Customer Reviews

Path of Fire and Light, Vol. 1: Advanced Practices of Yoga

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This is a truly unbelievable book on advanced yoga. The greatest section of the book is the description of advanced (very advanced !) pranayama. Swami Rama first gives a lengthy explanation of the preparation for pranayama & nadi shodhanam. Then, he instructs you on how to achieve amazing spiritual transformation through extreme breath-holding. In what is surely the most fascinating section, Swami Rama describes, in detail, what happens to the body & energy of a yogi as he holds his breath for 5, 10, 13 or more minutes. Using Swami Rama's wisdom I have already achieved kumbhaka's (breath-holds) of over 7 minutes! What an amazing feeling to feel your heart rate drop to 20 beats per minute after 5 minutes! And the state of consciousness that ensues is of course indescribable. I have one suggestion: Get this book! (Swami Rama's 'Science of Breath' is a great companion book).

This book is written by Swami Rama, a yogi who came to American in the late 70's. He let western doctors study him to advance the scientific understanding of yoga. He claimed to have been able to hold his breath for over an hour. He started a yoga facility in Pennsylvania, which still exists.

As for the book, it contains a wealth of information on various breathing practices -- practices you might hear referred to elsewhere but never explained. Often experts don't explain these things because they consider these practices too dangerous for beginners. But what eager beginner hasn't pushed limits? I suppose caution is in order.

In the year I practiced yoga, I also learned that within the yoga community, secrecy is like a currency, or a way to maintain power.

The Swami later published simpler books, because this book went over the heads of most people. And if you are just looking to get started with the breath, you could look on the internet for 2 to 3 key breathing exercises. No need to buy this book. The next volume in this series doesn't really go into the breath much, but the overall practice of yoga.

People can I please advise you to make sure you are first very well established in the first 2 levels of Yoga before you embark on any Pranayama (breath-control). First be steeped in Yama(abstinences - alcohol, drugs, sex, meat, etc) and Niyama(observances - love, kindness, non-harm, patience, etc) before moving on to asans(postures) and especially pranayama. Every swami will tell you that if you are not living a committed Spiritual life in every respect, then practicing the 4th level of Yoga - breathing exercises, especially the advanced ones, can potentially be harmful. You should really only practice techniques like this within the framework of a spiritual society and Guru-disciple relationship. Breathing techniques force prana up the subtle spine, thus awakening higher and higher chakra's. This process should occur naturally and gradually as part of a disciplined spiritual life - it should not be forced.

There is a whole mysterious world to be discovered through our breath. The breath marks the beginning, duration, and end of life. Our constant companion, it plays the most significant role in our lives. Yet, we know nothing about it.

The subject of this fascinating book is pranayama. Swami Rama writes:

"Prana means 'breath' and yama means 'pause'. Pranayama is the means of properly regulating the otherwise irregular and hurried respiratory process without using excessive force or restraint... Pranayama is one of the most important practices of yoga science."

Yama is popularly translated as control in other books, hence the translation "breath control."

Many factors affect the breath: the environment, weather, time of day, seasons, lifestyle, health, diet, and mind. Appropriate diet and eating habits are described for preparation of pranayama practices. Many familiar pranayamas are described: nadi shodhana, bhastrika, kapalbhati, surya bheda, sitali, and sitkari. The physiology of these practices gives an understanding at the physical level. There is an explanation of the bandhas and their importance. It is fascinating.

Amongst the numerous interesting points, one was that the effect of a minute of deep breathing can last for an hour! Breath can be used in many ways to regulate the body systems and metabolism, and help heal organs.

The effect of various types of retentions or kumbhaks can be challenging to comprehend. But these descriptions serve to pique our interest in svara yoga and are not meant to be practices we undertake on our own. For more manageable practices, readers should refer to Path of Fire and Light: Volume 2 and Science of Breath. This book does add a great deal to the background knowledge for those who are fascinated and curious to learn more about pranayama. Swami Rama was a deeply respected yogi and expert in pranayama.

Gurus do have some differences in the way they practice any technique. A different perspective can be helpful. There is some difference in the practice of bhastrika for instance as described by Swami Rama, Swami Satyananda, and Baba Ramdev. The suggestion here is to follow one method that works for you and then stick to it. Eventually, these variations are relatively minor.