Contemplative Breath
It is the most natural thing on earth that an ill person should place his hands on his abdomen if he suffers from colic or an attack of any other pain in that area. The hands radiate a certain warmth which is beneficial and soothing. One can experiment with this during the Contemplative Breath. If one breathes wrongly there will be hardly any warmth in the hands, but as soon as one starts with the rhythmic breathing one can experience a flow of heat from the hands into the body. This sensation is experienced by most students who have never heard or read about it before. The Indians say that deep breathing awakens something within us which is normally dormant. The laying-on of hands is a useful aid to the direction of warmth.
A higher form of this is the conscious direction of warmth through purely mental processes. This is the relaxation of a master which presupposes an active control over parts of the autonomic nervous system. Mental states induce physical processes like increased circulation and hence heightened activity of certain organs or glands over which we have otherwise no control. A master of Hatha-Yoga achieves this without any aids, but the beginner is permitted to assist his relaxation through friction with the use of a brush. Soon he will become independent of such means.
Lie down on the floor and place cushions under head and arms as in the drawing. Cover yourself with a blanket. The hands frame the solar plexus. Close your eyes and begin with the Contemplative Breath in four bars. The inner organs sink back. Introspection. Darkness around the eyes. Then the sensation of warmth. Fusion of the limbs into a pillar like structure. Increased warmth in the abdomen. Deep breathing. Slowly come back.