The Vagus Nerve and Breathing
Mary Taylor
Back in the early ’90s, Richard began giving Studio Talks at the Yoga Workshop on Sundays after the afternoon Mysore class. Often he would begin the talks by leading a chant and then as he explained the chant, the lecture would unfold from there. Chanting is a way not only to focus the mind on ideas presented in traditional texts and to offer devotion to powerful messages of the teachings, but it is also a remarkable way of dropping into the body. It’s a practice. When we chat the exhale is extended as in pranayama, but because we’re not calling it pranayama it can sometimes be a more easeful exhalation. Vibrations from the chant can be experienced throughout the body. This automatically calms the mind as we become absorbed in the sensations, sounds, or meaning of what we are chanting.
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