What Is Pranayama? Breath And Sound Meditation Explained
Pranayama: the short answer
Pranayama is an ancient practice of sound and breath meditation. Prana means energy. Pranayama means the extension, expansion, regulation, restraint, control and prolongation of the breath. You lie or sit, supported, and you work with the breath deliberately rather than letting it run itself.
- It is breath meditation, not breathing exercises. The aim is a quiet, clear mind, and the breath is how you get there.
- You start lying down. Supported Savasana over blankets, with the chest opened. Seated pranayama comes later, when the spine is stronger and the mind quieter.
- The basic process is simple. Deep inhale. Deep exhale. Retention only when you are ready, and often never.
- Four techniques to start with. Ujjayi 1 to 4 (Ocean Breath), Viloma 1 to 3 (Staircase Breath), Bhramari (Bumble Bee Breath), and later Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breath).
- Different techniques switch on different parts of the nervous system. That is why they are taught in a sequence rather than at random.
- Alpha and theta brain waves increase. Those are the states of calm, creativity, flow and focus.
- Slow and steady is best. Aim for a 30 to 40 minute practice several times a week.
- Best times are sunrise and sunset. Wait 3 to 4 hours after eating.
This page is drawn from a presentation by Chris Lalor of Flametree Yoga Studio, given at the Bali retreat.
What does pranayama mean?
Prana is energy. In the Indian tradition it is energy that carries awareness with it, which is a bigger idea than simply the breath or the oxygen in it.
Ayama covers extension, expansion, regulation, restraint, control and prolongation. So pranayama is not one technique. It is a whole family of ways of working with the breath, each doing something different.
The ancient Chinese energy practices went in a different direction with the same raw material. They focused mainly on everyday health. The Indian tradition went towards exploring prana in order to alter consciousness.
Pranayama and the modern “breathwork” boom
In recent years breath meditation has surged in popularity under the name breathwork, helped considerably by James Nestor’s research.
Nestor showed the importance of nose breathing in the most direct way available. He blocked his own nose with silicon for 10 days and measured what happened.
Over those 10 days his snoring increased by 4,820%. He developed obstructive sleep apnea at dangerous levels. He lost 40% more water from his body. He had insomnia, mood disorders and sinus headaches.
That is one man, and it is not a clinical trial. But it makes the point that the nose is not an optional route for air. In pranayama you breathe through the nose, and that instruction is not decoration.
How breathing actually works
Understanding the mechanics changes what you do in the pose, so it is worth a minute.
Inhalation. The diaphragm descends. That descent creates a vacuum in the chest, and air is pulled in to fill it. You do not push air in. You make space for it.
Exhalation. The diaphragm simply relaxes back up. In ordinary breathing the out breath costs no effort at all.
The nostrils are not identical. The right passage is heating and stimulating. The left cools and soothes the nervous system. When the two work evenly together, energy flows up the spine and the brain becomes clear and calm. That is the whole basis of alternate nostril breathing.
Energy comes from the abdomen, the body’s energy factory, and pranayama is how you draw on it deliberately.
How to set up for pranayama
Start lying down in supported Savasana. The blankets are arranged to extend and expand the chest, which is to say to open it, rather than to prop you up comfortably.
Add a shoulder stand pad or a second blanket under the head. The head needs to be slightly higher than the chest so the throat stays soft and the brain stays quiet.
When the spine is stronger and the mind is quieter, move to seated pranayama. You can use a chair for this. There is no virtue in sitting on the floor if the back is collapsing.
The basic process, once you are set up: deep inhale, deep exhale, and add retention only when you are ready for it.
The pranayama techniques, in order
Ujjayi, the Ocean Breath
Four stages, learned one at a time.
- Ujjayi 1. Conscious observation of the normal breath. Nothing is changed.
- Ujjayi 2. Deep exhalation, normal inhalation.
- Ujjayi 3. Deep inhalation, normal exhalation.
- Ujjayi 4. Deep inhalation and deep exhalation, with a normal breath in between.
Viloma, the Staircase Breath
- Viloma 1. Interrupted inhalation, then a deep uninterrupted exhalation.
- Viloma 2. Deep inhalation, followed by interrupted exhalation.
- Viloma 3. A combination of 1 and 2.
Bhramari, the Bumble Bee Breath
Normal inhalation, followed by a deep humming exhalation. The sound is the point. It is the simplest of the techniques to feel working, and it is often the one people take home first.
Nadi Shodhana, Alternate Nostril Breathing
This comes later, with the hand in San Mukhi Mudra. When the right and left nostrils work evenly together, energy flows up the spine, and the brain becomes clear and calm.
What pranayama does to your brain waves
Through pranayama, alpha and theta brain waves increase.
Alpha waves, at roughly 8 to 13 Hz, are associated with creativity, flow state and focus. Theta waves sit below them and are associated with deep relaxation, the state on the edge of sleep, and memory.
Most of us spend the day dominated by beta waves. Some beta is necessary for alert thinking. Too much of it, relatively speaking, produces active anxiety, then extreme anxiety and panic, and eventually a kind of loss of sense of self.
What pranayama does is alter the mix. You are not switching one thing off. You are changing the balance, and the balance is what you feel as your state of mind.
The benefits of pranayama
Pranayama creates a meditative state, and the benefits that come with meditation follow: reduced stress, better control of anxiety, improved emotional health, more self-awareness, a longer attention span, help with addictions, reduced age related memory loss, better sleep, help with pain control and lower blood pressure.
The mental benefits tend to arrive first and the physical ones follow. Both are worth having. Strengthening the lungs to deal with your own life force is how Chris puts it, and that is a fair description of what the practice is for.
Common questions about pranayama
When is the best time to practise pranayama?
Sunrise and sunset. Both are naturally quiet, and the body is between things rather than in the middle of them.
How long should you wait after eating before pranayama?
Three to four hours. A full stomach presses up into the diaphragm and the breath has nowhere to go.
How long after your asana practice before doing pranayama?
After restorative asana, immediately. The body is already quiet.
After anything more active, wait about half an hour. The nervous system needs time to settle before it can do this kind of work.
Why apply a chin lock, or Jalandhara Bandha?
To hold the heat and the energy in the chest, with less impact on the brain. Without it, a strong practice can leave the head feeling pressurised.
Which pranayama is best to do at night?
Ujjayi 1 and 2 (Ocean Breath), Viloma 2 (Staircase Breath), Bhramari (Bumble Bee Breath), and Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breath).
All four are settling rather than energising.
Which pranayamas should you avoid before bed?
Ujjayi 4 and Viloma 1, because both are energising. Do them in the morning and you will be glad of them. Do them at 9pm and you will be awake at midnight.
How much pranayama should you do?
Preferably a 30 to 40 minute practice, several times a week. Slow and steady is better than long and occasional.
How many types of pranayama are there?
Many, and the classical texts list dozens. In practice you only need four to get the whole effect, which is why Flametree teaches Ujjayi, Viloma, Bhramari and Nadi Shodhana and builds patiently on those.
Is pranayama the same as breathwork?
Not quite. Pranayama is the traditional practice: slow, supported, done lying or sitting, learned in stages with a teacher.
The modern styles that trade under the name breathwork, such as Wim Hof, holotropic and 9D, are fast and forceful and carry different risks. Flametree does not teach them. If you want the honest version of that comparison, see Is Pranayama Safe?
Is pranayama safe for beginners?
The observation stages are safe for almost anybody. The retention work is where care is needed, and it is left until much later, or left out entirely.
Tell your teacher if you have high blood pressure, glaucoma, epilepsy, a heart condition, or are pregnant.
Do I need to be able to sit on the floor?
No. You start lying down, and when you do move to sitting, a chair is perfectly acceptable.
Where can I learn pranayama in Darwin?
Flametree runs breath and meditation classes alongside yoga at Woolner (near Parap), Coolalinga, Casuarina, Palmerston and the CBD, and online. See the class times and book here.
Download the full pranayama presentation
This page is drawn from Chris Lalor’s pranayama presentation, given at the Flametree Bali retreat in July 2026. The complete 60 slide deck is available as a PDF.
Download the pranayama presentation (PDF)
What people notice
“You will feel more grounded, focussed and energised.” Nico
“It’s given me relief from stiffness and aches. Plus, aligning my movement with breath. It’s extraordinary how effective and enormously helpful quiet measured breathing can be.” Lynden
“Each day I feel the level of calm intensify. I have a more rested sleep after pranayama.” Jo
“A large and sustained increase in energy and clarity. It lasts through the day, and beyond. I was also calmer, and less grumpy.” Stuart
