The Yoga of Breath

Have you noticed that both the first act at birth and the last act at death is tied to the Breath? Indeed, one of the core characteristics of all living organisms is breathing. All indigenous cultures have some of breath-work embedded in their meditative modalities or spiritual activities.

?At the macro level of natural ecology, humans exchange breath with the plant kingdom and in further resonance with other living things. Even at the micro level of life, spirituality and science unanimously concur that the ‘breath is the bridge between the body and the mind’. Thus, most illnesses or diseases have been linked to psychosomatic underpins. Almost all wisdom traditions have therapeutic systems that help body-mind integration for optimal human performance. However, Yoga as popularized by the Indian sub-continent, quickly gained global acceptance as an effective health care management system.

Today, the Yoga system is a vast collection of techniques and practices aimed at integrating mind, body and spirit to achieve a state of oneness with nature. Though different systems of yoga emphasize diverse approaches and techniques, ultimately they all lead to the same goal of unification. Essentially, yoga is practical and scientific as it emphasizes direct experience and observable results.?It is NOT a religion, but a practice of personal inquiry and exploration.?As the cultural and religious diversity of practitioners exist, yogic philosophy speaks universal truths that can be incorporated into any belief system.

Energetics of Yoga

Hatha yoga is one of the most common contemporary practice that employs the use of body postures (asana), breath regulation (pranayama),?energy locks (mudra) and?intuitive inner awareness (nadanusandhana). The syllables?Ha and Tha respectively encapsulates the passive and active energetic notations in postures and breath symbolized by the Sun (out-breath) and Moon (in-breath) that are characteristics of the human respiratory system. The proper regulation of these two energies establishes mind-body equilibrium.

?In aspects, the right nostril is also referred to (Sun or Body) while the left nostril is referred to (Moon or Mind). This is one of the main reason why the alternate breathing technique metabolically easily calms and purifies both body and mind inducing an overall balance of physical and mental energies.

?Yoga Breath-Work (Pranayama)

Prana means Life force while Yama is an extension. Pranayama therefore can be referred to as an expansion of Individual Energy into the Universal Energy. All breath work principally entail three basic processes: in-breath (purak), breath-retention (kumbak) and out-breath (rechak). The energetic dynamics and balance of breathing are profoundly amplified in Kundalini Yoga where three energy channels (nad?s) play major roles. The left side of the brain is controlled through the right nostril (pingala nad?) while the right side of the brain is controlled by the left nostril (ida nad?) with both connected to the center of the spinal cord (sushumana nad?).?

Yoga breath-work is one of the most important aspects of a successful yoga practice even more important than the yoga postures. Yogic breathing techniques?are a vocabulary for communicating between the higher cerebrocortical (mind) brain, and the lower limbic and hind-brain autonomic structures. Conscious breathing initiates autonomic healing mechanisms.

In medical science, Hypoxia is known as decrease in oxygen percentage while Anoxia is critical lack of oxygen. Both Hypoxia and Anoxia conditions can be fatal to a human. Maximum 8 to 10 minutes in anoxia condition can easily lead to brain damage or death. Human brain needs 20% of pure enriched oxygen with 680 – 720 ml of blood per minute. This is where breath-work (pranayama) play very a vital role.

?Major Benefits of Breath-Work

The benefits of Pranayama practice has been well documented including its effects on the autonomic nervous system, increased lung capacity; psychological stress, depression, blood pressure and heart rate, metabolic efficiency and obesity, memory; improved blood circulation and the removal of waste gases such as carbon dioxide.

Further studies reveal yoga capacity to increases parasympathetic tone, decrease sympathetic activity, and improve cardiovascular and respiratory functions, decreasing the effect of stress and strain on the body to improve physical and mental health. It also helps in managing conditions like post-menu pausal syndrome, asthma, bronchitis, Parkinson and has also been advocated for the treatment of anxiety disorder as it attenuates cardiac autonomic responses in practitioners.

Interestingly, breathing techniques when employed properly facilitates body detoxification and encourages optimal blood circulation. As a consequence,?metabolic by-products and environmental agents?are eliminated from the body and certain undesired processes, such as aging, are delayed. But a few of the more common types are Nad? Sodhana, Ujjayi?Pranayama, nostril breathing with an audible breath; Antara Kumbhaka, retention of the breath after inhalation; and Bahya Kumbhaka, retention of the breath after exhalation.

The yoga path to health is unique because it addresses every aspect of life rather than considering each body part or system separately. Although all yoga is potentially therapeutic and healing, yoga therapy is the specific application of yogic tools - postures, breath-work, meditation techniques, and more - to address specific physical, mental, and emotional needs.

Various medical journals reveal the multi-tiered benefits of yoga practice.?Likewise those in the field of mental health often recommend yoga to clients or may even integrate its aspects into their work.?

OluwaFemi Johnson, CMAP, AYP, E-RYT 500+

Yoga & Meditation Teacher