Breath Compression in Kundalini Yoga

When doing kapalabhati/bhastrika breath infusion, one should, after a series of breaths, be particular to check that the energy is compressed into the subtle body properly and that it is dissipated under observation. When the energy dissipates or fizzes out, one should begin another series of breaths either in the same or in a different pose.

Eventually when one masters this, one should do a short meditation during the period when one ceases breathing and checks the energy distribution. This meditation is important in the advanced stages because it causes one to become conditioned to higher states of consciousness with the possibility of transiting to higher zones like siddhaloka, janaloka, maharloka, tapaloka and satyaloka.

Getting the feel for these higher dimensions is beneficial, because it conditioned the subtle body to such places and de-tunes it from the lower astral regions and even from the swargaloka heavenly place.

Each of the realms like swargaloka, siddhaloka, janaloka, maharloka, tapaloka and satyaloka are experienced as bliss environments, places where in the normal atmosphere there is energy which causes the psyche to be experienced as a bliss body. However the quality of bliss varies from one of these locales to the other, with satyaloka having the highest bliss yield, the one that is the most neutral in comparison to the bliss yield of sexual climax experience in the physical world.

A yogi should know these states and know how to recognize each so that he/she knows which one is experienced. Initially the yogi has no idea. Hence when doing kundalini yoga, when there are bliss states, the yogi experiences these but has no way to catalog the experience and to know which higher realm it corresponds to. However if the yogi persists in practice, he will be inspired or be informed of the level of the experience which he was lucky to have.

Arresting the body while doing breath infusion is a special technique. At first one should do a series of breath, say for instance one does ten rapid breaths in succession in a posture. Then one ceases this and applies locks, so as to arrest the energy which was infused into the psyche. Mentally and sensually, one should have one’s attention be inside the psyche checking on the compression and on the state of the accumulated breaths. One should compress in on the accumulated energy once it is located. Then one should watch within the psyche to see where the energy will shift or if it will remain where it is and be compressed.

The yogi should know if bliss feeling arise and should track the movement of these. All the while the yogi should be as the coreSelf, as the observational iSelf. As soon as the accumulated energy fizzes, dissolves or diffuses, the yogi should begin another set of breaths, say another ten rapid breaths. Then again he should cease the breath, compress in on the accumulated energy and track it. Again as it fizzes out or dissolves, the yogi should begin another session of breaths either in the same posture or in another posture as he is inspired or was instructed. This should continue on and on until he feels that the entire subtle body is saturated with energy from these breaths.

The yogi should not hold the breath just to hold the air in. The breath is held to maximize its compression and to check its distribution or energization. Once it is distributed he should no longer arrest it but should begin another session of breaths or if the practice is enough where he feels that the entire subtle body is surcharged, he should sit to meditate.

How long should the yogi wait before beginning another session of breaths?

He should wait for as long as it takes to distribute or dissolve the accumulated energy which was compressed. One yogi might wait for say ten seconds, another for 30 seconds and yet another for 130 seconds depending on the way the yogi’s body absorbs and distributes the energy. If a yogi’s lungs do not efficiently absorb the air used in say ten breaths, that ascetic will not have much air accumulated. He should arrest the system for a short time only. Another yogi who is more proficient and whose lungs absorb more air out of the same ten breaths should remain in the arrest condition for a longer period because his system will take more time to diffuse the accumulated energy.

A yogi should not be in the arrest condition any longer than it takes to distribute or dissolve the energy which accumulated from the breaths. If the yogi hold the breath longer, that will give negative results in the form of fainting, swooning or becoming unconscious which will cause the physical body to fall to the ground. That is not desired.

Only hold the breath for as long as it take to distribute the fresh air energy which was accumulated. Realize that if the breath is held longer, the system will switch to using carbon dioxide (apana). That is not part of the breath infusion practice. It will give blank dull states which yield no insight.

It could happen that a yogi’s body falls to the ground and the yogi has a positive state, a bliss state of consciousness. This may happen if the yogi did not master the compression locks and did not do enough meditation to master the pratyahar sensual energy withdrawal practice.