YOGA-ARTICLE: Harmony In Breathing Is Harmony In Life!

Why do some people feel happy and others don’t? Some of us are strong, full of energy and luminous and others are passive, sluggish, dull and uninteresting. Why are some people successful in all matters and achieve their goals within a short time, and for others things fall apart, whatever they do? Why do some people succeed in building the desired world around themselves, and others only look on the dark side of things and don’t understand how to change the situation? 

Prana — Life Force

According to Yoga teaching, each of us is Atma, or a Higher Self — a part of the highest and ultimate Absolute, that gave birth to this world. Our Higher Self manifests itself in this world by two abilities: the ability to perceive something and the ability to do and to change something. And the driving force behind these abilities is Prana or the potency of life. Prana is the ability to manifest ourselves in this world, it is what develops and transforms our existence.

How Does Prana Function Inside Our Body?

The effect of Prana in our body can be compared with the work of a good manager in a large company, who knows all the processes and can do the job of any expert. If there are many bright managers in a company, the company grows, develops and thrives. If there are few people like this, a company can fall apart even if the external conditions are good. So, in case of an enterprise, the relevant slogan is “The personnel is everything”, and in case of our body the relevant slogan is “Prana is everything”. Prana manages the flow of energy from food and water, it “repairs” our body, helps it to recover if it doesn’t function right. Prana gives us health, physical strength, it awakens our intellectual abilities and creativity.

How Does the Amount of Prana Impact Our Physical, Mental and Emotional Condition?

When there is a lot of Prana, our physical, mental and emotional state is on a high level. The excess of Prana is used to prevent diseases, cleanse and harmonise the body and the inner world. A person who is full of Prana is healthy and strong, always in a good mood, feeling well, has bright ideas, is happy and cheerful, energetic, resourceful and determined. When we have a lot of Prana we are open to the world like a child and succeed easily. We create the energy of success around us and other people who stay in touch with us start to succeed as well. 

A lack of these personal qualities means that there is a lack of Prana, that can barely sustain the body alive. A tiny amount of Prana is left for progress, so various diseases develop and lead to body destruction.  As a result, a person feels sluggish, gloomy, unhappy, passive, depressive and negative with no reason. People call such a person  a loser, and avoid communication with him or her by all means.

How to Increase the Amount of Prana

Our task is to gain as much life force as required for the harmonious energy flow without any restrictions and blockages. How can we do that? We can increase the amount of Prana in our body and direct it in the right way by practicing yoga. On the physical level the flow of Prana is the flow of air in our body, or our breathing cycle. Pranayama yoga utilises our ability to breathe. The main thing in Pranayama yoga is not to allow any discomfort in the body, i.e. it should be harmony multiplied by harmony. It is necessary to find the inner, physical and emotional rhythm, to feel the inner movements and to realize their connection with the physical movements of the lungs, movements of the body in general, our inner and outer state. It is important to understand that only harmonious breathing helps to collect Prana and as a result it can harmonise our health and our life as a whole.

Risks of Pranayama Yoga

Pranayama yoga enhances all our feelings and emotions, not only positive, but also negative ones. Any negative tendency of our mind is exaggerated before it is overcome. Subsequently, we can direct our life energy in the wrong way and we can mess things up in the heat of the moment. Intensive Pranayama practice can cause overheat of the physical body, expressed in discomfort, malaise, burning throughout the body, increased irritability, aggravated senses, insomnia, bad health after sleep, apathy. To avoid unpleasant consequences from Pranayama, it is recommended to start with preparation exercises, just concentrating on our breath and counting inhales and exhales. After some time the body will “ask” for more practice, and we can gradually continue to perform more exercises. The result will be achieved by a person who is patient, careful, aware where to stop, feeling the internal harmony.

Would you like to be full of life and energy, to succeed in all matters and to achieve your goals rapidly, to feel happy and to build the world around you according to your own wish? Practice Pranayama yoga: work with your breathing in a harmonious way and be happy!

Author: Evgeniya Khmelina

Photo: from IOYU library

Editors: Kerigona, M. Mamontova, M. Balmush

Chief Editor: Mirra

Project curator: Kerigona

Translators: Tatiana Sugrue, Nat Satcitananda, Tatiana Atishaya


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