Ujjayi (Victorious Breath)

One of the basic yogic breaths and a slow, deep breathing one, some practitioners like to do Ujjayi during asanas. It is also an appropriate breathing for meditation practices described on this site. Ujjayi works to calm and bring clarity to the mind, and it brings peace to the entire system. Its sound can help one to focus on the breath. It can be thought of as a variation or extention of Abdominal breathing.

How to: Learning to do Ujjayi first involves understanding how to make its characteristic whispering or hissing sound which is done by constricting the back of the throat.

Preliminary practice: Breathing through your mouth, exhale imagining a mirror in front of you that you are trying to fog up. The back of your throat automatically constricts...Do you hear the sound? That is the sound of Ujjayi. Inhale and exhale several breaths through the mouth, trying to make the sound on both inhalation and exhalation. The sound may be reminiscent of listening to the ocean through a shell... Ujjayi is also sometimes referred to as Ocean breath for this reason.

Regular practice: Now close your mouth and breathe only through the nose, making that same sound. This is the full Ujjayi breath. At first, the sound on the exhalation may be much louder than on the inhalation, but keep practicing. With time, you will find the sound balancing out. Take long, slow, breaths, practicing Abdominal breathing as you do Ujjayi. Try inhaling and exhaling to a count of 6 each at first, then lengthen to 8, if comfortable. Also, if comfortable, include the practice of Kumbhaka.