Dynamics of breathing

Question 1

What makes the breath such a potent teacher of yoga?

Answer 1

Breathing has dual nature of being both voluntary and autonomic, which is why the breath illuminates the eternal inquiry about what we can control or change and what we cannot. We all face this personal yet universal inquiry at some point if we desire to evolve.

Question 2

Name the three parts that cells consist of

Answer 2

The cell membrane (solukalvo in Finnish)
The nucleus (tuma)
The cytoplasm (sytoplasma)

Question 3

What happens when nutrients penetrate the membrane (solukalvo)?

Answer 3

They are metabolized (aineenvaihdunta) and turned into energy that fuels a cell’s life functions

Question 4

What is the unavoidable by-product of all metabolic activity and what must happen to it when it’s inside a cell?

Answer 4

Waste - it must get back out through the membrane

Question 5

What can happen if a cell is unable to let nutrients in or let waste out?

Answer 5

Death by starvation or toxicity

Question 6

Which yogic concepts relate to the cell function?

Answer 6

Prana and apana

Question 7

Which yogic concepts relate to the structural properties of the cell membrane and support it?

Answer 7

Sthira and sukha

Question 8

What does the sanskrit term prana mean?

Answer 8

Prana is derived from pra-, a prefix meaning before, and an, a verb meaning to breathe, to blow and to live. Prana refers to what nourishes a living thing, but it has also come to mean the action that brings the nourishment in. When capitalized, Prana is a more universal term that can be used to designate the manifestation of all creative life force.

Question 9

What does the sanskrit term apana mean?

Answer 9

Apana is derived from apa, meaning away, off and down. Apana refers to the waste that’s being eliminated as well as the action of elimination.

Question 10

What do prana and apana encompass together?

Answer 10

They are balancing forces that complement each other. They are also fundamental yogic terms that encompass the essential functions of life on every level, from cell to organism.

Question 11

What of the structural conditions that have to exist in a cell in order for nutrition to enter and waste to exit?

Answer 11

The function of the cell membrane - a structure that must be just permeable enough to allow material to pass in and out. If the membrane is too permeable (lapaiseva), the cell loses integrity, causing it to either explode from pressures within or implode from pressures without.

Question 12

What principle balances a cell membrane’s permeability (lapaisevyys)?

Answer 12

Stability

Question 13

What does the Sanskrit term sthira mean?

Answer 13

Sthira can mean firm, hard, solid, compact, strong, unfluctuating, durable, lasting or permanent.

Question 14

What does the Sanskrit term sukha mean?

Answer 14

Sukha is composed of two roots: su meaning good and kha meaning space. It means easy, pleasant, agreeable, gentle, and mild. It also refers to a state of well-being, free of obstacles. Sukha also means having a good axle hole, implying a space at the centre that allows function. Like a wheel, a person needs to have good space at his or her centre, or functional connections become impossible.

Question 15

Give an example of a successful man-made structure that exhibits a balance of sthira and sukha.

Answer 15

A suspension bridge is flexible enough to survive wind and earthquakes, but stable enough to support its load-bearing surfaces.

Question 16

Explain how prana and apana works in the human body in terms of nourishment and waste.

Answer 16

We take in prana - solid and liquid nourishment at the top of the system. They then enter the alimentary canal and move through the digestive process, and after a lot of twists and turns, move down and out as waste matter. This is the only way waste can go, because the exits are at the bottom. The force of apana must move down to get the waste out.

Question 17

What other form can prana enter our bodies other than nourishment?

Answer 17

Breathe - gaseous form

Question 18

Explain how prana and apana works in the human body in terms of breath.

Answer 18

The breath enters at the top where it remains above the diaphragm (pallea) in the lungs, exchanging gases with the capillaries (hiussuonissa) at the alveoli (keuhkorakkulat). The waste gas in the lungs needs to be expelled, but it gets out the same way it came in. The force of apana, when acting on respiratory waste gas, must move up to get out. Apana must be able to operate freely both upwards and downward, depending on what type of waste it acts upon.

Question 19

In yogic terms what does our breathing bodies have to be in a state of for prana and apana to have a healthy reciprocal relationship in the body?

What state should it not be in?

Answer 19

It should be in - Sukha (Literal translation - good space)

It shouldn’t be in - Dukha (bad space)

Question 20

What is the sanskrit term DUKHA derived from? What does it mean?

Answer 20

From dus, meaning bad, difficult or hard
And kha, meaning space

Generally translated as suffering, uneasy, uncomfortable, unpleasant and difficult

Question 21

Explain how sukha and dukha work together in terms of breath?

Answer 21

Exhalation is an action of removing waste from the system, another practical way of applying this insight is that if we take care of exhalation, the inhalation takes care of itself. If we get rid of the unwanted (dukha), we make room for what is needed (sukha).

Question 22

What is the most relevant ability the abdominal and thoracic cavities do to breathing?

Answer 22

Change shape - although an important structural difference exists in how they do so

Question 23

Explain why it is important to keep you abs healthy and strong in terms of breathing.

Answer 23

Because thoracic shape change is inextricably linked to abdominal shape change, you can also say that the abdominal cavity also changes shape (not volume) in three dimensions (up-down, side-to-side, front-back). In a living, breathing body, thoracic shape change cannot occur without abdominal shape change. That is why thecondition of the abdominal region has such an influence on the quality of our breathing and why the quality of our breathing has a powerful effect on the health of our abdominal organs.

Question 24

When should we inhale and when exhale in yoga postures?

Answer 24

Inhale - spinal extension

Exhale - spinal flexion

Question 25

Why inhale at spinal extension and exhale at spinal flexion?

Answer 25

Fundamentally, the spinal shape change of extension is an inhale and the spinal shape change of spinal flexion is an exhale.

Question 26

The diaphragm has a lot of structures attached. What is the term used for these?

Answer 26

Organic Relations

Question 27

What are the names of the important structures (organic relations) around the diaphragm?

Answer 27

Pleura - surrounds the lungs
Pericardium -surrounds the heart
Peritoneum - surrounds the abdominal organs

Question 28

Explain how the diaphragm works with other organs.

Answer 28

The shape changing activity of the cavities has a profound effect on the movements of the organs they contain. The diaphragm is a fundamental source of these movements but the viscera (sisaelimet) are also a source of resistance and stabilisation for the diaphragm. The reciprocal relationship illuminates why the coordinated movements of breath and body promoted by yoga practice can lead to such dramatic improvements in the overall health and functioning of all the body’s systems.

Question 29

How does chest breath happen?

Answer 29

By stabilising the upper domes of the diaphragm while relaxing the rib cage, a diaphragmatic contraction causes an expansion of the rib cage.

Question 30

Is chest breath caused by other muscles than the diaphragm?

Answer 30

No. There is no such thing as the diaphragm is always active.

Question 31

From what perspective is our postural habits synonymous with our breathing habits?

Answer 31

The need to stabilise the body’s mass in gravity causes many of the phases of breathing, even while supine.

Question 32

Can the diaphragm be mobile only from one direction?

Answer 32

No. The contradicting fibers of the diaphragm pull their two ends (the central tendon and the base of the rib cage) toward each other. This action is is fundamental for 3 dimentional thracoabdominal shape changes of breathing. Because of this, the type of movement it produces depends on which region of its attachment is stable and which is mobile. This is unlike any other part of the body.

Question 33

How does belly breath happen?

Answer 33

The muscular action of the diaphragm is most often associated with a bulging movement in the upper abdomen, commonly known as the belly breath or abdominal breath.

Question 34

How does belly breath happen?

Answer 34

The muscular action of the diaphragm is most often associated with a bulging movement in the upper abdomen, commonly known as the belly breath or abdominal breath.

Question 35

How do the specific patterns in asanas affect the diaphragm?

Answer 35

The actions of other muscles than the diaphragm cause change of shape of the cavities. As they have the same relationship to the diaphragm, you may not be able to affect how it moves but only the timings of how long you exhale or inhale.

Question 36

When can breathing be most effective?

Answer 36

Breath training is really accessory muscle training. Only when all the musculature of the body is coordinated and integrated with the action of the diaphragm can breathing be efficient and effective.