Change in thought process: From short and forceful to slow,smooth and prolonged

Change in thought process: From short and force full to slow, smooth and prolonged

In the beginning of the pranayama prayog, I was charged up and took up the prayog with full enthusiasm and vigor.

The kriyas showed in videos were taken up with full strength and forcefully executed.

In sense the exhalation and all were in full strength and forceful.

Will try and explain the finer points noted here:

While doing the Bahya and Agnisaar pranayama, as per the instructions, I exhaled deeply and forcefully held the breath for longer durations to stretch myself longer. In this effort was ending up inhaling heavily once the kriya is done (due to strong adherence to the kriya)
but over the time span of say a minute I ended up gasping more breaths than normally would have done so.

For example,

If I had done a Bahya pranayama for one breath of say 40 sec, I was running out of breath so much that I would then inhale for 7-8 times heavily to regain normal breathing.. Effectively in a span of 60 Sec taking 9 breaths in all.

Now if I smoothly do the same activity and exhale and hold the breath (not very strongly) say for 20 sec, I would need only 2-3 breaths to regain normal breathing,
So In a span of 60 sec, I would do 2 Bahya pranayama for 20-25 sec each and then take 2-3 more breaths to regain breath every time. which is Bahya pranayama for 40 sec and 4-5 additional breaths- 6-7 breaths in 60sec in all!!

Now this difference is the fine tuning of the kriya being practiced and required the guidance of a guru.

It is said that the breathing itself is to be slowed down or prolonged to the levels of one breath per minute or more before progressing to further kriyas.

Hence its is always advised in each ancient texts that a good guru is required for the attainment of what you desire to achieve in life.




 

Observation #3: Nostrils getting clear - update

Observation #3: Nostrils getting clear - update

It was seen that the nostrils had got cleared with excessive cough being sent out.

It was observed that nose was again blocked with one nostril yesterday. No noticeable change vis-a-vis earlier status prior to the observation #2.

was observed to be in same condition today as well, however, the nostrils seem to be open for the rest of the day as the day progresses.

This update is to maintain the observation log in chronological order.

 

Observation #2 : Nostrils getting clear

Observation #2 : Nostrils getting clear

Yesterday Dated 21 Dec,

After a duration of approx2 weeks of regular pranayama sessions, I had gone through the suggestions of pranayama kriyas and the videos of pranayamas to find that in opposition to the forceful and result oriented approach to conduct pranayama, I should be looking at prolonged and slow and smooth execution.

Also, till now I was trying to get the kriyas done as per my level of exertion/exhaustion. I tried following the generic timelines given in the videos.

the timing says that in a hour of pranayama session, I should be doing the Kapalbhaati and Anulom-vilom kriyas for half an hour and rest of kriyas for half an hour.

It was observed after following the timelines that while doing Anulom vilom for about 15 min after the earlier kriyas, in 3 steps of about 5 min each, there was a huge exhalation of mucus or cough through both nostrils. the quantity was so much that I had to get the body towel to washing.

Post this, Both my nostrils seem open for entire duration of the day.

This is, as I suppose first requirement for pranayama and chakra awakening - Both Nostrils be open and the prana or the air flow is smooth and full.

Observation #1 : Padmasana might be just for very long meditation sessions

Observation #1 : Padmasana might be just for very long meditation sessions

To avoid the uncomfrtable strain coming in due to the long continuous sitting postures, Padmasana might be the solution to it. 

the uncomfort in sitting with folded legs comes due to the long strained contact of the ankle bones to the ground. 

Padmasana avoids this particular contact where in the contact with ground is only with the muscles/fat of the legs. This is advantageous as there is no stressful bone contact and the contact is muscles would not be much issue unless the perspiration does not come into picture.

To be tried for implementation with this thought.

New relevation regarding Bhramari

 New Relevation regarding Bhramari !

While performing the Bhramari, Realised today that its not to be done like humming but buzzing.

As understood earlier, i used to do it by making humming sound. it was very difficult to notice any vibrations itself. Thought it to be requiring practice for feeling the effects of it. 

Realized today that if the process is buzzing and not humming. we need to create the buzzing sound of a black bee. 

So tried making a buzzing sound by pushing sound through nose while closing ears and fingers on eyes and above eyebrows. this created vibrations many times more than the method followed with humming sound.Almost shook me entirely from head to the end of spinal chord. 

Hadn't expected there would be such huge change in the vibrations felt..

Now confident that this magnitude of vibrations are capable of making some changes felt in body.

Need to try it to experience it.

21 Kundalini Awakening Symptoms

I was pleasantly surprised to have read about kundalini awakening symptoms in a book written by Sri Swami Sivananda called “Kundalini Yoga”.

1. You know that kundalini has awakened in your body when, during meditation, you experience something other-worldly. That could be divine visions, smells you never smelled before, a blissful taste or hearing sounds you never heard before.

2. When you feel sensations in your root chakra or when your body hairs are involuntarily raised, this again shows that your kundalini energy has been awakened.

3.  When you want to do yogic body locks naturally, even though you never did them before, this is one of the kundalini awakening symptoms. Such involuntary body locks could be sucking out the air of your stomach, raising the air up the root chakra or resting the chin on the chest.

4. The breath stops without any effort in people whose kundalini shakti is awake.

5. When you feel currents of energy rising up in your body and they feel pleasant, know this is due to the kundalini energy.

6. When you experience bliss and the mantra “om” (or “aum”) chant comes naturally to you, these are the kundalini awakening symptoms.

7. When you get blank mind (without any thoughts), this is again caused by the awakened kundalini shakti.

8. When, during meditation, your eyes naturally focus in the 3rd eye chakra, that’s a kundalini awakening sign.

9. When you feel vibrations of energy in different parts of your body and you get involuntary jerks that feel like electricity shocks, know that kundalini is awake in you.

10. When, during meditation, your body loses importance until you don’t feel it at all, this is caused by kundalini energy.

11. One of the kundalini awakening symptoms is not being able to open eyes after meditation, according to the author (this, however, I’ve never experienced, although at times I was unwilling to open my eyes because it’s so pleasant to meditate).

12. When electric currents flow up and down in your body, it’s the sign of an awakened kundalini energy.

13. If you get inspiration and insight as a result of meditation, this happens due to the active kundalini shakti in your body.

14. When the nature shows you her secrets and your doubts disappear, it’s a sign of awakened kundalini.

15. When you understand the meaning of spiritual texts that’s a sure symptom of awakened kundalini.

16. When you feel as though your body is light like air and you possess inexhaustible energy, that’s because of the kundalini that’s active.

17. A sure symptom of awakened kundalini is your ability to remain calm when catastrophic/negative conditions present themselves.

18. When you experience divine bliss, the bliss that can’t be explained in words, this is due to the kundalini that’s awake in you.

19. When you get the power of public speaking, that’s because the kundalini shakti has risen up your chakras.

20. When you perform yogic postures naturally, without the least pain and without getting tired, that’s because the kundalini is awakened.

21. When you start composing beautiful poems without any effort (as though it’s coming not from you), this is one of the kundalini awakening symptoms.

Magical yet Logical thought

Magical yet Logical thought :

It is said that every man comes in with his destiny. Life and the breathes are all but measured. Man cannot live one breathe more than what is destined.

While doing the pranayama, the breathing techniques are done in prolonged manner. For example the Bahya pranayama aims at exhaling and prolonging the stage till the next breath. Which also means that the time between 2 breaths is additional to the time fixed in number of breaths per person. Hence the slower or longer you breathe.. the more time you get to live.(The time spend doing pranayama is additional to the time allotted to the life of one person!)

Logical though magical !! 

Thumb rules to be followed

Few Thumb rules seem to be very important to be ensured to be followed :

1. All Inhalation and Exhalation to be done with mouth shut and only through nose unless specified.
2. Respiration activity should ideally not involve stomach at all. Wherever stomach is mentioned, its mentioned only to ensure air is pulled out of stomach as well again indication that stomach should not participate in the respiration activity.
3. All kriyas are to be done slowly and in rhythmic manner and unnecessary forceful implementation to be avoided. Unless Kriyas are specifically requiring the forceful implementation 

Will be keeping a track of the observation and things felt along. This will also keep a chronological log of the duration required for every stage. 

Pranayama - 7 Major Kriyas or Techniques

Breathing techniques.

Swami Ramdev or Baba Ramdev is an Indian Yoga Guru who has been instrumental in popularizing the current yoga craze in India. Through his daily broadcasts on television channels starting about 12 -13 years back, he brought the long kept under wraps mysterious yoga techniques straight into the homes of the masses. Before him Yoga had always been kept shrouded in wraps and mystery.He explained that yoga can be done by anyone and everyone to better health, cure disease and remain healthy. There was nothing mysterious about yoga and it didn't require huge effort or learning to do the basic yoga pranayama or yoga breathing exercises.

Baba Ramdev outlined a set of 7 Pranayama (yoga breathing techniques) which he said were sufficient to keep a person disease free provided they are done regularly and diligently. These 7 yoga breathing techniques or exercises are explained below.

They are best done in the early morning though one can do them in the evening also. If done after a large meal there ought to be a gap of 5 hours after the meal.

1. Bhastrika

Breathe in deeply through the nose and fill the lungs with air. Ensure that you do not fill the stomach with air (If the chest rises while inhaling this is ensured). Breathe in a smooth easy flow without straining. All the while feel that the Divine energy is entering your body.
Then breathe out and feel that all the poisons and toxins are being expelled with this breath.
Repeat this procedure non stop for 2 minutes to start with and slowly extend the duration to 5 minutes at a stretch over some weeks.
Initially, due to the large inflow of oxygen to the brain, you might feel a bit heavy in the head. If so, rest for a while before restarting. In due course you will not experience this.

Benefits
All skin problems are cured by Bhastrika including leucoderma and discoloration of the skin due to burns

2. Kapalbhati

This breathing routine starts with an exhalation or breathing out the air in the lungs.
Breathe out the air with moderate force and while doing this the stomach should go in. This is most important. Then breathe in.
It's like the stomach going in when we cough.
The exhalation or breathing out is forceful but the inhalation or breathing in is natural and is automatic.
Do this breathing in and out for a period of 5 minutes at one time for a total of 15 minutes.

Benefits
It cures diabetes as it stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin. It makes the kidneys, heart, lungs, stomach strong and faultless. It opens the blocked arteries if done over a long period, strengthens the abdominal and back muscles, increase bone density and strength and purifies the blood.

3. Bahya

Take a deep breath and then as you breathe out let the stomach go in. When you have breathed out completely, hold the breath.
Bend the head downwards over the chest till the chin touches the upper portion of the chest where the neck and chest join.
Hold this position for 15 seconds then raise the head back slowly as you breathe in.
Repeat from 7 to 11 times.

Benefits
Helps in relieving all stomach disorders like constipation, acidity, urinary, prostrate problems,

4. Agnisaar

Take a deep breath and then exhale. As you exhale pull in the stomach gradually till you have breathe out all the air and the stomach has gone as far in as it could.
Now hold the breath out while you move the stomach in and out in an even rhythm at a moderate speed for 15 to 20 seconds.
Breathe in again and repeat.
Do this from 3 to 5 times.

Benefits
It cures all stomach problems including digestion problems and constipation.

5. Anulom Vilom

Sit straight. Exhale. Now close the right nostril with the right thumb . The palm and fingers are stretched up and out towards the sky.
Breathe in through the left nostril deeply.
Close the left nostril with the middle finger of the same hand while simultaneously releasing
the thumb on the right nostril and breathe out through the right nostril.
Breathe in through the right nostril now while the left is still closed with the middle finger.
Now close the right nostril and breathe out through the left nostril.
This completes one breathing cycle.
Do this procedure without a break for 5 minutes at a stretch.Total 15 minutes, 5 minutes at a time. Rest briefly in between.
NOTE
The 1st breath is taken in through the left nostril always. subsequent breathing out and in is done through the same nostril alternatively. While finishing the routine the breath has to be exhaled out of the left nostril.
If you cannot do it for 5 minutes initially do it for as long as comfortable. Increase duration slowly.

Benefits
Recharges the whole body, activates the chakras and corrects the disturbed energy flow in the body.

6. Bhramri

Close the outer ears with the thumbs and place the first finger over the eyebrow, the second and middle finger over the eyes. close the mouth.
Breathe in deeply and then exhale through the nose by making a humming sound in the throat, like a bee. Feel this sound reverberating in the head and body.
Repeat from 7 to 11 times.

Benefits
Relieves stress, relaxes the mind and body, activates all the glands in the head.

7. Udgeeth

Take a deep breath. Exhale through the mouth by saying OM - with an extended O and then an extended M sound. The duration for the extended O must be thrice that of M. Do this 7 to 11 times.

Benefits
It cures insomnia, depression, improves concentration and other mind related problems.

A Few Important Points To Remember

·         These breathing techniques can be done sitting in Padmasan (lotus pose), Sukhasan (crosslegged) or even on a chair without arm rests.

· The arms need to be kept extended in front resting on the knees with the tips of the first finger and thumb touching one another and forming an O whenever the hands are free.

· Never over exert or strain. Rest when feeling tired.

· Breathing has to be in a smooth and unhurried easy action.

· Consult your medical doctor before you start on any new health regime, practice or exercise.


-- Starting with these further more kriyas or techniques can be worked out.

The Beginning

The Beginning 

The need as they say is the mother of all experiments.

It all started with a blood report showing concern with the sugar levels. With this began a series of Dos & Donts along with a pile of suggestions. The first step was to get the immediate actions in place to bring stability t the reports. As a first step a series of restriction on sugar intake was implied and also a routine to ensure calorie burn out was chalked out. This ensured the reports to show levels in control with the calorie-in=calorie -out concept. This was a manual way to ensure the levels of sugar 

Thinking more about the root cause, it got evident that there has to be a way to get my pancreas to get awake again and do its job. but routine exercise and food controls dont seem the method to get the pancreas up and functioning again. As none of methods actually talked about levels being controlled even when not done regularly.

The pranayama technique grabbed attention as it only talked about bringing order to the way oxygen is fed to and extracted from body organs and through the respiratory system. 

Finally I went through few videos of Yoga & Panoramas and did it myself.

Going through the major 7 Pranayama Kriyas, I have found that the kriyas focus on getting the system of air getting in and out of individual organs. For doing the same, there are few kriyas (7 major kriyas) which are sort of stretching, pushing, pulling, sucking, squeezing the organs for movement of air in and out of the organs.

I felt that this is probably the method to get the organs to wake up and get active by restricting/stretching the all important oxygen to them. 

It was also felt that when there's an exhale activity done in the Bahya pranayama, the organs show a little agitation with supply of air being held up. this is the time when organs are attentive and also at mercy and seeking the air supply. 

This for sure is THE method to bring discipline in the body parts by controlling the air distribution.

More observations to come on this ..