Pranayama - Breathing (intro)

You listen to a series of audio files called ‘pranayama’. Pranayama means ‘control of the breath’ in Sanskrit.

This is the art of yoga breathing – consisting of the regulation and refinement of the inhalation, exhalation and retention of breath.

The breath and the mind are closely linked. Usually the state of the mind affects the breath. It becomes agitated and shallow during moments of excitement. When it is quit and deep, the mind becomes calm. In pranayama, the breath is used to change the mental state.

The mind is trained to follow the course of the breath, and by dosing so, its scattered thoughts are channelled inwards. In pranayama, the mind becomes calm which leads to a state of quietude. With practice, this is prolonged and deepened. This increased level of inner awareness of emotions and tensions in your body is key to pause and reflect before acting giving you opportunities to behave with deliberate calm and bounded optimism.

When you do that, instinctive biological reactions will start working for you and not against you. Not only will practice of pranayama leads to increased effectiveness but it is also essential to managing personal health and energy. Different types of pranayama induce different state of awareness.

Before proceeding with the different pranayama, select the audio file ‘savasana’ first and then select the following series of pranayama in chronological order.