Ujjayi

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title: "Ujjayi" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["pranayama"] description: "Breathing technique used in some Taoist and Yoga practices" topic_path: "general/pranayama" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ujjayi" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Breathing technique used in some Taoist and Yoga practices ::

Ujjayi (, IAST ujjāyī, "victorious" or "conquering" ) is a pranayama (breathing technique) practised simultaneously with asanas in modern yoga as exercise. It is practised especially in Pattabhi Jois's Ashtanga (vinyasa) yoga, where it accompanies vigorous asana flow exercise. It is described as a seated practice in B. K. S. Iyengar's 1966 book Light on Yoga.

Etymology and origins

"Ujjayi [pranayama]" () means "victorious or conquering [breath]" in Sanskrit. According to B. K. S. Iyengar, the prefix "ut" denotes superiority, while the word "jaya" means victory or conquest.

While ujjayi is described as pranayama, the classical yoga practice is stated by the yoga scholar Andrea Jain to have been "marginal to the most widely cited sources" before the 20th century, and "dramatically" unlike the modern ones. She writes that while modern pranayama in yoga as exercise consists of synchronising the breath with movements (between asanas), in classical texts like the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, pranayama meant "complete cessation of breathing".

Technique

Ujjayi breath is a type of diaphragmatic breathing in which the muscles of the throat (the glottis) are slightly constricted, causing the air to produce a whispering sound as it passes in and out the vocal cords. It is associated with the energetic flow style of yoga as exercise created by Pattabhi Jois. It is described, too, in B. K. S. Iyengar's 1966 book Light on Yoga. Both Jois and Iyengar were pupils of Tirumalai Krishnamacharya.

Accompanying asana practice in Ashtanga yoga

In Jois's Ashtanga yoga, ujjayi is practised simultaneously with the vigorous performance of asanas. These are not held for long periods, but flow continuously from one pose to another in fixed sequences. The inhalation and exhalation, both through the nose, are meant to produce a sound loud enough for the practitioner to hear but not so loud as to be heard by someone standing six feet away.

Seated breathing exercise in Iyengar yoga

In Iyengar Yoga, "Ujjāyī Prānāyāma" is "the process in which the lungs are fully expanded and the chest puffed out like that of a proud conqueror." Iyengar instructs pupils to practice sitting in "any comfortable position" such as Siddhasana, with the back straight, the chin down, and the eyes closed. The breath is through the nostrils; it is held "for a second or two" (kumbhaka) after the inbreath and after the outbreath.

Claimed effects

Iyengar claims, without adducing any evidence or citing a source, that Ujjayi "aerates the lungs, removes phlegm, soothes the nerves and tones the entire system." Iyengar adds that the practice can be modified by doing it while reclining and without holding the breath in kumbhaka by those with "high blood pressure or coronary troubles", again without adducing any evidence. The yoga scholar Suzanne Newcombe describes such claims as supporting his vision of yoga as in some sense therapeutic, while Andrea Jain suggests it is an attempt to reinforce the Iyengar Yoga brand.

References

References

1. Jain, Andrea. (2015). "Selling Yoga: from Counterculture to Pop culture". [[Oxford University Press]].
2. Iyengar, B. K. S.. (1991). "Light on Yoga". Thorsons.
3. Pagés Ruiz, Fernando. (20 January 2025). "Krishnamacharya's Legacy: Modern Yoga's Inventor". [[Yoga Journal]].
4. Miller, Richard C.. "The Breath of Life".
5. Gerstein, Nancy. (2008). "Guiding Yoga's Light: Lessons for Yoga Teachers". Human Kinetics.
6. Newcombe, Suzanne. (2019). "Yoga in Britain: Stretching Spirituality and Educating Yogis". [[Equinox Publishing (Sheffield).

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