Pranayama Types-Sheetali Pranayama And Surya Bhedan Pranayama

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Sheetali Pranayama and Surya Bhedan Pranayama have their own benefits. Read about the method and benefits of how to do them

Sheetali Pranayama
Sheetali Pranayama (also called Cooling Breath) has a calming and cooling effect upon the body and mind. It is especially useful in summer when several people experience restlessness due to heat.

Besides temperature regulation, this breathing technique reduces mental tension and emotional excitation.

How to do
First be seated comfortably in any of the meditative postures. Rest your hands on the knees with the fingers in the Gyana Mudra. Keep the eyes gently closed and relax the whole body. Now gently bring the tongue outside the mouth as far as possible without feeling any tension or strain. Roll up both the sides of the tongue, so that the tongue forms a tubular structure, like a straw. This is the base position.

From the base position, inhale from the mouth through the 'tubular' tongue. As the air flows over the moist tongue, it greatly reduces the temperature of the inhaled breath. The inhalation should be deep without strain on the lungs or diaphragm. After inhalation, draw back the tongue, close your mouth and exhale through the nose.

Benefits
Having covered Sheetali Pranayama and Surya Bhedan Pranayama, more Pranayama types to be dealt with in the following weeks.

Read more about: pranayama breathing