Other Breathing Exercises
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org, please feel free to visit the school website)
All other exercises are based on these three described above. Variations of the three basic exercises abound. Get creative, and do what feels good, and chances are you will be tapping into yet another of the techniques taught by the yogis. Some variations are as follows:
Nasal Snoring
Use one of the basic three exercises, but make a snoring sound through the nostrils into the fort had this can create lofty experiences and trancelike states very quickly, even when done at a minimal, quiet level. It is a great way to begin a meditation. It energizes the left and right energy passages (Ida and Pingala) that go up the forehead, over-the-top and the back of the skull, and wind around the sushumna (the tube in which the kundalini moves up and down the spine) down to the base of the spine. Many have reported kundalini experiences with this variation.
Humming, Bhramari Pranayama (Bhramari means “large bee”)
This exercise soothes the nerves, relaxes the skull cavity, and calms the mind. Using one of the three basic exercises, make the sound of a bee on the exhale. The vibration in the head, chest and throat clear blockages and open up energy. This exercise is great for healing sinus problems. Repeat for two or three minutes. Another variation is to inhale through both nostrils and exhale making the sound of a bee.
Swooning
This exercise is to be practiced only by people who are proficient and probably on and have enough experience to do this safely. Do this in a sitting or lying down position so that if you fall, you will not be hurt. Do not do this standing up. After the inhale, pause (the full pause, Abhyantara Kumbhaka) and hold until you are about to faint. This can induce euphoria and semi consciousness. If you faint, don't worry, your automatic breathing systems will kick in. It is a way to induce near death experiences and altered states for super consciousness. The very careful with this one! It is best to practice this with an instructor or at least a partner.
Alternating Nostrils
Try different patterns with the nostrils, for instance, in healing through the right nostril and exhaling to the left nostril 20 times or try doing the reverse. This can create interesting brain wave activity. Try breathing in through the right nostril and out through the right nostril or vice versa. Energize a creative project right before you begin, or energize a speech are about to give. Remember that the left nostril can patrol strike brain and the right nostril controls the left brain.
Some yogis instruct students to do three rounds of one variant, then three rounds of another variant, or just one round of each variant.
Note: if you are practicing this in the evening, reverse the order of cycles, beginning with exhalation through the right nostril and inhalation through the left nostril.
Practice the same technique for a period of time, for instance a month or so, before attempting other techniques, for only withy practice of the same technique for a duration of time can a person get the full benefits of nadi shodhanam. Some techniques depict retention of the breath between inhalation and exhalation (pauses in breathing), but this is an advanced form of the exercise where the subtle differences will not easily be noticed until nadi shodhanam is well practiced. Harm can happen with these other techniques if the student is not solidly ensconced within the sushumna. Harm can happen because the student awakens more prana than he or she can handle with blocked sushumna passageways.
For your reference, when you are ready to practice with the more advanced techniques of pranayama, they are listed below. However, please take care to open the sushumna first in order to open the kundalini energy in a more practical and balanced way. It is known that opening the kundalini too fast, before the energetic system can handle it, can cause insanity.
Pausing The Breath (a tip)
Nadi Shodhanam can be practiced by pausing the breath in between the inhalation and exhalation. These pauses can produce profound states of consciousness. One of the most recommended ratios between inhalation, retention, and exhalation is 1:4:2. After mastering retention of breath during inhalation, the student can then practice retention of the breath after exhalation. This can produce profound states of consciousness. After practice, increasing the duration of pauses between inhalation and exhalation can be attempted.
Below are some of the more advanced practices, but we don’t give directions on how to do all of them because an instructor is recommended for some of these.
Kapalabhati Pranayama (“pranayama that makes forehead and entire face lustrous”)
This exercise helps clean the sinuses and other respiratory passages, and also stimulates the abdominal muscles and digestive organs. It consists of forceful exhalation of breath, using the diaphragm and abdominal muscles, and then a slow, passive inhalation. This cycle of vigorous exhalation followed by a passive inhalation is repeated seven to twenty one times, depending on one’s abilities with the breath.
Ujjayi Pranayama (“control or victory arising from a process of expansion”)
This exercise enhances the ventilation of the lungs, removes phlegm, calms the nerves and fills the body with vitality. Inhalation and exhalation are slow and deep, with partial closure of the glottis. This produces a sound like sobbing, but it is even and continuous. During inhalation, the incoming air touches the roof of the mouth and is accompanied by the sound sa. During exhalation, the outgoing air also touches the roof of the mouth and is accompanied by the sound ha. Sa-ha.
Sitali Pranayama
Cools and soothes the body. Curl the tongue lengthwise until it resembles a tube. If you cannot do this, practice sitkari pranayama instead for the same benefits. The tip of the curled tongue is outside the lips. Inhaling, making a hissing sound. Exhale through both nostrils. Repeat three times.
Sitkari Pranayama
Cools and soothes the body. Roll the tongue back as far as possible toward the back of the mouth with lips parted and teeth clenched. Inhale making a hissing sound. Exhale through both nostrils. Repeat three times.
Suryabhedana Pranayama
Inhale through the right nostril, retain the air and then exhale through the left nostril.
Murccha Pranayama
Inhale through both nostrils. Lock the chin, then slowly and gently exhale.
Plavini Pranayama
(Do this one in a sitting position, not standing, for dizziness can be a result)
This is one of the most advanced pranayama exercises, like the Swooning exercise, but it doesn’t take you quite to the brink of unconsciousness the way the Swooning exercise does. Fill the stomach completely with air, then fill the lungs in the chest cavity, all the way up to the top of the throat, and retain the breath as long as possible without torturing yourself. Finally exhale. Repeat as many times as you like.
There are many more pranayama exercises but they are only taught by competent teachers to adept yogis.
Bandhas
According to Patanjali in Yoga Sutra 1:34, having control over the pause is what is called pranayama. In Sanskrit, the pause is called kumbhaka, but breathing practices are meant to control, eliminate and expand that pause, therefore, in many ancient interpretations, pranayama means “a pause.”
The kambhakas should be practiced with a teacher, if possible, and so should the practice of bandhas be observed as the pauses are practiced. The bandhas are locks. Three of them are jalandhara bandha (chin lock), uddiyana bandha (abdominal lock) and mulabandha (anal lock).
Jalandhara Bandha
The two main arteries which bring the blood to the brain are on both sides of the neck. The chin lock brings conscious applied pressure to these arteries. The nerve impulses to the brain fade and body consciousness is lost, bringing about a trancelike condition. This also slows down the heart and the vijnani nadi (channel of consciousness). When the chin lock is practiced in both exhalation and inhalation, it brings about a blissful state.
If retention of the breath is long, the chin lock should be applied in order to prevent the inhaled air from rushing out, for it will move into the auditory tubes and the inner ear, thus causing infections and other disorders of the inner ear. Jalandhara bandha is applied to prevent this.
Note: Some doctors in India put pressure on the carotid arteries in order to create a yogic anesthesia for the patient. Minor surgeries can even be performed with this way of anesthetizing the patient. Martial arts experts also practice these techniques in order to either desensitize themselves from an injury while engaged in a fight, or to weaken their opponent by applying these techniques to the opponent’s body.
Uddiyana Bandha (Abdominal Lift)
This involves the diaphragm, ribs, and abdominal muscles. Practice this exercise in either a standing or sitting position. In the standing position, the feet are about one and a half to two feet apart. The knees are slightly bent and the spine is straight. Lean forward from the waist and place the palms of the hands just above the knees. Exhale completely, chin down, and without inhaling, suck the abdominal muscles in and up, pulling the navel toward the spine. Pull the abdomen and diaphragm up and into the cavity of the rib cage. The back will curve forward slightly. Hold this position during a pause for as long as it is comfortable, then inhale and relax.
Use force only in pulling the muscles inward and upward. Do not use this exercise if you have high blood pressure, hiatal hernia, ulcers or heart disorders. Women, do not practice it during menstruation or pregnancy.
It has been said that this exercise increases psychic powers.
Mulabandha (Anus Lock)
This exercise is practiced during pranayama and meditation. The external and internal sphincter muscles of the anus are contracted and held.