Indian Understanding Research Articles

The bodily winds in ancient India revisited

This paper examines the historical development of the doctrine of the five bodily winds (prāas) in the early Sanskrit literature of Yoga and Āyurveda. Special attention is paid to the Indian's understanding of the connection between atmospheric wind and bodily breath and the role of wind in the human body. The paper traces the evolution of the Indian concept of breath. Originally, wind and breath were used metaphorically to indicate life. Breath was subsequently classified into five types by early ascetics who used breath‐control in their practice of Yoga; and these same five breaths were eventually utilized by the Āyurvedic medical thinkers to establish a sophisticated doctrine of wind and its function in the body.