In this episode, I welcome Dr Paul Dallaghan as a guest. He has been guiding me in my Pranayama practice for the past 14 years – so it’s both and honor and pleasure to talk to him about breathing, yoga and a well-rounded practice protocol for physical, mental and emotional well-being.
We talk about Paul’s story of starting yoga practices (ashtanga vinyasa and Pranayama) in the 1990s in New York, his Ph.D. studies about the effects of breath and pranayama, and the importance of
– first developing a „base breath“before layering on particular techniques,
– pre-breath supportive practices that prepare the body for experiencing
– hyped breathing techniques on social media vs mature practices that develop through consistent regular practice under the guidance of an experienced teacher
– possible problems with hyping techniques that create a strong physical response (such as hyperventilation, strong pumping without proper technique)
– and much more
More about Paul (taken from https://samahitaretreat.com/teachers/paul-dallaghan/):
Dr. Paul D. has devoted the last three decades to developing expertise in the field of breath-mind-body lifestyle. He has a specialized background that ranges from advanced practitioner to accomplished academic scholar while being a pioneering entrepreneur. This experience and set of unique accomplishments stem from three dedicated pursuits.
Paul earned a Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology from one of the leading universities in the US, (Emory). It covered a dual-disciplinary approach with an in-depth study of the yoga tradition, philosophy, and textual history, as well as a scientific study on yoga and the breath in relation to stress, anxiety, and longevity across physiological, neuroscientific, and psychological disciplines.
Equally, he has been acknowledged in the Yoga tradition with the unique title of “Master Yogi-Prānācharya (expert in breath)”. He was fortunate at a young age to immerse in the original yogic culture, and receive one-on-one direct training in practice along with the study of ancient texts. He is identified as a ‘Teacher-of-teachers’ and carries the tradition of Prānāyāma (breath practice) forward, from Sri O.P.Tiwari and Kuvalayananda’s Kaivalyadhama lineage in India. Paul also dedicated years of practice in Mysore, India, to become one of a handful of senior students to be personally certified by the now-deceased ashtanga vinyasa master, P. Jois, after reaching the advanced level of body posture practice.
Thirdly, as both a teacher and entrepreneur, Paul established Centered Yoga as a training school in 1999 in NYC. He relocated to Thailand in 2001 and established the first yoga-breath-meditation retreat center in Asia, Samahita Retreat, in 2003, based on sustainable principles that the hospitality industry is only recently starting to pay attention to.
During this entire time Paul has continued a daily breath-mind-body practice and taught thousands of individuals. Living in Thailand for many years Paul has also been involved in Buddhist culture and practices, many retreats in forest monasteries which are curiously appropriate for all these yogic practices. He is still a student and loves to share and learn. In this sense, his interest lies in achieving balance, which Paul terms as “centered”, and where his focus in academic scientific research hopes to contribute to what is the beautiful ongoing legacy of yoga and its practices: the internal life, the inner space, pure joy, sukha, centered. At Samahita Paul and the team teach students from all backgrounds and all levels of physical and mental readiness in Centered Yoga as an open-minded method to encourage inner awareness.
He believes in the mission of spreading health and wellbeing through engaged participation in practices. He also emphasizes that the fields of yoga and meditation are one, not separate techniques, commonly united on the internal path of both an open heart and sincere self-examination. Spiritual growth and practice involve a spectrum of approaches that include physical fitness for the body, āsana for neuro-physiological cultivation and refinement, prānāyāma as a key to the internal, and meditative techniques of many forms to enhance the inner experience further.
Paul occupies a unique space to impart genuine experiential teaching as well as the science and understanding of these practices, especially in terms of practical applications for stress, anxiety, burnout, and a business understanding of the lifestyle market. His sincere and ongoing role is to teach, write and research, to help people improve their mental and physical health. He is an extremely natural and gifted speaker and has taught and spoken at events all over the world.
Enjoy!
If you want to build the foundation of impeccable breathing, consider joining the upcoming MasterYourBreath course – More info: https://tomrichter.yoga/learn-myb
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Thank you for listening!
