“Prana” means vital life force and it exists everywhere. “Ayama” means expansion or extension. One of the steps of Patanjali’s 8 Step Ashtanga Yoga is prayanama.
Pranayama is the formal practice of controlling the breath, which is the source of our prana, or vital life force. Done consciously, invites the person to a meditative state and has a great impact on the energy body. Prayanama is translated as the freeing of life energy from its chains. This means if we can manage to free the breath from the mental and physical chains, it becomes open and free. Breathing techniques are the fundamental way for our self-discovery. Discovering our natural breath is even sometimes a journey on its own. It is recommended the breath work be done early in the morning and on an empty stomach. There are techniques as Kapalabhati Breathing (the skull shining breath), Nadi shodanam and ujjayi pranayama.