Breath Control

Breath Control & Yoga Pranayama Book – Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise – Ch 1

Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama

Yoga Breathing Exercise #1: The Breath of Fire

 

Free Online Yoga Video of Breath of Fire

 

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Video is from the article: Breath of Fire Video – Free Online Yoga Videos


What Is The Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

The first Yoga breathing exercise we will explore lies at the heart of Kundalini Yoga practice, it is the  legendary Breath of Fire Yoga Pranayama.

As mentioned above this breathing exercise is absolutely essential to the practice of Kundalini Yoga.  The roots of this pranayama are impossible to trace but I would like to thank my teacher Ravi Singh under whose expert guidance I learned this technique.

Breath Control

Tools Required for Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:   

Just your nose :-D.

Benefits of Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

Primary:

  • Quickly oxygenates your blood, thus helping the body detoxify itself and remove waste more effectively.
  • Builds lung capacity and helps purify the respiratory system.
  • Generates heat and increases your level of energy by activating the energy flows in your body.
  • Syncronizes your entire system under one rhythm, thus promoting greater internal harmony and health.

Secondary:

  • Balances and strengthens the Nervous System.
  • Magnifies the benefits of exercises done in conjunction with this breath.
  • When done forcefully, the pulsating of the diaphragm massages the internal organs, thus improving the digestive system.

Cautions for Practicing Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

  • If you feel dizzy when practicing Breath of Fire, you should stop and substitute normal breathing.  If you suffer from vertigo, you should use caution in practicing this breathing exercise.
  • If you are menstruating you should not practice Breath of Fire, use Long Deep Breathing instead.
  • You should be careful practicing Breath of Fire if you have high blood pressure, heart disease or suffer from stroke or epilepsy.  Also, if you have acid or heat related gastric issues such as ulcers you should use caution.

How To Do Basic Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

  • To practice this breathing exercise sit up in a comfortable position.
  • Elongate your spine upwards, lengthen your neck and subtly bring your chin back and in like a soldier at attention.  This will align the spine with the back of your head.
  • Close your eyes.
  • Rest your hands in any comfortable position.
  • Relax your stomach muscles.
  • Now begin to breathe rapidly through the nose with equal emphasis on the inhalation and exhalation.  It will be like very fast sniffing.  Keep the breath shallow, just at the tip of the nose.  Proceed at a comfortable pace and establish a steady rhythm.  Pay no special attention to the chest or diaphragm other that staying relaxed.  You will find the stomach pulses on its own in rhythm to the breath.  That’s it, continue for 1 minute.

How To Do Intermediate Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

  • Perform the breathing at a faster pace.
  • Increase the duration of the exercise to 3 minutes

How To Do Advanced Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

  • Build up the pace and power with which you do the breathing.
  • Build up the time for this pranayama to 11 minutes.

Secret of Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama:

So the trick question is, “How many breaths are you taking when doing the breath of fire yoga pranayama”?  This will be of some special concern to those who believe in the idea that each of us is born with a preset number of breaths and once we finish our quota – the fat lady sings.  So for those folks it would be rather alarming to practice this exercise regularly, as they would be drastically reducing their life span – but, thankfully they need not worry.  The beauty of this breathing exercise, aside from its lengthy list of benefits, is that it registers to the brain as only 1 breath.  So put your worries aside and enjoy the practice of this pranayama which I have found to be one of the real gems of Kundalini Yoga.

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137 replies
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  1. bluegreenmae
    bluegreenmae says:

    Thankyou Anmol for your wonderful clear guidance and positive vibes, what a caring and natural teacher you are. I laugh myself silly trying this BOF, the more I concentrate on getting a rythm the harder it seems to get! Will persevere though- your gentle encouragement is really inspiring!
    Peace

    Reply
  2. ra
    ra says:

    Dear Mark

    From what i have seen and read so far, the effects of practices can be regulated by the ascended yogis by using the “Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo” mantra prior to all practices and while allowing oneself to connect with G-D (see Kundaliniyoga.org…Free Lesson #3). The yogis can advise you also, if you are able to hear and listen to them. Anmol Ji also ALWAYS stresses a moderate and gradual approach to any of the exercises and has also published the Sheetali Pranayama to regulate the heat they can cause. Another means is praying to the Divine Hierarchy and to Divine Mother Kundalini for guidance, protection and inspiration, which can not only allow one to feel safe and attended to, but also made to feel energetically and spiritually enriched during practice.
    One might also keep a therapist handy who is trained in “Spiritual Crisis Therapy” so as to keep steady during purging stages. One might also have a practice partner with whom you can develop a system of reality checks and balances, or who could help in other needed ways.

    I hope this is helpful!

    Reply
  3. sara
    sara says:

    Hello Anmol, how long it takes for Kundalini to awaken with BOF? Days? Weeks? Months? Is it the best one out there to raise Kundalini?
    Thanks…

    Reply
  4. Francis
    Francis says:

    Hello Anmol; my question is, should Breath of Fire be practiced while standing up or walking?
    I think your website and videos are excellent.

    Reply
  5. Anmol Mehta
    Anmol Mehta says:

    Hi Annie,

    Glad you are enjoying he website :-).

    I would suggest that you change your pattern if you can. It will be worth the effort. I am going to suggest another technique to help another reader do this in the comments section of the following article, so check there for ideas there in a day or two.

    Check Comments Here

    Best,
    Anmol

    Reply
  6. annie
    annie says:

    You rock..
    Heres my question…I breathe a bit differently than all the other demos of breath of fire..
    I believe my tummy goes in when i inhale..and my tummy goes out on my exhale…does it matter? it feels really natural to me..and doing it the other way is very unnatural and i ususally end up doing it my original way..
    LOVE and LIGHT
    Annie

    Reply
  7. Anmol Mehta
    Anmol Mehta says:

    Dear Babu,

    While doing ensure the following….

    – One of the keys to preventing dizziness, during the exercise, is to keep the back of the neck a little tight by pulling the chin back slightly (like a soldier at attention).

    – Also, ensure that you are focusing the breathing just at the tip of the nose and allowing the diaphragm to pulse on its own.

    – Finally, make sure your exhalation is equal force to the inhalation to keep the balance right.

    Afterwords…

    – Sip some water.

    The best advise though is what you are not keen on hearing :-), which is to take some more breaks in between and develop your capacity patiently.

    Let me know how it goes.

    Best,
    Anmol

    Reply
  8. Babu
    Babu says:

    Dear Anmol,
    Whenever I practice this breathing, after sometime I am feeling dizziness. What is your suggestion to free from this problem.I am not interested to do it less than what you have advised. Please advise
    Babu

    Reply
  9. Anmol Mehta
    Anmol Mehta says:

    Hi Chris,

    Glad you are enjoying and benefiting from Mastery of Meditation & Yoga. Happy to share my knowledge with your all.

    Thank you for such positive feedback.

    All Good Wishes,
    Anmol

    Reply

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

  1. […] Another variation is to hold the classical pose illustrated above, and then do Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise with holding this posture.  This too is a very good variation to this pose.  […]

  2. […] Another point I wish to make regarding cleansing and strengthening the aura, is that the breath plays an important role in that process.  The Kundalini Yoga techniques which are designed to clear the Aura, almost always have a vigorous breathing pattern associated with them.  This technique is again in line with this approach, and uses the powerful Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise to maximize it’s purification powers.  So, keep that in mind as you practice this technique.    […]

  3. […] Begin the Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise and continue on for as long as you can. […]

  4. […] While doing this yoga pose, you should be doing powerful Breath of Fire Breathing exercise, to reap the full benefits of this posture. […]

  5. […] You will also need to learn the Breath of Fire breathing exercise, which is taught in the following video:  Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama.   This breathing exercise is a fundamental breathing technique in Kundalini Yoga and is used in conjunction with the yoga poses in the set below.  If at any time you feel it is difficult to keep up with breath of fire during the exercise, please switch to long deep breathing or normal breathing instead.  Breath of Fire will play an important role in helping you achieve the level of fitness you seek, by adding an important respiratory and circulatory component to the workout. […]

  6. […] You will also need to learn the Breath of Fire breathing exercise, which is taught in the following video:  Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama.   This breathing exercise is a fundamental breathing technique in Kundalini Yoga and is extensively used in conjunction with the yoga poses. […]

  7. […] The article Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise which is chapter 1 of the Free Online Breathing Exercises (Yoga Pranayama) E-Book gives copious details on this powerful and important Kundalini Yoga pranayama.  The Breath of Fire is a key component of Kundalini Yoga Kiryas and as its been detailed heavily in that chapter already, I don’t want to rehash the information here.  Instead, I will just highlight the most important aspects of this yoga pranayama and move ahead to the video. […]

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