PRANAYAMA
In the yoga tradition, Pranayama is the controlling of one’s breath or “life force”. It is the first step to our inner practice work and the 4th limb along our 8 limbed path to Samadhi (enlightenment). Not saying we are truly going to experience Samadhi in this lifetime, but practicing #mindfulness in our positive daily actions encourages a great start to a beautiful day/ week/ month/ year/ lifetime!
Our breath is an involuntary action, and while we don’t necessarily have to think about it happening, we CAN take a bit of control over our breath by encouraging a sense of presence. At times our breath can become shortened or maybe labored during times of stress, or deep in thought. Let’s take a moment and practice this first step within experiencing the present.
Awareness of our breath can create an overall sense of calmness and can awaken our ability to reflect on oneself. This is one of the many reasons we feel so good coming out of a yoga or meditation class. Pranayama being this first step in our path to self realization, we ‘can come to our senses’ so to speak, to have the ability to maybe view our actions with a more objective point of view. When these daily obstacles jump onto our path, our presence of breath may help change or redirect the energy we meet them with.
TRY THIS:
Sit comfortably, allow yourself a few moments to simply breathe. Follow the length and sound of your breath. As you begin to become more conscious of this breath, begin to lengthen the inhale to a slow count of 4 or 5, take a slight pause and as you release the exhale allow the count to be a 5 or 6, again pause. And so on…
Observe the internal sensations you’ve experienced. Please take a pic and share your observations with us @yoga_seva_retreats