Mudras and Bandhas

Mudra

Mudra is a Sanskrit term that describes the category of hand gestures used,especially during on, to facilitate the balancing of a person's vital energy. The mudra is a gentle form of self-energy balancing or self-pranic healing. The positions of the hand digits direct the life energy (vital energy, prana).So the subtle pressure from the digits balances the body as does self. As you practice with mudras, you will sense the energy flow. Usually it will feel like buzzing from your fingers. It may be a sensation of numbness, hot, or cold as well.You may also think of mudra as a hand gesture version of positive mental affirmation. So you may use the mudra with your meditation practice to increase the effectiveness of your meditation. You may, as well, practice the mudra throughout the day to balance your energy flow, thereby working to improve your total wellbeing. In summary, the performance of mudras is an alternative wellness energy balancing methodology that has no ill effects, costs nothing to do, can be very effective, is easy to perform.

Ahamkara mudra

This mudra is used to strengthen self-confidence and assertiveness. It is a helpful mudra to practice for those of us who are timid, fearful, or introverted. Remember yoga is about moderation. We do not want to eliminate completely aspects of ourselves. There are times when expression of the ego are necessary and this mudra helps us to strengthen our ego while helping us to express it appropriately.

The tip of the thumb is brought to the first joint of the index finger and the hand is help palm side up. The forefinger therefore extends beyond the thumb(the symbol of God) , facilitating the development of the Jupiter(the forefinger represents Jupiter) energy of expansion and ego personality.

Buddhi mudra

This mudra is an enlightenment gesture that works to blend the spiritual energies and the ego. It quiets the mind and regenerates the neuro-biochemical system. So this is an excellent mudra for those of us who are: having trouble sleeping; are too wound up; have manic episodes (this mudra is not intended to replace comprehensive medical care); experiencing complete hormonal collapse(such as hypo- or hyper- throidism, adult-onset diabetes); are depressed.

Although one generally performs mudras with both hands, this is one mudra that requires both hands being used at the same time for the mudra. Both hands are facing palm up. The backs of the fingers are placed so that they are touching. The forefingers of each hand are brought to each thumb and form the Om mudra placement while the remaining fingers gently touch each other while being held in a relaxed fashion.

Cup mudra

This mudra focuses on helping you balance your right-left energies. It promotes balance of the male-female energies. This mudra is almost always utilized with the hatha yoga meditative poses.

This is another two hand mudra. The palms are facing upward with the thumbs touching each other at the tips. Then one set of fingers is placed on top of the other set of fingers. The order is to match the yoga asana. You would place the right hand on top of the left hand if the right leg is on top of the left leg and vice-versa.

Gnana mudra

This mudra promotes the development of wisdom while quieting the ego. In a way it is the opposite of the Ahmakara mudra. It is ,therefore, helpful for those of us who are very strong with ego development and may be overly aggressive in our day to day activities.

The performance of this mudra is as you would think. The tip of the thumb passes the tip of the forefinger. The tip of the forefinger is brought to the first joint of the thumb.

Gomukha mudra

Like the Cup mudra, this mudra is used with primarily the meditative poses. It is different in that the focus of this mudra is the balance of the physical body and the mind, rather than the right-left energies.

The palms face upward and the thumbs and fingers interlock. The right thumb represents the body and the left thumb represents the mind. While performing this mudra, you may change the position of the thumbs so that the tips touch each other or alternate the interlock so that the thumbs alternate being on top. If you want to use only one position, use the position that feels most awkward. The awkwardness indicates the need for balance by using this position.

Namaste mudra

This mudra indicates respect and humility. It is used often as a greeting to others. The greeting indicates that your soul bows to the other persons. It is similar to the head bow in that aspect.

This is performed by placing the palms together with the fingers extended and the thumbs next to each other. The arms are bent and the hands are placed at heart level. This positioning of hands and arms is often used by Christians as they take communion.

Om Mudra

This hand gesture is performed by bringing the ends of the thumb and forefinger together while having the palms face up.

This is intended to blend the life forces to balance and to bring you closer to real time peacefulness.

Prithvi mudra

This mudra is used to give stability. It is used to maximize the beneficent effects of Saturn. This mudra is excellent to use when you are feeling scattered or out of control of your life.

First perform the Om mudra(bring the forefinger and thumb tips together with palms upward). Then turn the mudra downward, so that the palms are facing downward. Sometimes the fingers are separated at this time. Again work the position that feels most awkward.

Shanti mudra

This mudra is a healing mudra. I use it as part of my pranic healing sessions to balance the affected person?s energies. Yogis also use this mudra to bless their food before they eat it to strengthen the positivity of the meal.

The mudra is performed by placing the middle finger(Saturn finger) on the fingernail of the index finger(Jupiter finger).

Yoni mudra (we did this Wednesday :))

This mudra is used as part of the concentration practices.It helps you focus on your inner being by blocking off the access to the external environment with your fingers covering your openings. To perform this mudra you place your thumbs over your ears,index fingers over closed eyelids(at the base of the eyeball),middle fingers at the nostrils,little fingers at the lower lips. The fingers are over the sense organ openings gently. This is an advanced mudra. Historically, if this is practiced with too much force on the sense organs, you can light the energy fire too quickly and cause mental imbalance. So, work with this mudra only after you have worked with pranayama for several months to years.

Bandha Mudras=BODY MUDRAS

In addition to the hand mudras, muscular contractions(bandha mudras) can be performed with the hatha yoga asana routines to strengthen the energy balancing effects of the postures and hand mudras. Different Sanskrit sources list different bandha mudras. The most frequently described bandha mudras are the following: maha mudra; nabho mudra; maha bandha; maha vedha mudra; khechari mudra; viparita karani mudra; yoni mudra; vajrali(vajroli)mudra; shakti chalani(chalana) mudra; tadagi(tadava) mudra;manduki(mandavi) mudra;shambhavi mudra; ashvini mudra; pashini mudra; kaki mudra; matangi mudra; bhujangini mudra; panchadharana[parthiva, ambhavi, vaishvanari, vayavi,akashi]; mula bandha; jalandara bandha; uddiyana bandha. A note of caution: Bandha mudras are generally considered to be intermediate to advanced practices of yoga.
Yoga Mudra

Vripritikorani Mudra (headstand & shoulderstand)

Maha Mudra

Method- Gently using the left heel to press between the external genitalia and anus. Spread the right leg and hold the foot with both hands. Close the nine openings of the body. Press the chin against the chest and practice breath control. Repeat using the right heel and spreading the left leg. Practice this bandha mudra bilaterally in rounds of three.

Purpose- The benefits of this mudra include: strengthening the effects of any hatha yoga routine practiced with this mudra; softening of the five klesha of men ignorance(avidya), excessive ego(asmita), desire or attachment(raga),enmity(dvesha), fear of death(abhinivesha); according to Sanskrit sources the physical health problems of enlarged spleen, fistulas,leprosy, urinary tract disorders.

Hatha Yoga Pradipika

POWER POINT Pradipika (Link)


Nauali Kriya (link) 
Link #2: Full instruction

Shat Karmas and Kriyas (Cleansings guide) (link)
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A note on Vajroli Mudra & The Idea of Sexual Energy

Vajroli Mudra (The Thunderbolt Attitude)

Hatha Yoga Pradipika (verse 83)
a B.S.Y. Publication 1985

Even anyone living a free lifestyle without the formal rules of yoga, if he practises vajroli well, that yogi becomes a recipient of siddhis (perfections).

Vajra is 'thunderbolt' or 'lightning'. It is also the weapon of Lord Indra and means 'mighty one'. Vajra in this context refers to the vajra nadi which governs the uro-genital system. It is the second innermost layer of sushumna nadi. Vajra nadi is the energy flow within the spine which governs the sexual systems of the body. In mundane life it is responsible for the sexual behaviour and this aspect has been termed 'libido' by Dr. Freud and as 'orgone' by Dr. Reich. In tantric sadhana this energy is not suppressed but is awakened and redirected. OH mudras (vajroli, sahajoli and amaroli) are those which specifically sublimate sexual energy into ojas (vitality) and kundalini shakti.

According to the Shatkarma Sangraha there are seven practices of vajroli. The practice involves years of preparation which commences with the simple contraction of the uro-genital muscles and later the sucking up of liquids. Only after the sixth practice is perfected can the seventh be successfully attempted by the yogi.
That is the practice included in maithuna, yogic intercourse. Through this practice of vajroli the sexual energy, hormones and secretions are re-assimilated into the body. Its outcome is the union of the negative and positive poles of energy within one's own body.

By and large, people have inherited a concept that these practices are unnatural or bad. Many commentators on the Hatha Yoga Pradipika avoid discussing these slokas, dismissing them as obscene practices indulged in by low-caste tantrics. Obviously they have an incorrect understanding of the practice. People have concocted the notion that spiritual life is separate from mundane life and the physical body because of past religious conditioning which has become perverted. These people must realise that spiritual life is not anti-sexual and sexual life is not anti-spiritual.

Of course, celibacy has its own rewards, but according to tantra it should arise spontaneously, not out of suppression. Spiritual life means developing awareness by applying the higher mind to the experiences of the body. Whatever we do should be a means to creating yoga in our being. Why should sexual life be excluded? According to this sloka sexual life can be elevated from the sensual to the spiritual plane if it is practised in a particular way, and for this vajroli mudra has been prescribed.

A person who has perfect control of the body and mind is a yogi in every situation. A person who gorges himself on food, for example, is just as 'obscene' as a person who indulges in uncontrollable sexual acts. Sexual life has three purposes, and this should be understood. For the tamasic person, it is progeny; for the rajasic person, it is pleasure; for a sattwic person, it is for enlightenment.

The desire to release semen is an instinctual urge experienced throughout nature, not only by humans. Therefore, there should be no guilt or shame associated with it. Animal consciousness is not the end stage in the evolutionary destiny for a human being. Man's potential for 'bliss' can be extended beyond the momentary experience which accompanies the release of semen. Semen and ova contain the evolutionary potential and if these can be controlled, not only the body but also the mind can be controlled.

Nature has provided the mechanism of seminal release, but although it is generally not known, nature has also provided a means to control this mechanism through various practices of hatha yoga. If the release of semen and ova can be controlled, a new range of experience dawns. Those experiences are also endowed by nature, even if only a few people have gained them. Therefore the techniques should not be considered to be against the natural order.

Although medical science has generally failed to acknowledge the fact, uncontrolled release of semen throughout life does contribute to premature deterioration of the vital capacities of the brain, overburdens the heart and depletes the nervous system. Actually it is a matter of degree and there is no limit to perfection. Many men die prematurely of physical and mental exhaustion with their dreams unfulfilled and their goals unattained. However, if the process of seminal release can be arrested, so that energy and spermatozoa do not escape through the generative organ but are redirected upwards into the higher brain centres, then a greater awakening can take place; a greater vision can be realised, and a greater vital power can be directed towards accomplishment in life.

According to the sloka, if vajroli is well practised, even in an otherwise free lifestyle, that yogi's attainments in life will be greater, and a greater source of vital and mental power becomes available to him. A few great yogis and masters had these experiences and have therefore instructed their disciples in the oli mudras and other hatha yoga techniques.

In mundane life the climax of sexual experience is the one time when the mind becomes completely void of its own accord, and consciousness beyond the body can be glimpsed. However, that experience is so short-lived because the energy is expressed through the lower energy centres. This energy which is normally lost can be used to awaken the dormant power of kundalini in mooladhara. If the sperm can be withheld the energy can be channelized through sushumna nadi and the central nervous system to the dormant areas of the brain and to the sleeping consciousness.

The sex act is the one means to totally concentrate and captivate the mind, but in tantra it should not be the ordinary experience. The experience has to be more than the gross or sensual one. Awareness and control have to be developed. The senses have to be developed. The senses have to be utilised, but only as the means of awakening the higher consciousness, not the animal consciousness, and for this vajroli mudra and various tantric rituals are to be perfected.

Vajroli mudra is an important practice today in kali yuga when man's ability and need to express himself in the material and sensual world is predominating. We have to act in the external world and simultaneously develop inner awareness. The purpose of life should be to attain a deeper and more fulfilling experience beyond the empirical sensory experience alone.

Man has four basic desires known as purushartha or chaturvarga, the first of which is karma or sensual gratification. This needs to be fulfilled to a certain extent but should not pull the consciousness down. It should be a means to accomplish a greater result.

Every action, including the sex act, should be directed towards realising the truth of existence. Then you are living a spiritual life. Spiritual life does not depend on living up to puritanical morality.
If you can follow such puritanical ideals and attain enlightenment, then practise them, but do not condemn others who cannot. The moment you create rigid ideals that the spiritual path has to be 'like this' and cannot be 'like that' you are limiting your own ability to have a total experience.

Spiritual unfoldment is the process of evolution. It can happen slowly through millions of years as the process of nature, or it can be accelerated through the practices of yoga. Vajroli mudra accelerates this rate of evolution. Practise of vajroli regulates the entire sexual system. Testosterone level and sperm production are influenced. Even if the yogi is a householder, he does not lose the semen. Therefore, whether one has sexual interactions or not, vajroli should be practised.

Shat Karmas

Shatkarmas - Cleansing Techniques

Those shatkarma which effect purification of the body are secret. They have manifold, wondrous results and are held in high esteem by eminent yogis.
(Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2:23)

Yogic science gives as much importance to certain cleansing processes as it does to asana or pranayama. Without regular cleansing of the system one cannot gain maximum benefit from yoga practices. Without purification of the body one will not be ready for the higher practices of yoga.
Body cleansing is brought about by the practice of the shatkarmas or six purificatory techniques which are very important from the point of view of physical and mental health. These simple techniques are also highly valuable in healing internal disorders. There are six main groups of shatkarmas or yogic cleansers as follows:

1. Neti: nasal cleaning, including jala neti and sutra neti.
2. Dhauti: cleansing of the digestive tract.
3. Nauli: abdominal massage.
4. Basti: colon cleaning.
5. Kapalbhati: purification and vitalisation of the frontal lobes.
6. Trataka: blinkless gazing.

Each of these groups contains more than one practice, such as jala neti, vaman dhauti (or kunjal kriya), moola shodhana etc. They are all excellent practices designed to purify the whole body and bring about first-class health. They also bring clarity and harmony to the mind.

'Shatkarma' (sometimes known as Shatkriya) is a compound word consisting of two components: 'shat' meaning 'six' and 'karma' meaning 'art' or 'process'. The word 'kriya' or 'karma' is used in Hatha Yoga in a special technical sense regarding the techniques of cleaning. Although we have grouped them into six here, the 'Gherand Samhita' and 'Hatha Yoga Samhita' enumerate as many as twenty-one such practices, albeit under six broad headings. The 'Shatkarma Samgraha' describes no less than forty-six such processes, such as vamana, vireehana, gandusha, udgara, and raktasrava.

The 'Hatha Yoga Pradipika' however is the only authentic work which tends to limit itself exactly to six cleansing practice, 'Pranatoshani' refers to only five purificatory practices. Besides these works, a vernacular treatise, 'Bhakti Sagram' of Charana Das describes in detail the shatkarmas and in addition mentions four mere which it does not describe. Dhauti, basti, neti, trataka, nauli and kapalbhati are the six traditionally known processes.

The shatkarma affect and activate almost all of the vital systems in the body, especially the digestive, respiratory, circulatory and nervous systems. Every individual organ of importance, like the food pipe, stomach, colon, lungs, eyes and ears, receives equal attention. These purificatory processes are both preventive and curative.

The shatkarma are very powerful practices that can never be learned from books or taught by inexperienced people. Only these instructed by the guru can teach others. One may think that he has the capacity to teach but actually he may not have adequate experience or knowledge to guide ethers proficiently. This applies to the shatkarma in particular. If unqualified people teach them they are likely to make serious mistakes. Also, one can make mistakes if one practises them independently without the aid of a guru.

They are said to be 'secret' practices as one must be personally instructed how to perform them and how often, according to individual need. For this, a qualified and experienced teacher is essential. Those who sincerely want to learn the shatkarma will have to find a guru of hatha yoga, and they will have to search hard, for few teachers are expert in the shatkarma. There are three humors in the body: kapha (mucus), pita (bile), and vata (wind). In yoga and ayurveda they are called tridasha. A balanced proportion of these three facilitates body functions, but if there is excess of one and shortage of another, ailments develop due to overheating or not enough heat in the body. So, before commencing pranayama, any imbalance in the doshas should be removed.

The effects of the shatkarma can be summed up in one word - purification. When the different systems of the body have been purified, the overall result is that energy can flow through the body freely. One's capacity to work, think, digest, taste, feel, experience, etc., increases and greater awareness develops. It is no wonder that the yogis who have attained perfection consider the shatkarma with great esteem.

Poetry in Motion

Vinyasa (asana practice that follows the movement of the breath) has been called "Poetry in motion." 

Introduction to Poetry by Billy Collins (cautionary tale against interpretation over experience)

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem’s room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author’s name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.

• This metaphor may be more literal than one might expect
• These analogies are inspired by a course I once took from the poet Billy Collins. He is one of my favorite poets because of the following (his ideas...my interpretation)
• Poems are histories of the heart (history told from the perspective of feelings and emotions and found in one's experience)
• Poems are held together by form 
• rhythm (the dance of the poem)
• sound (the reading of the poem)-music?
• what if these conventions are absent (meter and rhyme)?-experience becomes less concentrated and predictable (no training wheels)
• set sequences versus free form (Ashtanga, Bikram)
• experimenting with "violations" of form
• Other ways: 
• rituals (start the same way with each line
• gathers strength with repetition like a prayer or a chant
• sun salutations as initiation in to movement
• Internal patterns/scaffolding (rhythm and sound are not thrown away -just the metronome).
• Use the natural rhythms that we have (in our speech, nature, etc.)
• evenness of breath followed by evenness of movement equals evenness of mind (Ed)
• "Turning" (trust your own associations to lead readers/students)
• "visual games"-only purpose is to discover and arrive at the ending through associations of sound or movement (improvisation)
• one of the first skills that is learned is to go along with the premise you are given
• taking cues from your audience/students
• playfulness
• travel (from familiar to unfamiliar)
• path/journey metaphors
• gross to subtle
• simple to complex
• metaphor (connection to familiar things- correspondences)-puts an AFFECT on the movement to give it "life"
• movements are abstract
• actions are internal
• warrior (implies fierceness)
• companionship (once memorized in becomes part of you)
• romance of time (call to action, carpe diem, live more deeply)
• every moment is potentially auspicious 
• seeing eternity in a grain of sand
• liminality allows the recognition of the importance of time (as it "stops" it)
• What keeps the reader/student in staying with you (listening)
• they come back for the poem (movement/practice) not you
• because they see you love what you do (performance/poetry/yoga) more than yourself doing it (share the same interest)
• Trust is essential in poetry
• readers/practitioners will trust if the knowledge and craftsmanship of the poet/teacher are established in the beginning
• What holds it together? Rhyme and meter creates a container for self expression
• why the breath is so important?
• Poetry are words imposed on silence. Is yoga movement imposed on stillness?
• the in-between spaces connecting one thing to another are as important as the postures/words/movements
• there is no posture, just transition, when one achieves a level of mastery
• the distinction between postures is arbitrary. in reality, all is movement if one is following their breath
• teaching conundrum: How much time does one spend on technique (deconstructing the flow) rather than mastery (Iyengar problem- paralyzed by technique)
• A poem progresses from small to large ideas.
• the subject you start with is provisional (a way in) it is quickly abandoned once the larger subject is revealed. Revelations may occur one after the other.
• the yoga quote at the beginning or near the end???? thoughts?
• can be seen purely on physical terms in yoga or from physical to emotional or philosophical. 
• Yoga as a physical philosophy
• How these transformations occur is the process of a poem. This process of creation should be woven in to your teaching (your practice informs your teaching)
• though writing/creation according to a theme maybe generally useful, the process should not be limited by the theme
• you do not always have to know exactly where you are going until the end of the process (experiment)
• ritual progression is illustrated here (Van Gennep)-ensuring engagement determines the length and structure of each stage, also important to know how they are becoming disengaged-physically or in terms of mental attention
• separation
• transition
• reincorporation
• Good poems have the right amounts of "clarity" and "mystery"
• how is each used and when?
• which "cards" should be shown, and which should be left face down, or when should each be turned is part of good process
• some cards must be turned over for readers (students) to follow
• You are not a poet all the time, but you can be a poet when you are not writing
• relieves the anxiety of the blank page
• makes correspondences between practice in your body and the reality of your experiences off "the mat"
• Inspiration comes in many forms
• Quiet/stillness allows thoughts and experiences to enter (revelation/creativity/stillness yogis)-meditation?
• savasana
• moving into stillness?
• doing "nothing"
• imitation or prompt allows you to start-then you experiment (innovation)
• Introspection (note 20 things you experience yesterday in no particular order-inventory without chronology)...which is remembered?
• sublime in the ordinary
• Finish a poem in one sitting (even if it will later be changed)
• try to practice out and idea/physical experiment until it is finished
• there is always another idea
• Always surprise yourself
• take a surprise route
• surprise your students
• don't be afraid to fail. Look forward to it
• enjoy the messiness of process/write on paper, not computers so you save your mistakes instead of deleting them. They may not be mistakes in retrospect
• learning/creation is rarely linear
• The look of a poem on the page is important
• Poetry is intense/frustrating
• it's in your language but you can't understand it (immediately-instant gratification)
• poetry asks you to work for the understanding/meaning (can not be spelled out)
• takes patience and interest
• close examination
• discipline/attention
• meaning is unstable and ambiguous (meaning is deeper than the surface suggests)
• there may not be one meaning
• Take notes when you read a poem/try to understand
• leave footprints of your thinking 
• insightful to read your notes-and see how you have changed
• Reading other people's notes in the margins
• Your voice is NOT inside you to find. Your voice will be found in the voices of others (teachers, students, experiences) but combined in a unique way so that you can't trace them back to their source.
• this is a synthesis of your experiences and worked out through your personal practice in yoga 
• it's you when no one else could have taught the way you did. This may take time (Poets find this by reading all the poetry they can-yoga teachers do this by taking classes from as many great teachers they can)
• let some of your imperfections/personality into your teaching
• who will you be? what are the important qualities you want to bring to your teaching persona?
• me: humor, curiosity, geeky (intellectual), skeptical, a bit sarcastic, ordinary (unpretentious), private, teacher (educator), practitioner (dedicated).
• What can't be taught
• get beyond the (ego) to write/teach...lesson from the Gita
• voice-authentic, engaged, conversant, honest
• the writing of a poem/teaching is an experience, not the record of an experience.
• need to be present
• need to be engaged
• need to be responsive to your class

Pranayama and the Science of Breath

THE BODY AS CENTRAL

• There is one truth: What is relative are our angles of comprehension and perception. 

The masters of Tantra distinguish between two levels of understanding which correspond to two levels of reality.

The Blind Men and the Elephant Hindu Parable

• Laukika (Worldly point of view) - Belief in a solid material universe which is often corrupted 
• Adhyatmika which is informed by wisdom and leads one to the Truth - ultimate reality

Wisdom is superior to worldly knowledge because in the absence of guiding wisdom, worldly knowledge all too easily turns destructive. 

Samsara = nirvana 

• The finite world is really the infinite Reality - what we perceive to be the limited universe is fundamentally an illusion 

The Secret of Embodiment: MACROCOSM & MICROCOSM

• The body (deha) which stems from the verbal root dih - to smear or be soiled - hints at the defiled nature of the body. Yet, the same verbal root (dih) can also signify to anoint or that which is anointed.
• The older Sanskrit word for body which is sharira derive from the verbal root shri meaning to rest upon or support - here the body serves as a prop or framework by means of which the self can experience the world. This has led Tantrics to see the body as the "temple of the divine."
• Tantra has a body positive approach
• If the world is real, the body must be real as well
• If the world in essence is divine, so must the body be divine
• If the world is an aspect of the divine power of shakti, then our body is likewise a divine power of shakti 
• When we truly understand the body, we discover that it is the world which in essence is divine 
• Because the human body has a complex nervous system allowing higher expressions of consciousness it is especially valuable and seen as a ladder to liberation.

KAT (1.16-27) 

"After obtaining a human body, which is difficult to obtain and which serves as a ladder to liberation, who is more sinful than he who does not cross over to the Self?

Therefore, upon obtaining the best possible life form, he who does not know his own good is merely killing himself. 

How can one come to know the purpose of human life without a human body? 

One's self is the vessel for everything. 

Village, house, land, money, even auspicious and inauspicious karma can be obtained over and over again, but not a human body. 

For the purpose of obtaining knowledge, the virtuous purpose should preserve the body with effort. Knowledge aims at the yoga of meditation. He will be liberated quickly. 

What fool starts digging a well when his house is already on fire? So long as this body exists, one should cultivate truth. 

One should cultivate the highest good while the senses are not yet frail, suffering is not yet firmly rooted, and adversities have not yet become overwhelming." 

Human life is so extraordinarily precious because it can serve as a platform or ladder for self realization.

It is considered most auspicious to have achieved a human birth. More fortunate still is a human life in which we encounter a spiritual teacher and teaching that can potentially free us from repeated incarnations. Therefore, we must seize every opportunity to develop the art of self-understanding and self-transformation through yoga or Tantra. 

• Tantra takes the body seriously.       

YV (4.23-24) "For the ignorant person, this body is the source of endless suffering, but to the wise person, this body is the source of infinite delight. 

For the wise person, the body serves as a vehicle that can transport him swiftly in this world, and it is known as a chariot for attaining liberation and unending enjoyment. 

Since the body affords the wise person the experience of sound, sight, taste, touch, and smell as well as prosperity and friendship, it brings him gain."

• The body is a field in which we grow and harvest our experiences, which may be positive or negative, painful or pleasant. No experience need be devoid of merit. 
• Tapas = heat or intense experience.  In the Tantric tradition, one should go "towards the pain." Instead of shying away from pain one should pay full attention to it. It is an indicator of the store of available evolutionary energy in us. 
• Acute sensation can spur one to creativeness and a new level of being. The more mentally active one is, the less they are capable of pain. The half awake suffer most. The most intensely attentive are least aware of pain. (As demonstrated by yogis whose mental concentration makes them immune to pain.) 

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THE BODY AND THE NADIS

Nadis are pathways of pranic, mental and spiritual currents which form a matrix throughout the physical body. They provide energy through every cell, and organ through their vast network. Nadis are not physical or measurable but channels of energy which underly and sustain life and consciousness. Out of the 72,000 nadis, 72 are considered important. Out of these 72, 10 are considered to be major. Among the 10 major pranic flows, three are the most significant.(Situated in the spinal column which pass through every chakra.)

• Eda (Mental channel = female; Chandra = lunar/moon nadi) 
• Pingala (Vital channel = male; Surya = sun/solar nadi)
• Sushumna (Spiritual channel) 

The 7 lesser major nadis include:

• Gandhari 
• Hastijihva
• Yashaswini
• Pusha
• Alambusha
• Kuhu
• Shankhini

The three most important nadis are also referred to as the 3 most important rivers in India:

• Ganga (Eda) 
• Yamuna (Pingala)
• Saraswati (Sushumna) 

The junction where these three rivers join is called Prayag, located outside Allahabad in North India. In the pranic body, they converge at ajna chakra. 

• Eda governs the left side of the body and Pingala the right side of the body. 
• Eda and Pingala dominance is directly related to the flow of breath in the nostrils. 
• The specific functions of the brain are correlate with the activities of Eda and Pingala. The right hemisphere governs the left side of the body and the left hemisphere governs the right side of the body. Eda is connected to the right hemisphere and Eda to the left. 
• The right hemisphere (Eda) processes information in a diffuse and holistic manner. It controls spacial awareness and is sensitive to vibrations and the external senses. 
• The left hemisphere which relates to Pingala processes information in a sequential, linear and logical manner. It is responsible for analytical and mathematical ability. 
• The Eda controls manomaya and vijnanamaya koshas, whereas pingala controls anamaya and anandamaya koshas. In pranamayakosha, the Eda and Pingala forces reach out in both directions. 
• Sushumna, the neutral channel- when the two forces of Eda and Pingala are balanced, the third channel of Sushumna becomes active. When the sushumna is active, the breath flows through both nostrils simultaneously. 

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PANCHA PRANA: Pranic Forcefields

• Five primary forces which operate in the physical body at all times
• These five forces make up PRANA SHAKTI
• This is why prana is experienced differently in different parts of the body.
• These forces also work on subtler levels, influencing and being influenced by mind and consciousness 
• PRANA, APANA, VYANA, SAMANA, UDANA (vayu)
• They are all located in different parts of the body and have different movement associated with them.

STHOOLA PRANA

• prana vayu is also known asa school (gross) prana and it is experienced at the PHYSICAL level in the thoracic region. (to distinguish it from the all pervasive prana)
• maintains the heart and lungs and all activities in the chest
• This is the most essential of all the pranas and it controls the other four.
• on the subtle level, school prana is responsible for the INTAKE of impressions and ideas, it energizes all the KOSHAS and is active at all time. in fact, a blockage of sthool prana can cause immediate death because of its vital functions in the thorax.
• one pointedness of the mind and intuitive knowledge are based on the strong functioning of prana vayu
• it is the guide for self-realization, mediated by the heart center
• IMBALANCE: inability to think clearly and poor heart and lung function

APANA

• at the physical level: operates in the pelvic region between the navel and root chakra
• sustains the kidneys, bladder and the bowel, and controls elimination, excretion and reproduction
• composed of the earth and water elements, apana is experienced as a heavy force
• Subtle level: brings energy down through the KOSHAS and the lower chakras are realized through its activity. 
• assists in awakening the kundalini
• MAHAPRANA is experienced in this region
• mental level, apana removed negative thoughts and emotions
• imbalance: depression, heavy, poor elimination

SAMANA

• physical level: operates between the navel and the diaphragm to activate and "BALANCE" the digestive organs and is responsible for metabolism. It literally is a balance of the opposing forces of prana and apana.
• associated with digestive FIRE
• subtle level: maintains cohesion and balance between the koshas, also digests thoughts
• imbalance: psychological problems, buildup of toxins in the body

UDANA

• physical level: operates in the extremities and is responsible for all of the sensory organs and the organs of action
• all the functions of the throat and mouth. It assists prana in inhalation and exhalation. Maintains the pranic link between the heart and the brain.
• assists the MINOR pranas
• subtle level: positive mental work
• maintains the relationship between the GROSS, SUBTLE and CASUAL bodies (more on this)
• experienced in all the extremities.
• imbalance: lack of coordination, inability to perform all body functions properly

VYANA

• physical level: RESERVE energy. helps the other pranas when they require an extra boost.
• SECOND WIND
• regulates and coordinates muscular movements
• subtle level: brings circulation through the five koshas
• gives us the sense of over;ll embodiment
• imbalance: tremors, lack of coordination, inability to relate to people

PRANIC DENSITY AND COLOR

• prana varies in density from leavt to most: Udana, prana, samana, apana, vyana
• prana=red, apana=coral, samana=crystal, udana=pale white, vyana=a ray of light

UNION OF PRANA AND APANA

• the two most important pranas and prana and apana

SS(3:6) "out of the ten major and minor pranas, the first five are the leading ones. Even among these, prana and apana are the highest agents" 

• These opposing forces connect us at once with the physical world of gross experience and the mental world of consciousness.
• In the practice of yoga, the forces of prana and apana are reversed. The upward flow of prana is directed downward, and the downward flow of apana is directed upward.
• in this way they both move toward one another and meet at SAMANA
• this meeting is where the FIRE of agni is ignited and kundalini awakens

BG (4:29) "Apana is absorbed in prana by some, and prana in apana by others. By restraining the course of prana and apana, the yogi is wholly occupied in pranayama"

• UNION or SUSPENSION of both is the goal of pranayama
• JALANDARA prevents prana from ascending, MULADHARA prevents apana from descending and UDDUYANA creates a suction process which affects the behavior of both prana and apana
• NUALI KRIYA also creates a union between prana and apana
• RETENSION creates the union of prana and apana at ANJA chakra

YGU (27) "Just as a ball goes up and down when thrown by hand, similarly the individual soul is thrown up and down by the movement of prana and apana (and therefore) does not remain still". 

MINOR PRANAS (5)

•  UPA pranas
• naga : cauases belching and hiccups. remains inactive unless disturbed
• koorma: blinking and good eye functions. When healthy enables TRATAKA in meditation
• krikara causes yawning hunger, thirst and sloth. It must be kept under control.
• devadatta: sneezing and subtle movements in nostril. Enables devine smell
• dhananjaya: touch in the whole body. Last prana to leave the body after death. It is responsible for decomposition

• GS referes to the difference between the vayus and the lesser pranas as "inner" and "outer". 

PRANAYAMA and PRANA VIDYA

• The 10 pranas are ideally working in coordination with one another in a state of balance. This state is often disrupted however, and rebalanaced through pranayama.
• when one is balanced in practice one becomes aware of prana vidya, and realizes the subtle experience of each of the pranayamas.
• one can also bein to realize this by focusing on the different functions and sensations of the pranas- this may also lead to consciousness

FIVE KEYS

5 keys are used to unlock the subtle perception and experience of prana.

• PSYCHIC BREATH
• PSYCHIC PASSAGE
• PSYCHIC CENTERS
• PSYCHIC SOUND (mantra)
• PSYCHIC SYMBOL (yantra)

PRANA & MANTRA

•  intrinsic relationship between prana and sound underlies all creation
• first manifested sound was OM, also called NADA this is the highest level of sound vibration.
• from nada emerged KALAA, the universe of time, space and object
• SHABDA (Word): the first form was sound (manifestation) and it came into existence through prana shakti (mahaprana). SOUND is therefore one of the best vehicles for prana shakti. This is why mantras are so powerful in the tantric system.
• mantras are cosmic sounds discovered in higher levels of meditation, whereby yogis can explore different levels of consciouness
• chakras are stimulated by chanting particular sounds since they are associated with dufferent frequencies or vibrations. These are called SEED mantras.
• two important qualities of mantras
• VARNA: color
• ASASHIC-form

• mantras have six parts
• rishi (guru who discovered and gave the mantra)
• meter
• presiding diety
• bija (essence)
• kilaka (pin)- unplugs the consciousness hidden in the mantra

 

Vital Energies

Prana animates everything. It is a combination of PRA and NA "force" "in constant motion"

• exists in sentient beings as the energy that drives all actions
• exists in non sentient beings causing motion, growth & decay

Prana flows through "nadis"

• stored in chakras (energy vortices)
• maintained through the air we breathe, food we eat, actions we make thoughts we think

Pranayama

• inhalation "Pooruka"
• retention "kumbacka"
• exhalation "rechaka"

by directing these stages the different practices of pranayama which move prana throughout the body to allow higher levels of consciousness are obtained.

YS 2:49 "pranayama is the pause in the movement of the inhalation and exhalation when it is secured" 

=----technically this suggests that pranayama is only the kumbackas so inhalation and exhalation are methods of inducing "kunbacka"---this allows for longer periods of ASSIMILATION of prana and better control the mind.

stages:

• initial---clear the 72,000 nadir
• state of the nadis and chakras "blockages"  are defined by our SAMSKARAS. these are conditionings carried in "seed" form. 
• PURUSHARTHA (self-effort)
• ANUGRAHA (grace)

pranayama when practiced releases us from all of this.

• higher levels---the direction of pranic flow is manipulated and a greater amount of energy is released from the chakras
• pranayama is part of a BALANCED SEQUENTIAL ASHTANGA YOGA PRACTICE as a preparation for and perfection of pratyahara.
• from gross (anamayakosha) through subtle (anandamayakosha)

SS (3:57) "when one attains power of holding the breath for 3 hours, then certainly the wonderful state of pratyahara is reached without fail" (YOW!!!!)

TYPES OF PRANA:

• MAHAPRANA: cosmic prana that came into being at the time of creation
• UNIVERSAL PRANA:
• in the beginning there was unmanifest consciousness known as Para Brahman
• the "willing" (VASANA -inherent desire) of the singular unmanifest consciousness to become one causes the first SPANDA or movement (before this we have perfect equilibrium of potential) 
• first primal movement is the MAHAPRANA (leads to EVOLUTION of all levels of existence)
• the many subtleties of PRANA & CHITTA (consciousness) are the ladders of all spiritual practices. The end being INVOLUTION- where all that exists is pure consciousness

HYP (2:2) When prana moves, chitta moves. when prana is without movement, chitta is without movement" 

both prana and chitta must be present for life to exist. Prana and vasana are the two supporters of chitta. 

chitta is dormant

prana is active

• INDIVIDUAL PRANA: prana springs from the "atman" and is inseparable from the self. Some people have more prana than others and they are more dynamic, successful and commanding than others.

HYP (2:3) "As long as the vayu (prana) remains in the body, there is life. Death occurs when the vayu leaves the body, therefore retain the vayu" 

• RECEIVING PRANA
• positive thoughts, higher feelings and yogic practices produce higher levels of prana
• sublimated or transformed sexual energies prana is conserved within the system and transformed into OJAS (subtler energy which is accumulated in the brain and used for creative and spiritual development).
• prana can be transmitted from yogis to others. (shaktipot)
• prana can be gotten from the environment
• food
• sattvic, rajastic and tasmasic is a designation of the amount of prana in food.
• air
• should not be contaminated.

• WORKING WITH PRANA
• prana is also self generated and it can be refined and directed
• one must work with PRANA SHAKTI (the force of prana) in order to perfect any experience in life (aim of pranayama)
• the length of the exhalation determines the pranic "utilization" of it. 
• different activities create different exhalation lengths and pranic utilization
• maximum prana is used by the brain, so if there is not enough prana, thoughts become restless and disturbed.
• breath is gross and prana is subtle, but the former can influence the latter.
• pranayama leads to PRANA VIDYA (knowledge of the inner workings of prana) which leads to the ability to gain control over the mind. Prana is grosser than the mind and therefore easier to control.

HYP (2:42) "the movement of the breath in the middle passage makes the mind still. this steadiness of mind is the state of MANONMANI (devoid of thought)"

• as one works with prana, the dormant areas of the brain awaken.

• COSMIC PRANA
• pranayama practices activate individual prana and raise it to a higher frequency. This generates a certain amount of heat or creative force. This pranic heat makes its way up to ANJA CHAKRA where it can be directed to the rest of the body. 
• as pranayama practice increases, the anja chakra is able to communicate with the muladhara chakra, the seat of kundalini energy where the cosmic prana lies dormant. (ATMA SHAKTI) or soul force. 
• when the full potential of this energy is released, it travels up the shushumna nadi bringing about a complete metamorphosis of a person (AWAKENING) one unites with the cosmic prana.
• AWAKENING = chitta and prana is a cosmic balance within the individual. There is an explosion of SATYA (truth) when one sees everything as luminous. One experiences oneself in every object in the universe.
• SAT-CHIT-ANANDA (truth, expansiveness, beatitude). 

PRANA & THE KOSHAS

• all five sheaths (levels of experience) are pervaded by prana. 
• the movement from one kosha to another is also enabled by prana=PRANA SHAKTI
• prana is like the "neutral" in shifting gears (Saraswati)
• shatkarmas and asanas clear blockages in ANAMAYAKOSHA and allow movement to pranmayakosha
• the 5 sheaths are intelinked, must be penetrated sequentially
• the rare yogi can reverse this process and through the attainment of anandamayakosha purify all of the other koshas.

KOSHA CONCIOUSNESS

• ones experiences in life indicate the realm of consciousness to which one has evolved. However blockages in other koshas may still exist. for this reason, an INTEGRAL path of yoga is advised. 
• time should be spent in each limb to achieve clearing of these blockages
• the aim of the practitioner is to work with the prana (through PRANYAMA & PRANA VIDYA) at pranamayakosha until the perception of prana becomes SUBTLE
• Annamayakosha: prana is experienced as nervous energy
• the awareness of prana shakti in the other sheaths developed through PRATYAHARA
• manomayakosha: compared to a house light with the lights switched on
• vijnanamayakosha: inner visions, sounds, smells are experienced
• anandamayakosha: luminosity
• ATMAMAYA KOSHA (experience of unity)

CHAKRAS AND BINDU

• the chakras power the pranic body
• each chakra vibrates at a particular velocity. (low to higher frequencies)
• MULADHARA is the seat of pranic energy and must be awakened for ANJA to be awakened. it is the "generating station" for prana
• associated with anamayakosha, unconscious mind, primitive instincts
• 4 petaled lotus
• tamasic
• SWADHISTANA: storehouse for latent samskaras and impressions. forms a karmic block and makes it difficult for awakened prana to pass through
• desires located here can become an obstacle to awakening
• six petaled flower, associated with pranamayakosha
• tamasic
• MANIPURA: the storehouse of prana is at the navel
• rajastic
• 10 petallotus and pranamayakosha
• ANAHATA: seat of the cosmic sound
• VISHNU GRANTHI (the second psychic knot) representing the bondage of emotional attachment is located here
• manomayakosha
• 12 petals
• VISHUDDHI
• purification center. The fountain of youth
• the nectar of life falls from BINDU down into this center, generating, health, vitality and youth
• vijnanamayakosha
• 16 petals
• AJNA: guru chakra or command center
• third eye or center of divine wisdom, it is the doorway to the psychic or astral dimension
• lies at the RUDRA GRANTHI (knot of shiva) attachment to psychic personality and to the siddhis which accompany awakening of anja chakra
• vijananmayakosha, two petals, the mind changes from gross to subtle here.
• BINDU
• POINT
• it is the point of creation where oneness first develops into multiplicity, the ultimate point from which all things manifest and into which all things return
• contains the evolutionary potential for a myriad of objects in the universe, the blueprint for creation (where Hindu Brahmins keep a tuft of hair at the back of their heads)
• the MOON at bindu produces the life-giving nectar clued AMRITA and the manicure consumes it. (disease, old age & death are suffered because of this consumption) Tantric Yoga techniques are aimed at reversing this process so that amrita is retained in the vishudda=IMMORTALITY
• the first manifestation of creation was NADA (Sound) and bindu is also the point where the original nada emanates.