KAPALABHATI PRANAYAMA

Kapala means a skull and Bhati means to shine. Because this exercise makes your skull shine therefore it is called Kapalabhati. Like Bhastrika, Kapalabhati is a cleansing and invigorating pranayama. It is a wonderful exercise to cleanse the skull nicely. Kapalabhati is a variation of the bhastrika or bellows breath. This pranayama is specifically used for cleansing. If we have a lot of mucus in the air passages or feel tension and blockages in the chest it is often helpful to practice kapalabhati.

Kapalabhati involves forceful exhalations (Recaka) followed by passive inhalations (Puraka) but no holding of breath (Kumbhaka). It is rapid performance of Recaka (exhalation) and Puraka (inhalation) like emptying and filling up of the bellows of a blacksmith. Kapalabhati is well known as the destroyer of disorders caused by phlegm. In this exercise we deliberately breathe faster using only abdominal or diaphragmatic breathing but not chest breathing. In Kapalabhati breath is short, rapid and strong. We use our lungs as a pump, creating so much pressure as they expel the air that all the waste is removed from the air passages, from the lungs and up through the nostrils.

If you have high blood pressure, suffering from heart disease, ulcer or hernia then avoid doing kapalabhati.

TECHNIQUE

Kapalabhati Pranayama

Kapalabhati Pranayama

Sit in Padmasana, Svastikasana or in any comfortable posture of your choice. Keep your spine in an upright posture and take a few normal but deep breaths. Now forcefully expel all the air from your lungs then allow them to fill passively. The primary movement is from your diaphragm. Do Puraka and Rechaka so vigorously that you perspire profusely. There is no Kumbhaka in this exercise. But Rechaka plays a prominent part. Puraka is mild, slow and long and is best done by releasing the abdominal muscles, while Rechaka is forceful and quick and is done by contracting the abdominal muscle with a backward push. The important point to remember while doing this exercise is to keep the body, head and neck erect, and not to bend even a bit. Perform this movement ten times then allow your breathing to return to normal and observe the sensations in your body. Repeat these cycles of ten movements three to four times.

In the beginning you can have one round only consisting of 10 expulsions in the morning. That will suffice. In the second week you can do the same in the evening also. In the third week have two rounds in the morning and two in the evening. In this manner you can cautiously and slowly increase 10 expulsions to each round till you get 120 expulsions per round.

BENEFITS

The benefits of this exercise are even more alluring than Bhastrika. Few of these benefits are as follows:

1. The respiratory system and nasal passages are thoroughly cleansed.

2. The spasm in the bronchial tubes is removed.

3. Most of the respiratory track diseases like asthma and cold etc. are cured.

4. Digestive system is activated with liver and spleen becoming strong and efficient.

5. Blood circulatory sysytem is overhauled and impurities of the blood are eliminated.

6. With toning up of three systems complete health and vigour comes to life.