Sounding your breath

Better with sound on.

Scroll to proceed.

The Sanskrit word prāṇa points to the vital energy that moves through living things.

Breath is the most immediate way we meet this energy in the body. It's something we can feel, hear, follow, and practice with.

In yoga, everything starts here: with the breath.

We begin by paying attention. By noticing how breath affects our senses, our body, and our movement.

Through the practice of pranayama, we develop this awareness by consciously regulating our breath.

One way to practice this is to make our breath audible, using its sound to guide our attention and its flow.

This practice is called ujjayi pranayama.

To practice ujjayi, breathe through your nose and slightly constrict the muscles in your throat.¹

The sound that results is kind of like wind in trees, or breaking ocean waves.

For this reason, ujjayi is often called “ocean breath”.

When practicing ujjayi, we breathe slowly and audibly.

We hear our breath, and what we hear then helps shape the next breath.

Breath and sound form a feedback loop: each influences the other.²

To support this interplay of breathing and listening, we can also bring sounds into our space.

The soundscape playing here is one example. Try letting your breath follow its ebb and flow.³

Synchronising with an external rhythm in this way is called entrainment.

When practicing ujjayi, we usually breathe more slowly than usual. But how slow?

The soundscape you're listening to now rises and falls six times per minute. This is often a good place to start.⁴

But we are not clocks, and six breaths per minute is not a magic number.

Your ideal breathing rhythm may differ from the person next to you.

It may also change from moment to moment, depending on what you're doing, how you're feeling, and what your body needs.

Try adjusting the pace of the soundscape. What is the rhythm that resonates with your body right now?

Ujjayi can be practiced on its own. It is also central to Vinyasa yoga.

On the mat, our breath links our movements into a continuous flow.

We inhale with expanding motions, and exhale with contracting motions.

The breath is the very thing that initiates the movement.

It can guide our timing, too: we hold asanas for a number of breaths, letting the body set the pace.

When we practice yoga together, we share a space.

Each of us brings our own breathing rhythm to that space.

As students, we may be entrained by the teacher’s breath or their breath cues:

“inhale, upward facing dog, exhale, downward dog”

Our breathing may also be influenced by the sounds and movements of those around us.

Our rhythms respond to each other without becoming the same.⁵

What should we listen for when choosing sound and music to support the breath?

Sounds that swell and recede can give our breath something to follow.

We’ve been listening to ocean waves. Wind moving through trees can offer a similar sense of rising and falling.

Long, sustained tones, or drones, can also gently swell and recede.

Listen for the subtle changes in the sound here.

They may be almost imperceptible, but can still give our breath a gentle sense of timing.

Listen for tones or chords that slowly swell and fade. Waves you can surf for a moment before they dissolve.

A swell lasting around 10–15 seconds can give a breath room to unfold.

These waves don’t need to arrive at regular intervals. They don't all need to last the same amount of time. Their variation can leave room for different breathing rhythms.

Music with a steady beat can also support slow breathing.

Each breath spans several beats. Listen for the longer shapes that unfold across them. Where does the music gather, open, release, and settle?

When choosing music, breathe and move with it. Let your experience of the practice guide your choice.

Does the music support your breath, or work against it?

Does it leave room for different breathing rhythms, or keep pulling you into its own?

Chosen with this kind of attention, music can become part of the practice itself.