The five outer Tsa-Lung exercises

Inner refuge

Tsa (Channel)
RANG LÜ GYAL WE KYIL KHOR Ü
YÖN TEN MA LÜ JUNG WE NE
TSA SUM KHOR LO NGA YI LONG
TONG PE KU LA KYAP SU CHI

 

First refuge: Body
The center of the victorious mandala, one's own body,
The source of all positive qualities without exception,
Is the expanse within the three channels and the five chakras.
I take refuge in this body of emptiness. (30 sec)

 

 

Lung (Wind)
DUK NGEL PUNG PÖ TREN TSOK KÜN
YE SHE LUNG GI RAP SEL TE
MA CHÖ KA DAK NAM KHE LONG
Ö KYI KU LA KYAP SU CHI

 

Second refuge: Speech
All the gathered clouds of suffering and misery
Are completely cleared by the wisdom wind,
Revealing the unelaborated, primordially pure expanse of the sky.
I take refuge in this body of light. (30 sec)

 

 

Tigle (Sphere of light)
YE SHE Ö NGE GUR KHANG NE
NYI ME TIG LE Ö ZER TRÖ
MA RIK MÜN PE DRA WA SANG
DE CHEN KU LA KYAP SU CHI

 

Third refuge: Mind
From the pavilion of the five wisdom lights,
Rays of non-dual spheres of light emanate,
Clearing the webs of the darkness of ignorance.
I take refuge in this body of great bliss. (30 sec)

 

 

Breath

Breathe in and welcome whatever comes to you. Breathe in all the positive and healing qualities, especially those that you lack. Then hold your breath for a moment. Inhale again to fill the rest of the lungs. Now hold your breath. As you exhale, release all negative elements.

 

 

The upward Prana

This exercise is associated with the element Earth (yellow).

 

Inhale and hold the air in the Throat Chakra. Focus on this center. Through the breath, your neck becomes broader. Continue to inhale. Fill up your lungs completely. Now, as you hold your breath, bow your head forward. Then rotate the head counterclockwise five times: over the left shoulder, back, right shoulder forward. Be careful not to overstretch the neck. Do not strain your muscles too much. If you feel pain, make the circle your head describes smaller and make sure the chin is always pointing forward (not up). Feel the life-giving breath spiraling from the Throat Chakra into the head. It activates the brain, the sensory organs and the Crown Chakra. The Crown Chakra is associated with the white light drop of a Tigle, which, in Tibetan view, rises during conception process downwards. In Tantric practice, he provides the feeling of bliss. So pay attention to whether such sensations rise up in you.

 

Then, turn the head clockwise five times while still holding your breath. So during one breath, let the head circle a total of ten times, five times in each direction.

 

 

Then you exhale. Imagine how the breath and with it the energy from the Throat Chakra rise above the Central Channel. Both flows through the brain and then exits at the apex. Imagine how the breath enlivens the brain, vitalizes the senses and all brain functions and awakens all the spiritual capacities that are located in the Throat and Crown Chakra. Only during the first exercise does the breath come out of the body through the Crown Chakra. In all other exercises is exhaled through the nose or the mouth.

 

Hold your breath throughout the exercise and only breathe out at the end. If you need more air, once again breathing in deeper. If you cannot hold your breath long enough, do the exercise only three times instead of five times. Over time, you can then increase to five «turns».

 

By strengthening your Upward Prana in this way, it is almost impossible to develop depression. This Prana sets us up, that is, the opposite of depression, which us literally «oppresses». Even in everyday language it is said that one feels «depressed». The practice should bring increased clarity, as if one stood on a mountain top and looked out into the countryside. Pay attention to how much fresher your senses are afterwards. You experience the light stronger, are more alert. When possible, stay in this relaxed state where the mind has more space when you have completed the exercise. Keep your eyes open, look up a little. Do not chase your thoughts. Do not push it aside. If you are already introduced in the nature of the mind, dwell in it. If not, just try to stay as present as possible and feel your whole body. Pay attention to how your experience changes as a result of practice. Support this change. Stay present as long as the experience feels fresh and open. Then repeat the exercise or move on to the next one.

 

 

The Prana of Life Force

This exercise is associated with the element Space (white).

 

Inhale and hold your breath in the chest. Focus on the Heart Chakra. Continue to inhale while keeping your attention focused on the Heart Chakra. The chest cavity expands as much as possible. Now, hold your breath throughout the following exercise.

 

Now place your left hand on your left hip. The thumb rests on your back, the other four fingers stay in front. The same applies to the right hand, which rests on the right hip.

 

Now extend your right arm sideways until it forms a 45 degree angle with the longitudinal axis of your body. The fingers point in the same direction. (To better describe the exercise, let us assume that you are sitting with your back to the dial of a clock: The twelve o'clock point is above your head, the six o'clock point at your feet. In this exercise, your arm points to the point that equals one-thirty.) Continue holding your breath, moving your hand and arm forward, with your fingers closed around your thumb in sequence, beginning with your index finger.

 

In the end you make a loose fist. Then describe a circle over your head with your arm. (Imagine swinging a lasso over your head, and then the correct arm movement will be easier.) As the hand approaches the Crown Chakra, it begins to open, beginning with the index finger. Then pull the circle backwards and then again sideways with your fingers fully open. Afterwards, she walks sideways to the front, whereby her fist closing. This is a full circular motion. Do this exercise five times with your right hand.

 

Then lower your hand to your hips and lift your left arm instead. Repeat the exercise for the left arm, but this time the hand moves in the opposite direction: from the outstretched position first to the side, then to the forehead, over the Crown Chakra, to the back of the head and then to the side again. Does this exercise five times.

 

As you move your arm over your head, stretch your chest and all the muscles in your upper back. When the hand moves to the side, you should stretch your shoulder in that direction. Move it to the front of the body and then over the head, making sure to keep your elbows stretched.

 

Do not buckle in the chest area: you are still holding your breath. Then lower your left hand to your left hip again. Now rests both hands on your hips and cover the waist as previously stated.

 

Now let the upper body circle vertically. The point is that the Heart Chakra makes a circular movement. The body follows him, so to speak. This movement is first counterclockwise, then clockwise: down, right, up, left, down - five times, then vice versa. Imagine that you connect the Heart Chakra to the ground, but without bending. Then let it go as far out as possible, then up as far as possible, to the other side and back down. Make the movement as much as possible, so that the muscles of the chest and back are strengthened accordingly.

 

Concentrate on the sensation that your heart center revolves and your body just follows. After making ten circular movements, exhale through your nose and mouth and feel the Prana pervading your body. Sit relaxed and let your mind rest in the quiet awareness. Stay that way until that sense of presence slowly diminishes; then you can either repeat the exercise or move on to the next one.

 

 

 

 

The fire-like Prana

This practice is assigned to the element of fire (red).

 

Behind the Navel Center there is always a certain heat development, because there is the center of digestion and metabolism. The Navel Chakra, which sits behind the navel in the middle of the body, is the seat of the Fire-Like Prana.

 

Inhale and hold the air in the abdominal area, concentrating on the Navel Center. They are now doing Kumbaka, the practice of «Holding in the jar». The muscles of the perineum and the anus are slightly tense to lift the pelvic floor. At the same time push down on the diaphragm, the muscle under the costal arch. The breath is held between the pelvic floor and the diaphragm, as if pressed together in the Navel Chakra. The neck should remain wide open. Continue to inhale. Concentrate on the Chakra, make Kumbaka, and let the life-giving breath spread in the abdominal area where it maintains and nourishes the middle of your body.

 

Hold your breath and let the belly circle five times in one direction, then five times in the other. This circular motion is horizontal, i.e. parallel to the ground; like a record spinning on the turntable.

 

Circle the lower abdomen five times in a large arc counterclockwise while concentrating on the breath. Then the countermovement follows: Move the abdominal wall to the right; pull it in until it almost touches the spine, then to the right and again as far forward as possible.

 

Do not exhale until you have completed all circular movements. Linger in a quiet presence. Feel the openness in the navel area and the increasing warmth. Relax and enjoy this experience until it loses its momentum. Then repeat the exercise or move on to the next one.

 

 

 

The All-Pervading Prana

This exercise is associated with the air element (green). The All-Pervading Prana can be found throughout the body. While we're holding our breath in this exercise, we're not concentrating on a particular spot. Make sure that you do not cramp in the neck and that the pelvic floor remains loose. The body has to be «open». Feel how the Prana reaches into each cell, how it expands into the toes and fingertips, reaches every tip of the hair.

 

Breathe in and fold your hands in front of your chest as if in prayer. Continue to inhale and lower your forearms to the groin area. Hold your breath and stretch your hands as shown in picture 2. Now put your arms over your head and clap your hands. Rub your hands together to warm them, and then massage your entire body, especially those areas where you feel blocked.

 

You massage the head, arms, chest, back and legs as if you wanted to wake every single cell in your body. Keep your breath and put your hands on your chest. The thumbs are covered by the other fingers.

 

Now stretch the right arm to the right, imagining that you are holding a bow with it. With your left hand, stretch the bow as shown in picture 7.

 

In this way, you open the chest and tighten the muscles in the upper back. Look in the direction the arrow would fly. Then move your hands toward each other until they are almost touching your chest. The four fingers of each hand are still around the thumb. Does this quickly five times, with your right arm extended as far as possible. With the left »tighten the bow« so that you can feel the pull across the chest.

 

Then repeat the exercise with your left hand, with the right «stretching the bow». Do the exercise five times. Look in the direction in which the arrow would fly. You still hold your breath. If necessary, do not do the exercise as often. Make sure that the breath can flow freely through the body. Only at the end do you exhale. Pay attention to what you feel in the body. In this experience you remain until you lose the connection to the all-pervading energy. Then repeat the exercise or move on to the next one.

 

After this exercise, you will feel very clear in the head. The body feels alive, as if the muscles have awakened. Joy and clarity accompany this practice. Stabilize the experience in the mind. Relax in the natural state of mind.

 

 

 

 

The Downward Prana

This exercise is connected to the Water Element (blue).

 

Inhale and hold your breath in the dam. That's the area between anus and genitals. Concentrate on the Secret Chakra behind the genitals. Tighten the perineum and anus, which lifts the pelvic floor slightly.

 

In this exercise, the diaphragm is not pushed down. You only lift the pelvic floor. Keep breathing and concentrate. The Prana gathers in the Secret Chakra.

 

Now cross your legs over your ankles, your right leg is in front of your left. The knees can point upwards. Now put both hands around the right knee.

 

Now roll the pelvis in the direction of the right knee and back again. Then cover your left knee and do the same. Finally, place your right hand on your right knee, your left hand on your left knee. Then, first roll the abdominal wall five times to the right and then five times to the left. Meanwhile, hold your breath and concentrate on the Secret Chakra. Try to make the chakra circle itself.

 

Exhale when you are done with the circular motions. Steer the Prana down so it leaves your body. Feel how it flows into the earth. Relax with your eyes open, your glance slightly upwards. Linger in this experience until it loses its freshness. Then repeat the exercise as you like. After the last exercise, you remain in a state of contemplation for a longer time.

 

 

 

Finish the series of exercises by dedicating your services to the sentient beings:

 

«We now wish that all the good that has come into being will become limitless, and will dedicate the good impressions created therewith for the enlightenment and the leading good for all beings!»