Yoga science described all living things have a life force called Prana. You can’t see this, touch this, taste this but a yogi can feel this by practicing hath yoga and pranayama.
What Is Prana Breath?
We have practically used the word “Prana” in our lives many times, but we hardly know about the reality of life, or we mistakenly believe that the meaning of Prana is life or spirit, but it is not the truth, Prana is a form of air when air moves in the sky, it is called Vayu, when this air works in 5 parts in our body, it is called “Prana”, the synonym name of Vayu is Prana.
Kena Upanishad stated as “That which one breath (praniti) not with breathing (prana breath). That which breathing is conducted (praniyate). That indeed is known as Brahman. reference/
Prana is a Sanskrit word translated into English in many forms including “life force,” “energy” and “vital principle”. It keeps our body alive. Under the body, some people consider this air to be the soul only by saying Atman.
Five Prana
The five prana vayus are-
- Prana Vayu,
- Apana Vayu,
- Samana Vayu,
- Udana Vayu, and
- Vyana Vayu.
- Prana Vayu – The work of breathing and exhaling is done with the name Pran Vayu and also it is associated with the Anahata Chakra, the Heart Chakra. Its location is from nasal to heart. Elements like the eye, source, mouth, etc. work with this cooperation.
- Apana Vayu – Apan means downward air. This Mooladhara chakra, root chakra, is connected to the earth. Apan Vayu affects the lower part of the body, from the navel to the soles of the feet. It regulates the life process, such as exhaling, sweating, and eliminating digestive waste, all are Apana Vayu. Nauli, Agnisara-Kriya, Ashwini Mudra and Moola Bandha methods work to strengthen and purify your life. Apart from this, this same air is responsible for the excretion of excreta, and for making and ejecting semen.
- Samana Vayu – The work of purifying the entire body by juicing food is of Samana Vayu. Its location has been told from the heart to the navel. It works by digesting eaten food and making juices (Ras), blood, metals, etc. from digested grains. This Vayu is strengthened by the practice of Agnisara Kriya and Nauli.
- Udana Vayu – Udaan means the air that moves upwards. This is that high ascending energy, which is required for the body to move or to balance while standing. This Prana flows from the heart to the head and brain. Udayan Vayu is also activated by the practice of Ujjayi Pranayama and Bhramari Pranayama.
- Vyana Vayu – Control of the entire body and the nervous system is conducted by the Vayu named Vyan! This is the work of circulating blood and life force in the whole body. It flows through the pulse path of the human body. Its effect is on the whole body and especially on the Nadis and also helps other souls in their work. Reduction in Vyana Vayu leads to a decrease in blood flow, malfunction in vascular transmission, and neural motion. It is activated by the practice of pranayama.
How life force flows through the body?
Due to these five-way changes of Vayu, the person’s consciousness remains awake, memories are safe, digestion keeps going right and blood flows in the heart. It is because of this that thoughts of the mind keep changing or remain constant.
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