Nadi Sodhana (Alternate Nostril Breathing)

If you don't do anything else, this is a simple yoga breathing exercise that can be done virtually anywhere, anyplace. You will be glad you did. It is simply dynamic!

The name alternate nostril breathing is due to the fact that we alternate between the two nostrils when we do the breathing. Yogis believe that this exercise will clean and rejuvenate your vital channels of energy, thus the name nadi sodhana (purification of nadis or channels).

With this exercise, we breathe through only one nostril at a time. The logic behind this exercise is that normal breathing does alternate from one nostril to the other at various times during the day. In a healthy person the breath will alternate between nostrils about every two hours. Because most of us are not in optimum health, this time period varies considerably between people and further reduces our vitality. According to the yogis, when the breath continues to flow in one nostril for more than two hours, as it does with most of us, it will have an adverse effect on our health. If the right nostril is involved, the result is mental and nervous disturbance. If the left nostril is involved, the result is chronic fatigue and reduced brain function. The longer the flow of breath in one nostril, the more serious the illness will be.

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Benefits

1. The exercise produces optimum function to both sides of the brain: that is optimum creativity and optimum logical verbal activity. This also creates a more balanced person, since both halves of the brain are functioning property.
2. The yogis consider this to be the best technique to calm the mind and the nervous system.

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The Scientific Confirmation of Alternate Nostril Breathing

Medical science has recently discovered the nasal cycle, something that was known by the yogis thousands of years ago. Scientists have recently found that we don't breathe equally with both nostrils, that one nostril is much easier to breathe through than the other at any particular time and that this alternates about every three hours. The yogis claim that the natural period is every two hours, but we must remember these studies were done on people who do not have an optimum health level.

Scientists also discovered that the nasal cycle corresponds with brain function. The electrical activity of the brain was found to be greater on the side opposite the less congested nostril. The right side of the brain controls creative activity, while the left side controls logical verbal activity. The research showed that when the left nostril was less obstructed, the right side of the brain was predominant. Test subjects were indeed found to do better on creative tests. Similarly when the right nostril was less obstructed the left side of the brain was predominant. Test subjects did better on verbal skills.

Medical science has not quite caught up with the ancient yogis yet. The yogis went one step further. They observed that a lot of disease was due to the nasal cycle being disturbed; that is, if a person breathed for too long through one nostril. To prevent and correct this condition, they developed the alternate nostril breathing technique. This clears any blockage to air flow in the nostrils and reestablishes the natural nasal cycle. For example, the yogis have known for a long time that prolonged breathing through the left nostril only (over a period of years) will produce asthma. They also know that this so-called incurable disease can be easily eliminated by teaching the patient to breathe through the right nostril until the asthma is cured, and then to prevent it recurring by doing the alternate nostril breathing technique. The yogis also believe that diabetes is caused to a large extent by breathing mainly through the right nostril.

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Technique

1. Close the right nostril with your right thumb and exhale through the left nostril. Do this to the count of 6 seconds.
2. Immediately inhale through this nostril to the count of 3. Close the left nostril with your right ring finger and little finger, and at the same time remove your thumb from the right nostril, and exhale through this nostril. Do this to the count of 3 seconds. This completes a half round.
3. Inhale through the right nostril to the count of 3 seconds. Close the right nostril with your right thumb and exhale through the left nostril to the count of eight seconds. This completes one full round.

Start by doing 3 rounds, adding one per week... In the intermediate stage you double the count of the exhalation, for example you inhale to the count of 3 and exhale to the count of 6. In the advanced stage you hold the breath between inhaling and exhaling and between exhaling and inhaling. The count of kumbaka (holding the breath) is 3 times the count of inhaling. For example, inhale to the count of 3, hold to the count of 12 and exhale to the count of 6, then hold to the count of 12 again.

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Contra-indications

Alternate nostril breathing should not be practiced if you have a cold or if your nasal passages are blocked in any way. Forced breathing through the nose may lead to complications. In pranayama it is important to follow this rule: under no circumstances should anything be forced. If you use the nostrils for breath control they must be unobstructed. If they are not, you must practice throat breathing.

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Hatha Yoga

Hatha yoga is only one of the many branches of yoga, to name a few: raja, jnana, karma, bhakti, mantra, kundalini, laya, muktee. However, in the past 50 years, hatha yoga has become the most well known and practised of these systems. Anciently, hatha yoga was consisting only of shatkarmas (cleansing practices). Today, hatha yoga commonly embraces the practices of asana (postures), pranayama (control of the breath), mudra (positions/gestures representing the psyche) and bandha (locks for channeling energies). Originally, the asanas were practised to develop the ability to sit comfortably for a long period of time. The hatha yogis found that certain body postures open the energy channels (nadi) and psychic centres (chakras). They found that developing the control of the body through these practices, enabled them to control the mind and energy. Yogasanas became tools to higher awareness, providing the stable foundation necessary for the exploration of the body, breath, mind and higher states.

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Healthy menstrual cycle

Every month women's bodies go through a radical change in preparation for possible pregnancy. As the hormones shift their delicate balance, these changes are experienced as physical and emotional feelings. For some, these monthly changes bring several days of discomfort and stress; for others, it is a minor inconvenience. But no woman can ignore this regular change happening in her body and mind.

Yoga is ideally suited for helping you adjust to change - hormonal or otherwise. By reinforcing positive change through relaxation, steadiness, flexibility, and other qualities, Yoga helps you enjoy the many inevitable changes that occur at different times in your life instead of resisting them.

The classes of Yogatha help to reach a healthy menstrual cycle, by including gentle stretches that release muscle tension, ease lower back stiffness, regulate breathing and improve circulation. Breathing techniques are very important during this time to build concentration and strength.
Irritability, depression and moodiness can be greatly eased by regular meditation, which will help to stabilize the emotions.
Many exercises specifically stimulate the glandular and reproductive systems, resulting in a more balanced adjustment of body chemistry. Yoga also improves circulation, helps to balance metabolism, helps to strengthen bones, prevents memory loss and builds a steadiness of mind that evens out many of the emotional ups and downs that many women experience.

Yoga can help to alleviate or eliminate many of the sometimes-uncomfortable physical and emotional feelings associated with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and menopause.

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