Balancing the Nervous Energies

January 28, 1980

This meditation balances the nervous and glandular systems, tuning them for optimal performance. Regular practice sharpens mental clarity, emotional balance, and efficiency, making it a powerful tool for navigating challenges without reliance on external stimulants or relaxants.

This meditation is especially effective at lunchtime or pressured moments when clarity, focus, and balance are needed. It highlights the breath as a vital tool for maintaining harmony, emotional sensitivity, and mental sharpness. By mastering the breath, you gain the ability to handle relationships and situations with greater confidence and control.

Holding the breath out in this practice can be very challenging, because it triggers the body’s protective, survival system. It is this triggering that resets the nervous and glandular systems. Even with the breath held out, there is sufficient oxygen in your blood, and you are alive and safe; trust and keep your focus on this to go through the discomfort.

Illustration of Susan sitting in easy pose with (Sukhasana) with a straight spine.

Posture & Mudra:

Sit in Easy Pose (Sukhasana) with a straight spine. Place the palm of the right hand against the back of the left hand, with both palms facing the chest a few inches away from the Heart Center. Touch the thumb tips together, and keep the forearms parallel to the ground.

Eyes/Drishti:

1/10th open.

Breath:

  • Inhale deeply through the nose and calmly hold the breath in for 15–20 seconds.
  • Exhale completely through the nose and calmly hold the breath out for 15–20 seconds.

Duration:

Continue for 3–5 minutes.