Prana is our basic energy and movement of the breath, or another way to explain prana is that it is our "life force". Ayama means expansion of our vital or life force. Pranayama means breath control and the expansion of our life force through control of the breath. Breath control is important as it has a significant effect on both the brain and our emotions. In his book, "Yoga For Wellness", Gary Kraftsow, an internationally known Yoga Teacher, Therapist and author states, "The ancient masters specifcally developed the practice of pranayama to balance the emotions, clarify the mental processes, and ultimately to integrate them into one effectively functioning whole." He further explains that states of physical and emotional arousal and calmness can be controlled by airflow in and out of the nostrils. For example, inhaling through the right nostril and exhaling through the left nostril, called surya bhedana, is said to activate or stimulate our bodies and minds and exhaling through the right nostril and inhaling through the left nostril, called candra bhedana, is said to calm and soothe our system. Also, both inhale and exhale can be used separately to either stimulate or calm the system by utilizing various ratios between inhale and exhale, such as pausing after inhale, pausing after exhale and extending the breath on both inhale and exhale. Certain types of breathing techniques can even have a cooling or heating effect on the body, such as cooling a fever or warming you on a cold day.

Pranayama is an integral part of yoga and ayurvedic therapy. It is most effective in treating diseases of the respiratory, circulatory and nervous systems and is excellent for all conditions of debility, low energy, chronic fatigue, weak immunity, and convalescence. Dr.David Frawley, a leading authority of ayurveda and yoga both in India and the West, states in his book, "Yoga and Ayurveda", "It is probably the most important single action that we can do to improve our health." Pranayama is also an important tool for treating psychological and emotional disorders. It is excellent for countering depression, relieving grief and reducing stress and tension.