The secrecy around pranayama

Nobody dares talk about pranayama (the science of breathing). Everyone will tell you that "you need to learn it from a qualified teacher". Is there a "qualified teacher"?, I have not found one.

Guruji himself reportedly has his students wait until they finish 3rd series to start learning it.

So far I have found that Michael Gannon has a CD that explains some of the basics, and comes with a 30 day course, I have it on order as I would like to experience it.

I own Richard Freeman's CD on pranayama, which is so slow and, topped with his monotonous yet sweet voice, puts me to sleep, really. I don't mean it as a bad thing, it literary does make me sleep, so I never get to hear it. Wonderful for relaxation though.

Rodney Yee has a section on pranayama in his advanced yoga DVD, and I have practiced it a few times with the same zzzz effect as the one mentioned above.

Swami Rama -the founder of the Himalayan Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy- has written a book about it and I also ordered it from Amazon today, it has wonderful reviews from readers who give away that he actually breaks all secrecy. And of course I am reading Iyengar's Light on Pranayama, although judging by posts from students on the bulletin board it is not in the "ashtanga" tradition.

I am confused.

The funny part about pranayama is all the "scary" preventions from all sorts of people: today I read that "hospitals in India are filled with people who abused pranayama"; Or how "if you practice it without an experienced master guiding you, you can even die".

I feel like a kid who has been told of something forbidden. Shhhhhh.