If you’re super pranically evolved you noticed you have a sinus that separates and conjoins the left and right hemispheres of your brain.

If you’re not so super pranically evolved you haven’t noticed this. But you have noticed that you get dryness in your head this time of year. Maybe it starts with dry watery eyes. Or, you find yourself frequently extracting buggers from your nose.  Or maybe you already caught a head cold or sore throat.

I frequently chat with Dr. Mary Jo Cravatta who is a sinus lubing expert. I don’t say that lightly. She handcrafts nasal lubing oils. Currently I’m using her formula – “Healing Within”. She recommended it to me after a chakra reading. I’ve tried about 10 nasya oils. This is definitely the one for me.

In a short video we recorded for the Yogidetox she tells the story of her guru teaching her nasya. Her guru said, “ there is big nasya  and little nasya. Do Big Nasya twice a day. Do Little Nasya 10 times a day.”

Big Nasya, Little Nasya

To start with, oiling your nostrils is an old yogic trick to open the channels of prana. Prana enters primarily through the nostrils where it circulates in the sinuses and drops into the lungs. Your brains are under your sinuses. Regionality is as a big deal in the body with prana – as it is with sommeliers in france.

Let’s just say your subtle sinus channels are clogged – as they are for almost everyone. You won’t even know they are clogged until they are open. It’s like having a constipated person having a solid bowel movement. They think it’s all good… but it could really be so much better. So it is with yogis and their sinuses.

The nasya oil opens the subtle sinus channels. More oxygen gets into your brain.Your mind becomes clear. Your thoughts clarify to weed out the gems from the garbage.

More oxygen gets into your body. You absorb more prana with every breath – fueling your limbs during intense exercise- increasing your exergetic capacity.

Witch on a Mountain Bike Nasal Breathing

The most oxygen demanding practice I have happens on a mountain bike pedaling up a mountain at altitude. Asking a pro biker how they breathe, I heard about the flared nostril, flared mouth technique.

When you want more breathe  in your lungs during hard exercise try flaring your nostrils while you breathe. Open the three pipes into your lungs – your two nostrils and your mouth. Widen your mouth for the full effect.

Exhale completely.

If we don’t get the exhale out – we can’t get as much inhale in. You’ll feel the muscles wake up around the lower lobes of your lungs. Squeeze air out. You’ll feel more breathe go deeper in on the inhale. You’ll also notice you’re actively expanding and contracting your rib cage. This will occupy your full attention. It looks exactly the opposite of passive relaxed breathing.

When I ride i find there are 4 choices for my focus. My choices are:

• Lungs/nostrils
• Legs
• Trail/gaze
• Thoughts

The times I’ve crashed my bike my focus was on my thoughts. The other 3 have a clean track record. On downhills I focus on my line – on the trail. In the day – that is like focusing on both big picture and what is next at the same time. On uphills that are easy enough – i focus on legs. On uphills that are hard – it’s all about lungs/nostrils. The same is true in life. When you have something hard that needs endurance – find your legs. And when the going gets tough – the tough get serious about cycling massive amounts of prana in a calm, methodical manner.

And thanks for the feedback!
I’ve received a number of emails lately that these stories and teachings resonate. I’m glad to hear it.