Plan 38. Prana Loka
Prana is the life force. In Sanskrit, it is a synonym for life and the name of the breath of life that we receive with every breath. Prana is also the name of one of the five main subtle energies in the body. In this narrow sense, Prana refers to the energy located in the oral cavity and carrying food to the stomach. Prana is located in the area from the nostrils to the lungs and near the heart, protecting life from destruction.
Prana balances the other elements of the body and controls their functions. Thanks to prana we can move, think, see and hear. From birth to death, prana plays a crucial role in our life: at birth it gives the strength necessary for the successful passage of childbirth, at the time of death it takes all the vital energy of the body and flows out, leaving behind a lifeless corpse.
Prana is a faithful servant who satisfies all the needs of his master without demanding any reward for this. Like a true devotee, prana faithfully serves our consciousness 24 hours a day. But prana has its own temperament. Even a small change in the attitude of the host affects the speed and rhythm of the cycle. A good master who understands the devotion of his servant should try to help the prana develop. The methods necessary for this are called pranayama and constitute one of the most important sections of the yogic discipline.
In yoga, prana is a concept of paramount importance. By practicing pranayama, the yogi directs the flow of prana down to the pelvic plexus, where it mixes with apana, the energy located in the lower body. When prana and apana flow together through the sushumna, the central channel of the spine, to the top of the head, the yogi experiences samadhi, which is the goal of all yoga practices. Prana should not be confused with oxygen. Oxygen supplies energy to the gross physical body. Prana, on the other hand, maintains the existence of the physical body: prana is life itself. To understand prana, life and consciousness must be considered separately from each other. Life is the mechanism through which consciousness manifests, and prana is its driving force. When life ceases, consciousness remains. This is indicated by numerous documented cases of reincarnation.