Yoga evolved in ancient India more than 4000 years back. The word "Yoga" originates from the Sanskrit language and means, to join or integrate, or simply union. The meaning of Yoga is union of the body, mind and spirit with truth. Yoga encompasses the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of life.

In spite of all its greatness and goodness though, Yoga was never practised on a large scale in India in the sense that the common people were not in its ambit. It is only in the last decade or so that Yoga has spread among the masses, thanks to Yoga Gurus like Baba Ramdev and literally tens of millions of people in India and elsewhere are coming within its fold and benefitting from it in a very real sense. You just speak with anyone who practises yoga and they will quickly extoll an endless list of its benefits and sing its praise. Housewives, businessmen, sportspeople, teenagers and the aged are all practising a variety of yoga asanas (postures), dhyana (meditation) and pranayama (breathing exercises). For many, yoga becomes a way of life - often giving a more spiritual side to their lives.

The modern world scenario with its stressful life and cut-throat competition is providing a very fertile ground for the growth and spread of Yoga. Medical practitioners always questioned the efficacy of Yoga, but now it is being prescribed even by doctors for health ailments and illnesses, as a stress reliever and to complement other fitness programs. There are numerous documented cases of yoga relieving or curing serious illnesses such as Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, heart disease, and respiratory illnesses like asthma, diabetes, bloodpressure, etc.

The sphere of Yoga is very very big. However, for the common man practising Yoga, the problem is of shortage of time because of which he cannot go into all aspects of Yoga. So two aspects become very important for him for good health, physical fitness, flexibility and mental relaxation, viz namely asanas (physical exercise) and pranayama (breathing exercises). Here, I will concentrate on Pranayama.

As you all know, oxygen is the supreme necessity for our bodies and without it we cannot survive perhaps even for a couple of minutes. There is almost unlimited oxygen all around us. But we do not know how to get its benefits fully as we never utilize our full lung capacity. Consequently our body is sort of starved of oxygen. Pranayama is a technique to govern the breathing process. Breathing is normally an unconscious process. Through Pranayama, a person learns to consciously govern the breath to bring harmony into the body, mind and spirit. Regular breathing exercises tremendously increase the capacity to inhale and absorb live- giving oxygen. The capacity of the lungs even during unconscious breathing increases. There are four breathing exercises which are particularly helpful :

1)BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA : In this you repeatedly breathe in to the full capacity of your lungs and then breathe out completely. Should be done for minm. 2minutes ; maxm is 5 minutes
Helps heart, lungs, brain, nervous system, and in migraine, depression, paralysis, etc.

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