Breathe Well: Why We Begin With the Natural Breath at Citta Flow.
One of the things I’m becoming increasingly fascinated by through my Svastha Yoga Therapy training is the breath. We breathe all day, every day, usually without giving it a second thought. Yet the breath is constantly responding to what is happening in our body, our nervous system and our environment.
I recently had a really interesting conversation with one of my students about this. She came to yoga initially because she wanted the physical benefits — the stretching, movement and feeling of opening up her body. But over time, she has started noticing much more. She is becoming aware of how she breathes, what she feels in her body and how her breath changes depending on what is happening around her.
It was a great opportunity to talk about something that I think is really important: not all breath practices are the same, and they don't all have the same purpose. There are many different approaches to working with the breath, and some deliberately change the speed, depth or pattern of breathing. In Classical Hatha Yoga, however, the starting point is much simpler. We begin by developing awareness of the natural breath and learning to experience it in an easy and relaxed way.
This idea is central to what I have been learning through the Svastha Yoga Therapy Breathe Well course with Dr Ganesh Mohan. An easy, relaxed breath is considered the foundation for pranayama practice. Before we start trying to influence or control the breath, we first need to understand what our natural breathing is like.
That might sound incredibly simple, but it isn't always easy. Most of us spend very little time actually noticing how we breathe. We may hold our breath when we're concentrating, breathe more quickly when we're stressed, or tighten our shoulders and jaw without even realising it. Sometimes we may even become so focused on trying to take a “good” deep breath that we end up creating more effort and tension.
The natural breath is not something we need to improve before we begin. It is something we can become curious about.
Modern science gives us an incredible insight into just how complex breathing actually is. Our breathing is largely automatic and is regulated by respiratory centres within the brainstem. These centres continually receive information from throughout the body and adjust our breathing according to what we need.
Chemoreceptors (specialized sensory cells) monitor things such as carbon dioxide, oxygen and blood chemistry, while receptors throughout the respiratory system and body provide further information. Our breathing is also closely connected with the cardiovascular and autonomic nervous systems. This is one reason our breathing can change so noticeably when we are exercising, stressed, frightened, excited or relaxed.
Think about what happens when you are anxious or under pressure. Your breathing may become faster or shallower. You might start holding your breath. Your shoulders may lift and your muscles may become tense. Your whole physical experience changes, often without you consciously deciding to make any of those changes.
The relationship also works in the other direction. How we breathe can influence how we experience our body and mind, which is one reason the breath has such an important place in yoga, meditation and relaxation practices.
The traditional teachings of Hatha Yoga recognised this relationship long before modern science could explain the physiology behind it. There is an understanding that when the breath is strained or disturbed, the mind can also become disturbed. When the breath becomes easier and more settled, it can support a quieter and more settled state of mind.
This is why I don't teach breath techniques as something that needs to be forced or pushed. I want my students to develop a relationship with their breath that is based on awareness, patience and curiosity. We begin by noticing what is already happening rather than immediately trying to change it.
As practice develops, Classical Hatha Yoga provides a framework for gradually working more deeply with the breath. Pranayama involves different aspects of breathing, including inhalation, exhalation and, as practice progresses, pauses in the breath. Patanjali refers to these aspects of pranayama in the Yoga Sutras, including stambha-vritti, which relates to the suspension or pausing of the breath.
But there is a progression here. We don't need to jump straight into advanced techniques. A comfortable natural breath is the foundation. From there, with appropriate guidance and consistent practice, our relationship with the breath can gradually become more refined.
I think this is one of the things I love most about yoga. It teaches us to become better observers of ourselves. Instead of immediately deciding that something needs to be fixed, we learn to notice what is happening.
Perhaps you notice that your breathing changes when you're stressed. Perhaps you realise you hold your breath when you're concentrating. Maybe you become aware that your shoulders move quite a lot when you breathe, or that your breath feels different from one day to the next.
Those observations are valuable. They give us information about ourselves.
And this is why that conversation with my student stayed with me. She came to yoga for the stretch, but she is discovering that there is so much more to the practice than stretching muscles.
She is learning to notice her body. She is becoming curious about her breath. She is asking questions and beginning to understand the relationship between her body, breath and mind.
There is no rush to master any of this. Working with the breath takes time and patience, just like learning anything else.
So next time you're on your yoga mat, before you try to change your breathing, simply notice it. How does it feel? Is it comfortable? Is there effort? Where do you feel the movement of the breath?
You don't have to make it deeper or bigger. You don't have to get it right.
Just begin by paying attention.
Because in Classical Hatha Yoga, an easy, relaxed breath isn't something we move past on the way to the “real” practice. It is where the practice begins.
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This article is based on principles explored through the Svastha Yoga Therapy 40 Hour Master - Breathe Well course with Dr Ganesh Mohan, alongside the traditional teachings of Classical Hatha Yoga and contemporary understanding of respiratory physiology.
