Pranayama

If there is one practice that underlies everything else in this work, it is the breath.

Breath practice is the central pillar. Where āsana reorganises the physical structure, prāṇāyāma works directly with the energetic body: the layer of experience that lies between physical sensation and mental activity.

Practices range from simple observation of the natural breath to more structured techniques involving rhythm, retention, and direction of breath through specific channels. Each technique has a distinct function: some regulate the nervous system, some build internal heat, some support the withdrawal of attention from external stimulation, some prepare the ground for meditation.

Prāṇāyāma is introduced gradually and carefully; it is among the most powerful and most easily misused of the traditional practices, and its transmission is deliberate.

This is the sixth piece in the Elements of Practice series. Next: Mudrās — gestures that seal and direct energy within the system.