Prana - the Energy keeping us alive

Hi friends, 

Welcome to my Post No.4 on Acupressure in daily routine.  In the last 2 days I saw many people showing interest in reading my posts and requested me for regular posts on this subject. I express my sincere thanks to all of you for encouraging me to present my posts regularly.  

In my previous post, you have learnt about Chi / Prana - the driving Force of our body.  You have also learnt about the factors responsible for continuous utilization & formation of this Energy by our body. 

Here i would like to make the concept of Prana (the life force) more  clearer.  Everyone of us must of heard people using the word PANCH PRANA (पंच प्राण) while narrating any horrifying incidents happened in their lives.

Yogic philosophy says that the sheath (कोषा) of Prana  i.e. Pranamaya Kosha  (प्राणमय कोषा) is made up of Five main (major) pranas, collectively known as PANCH PRANA (पंच प्राण).  They are :

1.  Prana :

Prana is the force associated with respiratory organs, speech, gullet and the muscles & nerves which activate these organs.  This sheath i.e. Pranamaya Kosha (प्राणमय कोषा) takes care of the area between Larynx and the top of Diaphragm. Prana is the force by which the process of breath in (inhalation) takes place.

2.  Udana:

Udana takes care of the area of the body above the neck.  It activates sensory organs like eyes, nose, ears etc. One of the functions of Udana is to activate thought and consciousness.  This force also activates limbs (hands & legs) and their muscles, ligaments, nerves and joints and thus helps to maintain an erect posture of the body.

3.  samana;

This force is situated between heart and navel.  It activates and controls the digestive system i.e. liver, intestines, pancreas and stomach and also  their secretions (digestive enzymes). Samana force activates the heart and circulatory system and is also responsible for assimilation of nutrients.

4.  Apana:

Apana force  is situated below the navel area and provides energy to the large intestine, kidneys, anus and genitals. This force is concerned with expulsion of waste from the body.

5. Vyana:

Vyana relates to the whole body.  It regulates all movements of the body, co-ordinates with other Pranas and acts as a reservoir for them.  

in addition to the above Five major Pranas, there are five minor Pranas.  These are known as Upa Pranas.  

Five Upa Pranas:  These five Upa pranas manifest themselves in physiological functions.

	Upa Prana	Function
1.	Naga	Belching and hiccups
2.	Koorma	Opens the eyes and stimulates blinking.
3.	Krikara	Generates hunger, thirst, sneezing and coughing
4.	Devadatta	Induces sleep and yawing
5.	Dhananjaya	Lingers immediately after death and responsible for decomposition of the body.

Each of the above five Upa Pranas functions to compensate and regulate the effectiveness of the five major pranas.

Secret of health:
The secret of health and the state of well-being is to keep all our Pranas in harmony. Imbalance of one Prana tends to make other Pranas imbalanced as all these are linked together. 

i believe that the concept of prana is now clear to everyone and hope you all liked my post. Your opinions and suggestions are always welcome and the same may please be conveyed to me on: acutherapy15@gmail.com 

With this, I conclude the present post and will comeback very soon with my new post.. 
Thank you, 
G. Srinivas

Contd....Who drives our body?

Contd....  Who drives our body?

There are many systems of the body viz., Respiratory system, Cardiovascular system, Reproductive system, Excretory system, and Immune system etc.  I will take an example of Heart, which belongs to Cardiovascular system.  Everybody knows that Heart pumps blood.  A question comes into our mind that what makes the heart to pump? As per western medicine concept , it is the SA Node which generates impulses making the Heart to pump.  

Here I do not want to make you busy in learning Cardiovascular physiology or anatomy. But, still i feel it is pertinent to explain this theory.  So, i will explain this theory in short and sweet making this topic very easy and simple to be understood by any layperson.   

What is this SA Node? 

Heart has four chambers i.e. two upper chambers (Left & right) and two lower chambers (left & right).  The upper chamber is called atrium and the lower chamber is called ventricle.  Thus, the four chambers of the Heart are Left atrium, left ventricle, right atrium and right ventricle. 

The Electrical impulses in the Heart are controlled by groups of cells called Nodes.  SA Node or Sinoatrial Node is a group of specialized cells located in the wall of right atrium (the right upper chamber of the Heart), which initiates Heart Beat. In other words, SA Node sends out regular electrical impulses from the top chamber (the atrium) causing it to contract and pump blood into the bottom chamber (the ventricle). Thus SA Node performs function of a Natural Pacemaker.

I reiterate that I do not want to keep you engaged in knowing  Cardiovascular Physiology or Anatomy. But, If SA node makes the Heart to pump by generating impulses, then who make this SA Node to perform this act?  Again, the question is unanswered!!  To get answer to such series of questions, we need to understand the concept of Chi.

What is this Chi?

Chinese have developed the Acupuncture Science and shown miraculous results to the world.  As per Chinese philosophy, there is Energy present in our body and this energy flows throughout the body continuously. Chinese called this energy Chi.  Indian philosophers called this as Prana and Indian Yogis called this Prana Wayu.  The term Chi when applied to the Human body, is called Vital Energy. This Vital force keeps the person alive. As long as Chi / Prana or the Prana Wayu exists in the body, the heart beats, the brain works, the lungs breathe.  In short, all the organs in the body keep working.  Once the flow of this Energy ceases, it is Death!!  This Chi is an invisible force and responsible for all the activities of life.  

The Energy or Chi is continuously utilized by the body and also formed continuously by two main factors i.e.

1)  Internal factor - Digested & assimilated food products inside the body

2)  External factor - Oxygen and water taken from outside.

This flow of Energy in the body completes one circle in 24 hours.  

An obstruction or any kind of imbalance in the flow of this Energy is reflected in the form of discomfort to the body showing symptoms like pain, inflammation, cough, cold, fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or any other discomfort or diseased condition depending upon the various systems of the body. Hence, whenever a person falls sick, there is a need to therapeutically manipulate this Energy to re-bring the body and mind of the person to the state of harmonization.  If Pressure is used in the process of manipulation of this Energy, it is known as Acupressure.  If Needles are used to manipulate this disturbed Energy, it is known as Acupuncture. Thus, in the process of therapeutical manipulation of the disturbed Energy of the body, various factors like Pressure, Needles, Magnets, Seeds and Colors and widely used in the practise of this Acu science and depending on the type of tool used, this method of treatment is known with the names Acupressure, Acupuncture & Sujok etc.

Friends, i hope, you are enjoying my posts. I will take you further ahead in this journey knowing the Acupressure in my next post...

Thank you......