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What is Prana?
W hat makes any motion possible: the blink of an eye, the
V budding of a flower, the splitting of atoms or the fall of a meteor? Thousands of years ago, the yogis living in the shadow of the Himalayas fathomed the inherent quality of motion in creation and they called it prana. One may roughly translate the word prana as 'energy' or 'vital force', but neither definition offers a precise equivalent of the Sanskrit term that emerged from higher states of contemplation. The word prana assumes the quality of 'livingness'. From the yogic point of view, the entire cosmos is alive, throbbing with prana.
Prana is ever present in every aspect of creation. The prana within every created object gives existence and material form, whether it is a planet, an asteroid, a blade of grass or a tree. If there were no prana, there would be no existence. If prana were withdrawn from the universe, there would be total disintegration. All beings, whether living or non-living, exist due to prana. Every manifestation in creation forms part of a never-ending matrix of energy particles, arranged in different densities, combinations and variations. The universal principle of prana may be in a static or dynamic state, but it is behind all existence on every plane of being from the highest to the lowest.
Prana is the simplest as well as the most profound concept propounded by the seers. A stone worshipped sincerely may have a finer quality of prana than the force of a leopard in
