| Excerpted from:
Light on Ananda Yoga
By
Data Dayal Maharishi Shiv Brat Lal
Copyright © 2007
Chapter 17
Formerly, the cultivation of prana was absolutely necessary. Now, though it has been done away with, yet, prana has its part assigned to it by Nature. Prana is not the air in breathing, but it is the principle energy or force that sustains the mystery of the physical, mental and the causal universes. Prana pervades everything. What is prana? The explanation is rather difficult. In the Sanskrit lexicon, it has various meanings. It has been called Brahm, whilst even `life', `vitality' and energy all mean prana. The source of all available energy and of all physical life on Earth, is the Sun; the fountainhead of prana. Visible and invisible radiation and the currents of heat and energy, all emanate from it. As it is externally, so it is internally within a human being. The inner Sun and the outer Sun both resemble each other in every aspect. When the Sun shines, it vibrates, and this vibration emits radiation and stimulates all kinds of activity in Nature, giving life to animals, vegetation and the other realms that exist in Nature. This radiation has five aspects, and therefore five kinds of prana have been described in Sanskrit books generally, and in yoga literature specifically. They are: prana, apana, vyana, udana and samana.
1.Prana represents the involuntary action of the organism and its function it to enliven the animal organism through the process of breathing. Its seat is in the heart.
2.Apana flows downwards helping, governing and controlling the excretory functions. It has its seat in the anus.
3.Vyana is eminent everywhere. It pervades the whole body, controlling, regulating and sustaining all its various parts, and combining the whole system as one unit. Its seat is every within the body.
4.Udana is that which ascends upwards. Its seat is in the throat.
5.Samana enlivens the agni (metabolic heat) concentrated in the navel, governing and controlling the principle of digestion and assimilation. Its centre is the navel.
Pranayama was intended to stimulate breathing by breathing in a particular way through the nostrils while reciting the names and attributes of the Deity. According to the Radhaswami faith, they say, "Let the pranas do their work in their natural way; no stimulation or exercise of any kind is necessary at all for the practice of yoga." For every action stimulated results in further reactions, as all actions and reactions are contained within Nature. Therefore, everything should be done in as natural a way as possible.
Pranayama or prana yoga is moreover, very risky. If no competent adept comes to the aid of a practitioner, very often imbalances of the mind occur. The practitioner may become ill and in the majority of cases, the sickness is incurable. This is why pranayama has been prohibited and it is right that it has been done so.
Let all the pranas do their work as assigned to them by Nature. It is only the attention that is needed for the practice of yoga and nothing else. Diversion of attention from matter and its attraction towards spirit results in `natural concentration'. Do this and let all considerations about prana and pranayama be done away with. In the daily activities of life, prana does not interfere if you are properly concentrated. For example, while reading or writing there is a proper control of prana; it is restrained; it is neither amplified nor decreased. The same process should be observed when concentrating one's own mind in the prescribed centres.
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Lesson: The Mystery of Prana
