Pranayama-Breathing exercise and the regulation of Bio Energy

The first thing that may click your mind when you hear about “Prana” is the charismatic movie villain
from the past. With time I realized that just like the cinematic Mr. Prana who had the power to make
a movie a blockbuster, in a same way the Prana in our bodies also plays a pivotal role in defining our
health.

Pranayama, a term derived from the combination of Prana as the Bio energy and Ayam as the
regulation of bio energy in the body. Hence, Pranayama is the regulation or flow of Bio energy or life
force in the body. Prana is quite subtle to understand however for a layman to understand one can
call Prana as breath at Gross level. However, it is quite different from what we know as breath. Prana
resides in each cell of the body, flows thru 72000 Nadis which are the subtlest energy points which
are connected to each other thru 7 Chakras with the main energy centre located at the Naval Region.

As we all know the baby is connected to the mother in the womb thru the umbilical cord connecting
the naval of both the baby and the mother which provides all the replenishment/energy or Prana to
the baby, where Prana sustains life, it becomes clear that while one can survive for a few minutes
without breath, the absence of Prana marks the end of life.

Prana at its subtlest level has a profound impact on our body and mind. As rightly mentioned in
Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.2-

चले वाते चलं चित्तं निचले लेच निश्चलं भवेत् ।

योगी स्थाणुत्वम् आप्नोति ततो वायुं निरोधयेत् ॥२॥

cale vāte calaṁ cittaṁ niścale niścalaṁ bhavet |

yogī sthāṇutvam āpnoti tato vāyuṁ nirodhayet ||2||

Which means as the flow of Prana in the body mirrors the flow of thoughts in the mind and
disturbances in either disrupt the delicate balance of life force energy.

It's believed that a significant portion of illnesses—around 90%—are psychosomatic, stemming from
a disturbed mind accompanied with stress, worry, anxiety, and anger. And as the mind is disturbed so
is the flow of bio energy which thereby disrupting the flow of Oxygen to the cells for its maintenance
and repair. And slowly and gradually, cells of body get weak and loses its immunity and hence
metabolic rate of the body decreases making oneself prone to the diseases. Pranayama regulates the
metabolism by providing sufficient oxygen to all cells of the body. Thus, it helps to cure Rheumatism,
Diabetes, Chlorosis, Lung tuberculosis, Asthama, Anaemia, Obesity, jaundice, Gout and skin diseases.

Pranayama goes beyond simply inhaling oxygen; it also involves expelling stale air trapped due to
poor breathing habits. i.e. shallow breathing/fast breathing/jerky breaths etc. There are various
Pranayama techniques that not only helps the beginners to correct their breathing, techniques
namely equal breathing/intercoastal breathing/clavicular breathing and diaphragmatic breathing,
but also guide the advance practitioners to reach to the state where Prana can stimulate the
dormant part of the brain by sending new neural impulses with the help of techniques e.g.-
Kumbakh, Rechak etc
Pranayama is not just about physical health, through slow, uniform, and rhythmic breathing, it also
improves lung capacity and mental well-being. It's a journey towards inner harmony and equanimity.
To understand how Pranayama helps us, let’s do an activity-

1. Thumb Exercise:

 Hold your thumb at shoulder level, about one hand's distance away from your eyes.

 Slowly move the thumb closer to your eyes, maintaining focus on it.

 Then, gradually move it away again, maintaining the one-hand distance.

2. Observations:

 Notice the change in vision: blurriness when the thumb is close and clarity when it is
farther away.

The practice allows individuals to distance themselves from situations, gaining new perspectives and
enabling wise decision-making that comes through the clarity in thoughts. And as we understood,
the clarity of thoughts comes from the proper flow of bio energy and relaxation of body and mind.

Conclusion

In the bustling world we live in, with the power of Prana that helps in correcting our breathing
patterns and nurturing the flow of life force energy, we find ourselves not only physically rejuvenated
but also mentally equipped to face life's challenges with clarity and wisdom.