Pranayama Breath Infusion Failure

In the sequence of the eight stages of yoga, there is pranayama breath infusion as the fourth level, then pratyahar sensual energy retraction as the fifth.  After this, there is a sequential set of practices at the sixth, seventh and eight stages. These three final achievements are termed as samyama according to Patanjali.

In a formula it is like this:

dharana + dhyana + samadhi = samyama

The effort in the Western countries to do meditation may be termed as samyama.

There is a question about breath infusion, as to if a thorough practice will cause the yogi to achieve the pratyahar sensual energy withdrawal, so that there is no need to practice pratyahar because proficient breath infusion gives one the pratyahar interiorization achievement as a consequence.

What happens is that if a yogi has the complimentary lifestyle and remains psychically clean, he/she will experience the stillness of the sensual energy where it does not course out from the psyche in its hunt for sense fulfillments either outside of the psyche or even inside the psyche by invoking memories and urges which distracts the coreSelf.

If a yogi finds that during a session his thorough breath infusion does not result in a stilled quieted mind, he should resume whatever pratyahar sensual energy practice he did previously, in order to bring his mind to order. He should also check to see what lifestyle deviation he was involved in, either in the physical world, or on the astral level, which causes his psyche to again begin the hunt for sense objects.

Those yogis who play games with the practice, who toss it around like a ball for playing, will find that they are unable to get the result of interiorization and quietude from breath infusion. This is a hint that their sensual energy withdrawal practice which was done in meditation to retract sensual interest and to squash the adventurism of the intellect and sensual energies, was not sufficient. They need to focus on curbing the mind internally. They should do breath infusion and should begin meditation not with dharana deliberate focus on the selected objective, but with pratyahar where they spend much time pulling in the sensual energies.

After sometime, after some years even, the effect of advanced pranayama will be derived consistently. It has to do with a lifestyle which is not hostile to mind quietude. This includes upset associations on the physical and psychic levels.