iRest – Breathing for Life

This course is designed for anyone wanting to deepen their knowledge and skills, and develop a personal, at-home practice of prāṇāyāma. This includes students and teachers of yoga and meditation and those who wish to share these principles and practices with their friends, students, or clients. And, health care professionals such as psychologists, social workers, other mental health professionals, and medical doctors who will find this course to be a complementary addition to their skillset.

You’ll explore the underlying philosophy, theory, structure, energetics, and in-depth practices of prāṇāyāma.

You’ll learn and experience:

• The anatomy, psycho-physiology, and neuroscience of respiration
• The foundations of prāṇāyāma for health, healing, yoga therapy, and meditation
• A safe and sustainable way to develop your own practice of prāṇāyāma that’s aligned with your personal intentions and physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing
• The underlying philosophy of prāṇāyāma
• A multitude of prāṇāyāma techniques that support health, wellbeing, healing, and awakening to your Essential Nature
• How to share these practices with others

You can expect:

• 12 monthly two-hour live online Zoom classes with Richard
• Each class to include a live lecture, guided prāṇāyāma practices and a Q&A session to help you build a successful and sustained personal practice 
• Self-paced, at-home learning
• An online support forum
• Recordings of each session to be available during the entirety of the course
•  A comprehensive manual, handouts, and suggested between session readings and home practices
• Approximately 24 hours of continuing education for various organizations

 Topics included in this course:

• Yogic philosophy of prāṇāyāma including the five vāyus (movements of energy) and the role of prāṇa and apāna (inhalation and exhalation)
• The energetics of prāṇāyāma (laṅghana and bṛmhaṇa theory)
• 5-element and 6-koshas (sheaths of identification) theory
• Relevant sūtras related to prāṇāyāma and its use in meditation and awakening
• Anatomy, psycho-physiology and the neuroscience of respiration
• Qualities of the breath and breathing inquiries
• Working with the breath in movement and āsana
• The four types of breath
• The seven vital breathing spaces
• The three breathing spaces and 3-part breathing
• The role of the glottis in prāṇāyāma 
• Hand and face pressure points related to the breath
• Preparatory cleansing practices of talabya (tongue and mouth), netī kriyā (use of salt water and string), and agnī sāra and naulī (abdominal toning)
• Coherence and Buteyko breathing regimens
• How to build and use sama vṛtti and visāma vṛtti ratios (equal and unequal ratios)
• The use of antara and bahya kumbhāka (retention and suspension of the breath)
• The use of bandhas (locks) in prāṇāyāma including mūla (perineal), uddiyāna (abdomen), jalandhāra (chin) and jiva bandha (palate)
• Prāṇāyāma practices, including anuloma, viloma, pratiloma ujjayi, mahat Kapālabhāti, nādi-shodhana, ardha sharīra, bhastrika, sūrya and chandra bhedana, brahmarī, mūrchā, and plavinī
• The use of breathing and healing mūdras (seals), including sharīra (physical), prana nādi (energetic), merūdanda (spinal), prāṇa kriya (cleansing), aswinī (sphincter), vajrolī (mouth), krāma (steps), bhairavi (meditation), kaka (tongue-mouth), and kecharī (tongue)
• The use of seed, vowel, and consonant sounds (nāda) that accompany and support the practice of prāṇāyāma
• The therapeutic use of the breath for working with different physical and mental issues asthma, emphysema, blood pressure, sleep, and depression.
• The use of breath in meditation for stabilizing, grounding, and directly pointing to Essential Nature
• Breath meditations from the ancient Nondual Śaiva text, the Vijñāna Bhairav