While the various asanas or postures are the core of yoga, the breath is its soul. It's been said that if you can breathe, you can practice yoga. A fundamental aim of yoga is to help you learn to calm your mind through your breathing.
By regularly taking the time for yoga, you will become very conscious of your breathing. You will train yourself to control your breath, which will help you become calm and relaxed. As well, the form of your asanas will improve the more you focus on your breathing.
It is in our nature to let our minds drift into concerns of the future and the past. But our bodies are only alive in the present. Through the performance of yoga, you can learn how to focus your mind on your body and let go of all of your worries, all through proper breathing.
Yoga can help to prevent stress and disease by letting you do this - letting go of these harmful, stressful thoughts, even for a short time, restores your body and mind to a healthy balanced state. Focusing on the present is what brings about this benefit.
By practicing yoga, you will learn conscious breathing during yoga poses which will keep your mind alert and ever aware of your practice. You will learn how to draw your mind to the present moment - allowing you to leave off all other thoughts.
The following breathing exercise is a simple method of practicing yoga that will help you to let go of stress and balance your mind.
* Lie or sit comfortably and become aware of your normal state of breathing.
* Still aware of your breath, inhale and exhale 4 counts each several times.
* Next, make your inhalations and exhalations last for five counts each.
* Then increase the count to 6 for each inhalation and exhalation. Become aware of your body - make sure that it is relaxed.
* Continue increasing the count of your breathing until you get to nine. If you start to feel stressed, drop back down to a number that is more comfortable.
* Keep bringing your mind back to your body to check to see if there is any tension anywhere in your body. If so, attempt to relax that part of your body.
* Whatever number of counts you reach, continue breathing with these long breaths for several rounds, then stop counting and breathe normally for 10 rounds.
What you can gain from this exercise - as you can from a number of other yogic breathing exercises, is the capacity to still your mind and relax your body through mastery over your breath. With some practice, you will become an expert at this technique, able to achieve a state of relaxation any time you are under stress and feeling tense.
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