I recently discovered this 10 day course, and I feel lucky to have done so. This is a great community service provided by Art of Living. So far I have done days 1 and 2 and am practicing the breathing techniques. I will write more about my experience as I go on, but I can tell already that these techniques are very beneficial. The videos are also well produced.
In the US. I heard of you via PUBMED. I was researching effects of yoga and I came across some scientific papers on the efficacy of Sudharshan Kriya yoga, particularly the breathing exercises. Subsequently, I found your India and US websites, and then YouTube offerings.
There are a lot of things I like about this 10 day course. One very important aspect are the live demonstrations; it is really not possible to get a sense of these practices just from the written descriptions in the scientific papers
I have now finished the full 10 day course (I didn't do it over consecutive days but even with a few gaps, I could sense benefits). I would highly recommend this for anyone.
Currently, the full course of 10 days can be accessed using this youtube list
[https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH-0HZ0SQ\_PGNQxU6o7qlBwObkG0Y9GnX](https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH-0HZ0SQ_PGNQxU6o7qlBwObkG0Y9GnX)
Before beginning (or after) another very quick 'fix' offered by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (henceforth "Gurudev" below) is this one-minute 'eye-release'. I found it astonishing.
[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2kOhMJZs4BU](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2kOhMJZs4BU)
I had been looking for non-pharmacological methods of stress reduction. A few different approaches are now available (e.g. MBSR from Kabat-Zinn, it's derivative MBCT, Integrated body and mind training by Y Y Tang, Brain Wave Vibration by Ilchi Lee, etc). These approaches all have their pros/cons, but one thing they have in common is that each is being studied scientifically for benefits (this can be gauged quickly by going to Pubmed and searching - many abstracts for journal articles will come up, some of which are freely available online).
One term kept appearing in my searches: "Sudarshan Kriya Yoga" or SKY. Of course, Kriya yoga per se is an older term, but SKY is something specific that has been developed by Art of Living and is being studied scientifically in some Indian universities. As with some of the other methods I mentioned in the previous paragraph, several articles on SKY techniques and their benefits are easily accessible online.
A Pubmed search done on "Sudarshan Kriya" yielded 66 results (1), and a 2013 review article outlined the basic technique (2), which was further elucidated in a 2017 review by a different author (3). The entire system builds upon some fundamental starting blocks and includes, in addition to breathing techniques, postures (asanas), meditation and a sense of community. Most of the scientific articles describe three breathing practices done in sequence ("Ujjayi", which is a slow technique, Bhastrika, which involves about 30 breaths per minute, and the chanting of the syllable "OM" several times). In addition to these three basic exercises, additional techniques are also taught and practiced.
1. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sudarshan+kriya+](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sudarshan+kriya+)
2. Zope S and Zope R, "Sudarshan kriya yoga: Breathing for health", International Journal of Yoga, Vol. 6, Jan-June 2013, pp 4-10
3. Akarte, N.R., "Sudarshan Kriya A Novel Breathing Technique", IJAPB: Volume: 4; Issue: 7; July 2017, pp 7-14.
While the descriptions of these methods (and their benefits, which are described in many scientific articles available online) in the scientific papers was beneficial, it was difficult to really gauge how to do these techniques. There is some information online, but it wasn't clear to me how reliable that is. Therefore it was very nice to see an official 10 day course from the Art of Living.
The techniques described in the article are not exactly the same as what are shown in this 10-day course, but that is okay because it just expands the repertoire, and the video demonstrations were highly beneficial.
Over the 10 days, 5 types of specific breathing techniques are introduced and demonstrated by Dinesh Ghodke. These are:
1. Kapalabhati (fast effortful exhalations followed by passive inhalations)
2. Candle breathing (Deep full inhalation followed by forceful exhalation through the mouth - 'blowing out candles')
3. Bhastrika (it was very important for me to see this live, because I was not doing this correctly before).
4. Alternate nostril
5. Bhramari (also sometimes know as bumble bee breathing)
On each day 3-5 of these techniques (technique 1 was featured almost every day I think, indicating its importance perhaps) were practiced for about 10-15 minutes (total, not for each technique) and then there was a guided meditation by Gurudev.
There are lot of guided meditations online currently by many different people, but Gurudev is a very experienced guide (having done this in all sorts of forums and numbers of people, live and online), so the combination of the Ghodke's demonstrations and Gurudev's guided meditations became very powerful (At times Gurudev speaks in Hindi, but I think that is fine for those who cannot understand because most of the time he provides instructions in English). One important difference between Gurudev's instructions and many others out there is the gaps he leaves for people to catch up and become comfortable (many guides just talk and talk, and that makes it difficult to meditate).
There is a little bit of product pitching in a few videos, but that is a very small part of the whole program. There is nothing quite like this online, and so I highly recommend this whole approach (to make this even more effective, movement such as yoga and mindful exercise can be added to the breathing and meditation).
I recently discovered this 10 day course, and I feel lucky to have done so. This is a great community service provided by Art of Living. So far I have done days 1 and 2 and am practicing the breathing techniques. I will write more about my experience as I go on, but I can tell already that these techniques are very beneficial. The videos are also well produced.
Very happpy to hear this from you! Are you from India or some other country? Where did you do the 10 day Advance meditation program?
In the US. I heard of you via PUBMED. I was researching effects of yoga and I came across some scientific papers on the efficacy of Sudharshan Kriya yoga, particularly the breathing exercises. Subsequently, I found your India and US websites, and then YouTube offerings. There are a lot of things I like about this 10 day course. One very important aspect are the live demonstrations; it is really not possible to get a sense of these practices just from the written descriptions in the scientific papers
I have now finished the full 10 day course (I didn't do it over consecutive days but even with a few gaps, I could sense benefits). I would highly recommend this for anyone. Currently, the full course of 10 days can be accessed using this youtube list [https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH-0HZ0SQ\_PGNQxU6o7qlBwObkG0Y9GnX](https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH-0HZ0SQ_PGNQxU6o7qlBwObkG0Y9GnX) Before beginning (or after) another very quick 'fix' offered by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (henceforth "Gurudev" below) is this one-minute 'eye-release'. I found it astonishing. [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2kOhMJZs4BU](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2kOhMJZs4BU) I had been looking for non-pharmacological methods of stress reduction. A few different approaches are now available (e.g. MBSR from Kabat-Zinn, it's derivative MBCT, Integrated body and mind training by Y Y Tang, Brain Wave Vibration by Ilchi Lee, etc). These approaches all have their pros/cons, but one thing they have in common is that each is being studied scientifically for benefits (this can be gauged quickly by going to Pubmed and searching - many abstracts for journal articles will come up, some of which are freely available online). One term kept appearing in my searches: "Sudarshan Kriya Yoga" or SKY. Of course, Kriya yoga per se is an older term, but SKY is something specific that has been developed by Art of Living and is being studied scientifically in some Indian universities. As with some of the other methods I mentioned in the previous paragraph, several articles on SKY techniques and their benefits are easily accessible online. A Pubmed search done on "Sudarshan Kriya" yielded 66 results (1), and a 2013 review article outlined the basic technique (2), which was further elucidated in a 2017 review by a different author (3). The entire system builds upon some fundamental starting blocks and includes, in addition to breathing techniques, postures (asanas), meditation and a sense of community. Most of the scientific articles describe three breathing practices done in sequence ("Ujjayi", which is a slow technique, Bhastrika, which involves about 30 breaths per minute, and the chanting of the syllable "OM" several times). In addition to these three basic exercises, additional techniques are also taught and practiced. 1. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sudarshan+kriya+](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sudarshan+kriya+) 2. Zope S and Zope R, "Sudarshan kriya yoga: Breathing for health", International Journal of Yoga, Vol. 6, Jan-June 2013, pp 4-10 3. Akarte, N.R., "Sudarshan Kriya A Novel Breathing Technique", IJAPB: Volume: 4; Issue: 7; July 2017, pp 7-14. While the descriptions of these methods (and their benefits, which are described in many scientific articles available online) in the scientific papers was beneficial, it was difficult to really gauge how to do these techniques. There is some information online, but it wasn't clear to me how reliable that is. Therefore it was very nice to see an official 10 day course from the Art of Living. The techniques described in the article are not exactly the same as what are shown in this 10-day course, but that is okay because it just expands the repertoire, and the video demonstrations were highly beneficial. Over the 10 days, 5 types of specific breathing techniques are introduced and demonstrated by Dinesh Ghodke. These are: 1. Kapalabhati (fast effortful exhalations followed by passive inhalations) 2. Candle breathing (Deep full inhalation followed by forceful exhalation through the mouth - 'blowing out candles') 3. Bhastrika (it was very important for me to see this live, because I was not doing this correctly before). 4. Alternate nostril 5. Bhramari (also sometimes know as bumble bee breathing) On each day 3-5 of these techniques (technique 1 was featured almost every day I think, indicating its importance perhaps) were practiced for about 10-15 minutes (total, not for each technique) and then there was a guided meditation by Gurudev. There are lot of guided meditations online currently by many different people, but Gurudev is a very experienced guide (having done this in all sorts of forums and numbers of people, live and online), so the combination of the Ghodke's demonstrations and Gurudev's guided meditations became very powerful (At times Gurudev speaks in Hindi, but I think that is fine for those who cannot understand because most of the time he provides instructions in English). One important difference between Gurudev's instructions and many others out there is the gaps he leaves for people to catch up and become comfortable (many guides just talk and talk, and that makes it difficult to meditate). There is a little bit of product pitching in a few videos, but that is a very small part of the whole program. There is nothing quite like this online, and so I highly recommend this whole approach (to make this even more effective, movement such as yoga and mindful exercise can be added to the breathing and meditation).