The Philosophical Underpinnings of Pranayama

Pranayama is best understood in the context of Energy & Subtle Body Anatomy so please be sure you’re familiar with the teachings in that lesson:

Objective

Gain an understanding of the yogic perspective on how life force energy moves and functions within the physical, mental and emotional bodies.

The Fourth Limb

Pranayama is presented as the fourth limb in the Eight Limbs of Yoga. It refers to breath practices designed to enhance one’s life force energy.

Sanskrit

• The Sanskrit word prana means “life force” (referred to as chi in Chinese).
• Ayama means to “enhance” or “alter.”
• Pranayama, therefore, refers to breath-altering practices that bring about a fuller expression of life force.
• Other descriptions of pranayama include “mastering, “harnessing” or “stabilizing and refining” prana.

Translation Differences

Some sources define pranayama as “breath control or restraint” likely because they are defining prana and yama. Leslie Kaminoff suggests that the proper etymology is prana and ayama:

PRANAYAMA DEFINITION

Hindi speaking Indians have the habit of dropping the final ‘a’ in Sanskrit words. So, it’s actually pran-ayama, meaning “unobstructing the breath” not “breath control” as it’s commonly translated. Ours is sometimes a society of restrictions, control and don’ts instead of undoing and unlearning. – Leslie Kaminoff 

Yogapedia concurs: In the practice of pranayama breathing techniques, it is considered that yogis are extending or expanding (ayama) the vital life force (prana) throughout the body… Although many construct the word, pranayama, with prana and yama in order to literally translate to “the restriction of life force,” in a pranayama practice, yogis seek to free or direct prana throughout the body through controlled breathing. The intention is to allow the vital life force to expand and move throughout the body, not restrict it through controlled breathing. Therefore, many yogis believe that ayama is used in the rightful construction of the word, with pranayama literally translating to “the expansion of the life force” instead. –  Yogapedia

The Philosophy in a Nutshell

Introduction

Here we consider pranayama from the perspective of yoga philosophy.

• For information on techniques, please see Pranayama Teaching Foundations.
• For other angles on the topic, scroll down to Related Resources: Exploring Pranayama.

Succinct Descriptions

The following is a succinct and practical description of the philosophy of pranayama:

Pranayama is mastery of prana, the universal life force, through the breath. The movements of the breath reflect the state of prana in the body-mind. Irregular breathing is indicative of imbalances or blockages in the flow of prana. Through regulation of the breath, the prana flows in the appropriate measure and locations. – Rev. Jaganath Carrera