The Power of Breath: Pranayama and Breathing in Yoga

What is Pranayama?

Chances are, if you’ve ever taken a yoga class, you’ve heard the word pranayama. You may have even practised a few pranayama exercises, or your yoga teacher may have at least emphasised mindful breathing.

Pranayama literally means to guide the breath. In classical yoga tradition, it was seen as a way to calm the mind, stimulate energy, and prepare for meditation. Ancient yoga texts, including Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, describe pranayama as an essential tool for mastering the mind and preparing the body for higher states of awareness.

Today, pranayama is also recognised from a therapeutic perspective. Research shows that regular practice can help regulate the nervous system, reduce stress, increase vitality, and balance emotions. Personally, I discovered the benefits of pranayama through yoga from a therapeutic perspective and experienced them firsthand.

In my view, both perspectives are valuable. Whether you see pranayama as a method to stimulate or regulate inner energy, or simply as a way to feel calmer, clearer, and more balanced, the breath works on many levels.

Benefits of Breathwork in Yoga

The breath forms a bridge between body and mind. By learning to guide it consciously, you can:

• Release stress and tension
• Improve focus and clarity
• Boost energy and vitality
• Find inner calm and balance

Simple Pranayama Exercises to Try

The beauty of pranayama is that it can support you exactly where you are. Whether you want to focus, relax, or enjoy a few peaceful moments, your breath can be the bridge that helps you achieve this. If you want to experience what conscious breathing can do at home, here are a few exercises you can try, ranging from simple to slightly more advanced, but all three are easy to do.

Equal Breathing (Sama Vritti)

This exercise helps calm the mind and brings balance between activity and relaxation (sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems).

How to practice:
Inhale for four counts and exhale for four counts. As it feels comfortable, gradually extend the rhythm to six counts or more. This is an excellent starting point for pranayama; think of it as tuning an instrument before playing music.

Breath Retention (Kumbhaka)

There are two forms of breath retention: inhale retention (Pooraka Kumbhaka) and exhale retention (Rechaka Kumbhaka).

• Inhale retention builds energy, increases pranic vitality, and helps stabilise the nervous system.
• Exhale retention cultivates calmness and stability, guides the mind into the stillness of the empty breath, and strengthens resilience to stress.

How to practice:

• For inhale retention: inhale for six counts, hold gently at the top for three counts, and exhale slowly without counting. Repeat several times. Over time, you can extend to eight counts inhale, four counts hold, and so on.
• For exhale retention: inhale deeply without counting, exhale for six counts, then hold the breath softly at the bottom for three counts. Repeat several times.

Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana)

This technique helps clear mental fog and restore balance. By alternating the breath between the nostrils, you harmonise the left and right hemispheres of the brain, leaving you calm and focused.

How to practice:
Sit comfortably. Place your index and middle fingers lightly between your eyebrows. Use your thumb to close the right nostril and your ring finger to close the left.

• Inhale through the left nostril, close it with the ring finger, and exhale through the right nostril.
• Inhale through the right, close it with the thumb, and exhale through the left.
• That is one full round. Repeat for several rounds, keeping the breath smooth, steady, and relaxed.

Experience Pranayama in Curaçao

If you’d like to experience for yourself what conscious breathing can do, you can book a private yoga session in Curaçao. During the session, I guide you step by step through these breathing techniques in a natural and accessible way.

Whether you’re visiting the island on holiday or looking to deepen your yoga practice, pranayama can help you feel balanced and relaxed.

Would you like to experience it yourself? Book a private yoga session or join one of the yoga classes in Curaçao and discover the power of breath on this beautiful island.