Pranayama: Nadi Shodhana and Brahmari Flashcards
What is Nadi Shodhana?
It’s alternate nostril breathing
What are the benefits of Nadi Shodhana?
Practicing Nadi Shodhana helps to clear out blocked energy channels which in turns calms the mind.
Releases accumulated tension and fatigue.
It keeps body warm, boosting immune system. Beneficial for people with high blood pressure.
Clear the mind and calm the whole self.
What does Nadi Shodhana mean?
Nadi means “channel” and Shodhana means “purification.” So therefore it means to purify or clear the channels of the subtle and physical body.
Throughout the day, (maybe every 90 minutes or so), what happens to our nostrils?
we will have alternating nostril dominance.
What happens to us or what does it mean to have we alternating nostril dominance?
This means that whichever nostril is dominant has some effect on which parts of your nervous system and brain are more stimulated, affecting your clarity of mind and general capacity to function in different ways.
Nadi Shodhana can be used any time of day but when is the best reccomened?
Perform this breath in the morning on an empty stomach
How do we perform Nadi Shodhana?
Sit comfortably.
Begin by taking a full, deep inhalation followed by a slow, gentle exhalation. In this way, practice several rounds of Full Yogic Breath to help awaken the prana maya kosha (the energetic body).
Fold the tips of the index and middle fingers inward until they touch the palm at the base of the right thumb (Vishnu mudra). You will alternately use the right thumb to close the right nostril and the right ring and pinky fingers (together) to close the left nostril.
Use the right thumb to close the right nostril. Exhale gently, but fully, through the left nostril. Keeping the right nostril closed, inhale through the left nostril and deep into the belly. As you inhale, allow the breath to travel upward along the left side of the body. Pause briefly at the crown of the head.
Next, use the ring and pinky fingers of the right hand to gently close the left nostril and simultaneously release the right nostril. Exhale through the right nostril, surrendering the breath down the right side of the body. Pause gently at the bottom of the exhalation.
Keeping the left nostril closed, inhale once again through the right nostril, allowing the breath to travel up the right side of the body.
Then again, use the right thumb to close the right nostril as you release the left nostril. Exhale through the left nostril, surrendering the breath back down the left side of the body. Pause gently at the bottom of the exhalation.
Where should we focus our awareness while practicing Nadi Shodhana?
on the pathway of the breath—up one side of the body (from the pelvic floor to the crown of the head) and back down the other side of the body (from the crown of the head to the pelvic floor). Keep the breath slow, gentle, fluid, and relaxed throughout the practice.
What is Bhramari?
Bumblebee Breath.
What are the benefits of bhramari?
Calming, releasing anxiety, releasing mental tension. Avoid in case of ear infection.
Bhramari has an immediate relaxing effect on the brain. If it is practised some minutes every day it can reduce mental tension and lower high blood pressure.
What does Bhramari mean?
The adjective bhramarin can also mean “sweet as honey” in Sanskrit or “that which produces ecstasy”.
How to perform Bhramari?
Sit in a meditation pose with a straight back.
Place the hands on the knees and close the eyes.
Inhale deeply through the nose and hold the breath.
Lean a little forward so you are supported by straight arms, placing the weight on the knees.
Now, bend the head so the chin touches the chest (chin lock).
Pull up the pelvic floor, that is, the sexual organs, the perineum and the anal muscles together (root lock).
Hold the breath a while in the pose.
Release the contractions, raise the head, relax the shoulders and sit upright.
Close the ears by closing the small flaps of the ears with the index or middle finger.
The elbows are held out to the side so that the chest is open.
Then the exhalation takes place through the nose, while the mouth is closed (but the jaw is held so relaxed that the teeth don’t touch each other).
A smooth, deep and relatively strong humming sound, like that of a bumble bee, is produced during the exhalation.
Become one with the sound vibrations and let them fill your whole head, maybe even the whole body.
After the exhalation, let the hands rest on the knees and breathe normally.
Repeat this nine times.
Afterwards, sit still with closed eyes.
What is the chin lock and the root lock?
The chin lock (Jalandhara Bandha) and the root lock (Mula Bandha).
What are they used for?
They are used with a number of other breathing exercises to strengthen the practice. They stimulate the finer energy flows (nadi) and influence, simultaneously, the blood pressure, the heartbeat and the blood supply in certain parts of the brain as well as maintaining a relaxed state in the brain.
