Hi,
I'm Viona.
Today we'll be practicing alternate nostril breathing.
In yoga,
This technique is called Nadi Sudhana,
Which means charnel purification.
It's traditionally used to balance the flow of energy in the body.
This breathing technique will help to calm your nervous system and brings calm and balance between the two sides of your brain.
It is a powerful practice to reduce stress,
Restore inner harmony.
Before we begin,
A quick note on the practice and our hand positions.
The practice is simple.
There are four steps.
First step,
Close your right nostril with your thumb.
Inhale through the left nostril.
Hold your breath at the top.
Second step,
Close the left nostril with a ring finger and exhale through the right nostril.
Third step,
Hold here for a moment after you exhale and inhale from the same side,
Your right nostril.
Fourth step,
Close the right nostril using your thumb and exhale from the left side.
That is one complete cycle with two breaths.
During the practice,
You'll use either your right hand or left hand to place on top of your nose,
Your thumb to close the right nostril and your ring finger to close the left nostril.
The index and middle fingers can rest between your eyebrows or just curl to your palm,
Whichever feels more comfortable to you.
So now,
When you are ready,
Let's begin.
You may find your comfortable sitting posture first.
Sit tall with your spine low.
Let your both hands rest gently on your lap.
Close your eyes or lower your gaze.
Just starting by taking a deep breath in here and as you exhale,
Feel that you are 10% more relaxed.
Start by wiggling around your body.
Come back home to our body sensations.
You can start to draw circles around your neck.
I really recommend you to close your eyes fully so you can draw attention inward.
Take a couple more deep breaths here.
I'm really trying to slow down your breath and wiggle,
Draw circles around your neck area.
Just a moment to pause,
A moment to just be with our body.
Slowly,
You can move to draw circles around your hips area,
From the right to the left,
From the left to the right side.
Just notice if any sensations come up.
Slowly,
As we ease in every part of the body,
Come back to the center and find our stable sitting posture.
Now remember our first practice,
The belly breathing.
As we calm down,
Slow down,
Let's settle in with today's practice with the belly breathing first.
So be still of your spine,
Be still of your whole body.
Your belly is the only area that moves out and in as you inhale and exhale.
Feel free to go at your own pace but if you find it difficult to focus,
You can breathe together here for a moment.
So wherever you are,
Exhale first,
Inhale for two,
Three,
Hold it,
Exhale for two,
Three,
Hold.
Inhale deeper towards our belly,
Two,
Three,
Hold,
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Hold.
Inhale to four,
Two,
Three,
Hold.
Notice how belly rise as you inhale,
Belly contract as you exhale.
We'll move to Nadi Sudhana practice.
May raise your right hand up to place on top of your nose,
Close your right nostril first using your thumb,
Exhale first,
Inhale through your left nostril,
Hold it here,
Close the left nostril using your ring finger,
Exhale through the right nostril,
Hold it here,
Stay the same posture with your hand and inhale from the same nostril,
The right side,
Hold,
Close the right,
Exhale from the left nostril,
Good,
Continue,
Inhale from the left nostril,
Hold it,
Close the left,
Out through the right,
Inhale from the right,
Hold,
Close the right,
Exhale from the left,
Inhale from the left,
Close the left,
Exhale from the right,
Hold,
Continue practicing with your own pace and see whether you can embed belly breathing at the same time.
So whenever you inhale and exhale from any side of the nostril,
Really deepen your breath to bring it down towards your belly and connect your breath together with the belly movement.
Throughout the process if you notice that whenever you inhale your shoulder is rising or your chest is rising,
That's a sign that your breath is not connected with your belly yet.
So keep your shoulder away,
Relax your body and deepen your breath by direct your breath towards your belly area.
You may also embed counting if you find it difficult to focus so each counts as every inhale and exhale should be equal.
So let's practice for two minutes here at your own pace.
I hope that right now you're feeling more relaxed and grounded.
Nadi Shodhana is a powerful tool you can always come back to whenever you feel unbalanced.
Thank you so much for sharing this calm moment together.
Namaste.
