Mental Alternate Nostril Pranayama Practice

In this quick 5-minute pranayama meditation to balance the left and right hemispheres of the brain, we will do nadi shodhana or alternate nostril breathing but without using our hands. Instead of using hands to open and close our nostrils we keep our hands in our lap and open and close our palms and just mentally focus on the air coming and going through alternate nostrils.

Transcript

Do a little alternate nostril, No hands. So you're gonna put your hands on your lap if you haven't done this. We're gonna open and close the nostril we're trying to breathe through. So I'll walk you through it. Let's bring your hands to your lap, Palms up, With both hands closed. And first, Simply feel the breath move in and out of the body. And open the right hand. And as you inhale, Picture, Feel, Bring your attention to your right nostril. So you're imagining breathing into your right nostril. At the top of the breath, Close the right hand and open the left and breathe out the left nostril. And then inhale through the left nostril. Close your hands, Open the right hand, Breathe out your right nostril. There's our pattern. Inhale. Close. Open your left, Exhale out the left. Inhale left. Close and open the right and breathe out the right. And I'll be quiet for a moment so you can find your own rhythm. The breath is subtle and slow. And the next time you breathe out your right nostril, Whatever that is, You can open both hands and feel the next two or three breaths just move in and out of your body. And we'll gently open our eyes.