Sequence of Practising Asana, Pranayama, and Meditation
What is the right order?
Do you also have the similar questions like what you should be practiced first Asana, Pranayama or Meditation? What is the right sequence or order to practise Asana, Pranayama, and Meditation?
Hatha Yoga Pradipika commentary by Swami Muktibodhananada (Yoga Publications Trust, Munger, Bihar, India) explains these questions as below:
After asanas, pranayama should be practised to purify the nadis. For this purpose nadi shodhana (nadi purification) pranayama is best. Then mudras should be performed to channelize the energy and create specific attitudes of mind, and bandhas to force the energy upward. In hatha yoga the sequence is - Asanas first, then Pranayama, Mudras and Bandhas. Lastly one should sit quietly in a meditative pose.
In the systematic science of Hatha Yoga, you must firstly prepare the physical body because it is the groosest manifestation of prana. Activate the prana through asana, then practise pranayama to purify the energy channels and to process and balance the prana. Then perform mudras to channelize the prana and arouse different faculties of the mind, and bandhas to draw prana upward from the lower centres. When the full capacity of prana or shakti is released, the high vibrational rate creates an audible sound in the inner ear. If you can hear it, iti is sure sign that kundalini has awakened.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika commentary by Swami Muktibodhananada is a highly recommended book.
