of exhale, pause.

A core teaching of Pranayama is that a practice should focus on lengthening the exhale (Rechak). With time, the better we get at this, the easier it becomes to enter a meditative state.

This is where mantra chanting is very useful, for example, when chanting OM aloud, we are automatically lengthening the exhale when we go for a long OMMmmmmmmmmmm.

So for example

1:1 means inhale 1 count, exhale 1 count

1:2 means inhale 1 count, exhale 2 counts

1:1:2 means inhale 1 count, pause (antar kumbhaka) 1 count, exhale 2 counts.

On average, we breathe 15 times per second.

So if a breath is 4 seconds, with no pauses, the ratio is 2:2

Working to improve that ratio would look like this

2:3, 2:4 Then 3:6, 4:8. 5:10

These are just examples, however to give you some context.

If your breathing ratio is 5:10

Meaning you take 15 seconds per breath.

Now you’re only breathing 4 times per minute instead of 15.

Our lifespan (and speed of ageing) depends on our breathing.

That’s why dogs have a relatively short lifespan to humans, because they breathe much faster.

Whereas a turtle can live a couple of hundred years, due to its slow breathing.

By slowing down your breathing (naturally), you can significantly slow down the process of ageing, and really improve your current health.

TYPES OF PRANAYAMA (Continued in the online course)

To give you the power to feel good at all times, I’m sharing with you Pranayamas that help with

• Calming the mind for meditation & sleep
• Energizing yourself when tired

Both of these types work to rid the body of toxins, wash away mental clutter & make the mind one-pointed & fit for meditation.

All the Pranayamas have a video demonstration, please watch the videos to learn the technique properly.

The full package of Pranayama’s is available in the course Reshape Your Reality, available on the website!

Peace & Love

Rishi