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Butterfly Breathing, a technique within Kind Karma® Yoga, is a beneficial breathwork practice suitable for both adults and children. This therapeutic method enhances mental, physical, emotional, and energetic well-being and fosters healing by regulating the nervous system and emotions, and harmonizing the energy body. Also referred to as Monarch Butterfly Breathing, this practice combines breathwork, mental concentration, visualization, somatic awareness, and nature connectedness.
As one of the pranayamas, or breath exercises, within Kind Karma® Yoga – Yoga of Spiritual Alignment – Butterfly Breathing is practiced in Kind Karma® Yoga classes and teacher training programs. It's also an integral part of the Awakening Meditation School, as it is included in various meditation courses and classes.
"Butterfly Breathing"
Calming, Cooling and Reinvigorating
Instructions
Posture
Find a relaxed, comfortable position. You could be seated on a chair or on the floor on a cushion. When sitting in a chair, be sure your feet are flat on the floor.
To locate your center of balance – so you are stable, at ease, and grounded (the yogic concept of Sthira and Sukha), gently sway side to side or front to back until you feel aligned.
Align your head, neck, and spine while elongating your spine, relaxing your face and neck, and lowering your shoulders. Imagine a string pulling you upward from the crown to help with alignment. Feel tall, but remain relaxed.
Helpful Tip 1️⃣: Adjust your posture as needed to feel stable, comfortable, and supported. Embrace feelings of openness and lightness.
Helpful Tip 2️⃣: Let your body mirror the mental state you aim for during this breathing exercise.
Briefly scan your body to increase awareness and release both physical tension and emotional stress stored in the body. Additionally, spend some time relaxing your hip creases to help deepen the energetic and meditative experience and to promote emotional harmony during the breath-meditation practice.
Allow your arms should hang effortlessly, with the hands resting in your lap or lightly on the knees. For enhanced effectiveness during the practice, consider using a specific mudra like Gyan or Jnana Mudra. This hand gesture entails connecting the tips of the thumb and index finger to create a circle while keeping the remaining fingers straight.
Your eyes can be either closed, slightly open or completely open.
"Imagine yourself with your tongue curled, envisioning being a beautiful butterfly delicately perched on a flower, poised to taste its sweet nectar. Picture yourself drawing in the flower's refreshing nectar (as prana – energy nourishment) through your curled tongue, mimicking the action of a butterfly utilizing its elongated straw-like structure known as a proboscis." – Dean Telano
How to Practice Butterfly Breathing
Begin by scanning your body to release any tension, starting either from the top of your head or the tips of your toes, and then progress upwards or downwards from there.
Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths to relax. Next, shape the sides of your tongue into a "u" and extend the tip outside your lips, keeping your lips and face relaxed. Alternatively, if you can't curl your tongue, gently bring your lips together to form an "O" shape (pursed lips).
As you curl your tongue, imagine yourself as a butterfly landing on a flower to sip its nectar. Visualize sipping the flower's refreshing nectar through your curled tongue, resembling a butterfly's proboscis.
Upon completing the inhale, close your mouth and swallow the nectar gently, visualizing it descending to a point two inches below the navel (Dantian) to gather energy in that area. Breathe naturally without forcing it.
With your mouth closed, if comfortable, touch the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth and exhale slowly through your nose. Feel cooler, calmer, and energized with each inhale, and purified, healed, and reinvigorated with each exhale.
Summary: Curl your tongue, inhale the flower nectar (energy/prana). At the end of you inhalation, swallow the nectar to collect and nourish the body below the navel. Exhale to release any impurities and feel refreshed.
Focus: Most butterflies have a short lifespan. Treat each breath and sip of flower nectar (energy/prana) as if it's your last, savoring every moment.
Color Therapy: Visualize the flower nectar as any color you feel comfortable with. Depending upon your intention, what you need or how you feel, the nectar might differ in color during each practice session.
Duration
How to End Butterfly Breathing
Perform Heart Chakra Brushing – energetically sweeping your heart center" (refer to the photos), after completing Butterfly Breathing.
After Heart Chakra Brushing, remain seated with your hands resting on your knees, palms facing downwards. Take a moment to re-immerse yourself in the present moment, feeling calmer, more relaxed, and revitalized.
"Heart Chakra Brushing"
Energetically Sweeping Your Heart Chakra
Benefits of Butterfly Breathing
It calms and stabilizes the mind while relaxing and soothing the nervous system.
Diminishes stress, anxiety, worry, and uneasiness.
Revitalizes and re-energizes the body.
Lung/Breath Therapy.
Enhances breathing patterns by expelling stale air from your lungs and enabling fresh air to come in.
Enhances ventilation.
Maintains open airways for longer, reducing the effort required to breathe.
Helps release trapped air in your lungs.
Promotes extended exhalation to slow down your breathing rate.
Alleviates feelings of breathlessness.
Activates the vagus nerve.
Stimulates energy points on the tongue, palate, lips, and mouth.
Enhances energy flow throughout the body.
Aids in detoxification.
Regulates the digestive system, reducing stomach acidity.
Manages hunger, thirst, and cravings.
Cools the body and balances pitta-related conditions like hot flashes.
Normalizes blood pressure.
Natural remedy for insomnia.
Fosters nature connectedness.
Contraindications
For individuals with heart disease, avoid holding or retaining the breath.
Bronchitis, flu, congestion, or excess mucus or phlegm.
Use caution if you have asthma or low blood pressure.
Chronic constipation.
Butterfly Breathing is distinct from Sitali Pranayama, a conventional yoga breathing technique, due to variations in purpose, visualization, concentration, and consequently, outcomes. In particular, 'Butterfly Breathing' emphasizes energy awareness and anatomy, including the Dantian and Microcosmic Orbit. This practice aligns more with qigong or neigong rather than traditional yoga breathing, as it involves transforming and harmonizing the energies within the human body – an internal alchemy principle rooted in Taoism. – Dean Telano
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