Swara yoga enables us to understand the nature of the breath and its influence on the body because the different swaras lead to different types of action, mental, physical and spiritual. When you are meditating, praying or contemplating the truth, it is spiritual action. When you are walking, talking, urinating or eating, it is physical action. When digestion is going on and the enzymes are flowing in the body, it is physical action. But when you are worried or have many thoughts on your mind, or when you are memorizing a poem or song, or planning something, it is mental action. Whether you have compassion in your mind or you are angry with somebody, it is all mental action. These are just a lew examples of the three categories of action.
All of our actions can be classified into three main categories, and each type of action is presided over by a specific flow of the swara The left swara presides over
mental actions, the right swara over physical actions, and both swaras together preside over spiritual actions. This means that if the right nostril flows whe n you are meditating, you will have physical difficulties. The body will be restless. If the left nostril is flowing, you may not be physically
disturbed, but the mind will wander. However, when both nostrils are open, the mind becomes one-pointed. Then you can easily become absorbed in the process of meditation.
Therefore, in swara yoga the first rule is correct action for the appropriate swara. For this purpose you will have to train yourself to maintain control over the swara according to the action you are performing, or you should adjust your action to suit the swara. Thus, swara yoga aims at harmonizing the mind and body by adjusting the actions with the
swara.