Yoga Breath

Dirga Pranayama

This stupendous breathing exercise, (practiced by singers, orators, musicians that blow on wind instruments, and babies), is best initiated while lying down.

Comfortably on your back, place the palms of your hands or fingertips on your lower belly just above the pubic bone.

Close your eyes and begin to, effortlessly, lengthen your inhalations and exhalations. After a few breaths, notice which part of your upper body you are using to achieve this deepened breathing: your shoulders, your ribs, or your stomach. 

Be okay with that.

Now, begin to lengthen the exhale until it is longer than the inhale. Continue until the exhale is twice as long as the inhale. Example: if you are able to breathe in for 3 seconds with ease, eventually aim the exhale for 6 seconds. Try to stay in the realm of comfort, breathing slowly in and even slower out.

Since you only have three or four seconds to fill your lungs, inhale with gusto. Exhale slowly with control and awareness; six to eight seconds is a long time to keep the breath flowing.

Gently, contract the ribs and stomach to keep the exhale flowing until the end count.  

Remain relaxed with as few thoughts as possible.

Purposefully contract the belly as the out-breath approaches the end, sinking the belly ever deeper towards your spine so that the diaphragm pushes up against the bottom of the lungs. Feel how the hands sink ever lower.

Now, imagine a balloon behind your navel. With the contraction of the stomach, try to get all the air out of the balloon. The hands sink with the belly. On the inhale, imagine you are filling the balloon with air until it pushes up against your hands and extends your belly up nice and round, (which, paradoxically, pulls the diaphragm down sucking the air into, first your lower lungs, then the middle part, and finally the tips of your lungs up by your collarbones.

This is what we call a full yoga breath, or: Dirga Pranayama

Keep practicing until all the tension in your stomach muscles relaxes as you inhale. Feel how the breath stretches those hardened muscles from within.

After five minutes of patient practice, notice how the volume of air you are taking in is at least twice the amount you normally take in.  

In time, begin to imagine the balloon either behind your pubic bone expanding backward in such a way as to push against the pelvic floor and the muscles of your lower back in the region of your lumbar vertebrae.

Beware of horny feeling flooding your pelvis as the prana is set free in your first three chakras. If you get overly aroused, pray to God to save your soul….