This talk will explore the practice of meditative breathing in the Yogavāsiṣṭha through the story of Bhuṣunda, a wise crow that instructs sage Vasiṣṭha in the art of observing one’s own breath to transcend sorrow and attain liberation. It will look at the difference between the practice of aware...

The author of Pranayama: A Path to Healing and Freedom, Allison Gemmel Laframboise became intrigued by pranayama the moment she heard her teacher say “Yoga is not about being good. It’s about being real.” Allison is passionate about breathwork as a powerful tool for personal growth and ultimate s...

Often in discussions on pranayama, we talk about the techniques and the benefits or effects. In this talk by Yoganand Michael Carroll, we will focus on the philosophy behind the practice. Throughout the history of yoga and pranayama, the techniques were developed and practiced for the realization...

In this talk Dr. Sundar Balasubramanian tells his story of how he utilized the information from an ancient Siddha traditional literature called Thirumanthiram written by Saint Thirumoolar in the Tamil language, and how he studied the biological effects when someone practice that Pranayama exercis...

In this talk, we will explore the ways in which prana moves in the subtle body. The movement of prana, or life force in the subtle body is called vayu (literally meaning wind). Vayu moves in specific ways, and each movement governs a particular function of the body and mind. The five primary va...

Vedanta is the core philosophy of Hinduism. It is based on the texts known as the Upanishads, which themselves form the highest teachings of the Vedas, the very ancient scriptures of the Hindus. There are many schools of Vedanta, the most well known of them being Advaita Vedanta (Nondual Vedanta)...

This talk will focus on what it means to call Sāṃkhya a “dualism” and how this contrasts with what is referred to as “nondualism”. We will critique the perspective that privileges one over the other and explore how these two perspectives imply their opposite.

For anyone wishing to practice or teach skillful breathing, it is vitally important to clearly grasp the basic structure and function of the human respiratory mechanism. Unfortunately, there are many commonly-held misconceptions about breathing and breath anatomy that have remained largely unexa...

This lecture will examine the definition/s of prana as discussed by Paramahansa Yogananda, one of the great spiritual teachers of the 20th century. Drawing from his written and recorded materials, we will explore Yogananda’s earliest concepts of prana and how they were then formed into a unique, ...

This lecture will include the description of various advanced pranayams from the system of Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan.™ These techniques will include the following: (1) a pranayama meditation technique for treating insanity; (2) one for treating anxiety and inducing deep relaxation a...

New insights into mind-body psychophysiological states.

Ethical imperatives and personal observances form the foundation of the yoga system described by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras. What is the underlying philosophy upon which the yamas and niyamas are based? Why are they an essential element of a complete yoga practice? How can we abide by them in a...