The Tibetan Yoga of Breath: Breathing Practices for Healing the Body and Cultivating Wisdom (11 page)

Seven Point Posture. The seven-point posture in full lotus—note the alignment of the spine, the set of the shoulders, the placement of the chin, and the direction of the gaze.

Inhalation/exhalation through the left nostril. Finger placement to close the right nostril for inhalation/exhalation through the left nostril.

Full lotus posture and beginning inhalation/exhalation through the right nostril. Placement of the left finger on the left nostril for beginning inhalation/exhalation

The Life-Force Wind.
In the heart center resides another of the root wind energies, the wind that “holds” the life force. The most important of all the wind energies and known as the root of all the winds, the life-force wind is what keeps us alive. Keeping the spine straight as an arrow enables the wind energy in the heart center to enter the central channel. This brings us to another instruction, which points out the necessity of keeping the spine straight like a hawk in its nest. Again, this metaphor may not feel accessible at first because we do not often see hawks in their nests. However, the meaning of the example is that hawks are very proud birds. When they sit in their nests, they raise their bodies up in a regal posture. We, too, should not only straighten the spine, but feel almost as though the head is being pulled up from above. This not only aids the wind energy in the heart center in entering the central channel, it also wakes us up and gives the mind a light, joyous feeling.

When we are mindful of our posture, focusing on the Seven-Point Posture of Vairocana, then the wind in the secret place above the genital area, the wind in the belly, and the wind in the heart center will naturally enter the central channel. With these details in mind, we can begin to appreciate the necessity of having a skillful teacher. If the wind energy does not properly enter the central channel, but instead comes up into the chest area and mixes with the wind abiding there, mental or physical illness can develop. This is actually the source of many illnesses, because, as a result of various conditions in the body and the environment, the winds that normally abide in different parts of the body become mixed in the heart center. In the previous few chapters, we talked about heart-wind and how it can lead to cardiopulmonary
disorders, as well as mental and emotional imbalance. Improperly working with wind energy can actually cause heart-wind. We must be careful to adhere to the beginning instructions in this book, and seek out a master of this tradition if we wish to work with wind energy training seriously.

The Upward-Moving Wind.
Slightly tucking the chin toward the chest causes a natural downward bend in the neck. This aspect of the posture is related to the fourth of the root wind energies, the upward-moving wind, which naturally abides in the throat. Because of this detail of the posture, the upward-moving wind enters the central channel.

The All-Pervasive Wind Energy.
The last of the root wind energies, the all-pervasive wind energy abides between the skin and the flesh, covering the entire body underneath the skin. Moving the shoulders back and wide like the wings of a vulture helps us sit completely motionless. Sitting motionless helps the all-pervasive wind energy enter the central channel. Also, when we tuck vajra fists into the creases of the thighs, it is easier to keep the spine straight and for the shoulders to naturally move back like the wings of a vulture, also causing the all-pervasive wind energy to move into the central channel.

Mastering the Winds.
The sixth point is not related to any specific aspect of the posture or to one specific root wind energy. We have just learned that when we sit and incorporate the first five points of the Seven-Point Posture of Vairocana, the five root wind energies will enter the central channel. This is called
binding
or
mastering the wind
. When we bind the root winds, the 21,000 winds that give rise to the afflictive emotions naturally enter the central channel. Thus, this posture binds the winds of the afflictive emotions.

Seeing Nonconceptual Wisdom.
The seventh point of this practice incorporates both the aspects of touching the tongue to the top of the mouth and that of eyes open and gazing along the top of the nose. When the tongue touches the top of the mouth, the jaw naturally drops down and creates space in the mouth. Through
the lens of Tibetan Buddhism, this, combined with open eyes, enables us to see the nature of nonconceptual wisdom. When we meditate, it is essential that our eyes be open!

Precautions

The great master Milarepa said about physical discomfort, “I am happy to feel pain because I know I am exhausting my karma.” Each of us should work with some kind of physical yoga, which will enable the body, and especially the joints, to become more flexible and the hips to open so that we can sit more properly in the Seven-Point Posture. We should try to counteract how spoiled our bodies may have become.

Ordinarily, we do not practice physical yoga, nor do we sit in the Seven-Point Posture. We are content to just let the body do whatever it wants to. When something hurts during our sitting practice, then we use a pillow, we change our posture, or we prop ourselves up. We must instead teach ourselves to sit in the Seven-Point Posture before we attempt wind energy training, otherwise, the five root wind energies will not enter the central channel, and we will not be able to bind the wind energy. If the five root wind energies do not enter the central channel, we cannot master the 21,000 winds of the afflictive emotions. Instead, afflictions will continue to arise in the same manner that they always have. We should anticipate and accept some physical discomfort as we work at sitting in this posture. Of course, we do not want to injure ourselves; we should work gradually and steadily at this practice. We may have physical limitations and need to sit in a chair when we practice. Even so, we will still receive benefit from physical movement and stretching.

Working with the Five Elements

We just learned about how, from the inner point of view, the five root winds will enter the central channel based on the Seven-Point
Posture. When we sit in the Seven-Point Posture,
the five branch winds,
which are described as the winds of the five elements (earth, water, fire, wind, and space), will rest in their natural place in the body rather than being scattered here and there. We call this
binding the elements,
because the wind energy settles into its own place. The following part of the explanation is given from the secret point of view, meaning that these teachings are not given in depth to inexperienced practitioners, because they are more specific, more profound, and more subtle than the outer and the inner.

The Wind of Space.
We have already talked about the straight spine being a very crucial part of the Seven-Point Posture. In addition to allowing the life-force wind to enter the central channel, we also said it gives the mind a joyous and awakened feeling. With regard to the five elements, this aspect of the posture binds the wind of the space element.

The Wind of Water.
Touching the tongue to the roof of the mouth binds the wind of the water element.

The Wind of Wind.
Setting the shoulders back in the manner of a vulture’s wings binds the wind of the wind element.

The Wind of Earth.
Placing the hands either in vajra fists or palms down on the thighs binds the wind of the earth element.

The Wind of Fire.
Slightly tucking the neck binds the wind of the fire element.

When we take the sum of all of these actions together, we bind the five root wind energies, and then the five branch or secondary wind energies related to the five elements based on our posture.

P
RACTICING
Y
OGA OF
W
IND AND
M
IND

As a general note, wind energy practice is best done early in the morning before we have eaten. Even if we do not practice in the early morning, we should allow our food to digest for an hour or two before we start to practice.

After practicing physical yoga for fifteen to twenty minutes, we sit down in the Seven-Point Posture. Before continuing, we should take a moment to notice our intention. Meditation should always begin with a compassionate wish to help all sentient beings, including ourselves. So if that wish is absent at first, we should cultivate it by thinking, “May the result of this practice be that I am able to love and support others selflessly.” In Mahayana Buddhism, we call this wish to benefit all beings everywhere “generating the mind of bodhichitta.”
Bodhichitta
is a Sanskrit word that means “enlightened mind.”

Now that we have engaged in some physical movement, cultivated our intention, and sat in the proper posture, we will engage in an exercise that helps us to dispel the karmic wind energy from the body. This breath work can be the gateway to our sitting practice. We can use it once daily or each time we sit down to practice. It is called the
Nine Cycles of Inhalation and Exhalation
.

The nine cycles are broken up into three groups of three breaths. The first six sets of inhalations and exhalations are done using alternating nostrils. The mouth remains closed the entire time and we breathe only through the nose. As a general note, the teachings on wind energy training and Yantra Yoga emphasize breathing through the nostrils during the entire practice session. Unless we are given specific, personal instruction by a master on how and when to breathe through the mouth, we should always breathe through the nose when we practice wind energy training.

Western medical researchers have found a variety of benefits that come from breathing through the nostrils rather than the mouth. First, breathing through the nostrils results in more oxygen being absorbed into the arteries. This occurs because nitric oxide is made by our nose and sinus membranes and carried into the lungs during nostril breathing. Nitric oxide relaxes and widens the arteries, enabling them to absorb more oxygen. This gas, when inhaled even in small amounts into the lungs, can increase oxygen absorption significantly.
¹
The air we inhale through our
nose is also humidified and warmed, which allows for better oxygen–carbon dioxide exchange.
²

Nostril breathing also increases the absorption of oxygen because of the resistance provided by the act of exhaling through the nasal passages. Since the air moves more slowly than it would if exhaled through the mouth, it spends more time in the lungs, and therefore more oxygen is absorbed. This resistance during the act of exhaling is exercise for the lungs, increasing their efficiency.

Finally, because nostril breathing prolongs exhalation, it stimulates the vagus nerve. Stimulating the vagus nerve results in lower blood pressure and heart rate, a lower breathing rate, and also decreases inflammation in the body.
³

Exercise 2