Bee Breath (Brahmari) Practice

One of my favorite practices for initiating my own meditation practice is Bee Breath, but it has many applications for achieving and sustaining a balanced emotional and mental state. Try this practice, if you or your students and clients suffer from anxiety, ADHD, or OCD. You will find it will cut through the tangle of distracting thoughts. You will feel calm and at ease and be able to focus.

This breathing practice slows down the exhalation and has a calming effect on the entire nervous system. In India, it is often recommended for women in labor.

  • Sit in a comfortable position with the spine erect.
  • Inhale through the nostrils, drawing the root of the tongue to the back of the throat.
  • Slightly tilt the chin and keep the lips sealed.
  • On the exhale you will be drawing the back of your tongue to the back of your throat, as though dislodging a popcorn kernel.
  • Exhale slowly through the nostrils, making a deep buzzing sound in your throat like a bee. Because the lips are closed, you will not hear the “ZZZ” sound. Instead, you will hear a “swarm” of bees in your throat.
  • Start with three rounds on the exhale only.
  • Practice this breath no more than 10 times.

This is a wonderful practice to interrupt the negative spiral of thoughts that sometimes accompanies depression and anxiety. It also interrupts the intrusive thoughts associated with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

Teaching Bee Breath
When instructing a client or student that is new to bee breath, use the following script:

  • Sit in a comfortable position with the spine erect
  • Make the sound of the bee
  • Continue making the sound of a bee but close the lips
  • Now tuck the chin lightly and begin to feel the vibration in the throat
  • Now, draw the back of the tongue to the back of the throat as though you were attempting to get a popcorn kernel husk from the throat

Mudras for the Practice of Bee Breath
You may also use Shanmukhi mudra or a modification to enhance the withdrawal of the senses (pratyahara.)

SONY DSCShanmukhi mudra (womb mudra)
Index fingers point to the brow point;
Middle fingers cover the eyelids;
Ring fingers are at the edge of the nostrils, not touching the nostrils;
Little fingers are placed at the edge of the lips,
Thumbs press the outer cartilage near cheekbone into the ear canals.
If your client/student dislikes shanmukhi mudra or suffers from sound sensitivity use one of the following alternatives.

 

helmetmudraHelmet mudra
This is an alternative mudra that may feel soothing and is appropriate for those few for whom Shanmuki mudra triggers claustrophobia.

  • Bring the hands to the top of the head
  • Index fingers meet at the hairline
  • The rest of the fingers spread along the scalp, touching or reaching toward each other
  • Thumbs press the outer cartilage into the ear canals

 

cd-meditation-coverYou can practice Bee Breath with me on the LifeForce Yoga Chakra Clearing Meditation or at one of the many LifeForce Yoga Events.  To find a LifeForce Yoga Practitioner in your area to learn and practice Bee Breath and many other mood management tools from the yoga tradition please click here.

About the Author

Amy Weintraub

Amy Weintraub E-RYT 500, MFA, YACEP, C-IAYT, founded the LifeForce Yoga® Healing Institute, which trains yoga and health professionals internationally, and is the author of Yoga for Depression and Yoga Skills for Therapists. The LifeForce Yoga protocol is used by health care providers worldwide. She is involved in ongoing research on the effects of yoga on mood.

Leave a comment.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sign up for our Research Newsletter

Cart

What People Say

“I gained perspective of who I am in the world and this will change my life significantly.” — Mary Ford, artist, Southport, CT
“This program changed my life in a significant way. It helped me connect with the spirit which is something you can’t get from psychotherapy and medication.” – G. W., artist, Pittsburgh, PA
“I have found the LFYP training to be incredibly useful in giving people specific tools to use in maintaining physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual balance, and further opening their intuitive abilities.” — Nancy Windheart, RYT-200, LFYP, Reiki Master, Animal communication teacher, Prescott, AZ
“I utilize the LFY techniques in both a class room setting and one-on-one environment. The skills have infused my teachings with compassion, mindfulness, and awareness.” — Kat Larsen, CYT, LFYP
“This workshop has changed so much — my self-image and my life. My own heart’s desire is 100% clear. I gained tools to help myself and others to live life fully.” — Marcia Siegel, Yoga teacher, therapist, Carlsbad, CA.
“Giving my clients a strategy and permission to quiet their minds and rebalance the sympathetic nervous system has been very beneficial to them and in our work together.” — Sue Dilsworth, PhD, RYT 200, LFYP, Allendale, MI
“I gained tools for working with my own depression and with my clients’ depressions.” — Robert Sgona, LCSW, RYT, psychotherapist, Yoga teacher, Camden, ME.
“I integrate strategies like mantra tones and pranayama, but above all I invite myself and those I teach to cultivate svadhyaya, to practice self-observation without judgment.” — Barbara Sherman, RYT 200, LFYP, Tucson, AZ
“I learned lots of ways to reduce the anxiety and depression of my patients and myself.” – Aviva Sinvany-Nubel, PhD, APN, CNSC, RN, psychotherapist, Bridgewater, N.J.
“This workshop helped me rededicate my energies and begin to work through some of the blocks I’ve felt creatively.” — Steve Mark, college professor, New Haven, CT
“I have found the pranayama (breathing practices) especially easy to introduce in a clinical setting. Some people have benefited quickly in unexpected and transformative ways.” — Liz Brenner, LICSW, LFYP, Watertown, MA
“A client who returned said, "When I came before, you helped me understand and get where I wanted to go. Now you show me yoga practices I use to help myself understand and get where I want to go.” — Sherry Rubin, LCSW, BCD, LFYP, Downingtown, PA
“My life is already changed! I will use the tools I learned in my own practice and in my work. I feel safe and seen.” — Susan Andrea Weiner, MA, teacher/expressive arts facilitator, El Cerrito, CA.
“My personal practice will change, as well as my yoga classes. I have a better understanding of yoga!” — Andrea Gattuso, RYT, Yoga Teacher, Hackettstown, N.J.
“My patients can now have the same effects as many medications without having to actually take medication!” — Deborah Lubetkin, PSY.D, LFYP, West Caldwell, NJ
“Yoga Skills for Therapists is the ideal resource for those who want to bring yoga practices into psychotherapy or healthcare. Weintraub, a leader in the field of yoga therapy, offers evidence-based, easy-to-introduce strategies for managing anxiety, improving mood, and relieving suffering. Helpful clinical insights and case examples emphasize safety, trust, and skillful adaptation to the individual, making it easy to apply the wisdom of yoga effectively in the therapeutic context.” — Kelly McGonigal, PhD, author, Yoga for Pain Relief, Editor-in-Chief, International Journal of Yoga Therapy
“I came hoping to learn to move past some of the obstacles blocking my creativity. Over the course of this weekend, I feel I’ve gained a certain measure of faith in myself and in my ability to change. I also had some realizations that I believe will be very helpful to me. I feel encouraged. Both the content and presentation of this program were so well-thought out that I can’t think of any way to improve it.” — Andrea Gollin, writer & editor, Miami, FL
“I have gained a softer heart, more receptive mind, and tools to enrich both personal and professional aspects of my life.” – Regina Trailweaver, LICSW, clinical social worker, Hancock, VT.
“I have been reminded that I am not on this path alone, that others are sharing the journey that sometimes seems so difficult. I have also been reminded of the importance of daily practice and I will do that. The whole program has been an incredible experience for me. Thank you!” — Lorraine Plauth, retired teacher, Voorheesville, NY
“Words do not do justice to all that I learned. This workshop changed my life!” — Jen Nolan, Teacher, Cortland, NY
“I began a fantasy during the meditation exercise... almost as if I’d been there. It’s now an on-going work of fiction.” — Serian Strauss, Tanzania
I absolutely love this stuff! I have been using it with my clients and I am just finding it to be so incredibly helpful. There seriously something for everything. Although I am not as skilled as I hope to be someday, even at my level of training I’m finding that I am beginning to figure out what to do. It just blows my mind! - Christine Brudnicki, MS, LPC
“I feel profoundly transformed, both physically and emotionally. The connection between mind, body and spirit was clearly evident to me, but revealed to me through this workshop as an integrally vital link to overall health.” — Nadine Richardson, program manager at rehab agency, Monroe, CT
“I have gained an incredible opening and clearing of old obstructions. I hope to return to my life and fill this opening with things I love to do and that give me joy!” — Lisa Shine, administrative assistant, Ballston Lake, NY
Scroll to Top