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6 years* … of Daily Broadcasts

Pranayama reinvented.

*March 18, 2020 online broadcasts

The traditional way we were taught “Alternate Nostril Breath”

was full of poor choices.

by Tom Gillette

Left Right Breathing is about re-learning to breathe through the nose only.

Re-learn? All human babies, from birth to the third or fourth month, are nose breathers.

One thing we’ve discovered over the years: sitting cross-legged and holding one arm in the air is not essential. When you free the body, a wide range of postures becomes available and interesting, and with that, a wider range of insights and many new discoveries. We don’t control the breath; we let metabolism be in charge. We follow the breath, not an intellectual concept about manipulating breath ratios in an utilitarian way.

The short description of how this works, is that we stimulate the left and right olfactory nerves in a rhythmic way. We direct awareness into the body, following the sensations, the subjective “sparkling sensations” of the breath left and right. What are these sparkling sensations of light in the body? Good question! People all over the world experience them. What is going on here? It is not just a body phenomena or a mental phenomena, but the intersection of mind and body. The breath is the tip of consciousness and we go explore through the field of the body and mind.

Left and right breath stimulates the two hemispheres of the brain, back and forth. The breath slows… naturally, without a lot of fuss. Just go back and forth every morning for a long time. Be happy, Be grateful. The practice is cumulative. The more you practice the stronger the effects become. With this form of slow nasal breathing, you can play and have fun during your morning practice. It is okay to follow your instincts and your insights. Add a little sounding breath (ujjayi.) Try ujjayi on the exhales only. It slows the breath more. Try a little humming as you focus into meditation points. Tap your sinuses, temples, top of the head. Everyday is an experiment. We have been showing up enthusiastically doing these and many other experiments for many years now, and enough time has passed that my body is the living proof of what this practice does for a person.

There is an abundance of research and meta analyses on slow breathing and vagal tone. As we follow this simple non-doing method, it initates the release of Nitric Oxide from the paranasal sinuses, relaxing blood vessels, increasing blood flow. The long exhales increase vagal tone. Blood pressure begins to regulate. Anxiety softens. The chemistry of the body shifts, not just for a few minutes or an hour, but eventually all day long. The physical, mental, and emotional balancing effects are accumulative. The practice heals in an adaptogenic way.

We don’t box the breath or use ratios. If you like them go ahead, but they are not necessary. Controlling the breath is a short term practice. Not the long practice.

This breathing practice is not about getting you high, or having the ultimate breath trip. This is not a hyperventilation breathwork workshop. There is no fast open mouth breathing here, stressing out the body with the dangers of hyperventilation and hypoxia. There are no long, willful breath holds. It is not about the ego clenching the breath. Clenching and controlling the breath is pretty much the definition of anxiety. This daily practice is different from those flashy peak experience breathing workshops.

We are not chasing highs, but rather feeling balanced and relaxed, all through the day, everyday… even if the world is falling apart. This is where the gold is found.

It is not about breathing more, breathing faster, but breathing with greater efficiency, stability and presence. Over time, morning practice by morning practice, it adds up into something profound and simple. Eventually, over years, a person’s character changes. People report becoming more adaptable and flexible, working creatively rather than reacting to the stressors of life. We start living a more harmonious life, breath by breath.

This is the “long - slow” approach. This is about neuroplasticity, neurogenesis and rewiring the nervous system. There is research that breathing left and right creates new grey matter and greater left right connectivity. This connectivity becomes obvious to those who practice. This value of this practice will remain in doubt, to those who have not yet practiced enough.

Ultimately breathing is a lifestyle. Gratefully follow the breath and rewire the thoughts. Put loving thoughts in front of the screen of the mind over and over and over, and the habit character of the mind shifts in a life affirming direction.

In many ways, this style is easier than mindfulness. We are not just “watching” the breath. We are touching it. The fingers feel it. The delicate tactile touch feeds back what is happening. Continuity of awareness begins to emerge, or what people sometimes call, being “in the zone.”

The breath introduces us to something deeper: the Witness. The part of us that observes our personality, observes our thinking mind as it thinks. The quiet presence behind the constant swirl of thoughts that usually captures our attention. If you follow the breath to the end of the exhale, or the end of the inhale, the swirl of thoughts may become still, for a moment. And in that moment, clarity emerges. Be still and know thyself. It is not hard when you follow the breath rather than controlling the breath.

When the body is well-supported, this practice can be done for much longer and comfortably, enjoyably. The first threshold of dosage, a good goal to set when you start, is around 24 minutes every morning ( a unit of time in yoga.) 10 or 15 minutes is not enough dosage. With the elbows supported and the body at ease, the practice stops feeling like effort and starts feeling like exploration. But you might need help to get going. That’s where we come in.

Learning Left Right Breath is not so different from learning to play an instrument. Piano, guitar, golf, tennis. It all comes down to loving your practice. The love has to be there in some way. Practicing all the time and making small incremental steps each day. Love your practice, whatever you practice, over the long haul. The real value is not intensity, but consistency, and long term habit formation.

Language matters.

We don’t say “hold the breath” or “control the breath.” These tend to be judgmental phrases. A controlling mindset is tense, and not much fun.
Instead, we might say: float the breath. Listen to the breath. Follow the breath. Relax with each breath.

The phrase “Alternate Nostril Breath” misses the point. The nostrils are like the steering wheel on a car. The idea of the activity is for all the parts of the car to come together and drive the car from one destination to another. The purpose of the practice is not just to turn the steering wheel. Yes, we focus on the tip of the nose frequently, but many think the purpose has something to do with the nostrils. The practice is about awareness, balance, and the inner subjective experience of left and right, body and mind.

We’ve also let go of most Sanskrit labeling when necessary, keeping only essential polyvalent terms, words that don’t have equivalents in English. Not out of disrespect, but to avoid confusion, debate, and secondhand ideas. The emphasis here is simple: practice. We have a bias towards action, not talk. To paraphrase TKV Desikachar: Yoga is just a bunch of words, with out practice.

We get the Breathing and gratitude ritual going every morning. And then, gradually, many years later, throughout the day.

You begin to notice, which side is dominant right now? When the left nostril is dominant, what state of mind comes with it? What are the thoughts and emotions that arise on the left side? What happens when the dominance shifts to the right side? What happens left and right sides go into balance? We watch and notice. It is a long worthwhile process. It takes time.

Left Right Breathing may be one of yoga’s most undervalued practices. In recent times, most yoga teachers have been told to only practice 10 or 15 minutes, a couple of days a week, here and there. Which is a shame.

You can begin now, this next breath or any time. If you had a Left right breathing practice going for a while, and then lost it, begin again. There is never any guilt or shame. It is cumulative. “You have to go there to know there.”

We show up every day. There is a group of us that have explored daily 24 minutes, 48 minutes and more, for years. We’ve been experimenting with Left Right breath every hour, since December 2024. Huh? No kidding? A small group, consistently practicing, discovering, refining.

You’re welcome to join us in what may be yoga’s most direct form of mindfulness.

Our aim is simple: build a life where the breath’s presence is not occasional, but continuous.

New Paradigm:

Stand up and support both elbows.

You can easily practice 24 minutes… 48 minutes… longer is easy…. We practice everyday.

What happens when an ordinary person sustains the alternation of the sinuses for months, years?

(Okay to sit in a chair and support the elbows. We do this as well.) The results speak for themselves: Amazing cardiovascular results, calm steady mind, great reduction of anxiety, improved attention, focus, and memory. When there is sustained left versus right mindfulness, there is a physiological, neuronal integration. Breath will spur your creativity, intellect, peacefulness, contentedness, one pointed-ness, gratitude, joy and love for life, and is just the beginning. “The First Rule: Love your practice.” If you don’t love your morning practice, whatever it is, you won‘t practice long enough for it to matter. The question becomes, “What breath practice can you realistically do long term?” This is something you should try for a few months, then decide. Significant advanced practice becomes accessible.

New paradigm: At sunrise, stand in the honorable Mountain Pose, facing the east, with elbows supported. Ordinary people like you and me, can go very far, without pain and unnecessary suffering, into the most important pranayama gift of the yogis. In sync with the breath, when inhaling left, we focus on the left. When inhaling right, we focus on the right, following the alternating the stimulation of the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

Hands in Hakini Mudra and/or Prayer mudra are the preferred hand positions to start experimenting with. Thumbs barely touch the nose. We avoid irritating the nasal mucosa with nose squashing, wagging or poor finger placement. Another benefit to standing up is the ability to breathe with the whole body. Attention and blood flow are enhanced. Stand up and discover a whole new pain free world of Left Right Breath.

When opera singers sing, they stand up.

Once you get the morning practice going…. then Every Hour practice? You might react: “Are you kidding me? I don’t have the time. That’s too difficult, boring, repetitious, sounds awful.” Let’s look at the truth of the situation: Every hour practice is an astounding practice, returning to the awareness of left right breath all through the day. Frequency of habit is the ruler of our future.

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