Pranayama will inevitably awaken new awarenesses within the mind and body. Learning to effectively use and embrace these new awarenesses can be confusing and frustrating. Questions will arise that can't be explained by mere words alone. This is the time to seek out the advise and supervision of an instructor who can aid you in the process of fully experiencing the new awareness and allow the experience itself to lead you to the answer. You are, after all, your own best teacher. However, to develop this awareness safely without adverse effects takes time and may even require the supervision of an experienced teacher. Take the exercises slowly and mindfully, fully connected to the breath, the body and the spirit.
Pranayama can be stressful on the body and on the mind. If at anytime during pranayama practice you feel intense anger, sadness, anxiousness, light-headedness, faintness, or dizziness stop the practice, return to normal breathing rhythm and if you are standing sit down slowly.
One final precaution, as with any exercise program always consult a health professional with details of the specific requirements and activities in which you will participate.
Now to the actual practice.
With few exceptions breathing in pranayama is done through the nose. This prepares the air by filtering out toxins, moistening and heating the breath which allows the quickest and most effective means of absorption of the breath (prana or energy) to the vital processes.
Ujjayi Pranayama- (pronounced Oh-ji-e) is the breathing exercise most often used in yoga practice. There are several variations of this exercise involving retention of the breath (antara kumbhaka) but for our purposes the continual flow of the breath is the desired effect. This is the breath used during a yoga asana (pose or posture) practice.
To begin breathe through both nostrils, the tongue rests at the bottom of mouth and an audible sound is made both during the inhalation and exhalation by slightly restricting the muscles at the back of the throat. The sound has been described as "Darth Vadar like". This pranayama aids your yoga practice as it keeps the air continually circulating throughout the lungs, giving you more endurance and vitality as you move through each pose.
Try it next time you are doing any type of activity and see how this affects the actions and intentions involved. According to B.K.S. Iyengar in his book, "Light on Yoga" this is the only pranayama that can be done at anytime.
