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In most of the yogic texts the term prana is associated with life force or bioenergy. Many people even use the word prana for oxygen, confusing it with the subdivision of prana vayu which regulates the heart and lungs. But when we speak of prana in the higher sense, we are referring to the cosmic … Read more

n swara yoga, as in all other yogas, importance is given to the theoretical as well as the practical aspects of the breath. According to the Shiva Swarodaya: “One has to know about prana and its variations, the nadis or energy pathways, and the different tattwas or elements of the macrocosmos. Through the application of … Read more

What is the significance of the flow of each swara and why does it change? This is what swara yoga aims to answer. In the swara shastras it says that personal and detailed knowledge of one’s swara can only be had from the guru. But the shastras do give us some hints. They say that … Read more

We have been talking about the flow of the breath, which creates a flow of energy in the body. The word for flow in yoga is nadi. In the nostrils three different flows of energy are created. These are known as ida, pingala and sushumna. The left nostril is connected to the ida network of … Read more

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 … Read more

The fact that we breathe alternately is very significant in swara yoga because it allows different swaras to flow at different times. One swara flows through the left nostril, another flows through the right, and the third flows through both nostrils together. The different swaras influence us in various ways by stimulating different energy centres … Read more

If you ever take the time to observe the breath and the manner in which the air flows in and out of the nostrils, you will notice that most of the time respiration takes place through one nostril only. It appears that respiration occurs through both nostrils simultaneously, but this is not so. When you … Read more

When we use the word ‘swara’, we are talking about something more than the air which flows from the nostrils, we are also talking about the flow of prana, a very subtle and vital aspect of the breath. Up to now, knowledge of the swara has only been sought by a small minority of people. … Read more