Breath and Thought
Relation between Breath and Thought The breath, or Prana, is intimately connected with thought and mental activity . 1 Sri Aurobindo notes that Pranayama , the practice of breath regulation, sets the Pranic currents free and removes dullness from the brain, allowing higher consciousness to descend. 2 His personal experience at Baroda demonstrated that practising Pranayama for several hours daily led to an illumined and powerful mind , significantly increasing poetic output and enhancing memory. 3 This indicates that the Pranic currents sustain mental activity, and changes induced by Pranayama alter the brain, removing obstructions that hinder higher thought communication. 4 Furthermore, the cessation of thought is observed to lead to the cessation of breath ; the entire kumbhak (breath retention) effortlessly establishes itself when thought ceases. 5 Conversely, when thought resum...