and energy supply. In order to affect this, the respiratory system is used
totally, but without straining the nervous system.
In normal inhalation, the brain not only draws in the energy, but
also the blood. In exhalation it releases it. Such breathing is nothing
more than the pumping of blood in and out of the brain. The very
word, inspiration, meaning both to breathe in and to grasp p a feeling in
the form of an idea, expresses the way the brain is charged during in-
halation. But this kind of inhalation builds up stress in the brain, as its
cells are continuously being inflated and deflated. So instead of be
coming energized, both body and brain dissipate the available energy.
Pranayama begins with observing the movements of normal breathing
and letting them become quiet and soft in such a way that there is no
load on the cells of the brain. To accomplish this you have to learn to
release the diaphragm. The diaphragm is the medium between the
physiological and mental sheaths and in consequence tightens as it
records stress and tensions that occur in daily life.
You have to immerse yourself in the in-breaths and out-breaths,
and in the naturalness of retention without causing any stress in the
brain cells or unnecessary disturbances or jerks to the vital organs and
nerves. After all, our nerves are liquid semiconductors, and they do not
react well to wild fluctuations of current any more than your computer
would. You have to tame your breath to tame your brain. Live from
moment to moment absorbed in the unruffled flow of the circular
movement of the in- and out-breaths. Its current should be like that of
a very full, stately river, whose movements cannot be seen.
If the mind is predominant during inhalation, you are doing ego
tistical pranayama. If the mind descends, and it is the heart that is
predominant, you are doing true, humble pranayama. It is by under
standing how to distribute prana that you can bring about the union
of the energies of the individual and of the universe. Inhalation engulfs
the whole body, expanding from center to periphery. During l'xhala-
V I T A I IT V T II 1'. 1'. N 1'. I\ li V II II II V I /' II :1 N A I