The first thing a newborn does is breathe in, and the last thing any of us will do is breathe out. Between those two moments the breath goes on without being asked, and almost nobody notices. The Hindu tradition noticed. It gave the breath a name, prana, that means both breath and the life-force the breath carries, and it built around it a discipline, pranayama, that sits at the exact midpoint of Patanjali's eight limbs, where the outer practices of body and conduct give way to the inner practices of the mind.
The word is prana joined to ayama, extension or restraint. Pranayama is the lengthening and governing of the breath, and the claim behind it is simple: breath and mind are tied together, and whoever learns to steady the one has a handle on the other.
Prana: more than air
In the Upanishads prana is the chief of the vital powers. The Chandogya and Prashna Upanishads tell the same parable: the faculties of speech, sight, hearing and mind quarrelled about which of them was greatest, and each in turn left the body for a year to see whether it was missed. The body went on, mute or blind or deaf. But when prana made to leave, the others were dragged after it like tethering pegs pulled up by a strong horse, and they bowed to it. Life is prana; the rest are its servants.
The same texts divide prana into five functions, the pancha prana: prana proper, the inward breath and the energy of the chest; apana, the downward force of elimination; samana, which governs digestion; udana, which rises through the throat and is said to carry the soul out at death; and vyana, which pervades the whole body. The Taittiriya Upanishad places a whole sheath of the person, the pranamaya kosha, between body and mind. To work on the breath is to work on the layer that joins them.
The Gita counts pranayama among the forms of sacrifice: some yogis, Krishna says, offer the outgoing breath into the incoming and the incoming into the outgoing, restraining the course of both (4.29). The breath itself becomes a yajna, a fire offering.
The fourth limb
Patanjali defines pranayama tersely: once a steady seat is established, pranayama is the interruption of the ordinary flow of inhalation and exhalation (Yoga Sutra 2.49). It has an outward movement, an inward movement and a held phase, regulated by place, duration and count until it becomes long and subtle (2.50). The result is not a trance but a clearing: the covering over the inner light thins, and the mind becomes fit for concentration (2.52 and 2.53).
The later Hatha Yoga Pradipika makes the link with the mind explicit:
When the breath moves, the mind moves; when the breath is still, the mind is still. (Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.2)
That text lists eight formal retention practices, kumbhakas, and treats alternate-nostril breathing as the preparation for all of them. It also warns that pranayama done hastily or without guidance harms the practitioner, comparing the breath to a lion or an elephant that must be tamed slowly. That warning deserves to be passed on intact.
Practices a beginner can do
A word first. Breathing practices affect the heart, blood pressure and nervous system. If you are pregnant, have a heart or blood-pressure condition, epilepsy, or any recent illness or surgery, consult your doctor before beginning; and in every case never force or strain the breath. The rule in everything below is that the breath stays comfortable. If you feel dizzy, short of breath or anxious, stop and breathe normally.
Deep abdominal breathing. Sit upright or lie on the back and place a hand on the belly. Breathe in slowly through the nose so that the belly rises first and the chest only afterwards; breathe out slowly and feel the belly fall. Count four in and six out, or whatever is easy, for five to ten rounds. It is the ground of all the formal practices, and most adults have forgotten how to do it.
Anulom vilom, or nadi shodhana. Alternate-nostril breathing. Fold the index and middle fingers of the right hand into the palm so that the thumb can close the right nostril and the ring finger the left. Close the right nostril and breathe in through the left; close the left, open the right, and breathe out; breathe in through the right; close it, open the left, and breathe out. That is one round. Keep the breath slow and silent, with the inhale and exhale roughly equal. Begin with five rounds and build to ten or twelve. Beginners should not hold the breath at all; the held phase is added later, in person, with a teacher who can watch you.
Bhramari. The bee breath. Sit with the eyes closed, breathe in fully, and on a long exhale make a low, steady hum with the lips closed, like a bee inside a flower. Five to seven rounds. It is traditionally said to settle an agitated mind, and it is a favourite before meditation or sleep.
Two vigorous practices are better learnt from a teacher than from a page. Kapalabhati, "skull-shining", is a rapid series of sharp exhalations driven by the belly and is counted among the cleansing practices; bhastrika, "the bellows", is forceful breathing in and out. Both are strong, and both are unsuitable for the conditions listed above. Learn them in a class.
The breath in ritual
Pranayama is not only a yogic exercise. It is woven into ordinary worship.
The clearest case is sandhyavandanam, the prayer at dawn, noon and dusk. Before the sankalpa that states the intention of the rite, and again at later points, the worshipper performs pranayama three times: the right hand closes the nostrils, the breath is drawn in and held, and the Gayatri mantra with its vyahritis, the names of the seven worlds beginning "Om bhuh, Om bhuvah, Om suvah", is recited silently during the retention before the breath is released. In many families the sacred thread is held or touched with the other hand during this, so that body, breath and lineage are gathered together before the prayer begins. The gestures differ between Vedic traditions and regions; what is constant is that the rite does not begin until the breath has been stilled.
The same three pranayamas open most formal pujas, performed by the priest or the householder before the sankalpa. Some families also make a small breath-offering before meals, pranagnihotra, in which a few grains of rice are taken with water for each of the five pranas: "pranaya svaha, apanaya svaha, vyanaya svaha, udanaya svaha, samanaya svaha". The meal is offered to the fire of life before the body receives it.
The nadis: the tradition's map
Hatha yoga describes the subtle body as threaded with channels, nadis, through which prana moves. The texts give their number as seventy-two thousand, but three matter for practice. Ida runs on the left and is linked with the moon and with cooling, receptive qualities. Pingala runs on the right and is linked with the sun, heat and activity. Sushumna rises through the centre along the spine, and is said to open only when the other two are balanced, which is exactly what alternate-nostril breathing is meant to do. Nadi shodhana means "purifying the channels".
This is best understood as the tradition's own map of experience rather than a claim about anatomy. Anyone who practises can notice that one nostril is usually more open than the other, and that a few rounds of slow alternate breathing leave the two sides feeling even and the mind quieter. Whether or not one takes the channels literally, the practice built on them works the same way.
A short daily sequence
Done after washing and before the morning puja or meditation, this takes about ten minutes. Sit upright on the floor or a chair, with the window open if the air is clean.
- Two minutes of deep abdominal breathing, eyes closed, letting the exhale lengthen.
- Six to ten rounds of anulom vilom, slow and silent, with no retention.
- Five rounds of bhramari.
- One minute of ordinary breathing, simply watching the breath come and go on its own.
Then go on to japa, puja or dhyana; the mind will be noticeably readier for them. Increase the counts over months rather than days, and let a teacher add the held breath when you are ready. The breath has been waiting all your life to be noticed. There is no hurry.