Although all pranayama is best learned with and from a good teacher, I feel that you can divide pranayama into two broad categories: the safe to learn without a teacher and the better-have-a-teacher if you know what’s good for you. Can I leave it there and open it up for discussion ? I have just been called to go elsewhere, Namaste.
Awareness of breath, abdominal breathing with equal inhales and exhales, with the exhales as first among equals are both readily posited in the first category. I would also put in to the category of safe-without-a-teacher kapalabhati and alternate breathing without significant kumbhachas. Also, a couple of kundalini breaths which I don’t know the names of : for the adrenals where you chant , HAR , and the twisting to the left inhale and twisting to the right exhale. Dog breath, or open mouth, tongue extended panting would also be in the first category. My two questions for the community : Do you agree with this list and what would you add to or subtract from it, and what is in the other category of definitely needing a teacher ? Namaste, and Thank you for your thoughts on this.
Hello Tony, Why do you ask? Why do you want to divide a continuum? In my opinion and experience, even breath awareness is best learnt from a teacher. Have you already supplied your own answer in your opening sentence? [quote=TonyTamer;21617]Although all pranayama is best learned with and from a good teacher[/quote]
Hi Willem. I would prefer learning from someone qualified by experience but my location and economies make that difficult. I am a studious person and have learned to be cautious so I have done well in a home practice. I have had teachers, probably added together , for about 2 years, been on yoga retreats and read and re-read very good books,dvd’s and the internet for literally decades. I have been very focused and committed to asanas for at least 2 hours a day since 2002, almost every day; and I love my practice every day. I want to make the next step to pranayama and realizing the potential danger while also wanting the benefits ( such as protection against diabetes which runs in my family with kapalabhati breath ( and I realize there are asanas such as the bow ) ) I have just started a pranayama practice about 3 months ago. I have proceded cautiously and only do the ones I mentioned before. So far, BP is great and it feels good and I seem to be benefiting. I especially enjoy Kapalabhati. I’m 56 and the fear of diabetes fuels a lot of my desire to do pranayama,plus I feel I’m ready for the next step. In my readings etc. there is agreement among the authors that some are less dangerous than others for example ujayii and abdominal breathing and basic greath awareness. There are different points on a continuum like a bell shaped curve for instance, where you have different degrees of value. Yoga itself is a continuum and whole but is approached in a hierarchal way. I would like to hear what others say about that hierarchy , if any, in pranayama. I have attended Pranayama classes at retreats.
Dear Tony,
There is more to type 2 diabetes than heredity. Diet, lifestyle, exercise and stress are the other contributing factors. You can control these to some degree. With a two-hour a day asana practice, you must have a corresponding proper body weight, diet, lifestyle, and control over stress. Right? If so, you are already doing the best you can in terms of prevention of diabetes. If not, then you will know what to do. If the issue is stress, then basic breathing techniques may be helpful ? abdominal breathing, basic ujjayi, and alternate nostril breathing, all without uneven breathing ratios or pauses. These practices are relatively safe.
Now, back to your question on pranayama. You say that you have been taught pranayama at several retreats. I hope this was by one teacher or from one school, so that your lessons were internally consistent. Ideally the lessons will have covered:
[ul]
[li]Proper attitude and frame of mind (e.g. ahimsa, never ever to be short of breath, the instruction to stop breathing practices at the slightest signs of fatigue or boredom, never to practice within 2 hours of meals, and to be so gentle in your practices that you seem to be breathing with the subtle body and not with the physical body)[/li][li]Proper posture (strong foundation, pelvis above knees, a long spine, relaxed shoulders, throat, mouth and face)[/li][li]Proper technique for each practice (e.g. during kapalabhati the abdomen should move while shoulders remain still)[/li][li]Jala neti (salt water snuffing) to clear blocked nostrils[/li][li]Contraindications for each practice (e.g. heart disease, uncontrolled high blood pressure, stroke, epilepsy, hiatal hernia and gastric ulcer do not combine with kapalabhati)[/li][li]Proper progression for each practice (e.g. start kapalabhati with three rounds of 11 exhalations the first week, each round to be followed by a spontaneous pause in which you let the body do whatever it needs to do in terms of breathing. Add 11 exhalations each week until you reach 121. By that time this should take you about 1 minute per round. Further progression is possible to a maximum of three rounds of 5 ? 7 minutes in a 20 minute total practice.)[/li][/ul]If so, go ahead, especially since your practices feel good to you. Abdominal breathing, three-part breathing, basic ujjayi, basic alternate nostril breathing, and kapalabhati in moderation are safe for healthy persons. Bhastrika is more risky because it is a more strenuous practice. When ujjayi and alternate nostril breathing are done for long durations, with uneven breathing ratios or with pauses, this should be done under guidance of an expert. Bhastrika beyond three rounds of thirty breaths requires guidance.
In the absence of a teacher, a great deal of sensitivity, discernment and self-pacing is needed. Aim for very slow progress over at least two years. Always back-off when you encounter negative side-effects. Keep a diary to monitor your practices and the responses of your bodymind. If you have a lapse in your practice, always resume at an easier level. Think about where you would go with your questions when you run into trouble.
Newcomers to yoga and persons with health problems should always practice pranayama under guidance. Pranayama deals with the subtle body and has the potential to seriously disrupt body rhythms and the nervous system. The Hatha Pradipika already mentioned that ?Just as a lion, an elephant or a tiger is tamed by degrees, similarly respiration is to be brought under control gradually; otherwise it would harm the aspirant?(HP II-15). Some translations state “kill the aspirant”.
I don?t believe that pranayama can be generically split into ?safe? and ?unsafe? practices. It depends too much on the practitioner. Good teachers are able to individualise practices for maximum benefit whilst reducing the risks.
It is best to have a teacher. But if there is no teacher, one can learn it from books, taking precautions to be observant and to find a teacher as soon as possible.
It is an absolute must to learn the various locks (bandhas).
Vital energy released and polluted energy which is release, needs to be directed into the proper channels and this is done mostly by the locks, but will power alone works for those who are very advanced. When a novice imitates and tries to use will power, it does nothing to direct the released force.
Thank you both for your advice. Willem, that was as if it was in a book-very comprehensive. Thank You for taking the time. And I do try to engage the bandhas. I’m printing your response out to keep offline. Namaste
[QUOTE=TonyTamer;21647]Thank you both for your advice. Willem, that was as if it was in a book-very comprehensive. Thank You for taking the time. And I do try to engage the bandhas. I’m printing your response out to keep offline. Namaste[/QUOTE]
One very good book is B.K.S. Iyengar’s Light on Pranayama. It is very detailed and is perhaps the best thing on that subject.
I have his Light on Yoga which the 2nd part of the book deals with Pranayama. I have never heard of Light on Pranayama. I will check it out , Thanks.