LESSON 12/20 · SAFETY & RESPONSIBILITY

Safety & contraindications: the line you do not cross

Through eleven lessons we have been opening the breath up together — slower, longer, more settled. This last lesson of the foundation runs the other way: learning to know when to stop. A good teacher is not the one who takes students furthest, but the one who knows exactly where the line is that must not be crossed — for themselves, and for each person on the mat. This is a lesson about kindness with discipline in it.

01THE TWO THINGS TO BE MOST WARY OF

Fast, forceful breathing and holding the breath are the two heaviest-handed techniques — both raise the heart rate and blood pressure.

Kapalabhati, the fire breath, the belly actively pushing the air out fast — The fire breath (Kapalabhati) is a fast, driving rhythm — the body responds much as it does to panting.

REMEMBER Fast and forceful is not “better”.

The fire breath / fast breathing (Kapalabhati) drives the air out continuously at a high rate. The anatomy literature records that this kind of breathing raises the heart rate and blood pressure — so for a healthy person it is an alerting stimulus, but for someone with an existing condition it is a load. In a general class, treat this as a technique needing great care, not a harmless warm-up.

Holding the breath after breathing in (kumbhaka) — Holding the breath (kumbhaka) brings the same response and the same safety notes as fast breathing.

REMEMBER Holding the breath longer is not a sign of progress.

Holding the breath (kumbhaka) has effects and safety notes like the fast-breathing group: it too can push the heart rate and blood pressure up. So both techniques always come with the same instruction: approach them only once the body is ready, and with a teacher beside you.

On the mat: Before putting any fast-breathing or breath-holding practice into a class, ask yourself: “Does this group of students today actually need it?” If you are not sure — pick the slow, long breathing from the earlier lessons. Safety beats impressiveness every time.

02WHO SHOULD AVOID THE STRONG TECHNIQUES

There are groups who should avoid the strong breathing techniques — and the general principle: with an existing condition, ask a doctor first.

A gentle yoga class with students of all kinds — For the groups below, favour a quiet, natural breath — leave out the fire breath and the held breath.

REMEMBER This list is for “stop and ask”, not for diagnosing.

The anatomy literature advises avoiding fast breathing (Kapalabhati) and holding the breath (kumbhaka) for those who are: pregnant; with high blood pressure or a heart condition; prone to anxiety or panic; and with certain eye conditions involving raised pressure (glaucoma, for instance). These are the cases that call for particular care.

GRASP THIS A teacher does not pronounce on conditions — only makes a safe way through.

Your role is not to establish what is “wrong” with anyone. If a student has any existing condition, the correct and safest answer is always: “Speak to your doctor first, and then we will pick a practice that suits you.” No guessing, no over-reassuring, never speaking in a doctor's place.

On the mat: When you see a student in one of the groups above, do not invite them into the fire breath or a held breath. Let them stay with a quiet, natural rhythm — and always have the line ready: “If anything feels uncomfortable, come straight back to normal breathing.”

03HELD BREATHS & LOCKS — AT THE LEVEL OF THE IDEA

Kumbhaka (holding the breath) and bandha (the locks) are deep techniques — this lesson only introduces them so you know them by sight, not so you practise them yet.

GRASP THIS Know the name and the character — not yet the method.

Kumbhaka is deliberately holding the breath (after breathing in, or after breathing out). Bandha are the “locks” — points of light, controlled engagement in the body — usually paired with a held breath in the advanced practices. In this closing lesson you only need to recognise the two ideas and understand why they belong to the “strong” group.

The bandhas placed on the body of someone sitting in meditation — Bandha usually go with a held breath — which is why they too belong to the group that needs a foundation and someone to supervise.

REMEMBER A deep technique = a solid foundation + someone guiding you.

Held breaths and locks should only be practised with a solid foundation and a teacher directly beside you. They are not something to feel your way into from a video or try alone at home. The detailed practice, supervised step by step, is kept for the in-depth course — where someone is watching and correcting you in real time.

On the mat: In a basic class, introduce kumbhaka and bandha in words — let students “hear the names” and understand why they need care — without teaching the practice. That restraint is exactly the mark of a mature teacher.

04THE THREE GOLDEN LINES

Three compact principles to keep for a whole working life: never force a held breath, never push to dizziness, and with an existing condition ask a doctor.

Three safety lines: never force a held breath, never push to dizziness, send them to a doctor when there is an existing condition — The three golden lines — hung up in your mind whenever you stand in front of a class.

REMEMBER These three sentences hold the whole safety lesson.

① Never force a held breath. Holding must be a comfortable choice, never a braced effort. ② Never push to dizziness. Light-headedness, spots before the eyes, tingling are signs of too much — not of “nearly getting good”. When they appear, stop and go back to normal breathing. ③ With an existing condition, ask a doctor first. That line is not negotiable.

GRASP THIS Dizziness is a stop signal, not a medal.

Many beginners misread a floating, slightly swimmy feeling as “progress”. Teach your students the opposite: it is the body saying “that is enough”. A skilled teacher is one who makes stopping ordinary — so nobody is embarrassed to rest when they need to.

On the mat: Say these three lines out loud at the first session of a course, and again whenever you go into a strong practice: “Don't brace or force a hold, if you feel dizzy we stop, and anyone with a condition has already asked their doctor.” Repeat it until it is the whole room's reflex.

05A TEACHER LEADS; A TEACHER DOES NOT TREAT

The last professional boundary: you lead the way for the breath — you do not diagnose, you do not prescribe, you do not promise a cure.

A teacher screening and talking with the class before practice — One question at the top of a class can keep the whole session safe.

REMEMBER Leading the breath is your job; treating illness is a doctor's.

A teacher does not diagnose, does not prescribe, does not promise “do this and it will go away”. Instead, open the class with a gentle screening question: “Is anyone here pregnant, with high blood pressure, or with a heart condition?” — and then respect the answer. And always have a gentler alternative ready for anyone who needs it.

GRASP THIS Always have a “way out” for every practice.

For every strong technique, have a gentler version ready: slow belly breathing in place of the fire breath, a slightly lengthened out-breath in place of a held breath. Anyone for whom it does not suit can move to the gentler option without being left behind. That is how a class stays both deep and safe for everyone in it.

On the mat: Practise a screening question and an invitation to the gentler option in front of a mirror, until both come out naturally. Once those two lines are habit, you have the strongest shield of safety there is for a whole teaching career.

You have just completed the FOUNDATION: from the first breath to the safety lines, you have been right round the circle — not only to breathe better yourself, but to lead other people responsibly. This foundation is enough to stand in front of a class with the basic breathing practices in confidence.

Lesson 13 next — opening the ADVANCED part: from here we lay out the named practices more fully, together with everything tied to them — the breathing postures (seated, lying, on a chair), the hand mudras and the three bandhas, then the settling, cooling, waking-and-heating groups and the held breaths. All of it close to the classical professional texts. Your breath is ready for the deeper stretch.

Background reading for the whole set: Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha; Ann Swanson, Science of Yoga; B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Pranayama; Hatha Yoga Pradipika; together with the teaching of Vũ Trọng Tuấn Anh.

This is professional education, not a substitute for medical advice. A student with an existing condition — heart, blood pressure, respiratory or neurological — or who is pregnant should speak to a physician before practising.