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viii
 
Introduction
 
Relation of Respiration with Age -Ordinarily a human
being breathes about 13 to 15 times per minute. Thus, in a
full day and night (24 hours) the total number of respirations
reaches to about 21,000. It is an entablished fact that lesser
is the number of respirations of an organism per minute, the
greater is his life-span. In other words, if we control and
minimize the number
er of our respirations, we can increase
 
our life-span.
 
Svara and its Rise :-Many people may not have noticed
this but it is a fact that the continuous act of Inspiration and
Expiration instead of being performed simultaneously through
both the nostrils, is performed with fixed periodic rhythms
through left and right nostrils alternately. That is, when the
period of one nostril is over the breathing automatically
passes on to the other nostril for almost the same period. This
act of breathing is called Svara, and passing of this act from
one nostril to the other is called Udaya or Rise of breath in
that nostril. This Svara+Udaya=Svarodaya, is thus Science
of Divination from the rise of breathing in one or the other
nostril.
 
Duration of Respiration in one Nostril:-After the rise of
breathing in any nostril it continues through it for 2 Ghatikās
(one hour). This means that breathing alternates from one
to the other nostril after every one hour in a rhythmic
 
manner.
 
Name of the Svaras -The left Nasal passage is called Ida
and the right the Pingala. The middle passage is called
Susumna. When the Svara is flowing through the left nostril
it is called Ida-svara; when it is flowing through the right
nostril it is called Pingala-svara. When however, the Svara
is flowing through both nostrils simultaneously or alternates
erratically in both nostrils, it is called Suşumna-svara.
 
The Ida is representative of Moon and the Pingala of Sun.
Therefore, the Iça-svara is called Moon-svara and the Pingala-
svara the Sun-svara.
 
In order to follow the subsequent descriptions these various
names of the three Svaras must be keept in mind.