English

When your inner abdomen full with air, you can swim as a lotus leaf in the water.

“Plavana” means ‘swim’. Hatha-yoga texts say that plavini pranayama gives possibility for human to stay on the water surface (lay on the water). It’s non usual form of pranayama that can look like vatsara-dhouti, just air holds in abdomen and intestines and do not moves out quickly. In “Hatharatnavali” it’s called bhujangi-mudra. Very rarely taught pranayama and only few people write about it. It is practice that usually pass on from guru to student.

Technique

Sit in meditation posture and prepare for pranayama. Inhale can be in two ways: breathe through both nostrils and swallow air to stomach, or swallow through mouth in kaki mudra, it means by putting lips in form of crow’s beak.… skaityti daugiau

Quickly inhale and slowly exhale by making loud sound as a humming bee ‘M-M-M-M’. Through this practitioner becomes lord of yogis and his mind merge with bliss.

It is bhramari pranayama, sometimes called “humming bee pranayama” because sound that you create while doing this pranayama remembers humming of black bee.

There are various techniques of bhramari pranayama.

Technique 1

1. Sit in comfortable meditative posture, relax body and practice total body stillness (kaya sthairyam).
2. Keep eyes closed all time of practice.
3. Slowly and deeply breath in through nose by listening to sound of breathing.
4. Close your ears with index or middle fingers pressing the middle outer part of ear to the ear opening (fully close ears).… skaityti daugiau

Chaturtha pranayama is both a pranayama and a meditative practice. It combines breathing, mantra and chakra awareness. It is a very powerful technique that is not widely taught.

The Sanskrit word chaturtha means ‘the fourth’. There are two reasons for this name:

1. The first three types of pranayama are widely regarded as pooraka (inhalation), rechaka (exhalation) and kumbhaka (retention). Chaturtha pranayama is said to be the fourth type that follows them. In this case the English translation can be ‘the fourth pranayama’.

2. According to the Mandukya Upanishad there are four states of awareness. These are firstly, jagrat (waking state), which corresponds to the externalized perception of the world, secondly, swapna (the dream state), which corresponds to perception of the subconscious mind, thirdly, sushupti (dreamless state), which corresponds to intuitive perception of the collective unconscious, and finally, turiya (the fourth – chaturtha), which is the transcendental state where words and definitions fail to reach.… skaityti daugiau

Chandra means “moon”, “bhid” – root, “bhedana” means to penetrate, to pass through something. In Chandra Bhedana pranayama all inhalation happens only through left nostril. All exhalation – through right. Nerve on left side called Ida Nadi or Chandra Nadi. Nerve on right side of nose called Pingala Nadi or Surya Nadi. Pranic energy in the time of inhalation goes through Ida or Chandra Nadi, in the time of exhalation – through Pingala or Surya Nadi.

Energy in left channel is cold, moon (“chandra” in Sanskrit means “moon”). When this channel active, person get tendency to introspection, thinking, contemplation. Chandra Nadi Pranayama – it is exercise to cleanse left energy channel and activate inside it energy flow.… skaityti daugiau

The Sanskrit word bhastrika means ‘bellows’. Thus the practice can be called ‘the bellows pranayama’. This practice is so called because air is drawn forcefully and quickly in and out of the lungs like the bellows of a village blacksmith. The blacksmith increases the flow of air into a fire in order to produce more heat for his work. Bhastrika pranayama can be said to do the same thing: it increases the flow of air into the body, which produces inner heat, both gross and subtle. The inner fire of the mind-body is stoked. This heat burns up impurities, whether physical impurities such as toxins, pranic blockages or mental neuroses. The Sanskrit word tapas means ‘to burn one’s impurities’.… skaityti daugiau

There are various methods of doing moorchha pranayama. In this topic we will describe two types that are specifically mentioned in the yogic scriptures and which we teach in our ashram. They are both excellent techniques that can bring many benefits at all levels. Practice them yourself and choose the method you prefer.

Moorchha pranayama can be practised in any comfortable meditation position. The best asanas are padmasana, siddhasana, siddha yoni asana, swastikasana and ardha padmasana, though vajrasana and sukhasana can be used.

Technique 1

1. Sit in any comfortable sitting asana.
2. Hold the spine and head upright.
3. Relax the whole body.
4. Fold your tongue against the upper palate – khechari mudra.… skaityti daugiau