Anuloma Viloma
Alternate-nostril breathing
In-breath and out-breath alternate between the sides of the nose. This evens things out and brings both sides into balance.
Wiki · yoga knowledge
Pranayama
Guiding the breath in yoga
Pranayama (prāṇāyāma · प्राणायाम) is the conscious guiding of the breath: in-breath, out-breath and the pauses between them are led and gradually widened. On this page you can get to know what the word means and where it comes from, along with the four guided breathing practices that accompany you in the VYC Sahitya app.
What it means
Widening the breath
The Sanskrit word prāṇāyāma (प्राणायाम) joins prāṇa, the breath of life, with āyāma, which means “extension, widening”. So what is meant is less a mastering of the breath than its widening and guiding.
In practice the natural breath is first observed, then led: in-breath, out-breath and the pauses between them (kumbhaka) are given room and rhythm. In this way the mind settles, attention gathers, and the life energy (prana) is taken in, gathered and guided.
Pranayama is a core piece of Hatha Yoga: it joins the postures (asanas) with collectedness and meditation. The bandhas accompany many practices, so that what has been gathered is held.
PrāṇaThe life energy your breath carries. More on prana →
ĀyāmaSanskrit for “extension, widening”: widening the breath rather than forcing it.
KumbhakaThe pause in the breath. Only what stays comfortable is held.
The source
From the Yoga Sutra into Hatha Yoga
In Patañjali's Yogasūtra pranayama is the fourth of the eight limbs of yoga: the refining of in-breath and out-breath, once the seat has grown quiet. The source texts of Hatha Yoga, first among them the Hatha Yoga Pradipika (Svatmarama, around the 15th century), unfold from it a rich path of practice with alternate-nostril breathing, pauses in the breath and the bandhas as companions. Their basic conviction: as the breath grows calm, the mind grows still too.
Yogasūtra II.49 · Hatha Yoga Pradipika · around the 15th century
From the VYC Sahitya app
Four practices to get to know
These four guided breathing practices accompany you in our app; in our courses we practise them together.
Box Breathing
The even breath
Four phases of equal length: breathe in, hold, breathe out, hold (samavṛtti). A calm beat that brings clarity.
Kapalabhati
The shining skull
Short, forceful out-breaths from the abdominal wall; the in-breath happens by itself. This wakes and enlivens.
4-7-11
The calming rhythm
Breathe in for four seconds, out for seven, carried over a few minutes. Lets the day fade out.
You can find all four practices guided in the VYC Sahitya app, with instructions, rhythm and reminders.
In practice
How you can practise pranayama
Pranayama begins not with technique but with listening. This is how you can approach it step by step:
- Take an upright, comfortable seat and let the breath flow naturally for a few rounds: only observing, changing nothing.
- Begin to lead the breath: breathing in and out evenly, or gradually lengthening the out-breath.
- When that goes effortlessly, give the pauses room, after the in-breath as after the out-breath. Only for as long as it stays comfortable.
- Let the leading go again, let the breath flow freely, and feel the after-effect.
Related topics
Going deeper
Would you like to practise pranayama with guidance?
In our courses we accompany you step by step, from quiet observing to alternate-nostril breathing and pauses in the breath.