"Can you write about prana, - life force/vital energy - this month?" Of course I can. I could write about how I don't understand prana at all, make some jokes, and be done with it. It'll be fun. But then I read something.
Until that moment, I hadn't realized there is an energy practice within Yoga. In the Yoga I practice the whole 'energy' part is not the main focus. You'll hear words like energy and prana, but they're not emphasized in practice. Very different from my other practice, Qi Gong, which literally means 'Energy Work'. In Qi Gong the very first practice is - you guessed it - working with your energy. Somehow I did realize it there.
In Yoga, it's a different story. The word Yoga means "union." Depending on the tradition, this union can mean uniting the self with the Higher Self, with Supreme Consciousness, or with the Divine. As I humbly understand it, the aim is to free us from the things that weigh us down and help us reconnect with our true nature.
To reach this union there are multiple steps. In most studios, you mainly practice asanas. At Studio 108, I fell in love with the Dharma talks - the philosophy behind the practice. Through them, I learned a lot about ways to live, ways to care for my mind, body and soul. It became clear to me that Yoga is a spiritual practice. And yes, the word prana was mentioned, but it never really landed. It was as if I didn't truly hear it.
This week, something shifted. I was reading in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika (Light on Yoga) and suddenly it clicked: Yoga is about energy too - it just takes a different route than Qi Gong. Instead of energy always being the central practice, it is part of preparing the body for union. All Yoga traditions recognize this energy in some form, but the Hatha Yoga Pradipika places prana at the center of practice. It begins with cleansing practices to purify the body, followed by asana and pranayama, mudras and bandhas. And eventually samadhi.
But wait. Pranayama. The word prana is in there. Is this where the "energy part" of Yoga begins? It's usually translated as "breath practice" or "breath control." But the literal translation of the Sanskrit suggests more: prana means life force, ayama means extension, expansion, regulation. Is breath practice really "prana practice"?
And then it hit me: I already practice pranayama! I love practicing Nadi Shodana. It makes me feel centered, calm, refreshed. I used to think it simply meant "Alternate Nostril Breath." Like Sitali Pranayama literally means "Cooling Breath. As it turns out; nadi means energy channel, and shodana means purification; I was purifying my energy channels and I didn't even know it! I did however proudly call it Nadi Shodana because - even though I didn't know what I was saying - I am a true Yoga nerd who feels cool using Sanskrit words.
Honestly, I feel a little dazed- maybe even foolish - to only discover this now. But the truth is: I wasn't aware. I couldn't feel the energy before. It is a subtle feeling and I wasn't paying attention. Maybe I wasn't ready. And in my experience, the path only unfolds when you are.
Now I am aware, I focus, I feel, I practice. I found prana. And with that, a new exploration begins.
Prana is the breath of life of all beings of the universe. It is energy, not only in the gross sense of the breath, but as the subtle life force that flows through the body and connects us to the cosmos - B.K.S. Iyengar
Esther is a writer, creator, and yogi from Amsterdam. She is a student and Karma Yogi at Studio 108 and does her best to be kind, gentle, and to laugh whenever she stumbles.
