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men" said the Mother on December 8, "is mostly responsible for the decision Sri Aurobindo has
taken regarding his body". On December 9, in the morning, after more than 100 hours, the body
began to show its first signs of decomposition, and it was interred in the evening in the Ashram
courtyard. (lyengar, 1972,p.1337)
Sri Aurobindo's writings continue to provide us with a vision for our collective evolution and
important indicators for every individual as to how to bring about a Divine transformation of life as
we know it. Sri Aurobindo's orientation towards "the world" and the commonality of his experience
with that of the Siddhas, can provide us with some valuable and practical guidelines, as we will see
in the final chapter.
II
The Psychophysiology of Kriya Kundalini Yoga
Breathing and physiology
The only physiological function which is both voluntary and involuntary is breathing. Breathing
can be controlled consciously by the mind or it can be allowed to function automatically like other
physiological processes, such as digestion, under the control of the body. Breathing is thus an
important bridge between the mind and the body and can influence them both.
Our breathing patterns reflect our emotional and mental states. The breath is jerky during anger,
momentarily ceases during periods of fear, gasps during amazement, chokes during sadness, sighs
in relief, is slow and steady during periods of concentration, and changes during periods in which
the mind is subject to passing thoughts and emotions of a random nature. While it is difficult to
control the mind and emotions directly, they can be mastered indirectly by using the breath. Various
meditation traditions have long taught their students to concentrate on breathing smoothly in order
to eliminate distracting thoughts. In modern times, many scientific studies have confirmed the effect
of breathing exercises in the treatment of hypertension and anxiety disorders.
The process of respiration in which oxygen is inhaled into the living cells and carbon-dioxide is
exhaled from them is a fundamental phenomenon of life which is universally present in every type
of living organism. The respiratory center that regulates rhythmic muscular contractions involved
with breathing is known as the "medulla oblongata". Respiration is a continuous requirement for
obtaining an adequate supply of oxygen, and life is not possible without a sufficient quantity of
oxygen. By deep breathing, we draw energy from the universal reservoir of life. Accordingly, each
individual cell maintains its repiratory rate for its individual needs. Finally all the living cells
depend upon the satisfactory working of the respiratory system for their entire needs of energy. The
Siddhas referred to the basic energy underlying all activities, both physical and mental, as prana, or
subtle life force. Prana is found in the air that we breathe, in the Earth we live on, in the water we
drink and in sunlight.
Some of the channels through which the more physical pranas flow have been mapped out by
both the Siddhas of India and China. The more physical channels have been identified as meridians
in acupuncture, originally developed in India, and known as Varma in the Siddha system of
medicine. It is practiced by Siddha Vaidya physicians to this day, particularly in the Nagercoil area
of Tamil Nadu. It is also used even to this day by the elephant trainers in India and in Sri Lanka.
Being of a grosser level, such channels are subject to physical manipulation, as with needles and
finger pressure. They are a small subset of a much wider spectrum of pranic energy channels, or
nadis of yoga, as described below.
"The Law of Inverse Proportions" and longevity
The Siddha's science also tells us that a man generally takes fifteen breaths a minute; and this
makes 21,600 breaths per day (15 x 60 minutes per hour x 24 hours per day), and at this rate, he can
live for a period of at least 120 years, as limited by the fundamental principle on which respiration
is based. This principle recognizes that not an of the force or energy forced out during exhalation is
regained during inhalation. While breathing normally the energy lost in every exhalation extending
to 12 inches of space is regained only to an extent of 8 inches, resulting in a not loss of 4 inches. A
part of the energy that ought to have entered the body is lost in every process of respiration and
thereby the normal life span of 120 years is considerably reduced. In Boganathar's poem Gnana
Savera 1,000 he explains this truth and even shows how excessive breathing reduces the normal
lifespan and eventually leads to death in human beings. In eating the breath forced out extends to a
space of 18 inches. In walking it goes out to 24 inches. Running forces it out to 42 inches. In sexual
activity it goes out to 50 inches. In sleeping it extends to 60 inches. Ramalinga Swamigal also
confirms that too much of sleep shortens the life span. Thirumoolar laments in stanza number 2873
of Thirumandiram how mankind wastes this pranic energy and thus shortens the life span. He says:
"There are two water lifts and seven springs. The elder brother lifts the water up while the younger
brother directs it into the fields. If some of this water does not enter the fields where seedlings grow,
it is a waste". Similarly if amirtha (hormone secretion) does not flow into the seven plexuses
(chakras) where the life force grows, senility sets in early in cellular organisms of the human system
and the life span is reduced greatly by degeneration and disease. The entire third Tantra (chapter) of
Thirumandiram deals with the subject of the control of prana which aids man to live 120 years.
(Velan, 1963, p. 60-62, 67; Balaramaiah, 1970, p. 32-33)
Modern scientific study confirms the teachings of the Siddhas with respect to the loss of energy
in breathing. Modern science has found that a man breathes in and out 12,000 liters of air per day.
This is according to the respiratory rate of 18 per minute and respiratory depth at 500 cc. As the
inspired air contains only 20 percent oxygen, the expired air contains only about 16 percent oxygen.
It indicates that the oxygen retained by the body is only 4% (480 liters per day). Similarly, the blood
does not distribute more than 20 % of its oxygen to the tissues. (Volan, 1963, p. 65)
The Tamil Siddhar Roma Rishi, in the 13th verse of his "Song of Wisdom" sang:
"If It goes the span of life is reduced., If It does not go, It will not go. " (Ramaiah, 1968, p. 14)
Here it refers to prana or life energy. Roma Rishi is saying in this verse that the span of life will
be reduced if one loses ones pranic energy or life force, but that if it does not go, one's life will
continue indefinitely. He states that one need not die if the pranic life force is not lost but increased,
and drawn from the Cosmic source, conquering death and fate. This has been referred to as the Law
of Inverse Proportions by Yogi S.A. A. Ramaiah, who noted that the span of life is inversely related
to the rate of breathing. During Roma Rishi's time the normal span of life was 120 years and the
normal person breathed 21,600 times per day, that is 15 respirations per minute. If the rate of
breathing is however 18 per minute the span of life will be about 96 years. If because of poor living
habits and needless expenditure of energy the average rate of breathing is 30 per minute, the life
span will be only 60 years. However, if the rate is slowed through yogic practices and self control to
an average of only 5 respirations per minute the life span will be 360 years. If it is one per minute,
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