This is a series I've come to call: Claudia's Book Club, yes I am borrowing from Oprah, but you already knew that.The first one I am exploring is Pranayama Breath Of Yoga by Gregor Maehle, an extraordinary book that comes at a time where we need to move on from the obsession on asana, and start paying attention to the miracle of the breath and meditation. Timely!
This early chapter on Prana [life force] has so much in it that I had to break leanings and discoveries it into two parts! (here is last week's part where you can see if you are a master of yoga or not)
Enter the the Aha! moments relating to these three things:
(1) the Vayus,
(2) the most important yoga secret, and
(3) how to have the body of a 16 year old again.
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From page 38 and onwards there is a must-read talk on the VAYUS which are the "winds" or "airs" within the body (also: from wikki definitions include: "blown, blower, breathing").
I like to think of vayus as "currents of energies" since even thought vayu means "air" it does not actually refer to the air in the way we think of it (a gas, a material thing, a substance) but rather a more pranic or life-kind of air, a more subtle energy, something akin to an electromagnetic field.
I see them is as subtle energies that play an important part in keeping us alive and in our well being.
The graph below, taken from this version of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika shows the five most prominent vayus and the areas of the body they affect
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| The three more important ones are those that affect the torso and abdomen area, that is where all the yogic advanced magic happens |
- Meditation
- Health and Longevity
- Kundalini Raising (attaining the goal of yoga)
1- Vayus and Meditation - The Powerful Secret
The way I understand it is that if we can keep our attention on the forces that go down as we breath in and the chest expands (counter-intuitive isn't it?)...
AND
keep our attention on the expansive forces as we breathe out (where we normally would feel the energy leaving the body), that is how we can powerfully quiet the mind.
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| page 38 and 39 (I drew the square around the text for one of the most powerful secrets of meditation) |
Here is a rough drawing I made:
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| Left, as you inhale keep your attention in the forces that contract as you exhale keep your attention in the forces that expand And your mind will quiet! |
Did you get this part? Big Aha! moment for me.
Every time I meditate now I keep it in mind, at least in the beginning, while going within, sending he senses in, and attempting to calm the mind.
2- Vayus on Health and The Body of A 16 Year Old
My own notes on page 39 read "using bandhas to make the vayus meet at the manipura chakra".
From page 40:
"...by pulling the apana vayu up and forcing the prana vayu down the body of the yogi becomes as that of a 16-year-old."and
"Both vayus eventually lead to a depletion of life force as prana vayu is projected out of the body in an upward trajectory and apana vayu downwards. Apana vayu can be turned upwards throuhg use of Mula and Uddiyanna Bandha and prana vayu can be directed downwards by the application of jalandhara bandha and Jihva bandha..."
How do you understand this part?
3.- Vayus and Kundalini Raising
By kundalini Maehele explains, we need to think of what Patanjali referred to as meditation (dharana or the 7th limb of yoga) or the state in which we are one with all, no "I" is present.
It is the state that can only be reached after we are able to concentrate (6th limb of yoga) on one object and only one object for a long time (say 3 hours).
I can barely keep my mind on one single thought for maybe one minute!
If the life energy is tied to the lower chakras then "one will express oneself in terms of survival, sexual identity or assimilation of wealth, food and objects..."
When the life force is rising then kundalini can be achieved, or the state of meditation
"The driving up of kundalini is caused by the mingling of prana and apana in kumbhaka (breath retention with proper locks and technique) at the manipura chakra."
Have you ever tried the technique described as the most powerful secret of meditation? Has it worked for you?
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CLAUDIA'S BOOK CLUB:
"PRANAYAMA THE BREATH OF YOGA"
Chapter One: How Many Breaths Do You Do Per Minute?
Chapter Two: Part I: Who Is An Expert In Yoga?
Chapter Two: Part II: How To Get Your Body To Be 16 Years Old Again
Chapter Three: Meditation is Useless Unless Both Nostrils Are Active
Chapter Five: How Do I Know If I Am Ready For Pranayama?
Chapter Eight: Pulling Your Brain Updwards. On Bandhas and Pranayama
Chapter Nine: Why Gross Purification Is Critical To Yoga
Chapter Ten: The Breathing Exercise That Gets Rid Of Our Fears
Chapter Eleven: How Not To Be An Idiod In Pranayama. Nerve Purification
Chapter Twelve: Bhastrika Pranayama - Life Force on Steroids
Chapter Thirteen: What The World Needs Now Is More Left Nostril Breathing
Here is a link to the book in Amazon. Join me in reading!
Chapter Ten: The Breathing Exercise That Gets Rid Of Our Fears
Chapter Eleven: How Not To Be An Idiod In Pranayama. Nerve Purification
Chapter Twelve: Bhastrika Pranayama - Life Force on Steroids
Chapter Eleven: How Not To Be An Idiod In Pranayama. Nerve Purification
Chapter Twelve: Bhastrika Pranayama - Life Force on Steroids
Here is a link to the book in Amazon. Join me in reading!
Thanks Claudia, it's great to read about the much more subtle energetic elements of yoga and meditation practice. So difficult to express in words though. I don't have Gregor's pranayama book yet so I'm enjoying your posts about it.
ReplyDeleteI work mostly on the energetic and mental level in my asana practice, and this seems to have been a natural evolution (from the initial physical level) that has developed over years of practice and investigation. For example in Headstand, with mula bandha engaged, while breathing in I will draw the subtle energy strongly upwards from the base chakra to meet the incoming prana. After a few minutes the upward flow rises all the way to the crown chakra which is already being stimulated in Headstand. Likewise when exhaling (the apanic process), I simultaneously and consciously draw prana back down the central channel to settle at the base chakra. One result is a perfectly aligned spinal channel in Headstand that has no energy blockages and can conduct energy up to the crown chakra. For me this level of working with the subtle energy has now flowed through to all my other poses.It focusses the mind and helps to develop an increasingly subtle awareness which is in line with the yoga journey through the koshas, from gross to subtle and refined. It's also something I occasionally work with when sitting in Padmasana (a very powerful pose) for pranayama or meditation.
I still feel like a beginner, the journey is endless once you start down tumbling down this rabbit hole and into the vastly expanding internal spaces, there's so much more to learn and work with.
Its funny that after writing about this, I'm suddenly clearer and more intent on moving my practice to the next level.
I'm going to order Gregors' book. You're a great salesperson Claudia, you should be getting commission!!!
Many thanks for posting and sharing.
Hi Nobodhi,
ReplyDeleteLike your description where you say:
For example in Headstand, with mula bandha engaged, while breathing in I will draw the subtle energy strongly upwards from the base chakra to meet the incoming prana
and also likewise when exhaling, sounds like you are practicing the secret of yoga in every breath! I have been trying too, and like you say, the journey is endless, new roads opening at every moment, every breath.
By the depth of your writing I think you will love Gregor's book, and I hope that you join me in reading, I am going through it for the third time and noticing new details every time. :-)
By the way sorry it took so long for your comment to show, not sure why Disqus blocked it... made sure you are OK to post anytime you come visit! :-)
ReplyDeleteClaudia,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this and the comment from Nobodhi, I feel..... just a bit overwhelmed haha. More so because my practice is still fairly new in itself, not to mention that I'm not able to really delve to deep into it because of pregnancy. At what point should one begin pranayama practice outside of the practice of Ashtanga itself? Heck I'm still trying to smooth my breathing during practice, let alone control where my breath goes and when haha.
However, I'm working on the first chapter of the book now :). I believe it will take me a good three or more times of reading to fully grasp everything laid out in the book.
Thanks for your posts. I'll be reading along as you keep them posting :)
Brianna, there is a chapter coming up soon where he addresses that, when to start..
ReplyDeleteI was lucky to have a teacher early enough, after only 2.5 years of daily asana practice (at Yoga Thailand), and it was good to learn the techniques because just like with asana, I feel it takes momentum to establish a pranayama practice.
It takes going around in circles, getting lost and finding the breath again, forgetting to practice only to miss it and return, making up excuses NOT to sit and do it, only to then notice those were pretty cheap ways of avoiding it, finding inspiration when it is lost.
You being pregnant also, such a blessing! - Wonder if you are learning about methods to breathe to prepare for the delivery. And to prepare for each moment really, so you can enjoy this amazing time in life of co-creating a new life!
As per when to start...
There are so many views on that, ashtanga traditionally says not until 3rd series... Patanjali (kind of the authority) says not until you are established in asana, at least one in particular, the sitted one.
Gregor suggests that we need four asanas in particular, the ones for sitting straight. He also says in that chapter that is coming, that the more we can open the hips, put legs behind head, and master arm balances the better. But it is not the only pre-requisite.
I keep reading so I remember and so I get inspired, and hopefully the practice takes care of itself!