Prana and Pranayama

Prana is considered to be the highest form of the life force contained within each individual which also unifies and connects all of existence. Prana is thought to be tied to the breath, hence ‘pranayama’ meaning breathing techniques (‘yama’ is translated to ‘restraint’ or ‘control’). To learn more about prana and pranayama, click here.

Further, prana is significant in the context of Ayurveda and is one of the three subtle essences along with tejas and ojas. One can develop a strong reserve of ojas through proper diet, control of the senses, control of energy expenditure, and devotional practices in order to begin building up tejas, and then prana can develop as the combination of ojas and tejas. To learn more about the subtle essenses, click here.