Svara Yoga — the science of the breath
स्वर योग
Also written: swara yoga · svara yoga · shiva swarodaya · nadi ida pingala sushumna · breath science · स्वरयोग
Svara Yoga takes the breath not as something to be controlled but as something to be read. Which nostril is flowing, which element is dominant within that flow, and what the pause between breaths contains — these are its instruments, and its principal text is the Śiva Svarodaya, spoken by Śiva to Pārvatī.
The three nāḍīs
| Nāḍī | Side | Principle | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iḍā | Left | Candra — the moon | Cooling, receptive, nourishing; governs the mind and the fluids |
| Piṅgalā | Right | Sūrya — the sun | Heating, active, consuming; governs digestion and outward action |
| Suṣumnā | Centre | Agni / the void | Neither; the state in which the elements fall silent |
The five tattvas in the flow
Within whichever nostril is active, one of five elements predominates in rotation — pṛthivī, jala, agni, vāyu, ākāśa — each with its own duration, direction of flow, taste, colour and shape, and each favouring different kinds of action. Reading the element as well as the nāḍī is what distinguishes svara yoga from ordinary breath awareness.
What it is used for
- Choosing the moment for an action — the practical continuation of muhūrta into the body itself.
- Direction of travel and the first foot placed, matched to the flowing nāḍī.
- Diagnosis: a nāḍī flowing wrongly for long periods is read as a sign before illness appears.
- Meditation: lengthening the pause, in which suṣumnā is present.
- The ajapā japa — the breath already reciting so'ham, twenty-one thousand six hundred times a day.
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Last revised 2026-08-16. Corrections are welcome — see how this site is written.