The flow of life force

The practise of yoga includes asanas, meditation, and pranayama. Yoga guru Surakshit Goswami explains the importance of pranayama, which cleanses our 72,000 blood vessels

Stabilising the flow of life force in our blood vessels is called pranayama. It is made up of two words, prana and ayama.

Prana is the breath or life force without which no one can survive. Ayama means stabilising or expanding the prana. The process of inhalation and exhalation begins at birth and ends with death. By practising pranayama, one can control the rhythm of inhalation and exhalation. Prana energy resides in the body and keeps body and mind fit. It is the basis of all activities of the body and mind.

Prana is of five types. These are

• prana,
• apaan,
• samaan,
• vyaan, and
• udaan.

Pranayama is a scientific method of controlling the breath, leading to better health for mind and body. Prana or life force should be controlled in the same way as lions, elephants or tigers are tamed – gradually and with patience.

Life force, when controlled under compulsion, has a negative impact. By doing pranayama in a wrong way, you can suffer from hiccups, breathing ailments, cough, headache, pain in the eyes, ears and fever. A natural cleanser Pranayama cleanses all the body’s 72,000 blood vessels, besides curing diseases of the body and mind. It helps you slim down and radiate vigour. In the process, your mind is filled with happiness and your kundalini power is awakened. Just as fire purifies gold, so pranayama purifies and cures ailments of the sense organs.

In yogic discipline, it is believed that an ailment occurs in an organ when the circulation of life force in that organ gets imbalanced and disorganised. Pranayama, therefore, ensures optimum circulation of life force in every part of the body and helps to eradicate disease.

The magic eight Hathyog Pradipika describes eight types of pranayama.

These are

• suryabhedan,
• ujjaayi,
• sitkaari,
• shitli,
• bhastrika,
• bhraamari,
• moorcha and
• plaavini.

According to Hathyog, before doing these pranayamas, the blood vessels of the body should be cleansed by nadhishodhan pranayama. This plays an important role in preventing and curing diseases and in keeping a person healthy. Pranayama is usually done after doing the asanas. You begin with nadhishodhan pranayama, also called anulom-vilom, as it cleanses the blood vessels and makes the three main naadis of the body supple.