Pranayam:
Elementary exercises Hatha Yoga
Pradipka lays great stress on
yogic breathing for “all life exists only from breath to breath,” and it said
that “he who breathes half, only lives half.” We must therefore develop
air-hunger. For “vital airs,” says Hippocrates, “is the real pabulum vitae.”
Deep breathing is a great, positive aid to self-culture and helps in retaining
health, youth and longevity. The habit of conscious deep breathing gives a good
exercise to the respiratory organs and ensures a free circulation of blood.
Respiration consists of alternate expansion and contraction as the air is drawn
in or expelled out from the lungs, and these are termed inhalation
(inspiration) and exhalation (expiration) respectively. Each of these is
followed by a suspensory pause within and without. Thus pranayam has four
processes, namely: Puraka or inhalation, Antar Kumbhak or retention within, and
Rechaka or exhalation followed by Vahya Kumbhak or Sunyaka, i.e., expiratory
pause. This can be done through both the nostrils very, very slowly, and should
be repeated ten to twenty times in the morning and in the evening for about
three months. One may start with puraka and Rechaka and after some time add the
other two practices of standstill pauses (Antar and Vahya Kumbhaka) for a few
seconds. By practices and perseverance, one can acquire efficiency in yogic
breathing. The suspending of breath at will after in-breathing or
out-breathing. The suspending of breath at will after in-breathing or
out-breathing, is called Kevalya Kumbhaka. |