By Yogi Ashwini

Asthma is characterized by dryness in lungs as a result of loss of sukra from the body. This hampers the normal supply of air, leading to respiratory disorders. The book, ‘Sanatan Kriya, the Ageless Dimension’ details the causes of loss of sukra from the body and provides techniques to prevent its loss and also for increasing its production in the body. In this article, we will be discussing certain techniques from the book, to tackle the specific condition called ‘asthma’.

For the lungs to function at their optimum level, one needs to optimize the expansion and contraction of abdomen by maximizing the movement of diaphragm. This reduces pressure on lungs while optimizing its efficiency. This might seem technical; however it is so simple that even a newborn baby knows the trick. All you need to do is get back to nature, to Sanatan Kriya.

Pranayam: Close your eyes and sit in with your back straight. While inhaling, expand the stomach [diaphragm is pushed downward] and on exhaling, contract it [diaphragm is pulled back up]. Keep your awareness on the breath. Produce a gentle hissing sound from the pit of the throat as you exhale. This is Ujjai Pranayam.

Breathing in ujjai, has the twin effect of first heating and then cooling the body. In the process, all the impurities are killed, and the entire body including the lungs gets revitalized. While optimizing the functioning of the lungs, the practice also acts as a purification process. This can be practiced while keeping the back straight, whenever the stomach is empty and one is in a clean environment.

Cleansing with Jal Neti (Nasal Cleansing): When the weather is changing, the environment is full of allergens and these allergens often contribute to problems like asthma and for an asthmatic, aggravate the problem. An effective technique to prevent allergens from entering the body is Jal Neti.

Take 500 ml of bearably warm water in a neti pot, add half tea-spoon black/rock salt and a pinch of turmeric. Stand evenly, bend slightly forward and tilt the head at an angle of 45 degrees towards the left. Insert the nozzle of the pot into the right nostril. While breathing from the mouth, tilt the pot so that the water flows into the right nostril and flows out of the left. Repeat on the other side. Breathe normally afterwards. Saline water is the best cleansing medium, which absorbs and scrapes away infectious pathogens accumulated in the nasal passage. Turmeric is a disinfectant, antiseptic and scouring agent.

This can be followed by putting warm pure ghee (made out of cow's milk) to a bearable temperature. Lie down flat on your back and let the head hang down, bending the neck backwards. Using a dropper or spoon, pour about 5 drops of ghee in each nostril in a way that it does not flow down towards the throat but back towards the head. Keep lying in this position for 5 minutes. Ghee lubricates the nasal passage and strengthens the mucous membranes against infections.

In the next article we will cover some asans as well as an ayurvedic cure for asthma.

Yogi Ashwini is the Guiding Light of Dhyan Foundation and an authority on the Vedic Sciences. His book, 'Sanatan Kriya, The Ageless Dimension' is an acclaimed thesis on anti-ageing. Log onto to www.dhyanfoundation.com for more