Pranayama- Breathing Exercises

Pranayama is a traditional system of yogic breathing exercises. Pranayama can be practiced on its own or as a preparation for other meditation exercises. The aim of pranayama is to control our breathing and thus help to control our thoughts. If we practice pranayama in the correct way, we can bring peace and purity into our inner system. If we practice pranayama sincerely it can help improve our concentration and improve our physical health.

"Prana" means life breath. "Yama" means control. Pranayama is the systematic effort to regulate our breathing.

In pranayama there are three basic stages of systematic breathing. The first stage is inhalation; this is called puraka. The second is retention, where we hold our breath; this is called kumbhaka. The final stage is exhalation; this is called rechaka. When we breathe in we can repeat silently puraka. When exhaling we can repeat like a mantra kumbhaka.

1) Anulom Vinulom

How to do it: Hold your right nasal of your nose with your thumb of your right hand, breathe in from left. Now close left nasal with middle and ring finger opening your right nasal and breathe out from the right nasal. Now breathe in from the right nasal. Now close the right nasal and open left and breathe out and in from left nasal. and keep continuing the same procedure again and again.

Duration : You should do it for atleast 10 minutes upto 1 hour maximum

Benefits : heart, high Blood Pressure, bent ligaments, sinual fluid reduced, parkinson, paralysis, neural related, depression, heart blockage, vat-cuf-pit, arthritis, cartilage, migraine pain, asthma, sinus, allergy etc.

1. It makes our body function better.

2. It tells body to make right hormones.

3. It gives you more control over your thoughts.

4. Stress levels stay down or low.

5. Helps you get rid of depression.

6. Helps you get rid of anger.

7. Helps to bring your desires under control.

8. Helps control on your tongue which loves to eat junk food, you will be able to say no to bad food choices.

9. Helps to get rid Headaches & Migraine pains.

Kapalbhati

How to do Kapalbhati?

It is very easy to practice for everyone. The primary thing is to breathe in normally and breathe out forcefully so as to influence the organs of the abdominal area.

Sit in a comfortable asana with normal breathing. Inhale normally and exhale forcefully. Also keep the body easy and relax, don’t feel like stress. As a beginner, the force should be very low as per the body strength. Continue this practice till you can perform comfortably. Whenever feel tired take a break with normal breathing and then resume. Optimize your practice to make “one stroke per second”. The ideal frequency for the kapalbhati is once per second.

Abdominal area also makes inward and outward movements and considerable force is applied to the Manipura, Svadhisthana and Muladhara Chakra. That is very helpful for Kundalini Jagran.
In the beginning the practitioner may feel little pain in the abdomen and back because of new strain to the body, which disappears after some days.

Kapalbhati Duration

A new practitioner should try for 3 – 5 minutes per day. The body gains more stamina as days passes. After 1-2 months, practitioner can perform five minutes in single stretch. Practice should be increased up to 10 – 15 minutes daily after 2-3 months.
Patients suffering from acute and chronic diseases must practice for 15 minutes at least along with  precautions.

Kapalbhati benefits

·                     Balances three dosas of the human body. These are vata (wind/spirit/air), pitta (bile) and kapha (phlegm). Disorder of these three is the root cause for unhealthy body.

·                     While doing kapalbhati, if practitioner  concentrates at the ‘Mooladhar Chakra’, the ‘Kundalini’ power starts awakening.

·                     Kapalbhati improves concentration power in children and adults simultaneously. It makes the face Lustrous and attractive.

Kapalbhati Pranayama cures

·                     Diseases which are hard to control by medicines like asthma, respiratory troubles, allergies, sinus, etc.

·                     Diseases of heart, lungs and brain are permanently cured.

·                     Kapalbhati completely removes blockages in arteries and controls cholesterol.

·                     Obesity, diabetes, flatulence, constipation, acidity and diseases pertaining to kidneys and prostate glands etc. are completely cured.

·                     Women diseases like uterus cysts, breast cysts, cancer cysts or any type of cysts in the body  are permanently dissolved without any surgery.

·                     Parkinson’s Disease, Liver Cirrhosis and Hepatitis-B is permanently cured with devoted practice.

·                     It removes snoring problems and cures sinusitis completely.

·                     Swami Ramdev ji maharaj claims to control ‘Cancer’ with kapalbhati and anulom-vilom. Even he has proved with some patients in his ashram in India. According to him, any disease can be cured by the combination of Pranayama practice.

·                     Kapalbhati  is the best solution for weight loss without any side effects. If it is practiced 15-20 minutes daily, along with yoga diet control chart, the weight can be decreased by 4-8 Kg. per month very easily.

·                     Excess ‘Hair Loss’ is controlled by including kapalbhati in daily routine.

·                     Depression is cured, as mind becomes stable, happy and peaceful which removes negative thoughts automatically.

 

Precautions

·                     Women should avoid kapalbhati pranayam during periods and pregnancy.

·                     Patients with severe heart problems should not do with force and they must practice under a experienced yoga teacher.

·                     Blood Pressure patients should avoid doing with force in the beginning.

·                     In the summer season, if the temperature is very high, it is prohibited for over five minutes.

·                     In the beginning, any pranayama practice must be done under experienced yoga teacher’s training.