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Swara Yoga, the Tantric science of brain breathing

One branch of yoga about which little has been revealed today is Swara Yoga. The word ‘swa’ means one’s own self, while ‘swara’ means the breath and pertains to the sound of the breath. Therefore, swara yoga is the science of one’s own breath.
Many philosophers, and scientists agree that in the act of breathing, cosmic energies are drawn into the body. Your breath is the intermediate link between you and the universe, between the gross and subtle realms of existence. Tantra explains that whatever exists in the macrocosm exists in the microcosm. Your body is a replica of the cosmic body, the breath being the mediator of the two.
The Swara Yoga Shastra treatises explain that by analysing and manipulating your breath you can ultimately attain transcendental consciousness. Before this can occur, there is a particular sadhana practise that has to be perfected and which deals with the fundamental functions of the breath. The science of swara explains the significance of the energy pulsing through the body and how to directly utilise, control and equalise the force through the medium of the breath. When control is established and every aspect of your being works in perfect harmony, a greater power within you can manifest.

Philosophical significance of the breath
The Tantra Shastras and Vedic Upanishads state that the subtle vital energy called prāṇa and the mental energy of consciousness chitta are absorbed into the body by means of inspiration. The breath is also referred to as the vehicle of the cosmic energy known as Shiva or Brahman according to the Taittitya, Brahmana and Maitri Upanishads. The Prashnopanishad (Ch. 3) states that, “Prana springs from the Atman, Universal Intelligence or Consciousness, and is as inseparable from the individual self as a shadow is from he who casts the shadow.” The breath itself, being imparted by the Universal Self, thereby contains Universal Energy.

In the Swara Shastras it is written that when you analyse your breath and understand its significance, a deeper knowledge of your yourself in relation to your environment unfolds. These shastras declare that the science of swara was first imparted by Shiva to his consort Parvati, saying that in all the seven realms of existence he knows ‘no greater wisdom or treasure than swara.’

Accordingly, it is said that the breath, carrying both prāṇa (vital energy) and chitta (consciousness) vibrates from the force of these energies and sound is thereby produced. The Yoga Chudamani Upanishad (v. 31-33) explains that, “The breath goes out making the sound ‘Hum’ and comes in producing the sound of ‘So’. The jiva individual is therefore repeating the mantra ‘Humso’ continually 21,000 times, 24hours a day. This is called ajapa japa.” If you listen carefully to your breath while practising ujjayi prāṇāyāma
breathing, in which the glottis is lightly constricted, you will hear the physical sound of your breath. This is a meditation in itself and with constant practise you will hear the subtle mantric sound. Further, the Upanishads declare that constant awareness of this japa can free you from behavioural patterns that are not serving you.

Prāṇa– subtle light and energy
All the ancient yoga texts refer to the subtle and vital life-giving force called prāṇa, which is described as being similar in nature to lightning. Solely due to prāṇa, the whole universe exists and without its presence no creature can live. Although prāṇa exists in the air and in all forms of matter, it is neither of the two. Nor is prāṇa the breath, thuough the breath contains prāṇa, and is part of the swara.
Prāṇa maintains all organic life. Just as a battery stores electrical energy, so it is essential for every organism to store prāṇa in order to enable activity and mobility. By practising swara yoga, the store of prāṇa can be increased, thereby activating the latent areas of the brain. Swara yoga directly controls the input and output of prana, enabling us to regulate our whole physiological system.

During the last half of this century, many renowned scientists have been delving into the nature of this prāṇic phenomenon, and it seems that they have finally come up with a feasible explanation. Our atmosphere is charged with electromagnetic ions from which all organisms absorb vital energy essential for preservation. The functioning of these ions has been observed to correlate with the ancient yogic concept of prāṇa.

Electromagnetic fields and ions
It appears that the equivalent of prāṇic transmission can be found in the electromagnetic field emanating throughout the body as a type of bio-energy or bio-electricity. In the 18th century, Luigi Galvani observed the existence of energy fields when he wired up a frog’s leg to two conducting rods, and witnessed the energy that pulsated between them. Discovery of Kirlian photography has enabled scientists to actually see the corona of these fields.
You are well aware of electric currents flowing through wire cables that has been artificially harnessed. Within your energy body the same principles of negatively charged and positively charged apply. Primarily, energy is inherent in the atmosphere. The rishi seers of ancient India were well aware of the principles of environmental energy fields.
The advent of outer space exploration brought science’s attention to electromagnetic fields in the atmosphere which are conducted by the earth. These fields consist of positively and negatively charged fragments of ion molecules, upon which life is dependent for producing energy. A negative ion has the charge of one electron, and a positive ion the charge of one proton. Of the two, negative ions are the most active electrically.
Negative ions are produced by solar radiations in the upper layers of the atmosphere and are attracted towards the earth by positive ions. During their descent they become trapped by oxygen or nitrogen particles and thereby unite with them. As you breathe, your cells are automatically energised by the electrical charges of these ions in the air.
Imagine the earth as an enormous magnet, generating electromagnetic fields from its opposite poles. The northern and eastern hemispheres are positively charged while the southern and western hemispheres are negatively charged. These fields both attract and repulse ions, causing a current of movement around the terrestrial plane. These fields also vibrate through your physical body, creating a flow of energy from one organ to the other.

Positive and negative poles
Your body also assumes electromagnetic properties and can be divided into opposite poles. According to yogic texts, the upper part of the body corresponds to the positive, northern pole and the lower part to the negative, southern pole. The right side and back portions are also positive poles and the left and frontal portions are negative poles.
These positive and negative charges of energy are the basis of swara yoga. The ancient rishi seers called the negative channel iḍa nāḍī and the positive channel piṅgala nāḍī. Just as electrical power is at our disposal by connecting a switch to the main power line, so the rishis knew how to connect the switches and circuits of energy in the body. They understood that the flow of energy, whether internal or external, is constantly being circulated from the more highly charged to the lesser charged centres in order to create a balance between the positive and negative poles. Swara yoga teaches you to manipulate the flow of breath through the nostrils, thereby controlling the energy switches in your body that regulate the flow of the positive and negative currents. It is by balancing these two poles of energy that you awaken unexplored areas of your brain responsible for your ingenuity, higher knowledge and self-reflection and higher knowledge.