prana

Understanding the Flow of Prana (Life-Force Energy)

Published on August 11, 2020

The foundation of all life, of the whole universe, is the subtle life force energy that yogis call prana. You can’t see it, or touch it or taste it, but most yogis have had an experience of prana, the subtle energy that flows through our bodies.  This mystical energy moves through our bodies and animates our every action–from gross physical movements to minute biochemical processes. Creating an understanding and awareness of prana is important for yogis to understand the purpose of many hatha yoga exercises.

The Sanskrit word prana was first referenced in the 3,000-year-old Chandogya Upanishad text and was further refined and described in later Upanishads. The traditional texts of Ayurveda, Tantra Yoga, and Hatha Yoga further developed and elaborated on prana and the energetic anatomy that supports it.

What is prana?

Prana can be translated from Sanskrit as “life force energy,” “vital energy,” “breath of life,” “spirit-energy,” or “vital principle.” This term is used in yogic teachings as a general reference to the manifest energy of the entire universe. This original creative power is constantly flowing around us and inside of us. The breath is considered to be the most subtle form of prana in our bodies, thus it is most often described in yoga’s breathing exercises. Prana forms the energy of our consciousness, but it also is responsible for regulating all of our body’s physical functions.

The functions of prana

Prana is the source of all movement in the body. It regulates all of our conscious and unconscious bodily functions like our breath, digestion, blood flow, elimination, and cellular growth and healing. The flow of prana distributes its energy through the body based on the quality and capacity of the nadis energy channels and the chakras energy centers. Prana also animates and affects the quality of our thoughts, emotions, and consciousness. Our overall health and well being is tied directly to the quantity and circulation of prana in our body.

The importance of prana in yoga

There are several reasons why a yoga practitioner should work at understanding and creating a sensitivity to their vital energy. Since many of the yogic practices create or change the energy in our body, it is thus important to have a feedback system to know how and when to adjust or change these practices. There are many reasons to practice becoming more aware and sensitive to our energy as we practice:

  • It informs the physical alignment and more subtle adjustments in yoga poses.
  • It creates vitality and strength to physically and mentally engage in yoga asanas and other yoga practices.
  • It provides feedback on the effects of a sequence of poses and can guide our selection of poses to perform.
  • It creates the ability for healing and wellbeing
  • It is the foundation for pranayama breathing exercises and provides feedback on the efficacy of these techniques.
  • It can inform us of our success in creating and maintaining a yogic lifestyle.
  • It helps root our awareness in the present moment.
  • It affects the quality and quantity of our thoughts and thus impacts our ability to meditate.

Manifestations of prana

Beginner and intermediate yoga students need not know all of the different types and manifestations of prana, but more advanced students will find this knowledge helpful. What is most important is knowing that prana is usually used as a general term as the primary energy that can be subdivided into different and specific types of energy in the body.

  • Prana can be subdivided into smaller energetic parts called Vayus (winds). These five Vayus have very subtle yet distinct energetic qualities, including specific functions and directions of flow. These five currents of vital force are Prana-Vayu, Apana-Vayu, Samana-Vayu, Udana-Vayu, and Vyana-Vayu.
  • Kundalini is the dormant spiritual energy that is coiled at the base of the spine. Kundalini is a source of potential energy that only becomes activated with intense yogic practices. Kundalini is considered a type of shakti energy.
  • Shakti is a more dense form of universal energy and has a stronger effect on our physical body and environment. The complementary force to Shakti is Shiva, the energy of universal consciousness.

How prana flows through the body

Prana comes into the body from the food we eat, the air we breathe, and from absorbing the energies of the earth and heavens. Prana travels through thousands of tiny channels called nadis to every cell in the body. The three main nadis in the body are the ida, pingala and sushumna, which all start at the base of the spine and travel upwards to the head. The ida and pingala nadis crisscross each other as they spiral upwards and connect to opposite nostrils, while the sushumna travels straight up the spine to the crown of the head. The chakras are located where the ida and pingala cross each other and intersect with the sushumna. The chakras connect with the thousands of minor nadis and are thus responsible for the distribution and circulation of prana throughout the whole body.

Normally, prana is restricted from flowing through the sushumna by locks above each chakra. These locks primarily function to stop the activation and flow of kundalini from entering the sushumna and rising to the crown chakra.

subtle energy body

Energy Anatomy

Hatha Yoga and Tantra Yoga have developed detailed descriptions of the location and anatomy of the subtle energy body, including the nadi energy channels and the seven chakra energy centers.

Experiencing prana

To feel and experience prana, our awareness needs to be drawn into the subtle energy body, or Pranamaya kosha. The five koshas are imagined as sheaths or layers that veil the light of our True Self. The Yoga technique of pratyahara is the most efficient tool to bring our awareness from the physical sheath of Annamaya kosha into the Pranamaya kosha.

The movement of our vital energy is connected with the position and movement of the body. For example, if you are hunched over, your breathing and energy channels are constricted, and the flow of prana through your body is diminished. Thus, if you have poor posture, this will dull and constrict the flow of your prana. Also, when you stand up, energy generally travels upwards toward your head. When you sit down, your energy flows down towards your feet.

The movement of our vital energy is also connected with the breath. As you inhale the energy is drawn upwards and as you exhale energy flows downward. If you link these two (inhale to standing and exhale to sitting), you will feel a stronger sensation of energy.

Increasing and controlling prana

Hatha yoga was developed to circulate, cultivate, and control prana, and to activate and channel kundalini up the sushumna nadi to the crown chakra. Asana cultivates and circulates the energy in the body and strengthens the nadis. Pranayama, the use of various breathing techniques, controls and cultivates the vital energy and purifies the nadis. Bandhas are energetic locks that contain the prana in the torso and concentrate it in the three main nadis. Mudras regulate and channel prana into the chakras and arouse the kundalini shakti. By cultivating, controlling, and activating prana and kundalini, hatha yoga aims to liberate the mind and expand consciousness.

Using breathwork or pranayama techniques will be the most efficient way of increasing prana. Experiment with the following pranayamas to notice how they change and increase the energy in the body:

How to Increase Your Prana

There’s more to managing pranic energy than mindful breathing. Discover six powerful ways to manage your essential energy and increase your luminosity and radiance.

Increase Your Prana

Prana and the mind

The quality and amount of prana in our body has a strong effect on our ability to focus and concentrate. Yogic philosophy describes a connection between the fluctuations of thoughts (chitta vritti) and the fluctuations of energy. When our mental energy is still and calm, so is our experience of our mind. Thus, if one has mastered the control of prana one can master the control of the mind’s thoughts and become proficient at meditation.

As Swami Sivananda tells us, “If you know how to control the little waves of Prana working through the mind, then the secret of subjugating universal Prana will be known to you. The yogi who becomes an expert in the knowledge of this secret, will have no fear from any power, because he has mastery over all the manifestations of powers in the universe.”

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15 responses to “Understanding the Flow of Prana (Life-Force Energy)”

  1. nikos Avatar
    nikos

    thank you for sharing

  2. aashish kumar ramteke Avatar
    aashish kumar ramteke

    [email protected]
    can we enhale and exhale completely while doing anulom vilom

    1. Timothy Burgin Avatar
      Timothy Burgin

      Yes

      1. Julia Donnell Avatar
        Julia Donnell

        That is brilliantly explained….thank you I now get it.

  3. Walter maxwell Avatar
    Walter maxwell

    Very useful. I have practiced kundalini yoga under direct initiation of Sri.vedatri maharishi.but had discontinued due to its effect on martial oneness.

  4. Petchiram Avatar
    Petchiram

    Oh.. Great you got the direct initiation from sri vethathiri maharishi. Guess you have got guidance how to proceed through agna chakra mediation as well as thuriya meditation. But you said you had discontinued. Permanently you quitted from his spiritual path ?

  5. ASUTOSH PRADHAN Avatar
    ASUTOSH PRADHAN

    Interesting

  6. Dane Avatar
    Dane

    I experienced the pranic energy once whilst doing Yoga a few years ago. It was a beautiful soft energy that flowed through me and enveloped me, almost ecstatic, much different to the vibratory consciousness energy that I have experienced many times.

  7. Savita Goyal Avatar
    Savita Goyal

    Normally, prana is restricted from flowing through the sushumna by locks above each chakra. These locks primarily function to stop the activation and flow of kundalini from entering the sushumna and rising to the crown chakra.

    Can u pls guide, how to unlock these locks above each chakra….🙏🏻

  8. Melvin Morris Avatar
    Melvin Morris

    THANK YOU! Today I was called upon to deliver a word to a religious group of Men. The subject
    I choice was Prana! Your information on this page not only helped me but guided me to deliver a word that was well received . I look forward to future learning on the subject of Prana and others.

  9. Daniel Avatar
    Daniel

    I unwittingly unlocked my kundalini 9 years ago and felt powerful and free. Tragically because I didn’t understand the flow of prana after several months I began to restrict and block nadis. This led to the deterioration of my physical and mental state. I continued to try and manipulate my energies without even understanding what I was doing. I knew that I’d connected with universal energy and that it allowed the be my true self but didn’t understand its effect on our bodily tissues. So I reverted back to the scientific understand of our physiology to try and remedy my suffering. This went on for 9 years and torward the end the flow of energy was so restricted that most of my body felt numb. The only thing I could feel was pain and suffering. Fortunately, I held on the a part of my consciousness that knew the feeling of liberation and desperately wanted to find it again. So in the past six months I’ve been taking long dives into my self awareness to find the cause of my pain. I realized that if concentrated on the point of pain I could move it through channels and relieve the pain temporarily. However because I didn’t under that I was manipulating prana many times I would induce sensations that made feel like I would die. After many months of trial and error which included several trips to doctors and an emergency room visit, I decided to see a chiropractor. He realigned my spine which by this point was twisted and contorted in several directions. This unlocked my nidas and allowed for the potential flow of energy. But I was still temporary. Finally yesterday I decided to read up on the flow of kundalini energy through the body. The moment after I read the information on this page I was able to connected with the sensation of energy flow that I’ve been experiencing and with my new found understanding channel the energy properly. Immediately I felt relieved of pain and my breathing became effortless and vitalizing. I tried breathing techniques and felt the flow of prana just as described. Thank you so much for making this wisdom available and putting it in a form so clear and concise. You’ve helped me get back to a state of peace of mind and control that I feared I’d never find again.

  10. simon james (England, UK) Avatar
    simon james (England, UK)

    Im not sure if you will be able to give me a explanation with regards what i am about to say, it was a experience i had almost 20 years ago and have only discussed it with 1 person ever.
    I can go into a lot of detail if required but the top and bottom of it is that several forces of energy entered my feet and proceeded to magically massage me from within, working their way upto my private parts resulting in a feeling or sensation ive have never even got close to feeling before or since.
    As i said i can go into a lot of detail if required and will be prepared to put up with total scrutiny if need be.;
    it happened over a few months and it was noticable the subtle feelings or sensation which was being performed on me.
    It has left me 100% certain that other forces do exist which i described to my own mind as magic.
    I seem to be just 1 of those people who things happen to, as i have had other experiences which i know others would find hard to believe, but to me im used to things like encounters or amazing 1,000,000-1 odds coincedences happing to me that has left people in my company speechless.

  11. Benjamin Okafor Avatar
    Benjamin Okafor

    Thanks for highlighting the importance of a healthy lifestyle and diet in maintaining a balanced flow of prana.

  12. Jana Macková Avatar
    Jana Macková

    Thank you for this article. Made me think. When I open to this source of energy, I automatically open to whole realm of energies, correct? Happened to me, when I reatached to my soul and my inner self, I started to have sleep paralyses and started to attract weird entities. Then I learnt how to protect and clear my energy which leaded to dealing some of my traumas. Seems it works.
    When I open to Prana or Kundalini I open to another realm. In this realm there is not always only the good energy. How do I protect form the bad one?

  13. Liam Harrison Avatar
    Liam Harrison

    I’m grateful for this article for shedding light on the concept of prana. It’s given me a deeper understanding of the energetic aspects of yoga and how they contribute to our overall well-being.

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Timothy Burgin Avatar
About the author
Timothy Burgin is a Kripalu & Pranakriya trained yoga instructor living and teaching in Asheville, NC. Timothy has studied and taught many styles of yoga and has completed a 500-hour Advanced Pranakriya Yoga training. Timothy has been serving as the Executive Director of YogaBasics.com since 2000. He has authored two yoga books and has written over 500 articles on the practice and philosophy of yoga. Timothy is also the creator of Japa Mala Beads and has been designing and importing mala beads since 2004.
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