I've always liked pranayama. I like the high feeling you get after I do it for a while. I like how it seems to clear my nostrils and sinuses and makes it easier to breathe. But I have to admit, all the talk about how it moves energy ... I never really understood all of that. Until now.

After a morning class with Deskichar on how the breath affects your whole being and another class with Rod Stryker about how the bandhas relate to all of it, I think I'm finally starting to get it.

Stryker explained that you could think of the body as a container of energy. In meditation, the mind goes where the energy, or prana, is. If you haven't prepared properly your energy is all over the place--moving out of your container. (This is why when you sit down to meditate your mind wanders.) According to Stryker, the purpose of asana is to remove blockages so your energy inside can move more freely. Then, pranayama collects more energy from around you and brings in inside of you so you have MORE prana in that container. Bhandas focus that prana and hold it in. It all works together to help your meditation practice--which is the whole point of yoga in the first place! Ah ha! There's my light bulb moment!