Prana and Pranayamas
What is Prana?
Prana is the vital energy within everything. Yoga, like many other ancient ways of understanding the human being, affirms that individuals are composed of something else than their physical bodies. Yoga refers to the existence of one energy that animates us, that is behind every movement we perform, every change that we live, one and each of our breaths. That energy is named Prana.
The word Prana means “vital energy” or “life force”. It is the energy that is present in everything and everywhere around, either in animate or inanimate beings. Prana is the pulse of the Creation (and the Creator) that is vibrating in all the existent beings. We have that energy within us.
Although all of the Panchamahabutas or five elements (space, air, fire, water, earth) are the source of Prana, one of the most important source is the air, and we obtain this prana by the simple process of breathing. That is the reason why sometimes Prana is confused with air, or the oxygen, but it is more subtle than that, it is pure energy.
Prana supports and governs all the actions either voluntary or involuntary; we need this energy or Prana to coordinate and regulate the different functions of our body and mind, as for example circulation, digestion (at physical and mental level), or the movements of all our muscles.
We may have some blockages that do not allow Prana to move freely. If we feel tired, depressive, weak, if we can not think clearly, or even if we suffer insomnia, those may be signs of a blockage in the flow of Prana. In that case, we can perform some breathing exercises to release energy, to make it circulate freely throughout our body. Those breathing exercises are called Pranayamas.
What is Prana?
Prana is the vital energy within everything. Yoga, like many other ancient ways of understanding the human being, affirms that individuals are composed of something else than their physical bodies. Yoga refers to the existence of one energy that animates us, that is behind every movement we perform, every change that we live, one and each of our breaths. That energy is named Prana.
The word Prana means “vital energy” or “life force”. It is the energy that is present in everything and everywhere around, either in animate or inanimate beings. Prana is the pulse of the Creation (and the Creator) that is vibrating in all the existent beings. We have that energy within us.
Although all of the Panchamahabutas or five elements (space, air, fire, water, earth) are the source of Prana, one of the most important source is the air, and we obtain this prana by the simple process of breathing. That is the reason why sometimes Prana is confused with air, or the oxygen, but it is more subtle than that, it is pure energy.
Prana supports and governs all the actions either voluntary or involuntary; we need this energy or Prana to coordinate and regulate the different functions of our body and mind, as for example circulation, digestion (at physical and mental level), or the movements of all our muscles.
We may have some blockages that do not allow Prana to move freely. If we feel tired, depressive, weak, if we can not think clearly, or even if we suffer insomnia, those may be signs of a blockage in the flow of Prana. In that case, we can perform some breathing exercises to release energy, to make it circulate freely throughout our body. Those breathing exercises are called Pranayamas.
Do you want to know more about the different types of Pranayamas and their effects ? Keep reading here ! |
You may also be interested in:
General bibliography for this section:
- Asana, Pranayama, Mudra, Bandha. Swami Satyananda Saraswati. Yoga Publications Trust, Munger, Bihar, India, 1996.