20 yoga anatomy
Figure 1.23b on page 19 pictures the same movement employing the glottal valve of
ujjayi (E), which automatically engages the breathing musculature. This creates support along
the entire anterior surface of the spine because it rests on the stabilized body cavities. The
body now has a single center of gravity, which is being supported safely by the pelvis and
legs. This is what is commonly referred to as frontal support.
An additional effect of moving and supporting the body through this kind of resistance
is the creation of heat in the system, which can be used in many beneficial ways. These
practices are referred to as brhmana (brh meaning increase or expand), which implies heat,
expansion, and the development of power and strength as well as the ability to withstand
stress. Brhmana is also associated with inhaling, nourishment, prana, and the chest region.
When relaxing the body in the more released, horizontal, or restorative practices, it is
important to disengage the bandhas and glottal constrictions that are associated with verti-
cal postural support. This relaxing side of yoga embodies the quality of langhana (meaning
fasting or hunger), which is associated with coolness, condensation, relaxation, and release,
as well as the development of sensitivity and inward focus. Langhana is also associated
with exhaling, elimination, apana, and the abdominal region.
Because the ultimate goal of yoga breath training is to free up the system from habitual,
dysfunctional restrictions, the first thing we need to do is free ourselves from the idea that
there is a single correct way to breathe. As useful as the bandhas are when supporting the
center of gravity and moving the spine through space, we need to release the brhmana
forces of sthira in the system when pursuing the langhana, relaxation, and release of sukha.
intrinSiC eqUiliBriUM: preSSUre ZoneS
Intrinsic equilibrium refers to several important mechanisms that combine to make the
human torso a self-supporting structure, which has an inherent tendency to seek upward
movement.
The most important of these mechanisms is in the visceral component of the torso—the
pressure differential between the lower abdomen (highest pressure), the upper abdomen
(middle pressure), and the thoracic space (lowest pressure). Since energy always migrates
from a region of higher pressure toward a region of lower pressure, this means that the lower
and upper abdominal contents are constantly migrating upward toward thoracic space.^5
The bony components of the torso—the spine, rib cage, and pelvis—all share a common
characteristic: They are knit together under mechanical tension, like coiled springs restrained
by elastic bands. When the sternum is divided for thoracic surgery, the two halves spring
open and need to be pushed back together in order to be closed up again. At the front of
the pelvis, the two pubic rami are joined at the pubic symphysis, a pressurized joint that
softens and opens in childbirth and hopefully reknits afterward.
The spine’s intervertebral discs are constantly pushing the vertebral bodies apart—an
action that is resisted by the ligamentous and bony structures of the spine’s posterior
column. This combined push–pull of forces makes the spinal column as a whole a very
springy structure that always seeks to return to neutral.
Note that all of these features of the body operate independently of muscle contraction—
in fact, it is the unconscious, habitual activity of our postural and breathing musculature
that obstructs the effect of intrinsic equilibrium. So, establishing an upright relationship to
gravity, in the deepest sense, is less about exerting the correct muscular effort than it is
about discovering and releasing the habitual muscular effort that is obstructing the natural
tendency of the body to be supported all on its own.
(^5) When a lobe of the lung is removed (lobectomy), the diaphragm and abdominal organs are drawn upward and fill the extra
space.