Kapalabhati literally means “shining skull”. It is a cleansing practice (kriya) more than a pranayama in the strict sense: it activates, wakes us up and leaves a sense of mental clarity.
The technique
- Sit with a straight back and hands on your knees.
- Take a natural inhale and start exhaling through the nose with a short inward snap of the belly.
- The inhale comes by itself, passively, as the belly relaxes.
- Start with 20 or 30 exhales at a calm pace, about one per second.
- Finish with a deep inhale, a slow exhale and a few normal breaths before another round.
Do two or three rounds. Over time you can increase the number, but quality matters more than speed.
What to watch
The movement comes from the belly, not the shoulders or face. The chest stays still. If you feel dizzy, stop and breathe normally.
When not to practise it: during pregnancy and menstruation, with high blood pressure, heart problems, hernias, epilepsy or after abdominal surgery. In those cases, choose full yogic breathing or Nadi Shodhana instead.
When to do it
In the morning, on an empty stomach, and never right before bed. It’s ideal for starting practice when you feel heavy or sleepy.
