Moving with the Pranamaya Kosha
Rough Transcript:
Pranamaya Kosha
Working skillfully with the Annamaya kosha naturally takes us towards the next layer, the Pranamaya kosha, the vital principle which is manifested as the breath itself. This is considered your subtle body in Yoga, and is governed by the 72,000 nadhis, or energetic channels, that move our prana through our subtle system.
We learn to explore this flow of prana in our yoga practice through the 5 Vayus, which requires a much more in depth study in order to incorporate. We will be exploring this in our Empower training.
For today, though, we can look at the largest of these channels is the Shushumna, the central channel running along the spine. The second and third largest channels are the Ida and Pingala, which begin at the base of the spine and spiral around the shushumna in a double helix pattern, eventually stopping at the nostrils. It is for this reason that breathing through the nose is such a vital aspect of connecting with our prana, and working skillfully with the Pranamaya Kosha.
It is possible, and recommended, to explore breathing through your nose on and off your meditation cushion. Science has shown it to be beneficial in all fields, from sweeping to sleeping, from running errands to running miles. If this is new information to you, then don’t be alarmed. Take your time and try it out throughout your day, its a natural phenomenon that needs little instruction, and is something we will be exploring in much more detail in our Empower training.
For now, here’s a fun fact: nose breathing absorbs 18% more oxygen than mouth breathing (J. Lundberg, “Nasal and oral contribute to inhaled and exhaled Nitric Oxide: A study in Tracheotomized Patients” 2002). Think about that for a moment— this means if you breathe through your mouth you are missing out on 20% of your oxygen— over the course of a day, this would be like holding your breath for almost 5 hours! Breathe through your nose and take those 5 extra hours of breath back.
Another kind of data shows that mouth breathing itself causes more cavities than sugar consumption, bad diet and poor hygiene— that’s pretty remarkable, and that data has been around for over a hundred years (“Breathing through the mouth a cause of essay of the teeth,” American Journal of Dental Science, 1890).
Ida and Pingala
There is a lot more that could be cited on a physical level for breathing through the nose, such as the warming/filtering/humidifying/hydrating effects of nose breathing, but there is even more to it on a metaphysical level.
From the yogic perspective, the nose is the doorway to our Ida and Pingala Nadhis, the second and third largest energetic pathways in our subtle body. These two channels begin at the base of the spine and spiral around the central channel, the Shushumna, ending at the nostrils. The Right nostril is associated with heating qualities, and the left with cooling. The list of descriptors for these two sides is endless, its sort of a Yin/Yang situation— The right nostril feeds our analytical side, the left our Creative side. The right is associated with the sun, the left with the moon. And so on. The point is not to memorize the list, but rather to see that the very foundation of our energetic system, especially our subtle body and nadhis of the pranayama kosha, are intimately accessed through our nose. Our second and third biggest energetic channels end there— that’s a big deal. It appears that breathing through your nose is a worthy experiment for all of us to try, whether your data is physical or Spiritual in scope.
Nose breathing also helps us make the most of our breathwork below the ribs, in the belly. The diaphragm is situated at the base of the ribs in a parachute shape, and when you inhale it presses down and out on the organs of digestion and elimination. This is your most efficient means of breathing. Breathing in the chest is a short term solution that tends to create light headedness and fatigue. Navel breathing also serves as a signal to your nervous system to ‘rest and digest’ so to speak, which shifts us towards a para-sympathetic state, a restorative mode which is itself a natural stepping stone to meditation.
Beginning to work with the breath in a balanced way is precisely the work that chips away the Pranamaya Kosha. This kosha is the intersection of the phsycail and subtle realities, and we work with it in both physical and subtle ways. Breathing consciously through our nose is a physical action that has subtle results. Breathing steadily and consciously in our asana practice is a physical action that has metaphysical results. On the 8 limbs of yoga, Patanjali specifically placed pranayama between ‘asana’, movements of the body, and ‘pratyahara’, focus of the mind. Our breath is the bridge between these two worlds.
To walk this bridge takes a unique kind of effort that only the breath can teach us. This is described in the ancient texts, and modern satsangs, as a ‘flowing with’ the breath. It requires more feeling and sensitivity, just like carving our statue with a finer chisel would allow for more sensation and more precise marks. The breath is a finer chisel and requires finer levels of awareness.
You can imagine this as a type of reverance for something more intelligent than yourself, a type of surrender, a receptivity. IN the story of the Ramayana, hanuman had so much devotion and faith in Ram, that he was able to walk on water so to speak. He wrote Ram’s name on stones, and through his faith and receptivity, the stones floated, and he was able to create a bridge to help Ram finish his journey. This is the kind of receptivity the breath requires of us-- a sensitivity both in the body and the heart.
“Think of the breath as a vehicle rather than a jackhammer. Often students use the breath too strongly. You should attach your attention to your breath in a way similar to the way you attach your attention to a mantra. … You will not be using the breath to cut the rock open. Instead, the breath is a vehicle that you are riding on… The breath is like a massage, and as you exhale you surrender all the negativity that gets kicked up. When students are able to be open and simple with their breath, they realize that watching the breath is not the same as trying to control it. The pranayama within the breath is simply flowing with the breath.” SP 13
So within your asana practice, the breath should allow you to unlock subtler states of being as you learn to ride it, instead of constantly directing it. Just ‘inhaling as you lift your arms’, doesn’t bring you to this level of awareness— we have to go beyond the breath as just something going in and out of us, and see it as a way of accessing a subtler state of being.
As Patanjlai writes in his 2,000 year old treatise: “Pranayama is the regulation of the breath in order to consciously use the life force (prana) for growth. When the practitioner has been strengthened through asana practice, it’s easier to bring focus to the space between the breaths…Besides these methods of altering the breath, there is another, more subtle approach to pranayama which transcends the concept of the breath existing merely inside or outside of the body…Proper practice of pranayama can remove the obscurations which distract from the light of the Self.” Sutras 2.49, 2.51, 2.52
To summarize our work with the breath into just one simple, memorable phrase— our work is to flow with, not against it. This is how we work with the Pranayama Kosha.
So as Patanjali, Shambhavananda and Reps teach us, the greatest pranayama is to learn how to move with the breath, to go beyond its physical qualities and experience its inner pulsation. To not only let it flow, but to flow with it.
Ways to try it:
Breath Awareness: Prioritize the breath in your class by making time for breath awareness before you move.
Organic Movement with Breath: Make room for students to move in creative ways that don’t require cueing so that they can feel the dance of breath and movement (Intero-surfing)
Breathe at Own Pace: Invite students to coordinate a breath with an action at their own pace and timing, instead of expecting them to move/breath with you in sync.
Invite exploration and curiosity: It’s often the case that trying an inhale where you normally exhale, or vice versa, can have surprisingly pleasant effects and different types of benefits. section 3 Headstand with palms down