BREATH

Conscious Breathing For a Better Life.

The breath is the vital force that moves energy and vitality through the body. With each inhalation, we bring oxygen into the body to feed our vital organs and entire biology. But it’s not just oxygen we take in, in the Eastern spiritual sciences we learn that there is also an unseen vital force called prana that we take into our bodies by way of the breath.

It is very important that we learn to become more conscious of our breath because the breath can either excite the body with energy or soothe and calm the body. In practical terms, bringing consciousness to your breath can be a very important tool when you are involved in any of life’s little surprises, e.g., confrontation, negotiations, trauma, embarrassing moments, public speaking, etc.

When we learn to breathe properly we are also learning to work better with our body's natural chemistry. For instance, if you’re involved in a car accident, rather than being stupefied in a state of shock and unable to move, a person who is conscious of their breathing will be able to calm down their physical body to mitigate the dump of adrenaline and better handle the life situation they are facing.

Having a daily ritual that includes pranayam—breathing exercises—as part of your daily practice will infuse the body with life force and vitality. The breathing exercises that I teach my students not only help them to clear out stagnant energy and release stress on a daily basis but in the final analysis, conscious breathing trains human beings to be ready and capable when life inevitably tosses us on our butts!