Posted on July 9th, 2011 | Comments (0)
One of the delights of a retreat or holiday of any nature is that you come away feeling refreshed and energised again.
It’s always surprising when we struggle to maintain that level of energy once we’ve returned to our own home. Often this is because you are, when on holiday, away from the issues that negatively affect your psyche and your body. These issues can be quite simple and small but the effect they have on our health is to create stress in our everyday lives and therefore affect our daily well being.
Coping with Stress through breathing
Stress manifests itself in many different ways but one of the most common side effects of stress is ill health and depression. Coping with these ailments is difficult but you can achieve positive results by following simple, ancient techniques of using conscious breathing exercises and combine them with healing mantra.
The basis of well being resides in our breathing. Every time we breathe we draw in the oxygen that is necessary for our bodies to survive, to pump the blood around and to feed our brain. It’s hardly surprising then that breathing forms the basis of most wellness and health exercises whether it’s aerobics or yoga.
How to breathe correctly
There are two types of breathing and, unfortunately, most of us use the first way, which is the incorrect way of breathing or breathing from the chest. The healing way of breathing involves learning to breathe through the abdomen. Our diaphragm enables our lungs to contract and expand, expelling stale air from the lungs. Most of us don’t breathe deeply at all and limit breaths to short inhalations and exhalations.
If you consider that we need to inhale oxygen to purify our blood to carry that oxygen to all of our organs you can imagine how vital it is that we breathe properly to ensure our well being. When we use proper breathing we see that our abdomen pushes out when we inhale which causes the diaphragm to be pulled down and slightly inwards. On an exhalation the abdomen should be pulled in pushing the diaphragm upwards which allows our lungs to exhale more of the stale air they hold thus making way for more clean air to enter on the next inhalation.
Proper Exercise
Exercise is vital to our well being and most exercise we know and undertake involves controlling our breathing. Like correct breathing, exercise has a cleansing effect on the body and its energy levels increase the more exercise we do.
We feel energised and healthier overall after exercise and it doesn’t have to be overly intense exercise either. Yoga, stretching, Tai Chi, hatha yoga, dancing, martial arts, sports, jogging, hiking or brisk walking are all acceptable forms of exercise as long as you use the correct breathing method.
Most healing exercises are based on the concept of energy flow and breath work is just one of the tools used. Healing exercises are often used in yoga and meditation to create the quietness needed to centre the body. Breathing exercises are used with a series of physical poses or exercises and has a deep healing effect through stress reduction.
Sound within Breathing Exercises
When we breathe we often release a sound. It is the sound of the air being expelled from our bodies and it is sometimes soft and at other times loud and harsh. Harnessing sound with breathing during exercise is extremely healing and practised by many yoga followers, swami and at holiday retreats like those run by Deva Premal & Miten in Corfu and Costa Rica.
As followers of Osho they apply the principles of pranic healing to their retreats and harness the vibration of song and mantra within the groups that join them to promote well being.
Prana means ‘life’ in Sanskrit and is a method of healing where the energy fields around the body are manipulated to promote healing from within. It is believed that we all have the ability to heal ourselves and pranic healing uses vibration, energy fields and breathing to balance the body so that it can heal.
How does it work?
We’re all surrounded by electromagnetic energy fields or aura. Our aura absorbs and distributes energy around the body. When we are ill or in pain it indicates that this energy field is no longer balanced. Pranic healing enables us to redistribute that energy to rebalance our bodies and bring healing.
When we embrace the life force of breathing, together with balancing our bodies through exercise, we redefine our energy field and balance our bodies.
Some Basic Breathing exercises
To begin, try a Bramari breath. This is a soft breath with the focus on the exhale. When you exhale you will emit a humming noise. So, inhale deeply through the nose for as long as you can. Hold it a second and then exhale slowly. As you exhale hum ‘hmmmmmmm’ for at least 3 seconds. Keep breathing in this way for at least 5 breaths. This breath helps release tension.
Next, you can try Shitali. This is a cooling breath so great when you’re overheated! It is a breath that focuses on the flow of breath over the tongue. Inhale through your mouth and roll the sides of your tongue up to form a ‘tube’. As you inhale allow your breath to flow over your tongue. As you exhale allow your breath to exit through the nose or mouth.
Alternate nostril breathing is also known as Nodi Shodhana and is great for relaxation and releasing tension in the mind. Sit comfortably and place your right thumb at your right nostril, your middle finger on your forehead and your right pinkie on your left nostril.
As you inhale close your right nostril with your thumb breathing in through your left nostril for the count of five. As you exhale close the left nostril and release your thumb from your right nostril to the count of five. Then alternate. As you improve your breathing you will be able to hold this breath for longer and longer.
Healing through Mantra, breathing and song
For many, the day to day stresses of life lead to a series of illnesses. If you can’t apply the basics of breathing, exercise and vibration you may want to undertake a holiday or retreat that teaches you how to combine all three elements for you to continue with after your break.
There are a variety of such holidays available including swimming with the dolphins in Bimini through WildQuest and holidays with Deva Premal & Miten in Corfu and Costa Rica where they embrace all of these elements and combine them with song, chants and mantra to refresh and heal the spirit.
About the Author
Jane van Velsen writes articles for a wide variety of clients including Deva Premal & Miten who are in the Entertainment and Arts category and are acclaimed for their inspiring blend of song, mantra and meditation. They have released a string of acclaimed CDs with international sales of nearly one million and are growing in popularity daily across the globe.
Article Source: Content for Reprint
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