Pranayama
Prana is the life force in the universe that animates all matter. Prana travels on oxygen via the breath. Yogis believe that we are born with a certain number of breaths to live. How long it takes one to live out these breaths depends on how much we can stretch our breath.
Pranayama teaches us how to absorb the maximum amount of prana to inspire all levels of our existence and to enhance any situation or activity in our lives. Most people dissipate prana by excess movement and thinking. When prana flows efficiently and harmoniously through our system our lives become effortless. This can be seen in simple examples of how our breath and mind function.
The most important lesson of pranayama is to learn how the body functions to absorb breath and prana into our system. This happens on the inhalation. On the exhalation, apana (a quality of prana) is used to remove impurities from our system.
The process: On the inhalation, the sternum lifts, then the ribs expand sideways, backwards and upward. The diaphragm draws down in opposition, allowing air and prana to be drawn into our body. On the exhalation, the sternum relaxes down, the ribs follow, closing downward, the diaphragm relaxes upward into the chest cavity and the belly draws in. This forces toxins to release out of the body in the form of gases, sweat, urine, and feces.
Respect this process by checking it many times a day, just feeling the wave of the breath rising and falling in this complete manner we have described. To relax and renew, take quiet moments to feel the pulse at the end of the exhale and allow it to become gentle. Other pranayama techniques need to be taught by a teacher in a controlled environment.
