Agnisar Kriya & Vahnisara Dhauti – How to Practice, Techniques, Benefits and Precautions
Among the yogic kriyas, Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti have a special place. The purpose of these asanas is to fire up the digestive fire (Agni) and clear up the abdominal space, thereby improving digestion and health. Agni, meaning digestive fire, is central to health in both yogic and Ayurvedic practices. A well balanced, strong digestive fire means the body can properly metabolize nutrients and eliminate waste; a weak digestive fire may result in problems such as indigestion, constipation and sluggishness.
Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti aid in the proper functioning of digestive organs, increasing vitality, and promoting mental clarity. And these ancient acts have the power to turn on and clear the digestive system, yielding a slew of other benefits that extend beyond digestion.
Understanding Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti
Before jumping into the practice, let’s dissect what those words mean. Agni refers to fire, Sara refers to essence and Kriya is a deed or an act. What it essentially does is agnisar kriya brings “active essence of fire;” which refers to digestive fire in the system. In another way, as “Vahni” stands for fire; and, “Dhauti” means a cleansing process. Vahnisara Dhauti Focuses on purifying and cleansing Your abdominal organs n digestive system with fire.
Both Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti focus on tomach muscles in much similar way by means of fast staccato like movement. This much movement creates an intensive raising of heat, combustion in the digestive fire and message to the abdominal organs. They also tone and develop the abdominal muscles and diaphragm, thus are good for the conditioning of them for more advanced yogic practices like Uddiyana Bandha and Nauli Kriya.
The Importance of Digestive Fire in Yoga and Ayurveda
Agni, or digestive fire, plays a key role in yoga and ayurveda, to keep the body healthy. The fire of digestion controls the processing of not only food, but thoughts and feelings as well. When Agni is high, digestion is good, energy levels are strong and the mind is clear. But when the digestive fire is low, it can result in several digestive woes — bloating, gas, constipation, a sense of heaviness just to name a few.
Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti stoke these inner fires, allowing your body to operate optimally and for toxins to be flushed from your system. They may help balance the body’s energy and support emotional well-being, because a healthy digestive system supports a stable, calm mind.
How to Perform Agnisar Kriya: Step-by-Step Guide
Agnisar Kriya is fairly easy to do but takes plenty of practice to become a master at. The following is a guide to help you get started with this technique:
1. Preparatory Practice: Swana Pranayama (Panting Breath)
It ’s beneficial if Swana Pranayama or the panting breath is practiced before doing Agnisar.
- Kneel on the ground in Vajrasana and part your knees a little with your big toes touching each other. Rest your hands on your knees, and keep your head upright.
- Open your mouth, and stick out your tongue. Start to pant like a dog, from your mouth.
- At the same time breathe and with panting movements, ease around contracting and releasing your tummy muscles. On your exhale the belly moves in, on your inhale the belly moves out. Try to keep the chest relatively still and feel those deep abdominal breaths.
- Do this exercise for 10 to 20 breaths. After one round, relax and breathe normally before the next round.
This warm-up breath serves to wake up the abdominal muscles and get them ready for Agnisar Kriya.
2. Agnisar Kriya (Activating the Digestive Fire)
- Agnisar Kriya can be done in Vajrasana or Padmasana (lotus pose). Pick whichever position feels the best for you.
- Inhale deeply through the nostrils.
- Do an explosive exhalation, forcing all of the air out of your lungs.
- Exhale, lean forward and straighten your arms, placing the heels of your hands on your knees. Do Jalandhara Bandha by touching your chin to the chest. And now tense and relax belly muscles as vigorously as comfortably possible for the longest duration you can comfortably hold your breath.
- When you need to inhale again, relax Jalandhara Bandha, sit up straight and take a deep breath.
- Unwind and take a few breaths to let your breathing slow to normal before beginning the next round.
Duration and Frequency
If you are a beginner, practice three rounds of Agnisar Kriya with 10 contractions per round. As you gain more a grip on your tummy muscles the ideal thing to do is increase it up to about 100 contractions each time. There should also be a progressive increase in the duration of kumbhaka over time.
This should be done fasted and preferably first thing in the morning before eating/eliminating. You should be gentle at the beginning of practicing this and do not forcing when you are beginner.
Vahnisara Dhauti: Step-by-Step Guide
Vahnisara Dhauti is somewhat like Agnisar Kriya, but the focus is more on cleaning the digestive channel as opposed to just activating it.
How to Perform Vahnisara Dhauti:
- Sit in Vajrasana or Padmasana and sit up straight.
- Breathe in deeply! Fill your lungs.
- Exhale to empty the lungs completely, blowing out the air as hard as you can.
- Do rapid contractions and expansions of the abdominal walls with the lungs empty as in Agnisar Kriya. Keep your arms straight and with hands pressing on knees while you lean forward.
- Carry out the contractions as long as you can hold your breath, without straining.
- As you run out of breath, release Jalandhara Bandha and inhale slowly as you sit up.
- Relax and breathe normally before the next round.
Vahnisara Dhauti can also be performed following Agnisar Kriya to cleanse the digestive system further.
Benefits of Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti
Both Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti have many benefits for the digestive tract and general wellbeing:
- These practices activate the digestive organs and solve problems ranging from indigestion, bloating, hyperacidity to constipation.
- The continuous tensing and relaxing of the ab muscles have a great effect on toning and strengthening up your torso.
- Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti ensure detoxification of the digestive system, giving a clean path to absorption and taking away toxins.
- By awakening the Manipura Chakra (solar plexus), these exercises heighten the pranic flow throughout one’s being resulting in a more vibrant energy and a robust vigor.
- The balance on the Manipura Chakra also increases clarity of mind, emotional stability, and it will remove laziness and depression.
Read The Blog: how to activate chakras
Precautions and Contraindications
Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dh
Agnisar Kriya and Vahnisara Dhauti are two very potent methods, and should be handled with care in some situations:
- These routines also add on heat, too – which can increase blood pressure causing them to not be suitable for those with high blood pressure or a heart condition.
- Most people with severe digestive conditions such as ulcers or chronic diarrhea should not attempt these practices until their condition improves.
- Practice Agnisaar Kriya will have to be avoided in pregnancy. But it is useful in the after-pregnancy phase to tonify the tummy muscles.
- And in hot weather, they can cause the body to overheat. To counteract this, cool it down with such pranayama as Sheetali or Seetkari.
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