“primordial impulse.” Prana is the primordial life force
that governs all your mental and physical functions. It is
the vital energy that animates inert molecules into self-
healing, evolving biological beings. It is the primary cre-
ative power of the cosmos.
Learning to regulate your prana to calm, balance,
cleanse, and invigorate your body/mind is a powerful
technique of yoga. Your breath integrates many layers of
your life—your environment, your respiratory tract, your
nervous system, your mind, and every cell in your body.
Regulating your breath enhances your physical, emo-
tional, and spiritual well-being. It is the key to a healthy,
vibrant life.
For most people, breathing is the only autonomic
nervous system function that they can influence. Modern
physiology divides the nervous system into two main
components—the voluntary nervous system and the
autonomic nervous system. The voluntary nervous sys-
tem is active when you clap your hands, wave your arms,
or use your legs to walk. It is responsible for activating the
muscles that form the hundreds of facial expressions you
make in a day, as well as those that control your speech.
Although many of these functions occur with only mini-
mally conscious intention, you have the ability to initiate
and stop the use of these muscle groups at will.
The autonomic nervous system governs basic bodily
functions, which you usually have no conscious ability to
influence. These include core physiological functions
such as heart rate, blood pressure, regulation of your tem-
perature, the levels of hormones in your body, perspira-
tion, and the movement of food through your digestive
tract. Your autonomic nervous system also plays an
100 The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga