Cosmobiological Rhythms – Time Structure of Breathing

1. Chronobiological Background

In the past few decades’ research in Chronobiology have demonstrated the existence of identifiable
time structures for many key physiological variables. Most of the research in the field is focused on
the implications of this temporal organization of physiological functions such as change in resistance
and susceptibility of the body to stimuli, hormones or medicines. As observed by Halberg1, the stage
of the body’s rhythm at the time of exposure to a stimulus can account for the difference between
convulsion or no convulsion, malignancy or no malignancy, even for life and death. Studies have
brought out that the same stimulus increases or decreases the blood pressure depending on the
circadian stage at which the medicine is applied. Also it has been shown that the same amount of
dietary salt per day affected blood pressure in a quite different way depending on how it was
distributed among the three daily meals2. Importance of rhythm is thus receiving added recognition
and this research initiative covers efforts in –

(a) Mapping the time structures of key physiological variables and their implications in …
(b) Concomitant monitoring of physiologically notable cardiovascular and cosmo-helio and
geophysical variables
(c) Glean the helio-geophysical time structures that may have existed at the sites of life’s origins
wherever they may have been.

This involves –

Studies to understand the circadian and other ultradian and infradian rhythms which are
superimposed on seemingly chaotic changes. Monitoring of Physiological variables to look
for matching patterns with the geophysical ones. For example periodicities or other patterns
found in geophysics such as half-yearly patterns will lead to exploration of their numerical
counterparts in other fields such as those of biomedicine (i.e. half-yearly pattern in epilepsy
and weekly components) and vice versa, as a first step.3 Reported rhythms include
circaseptan or Seven-day changes (in human heart rate), circatrigintan (30 days), circannual
etc. Further scrutiny of physiological time series recorded concomitantly with the cosmo-
geophysical variables is being undertaken at various places to establish the complimenting
aspect of chronomes to genomes in shaping an internally integrative evolution of the human
species rather than an externally adaptive evolution.

2. Time Structure of Breathing Behavior

Against the above background of chronobiological studies, a study has been made of the
ancient notions of Yoga on breathing patterns of human beings. Scope of the study may be
framed in the following questions –

Can there be a time structure for breathing behavior of mammals/human beings?

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 If yes, can the time structure of breathing be mapped with appropriate observations?
If No, why? How the most vital function of the biological machine is immune to a time
structure based on the luni-solar-geo rhythms?
Do not the rest of the related clock mechanisms imply that the breathing also must have a time
structure based on cosmo-biological factors?
What is the possibility for the high frequency breathing rhythm to be basic to other rhythms
operating in the body?

In looking for an answer to the above questions, in Yoga literature we come to note the
following interesting observations:

a) 21600 are the breaths in a day and thus earth’s rotation was conceived by ancient
savants in terms of the number of breaths – in one breath, earth’s rotation amounted
to 1 minute of arc and thus the ancient literature point towards a circadian rhythm of
breathing from sunrise to sunrise.
b) A seven-day overlay represented by cultural signature of weekdays – i.e. a
Circaseptan rhythm of breathing.
c) Circatrigintan of 30 degrees revolution of the earth around sun
d) Circannual rhythm of 360 degrees revolution of earth around sun
e) Yoga precepts also point towards hourly ultradian rhythms operating during day and
night with 12-hour day-night patterns.
Further, it may be of relevance to note that one of the most important Yogic exercises viz.,
Pr n y ma is concerned with regulation of breathing which is treated as vital to the control
of mental activity – psychic state of the individual that has a bearing on other physiological
variables. Breathing rhythms as such may be fundamental to other biological rhythms
operating in the body and thus the study of the time structure of breathing may lead to the
basic matrix over which other rhythms can be examined.

3. Geometry of the Circannual Rhythm of Breathing and its components

Most interesting feature of the breathing rhythm in its circannual aspect is the correlation
that Yoga precepts suggest to a specific geometry of the apparent solar orbit. Sidereal
revolution of earth around sun beginning at the star Lambda Scorpii defined to be of 2400
sidereal longitude (or the bottom of the cerebro-spinal axis of the Cosmic Man conceived as
a Yogi) marks the beginning of the cycle and in ancient India solar transit of this particular
point was celebrated by the lighting of lamps to reflect the new year and a new creative
cycle. This creative circannual cycle had smaller components in terms of solar months,
weeks and days.

Above cycle had a division into 12 monthly patterns that formed the 12 ancient sidereal
zodiac signs. Solar cross over at each 300 multiple was termed “samkrama” which meant a
change over of breath from one nostril to the other. Quadrangular division of the cycle at
longitudes 0, 90, 180 and 2700 received special mention in ancient literature.

4. Monthly Transit of Sun and Correlation to Breathing

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Easiest option for a verification of the above Cosmo-biological rhythm is to watch for the
transit of breath from one nostril to the other at the specific moments as shown below:

Table-Ι: Solar Transit Data for 2005

Longitude Time of
Date GMT
Sid. λ transit in IST
January 14, 2005 2700 22:55 17:25
0
February 13, 2005 300 12:05 06:35
March 15, 2005 330 09:14 03:44
April 14, 2005 0 18:05 12:35
May 15, 2005 30 15:17 09:47
June 15, 2005 60 22:02 16:32
July 17, 2005 90 08:58 03:28
August 17, 2005 120 17:15 11:45
September 17, 2005 150 16:51 11:21
October 18, 2005 180 04:28 22:58→ 17th
November 17, 2005 210 03:57 22:27 → 16th
0
December 16, 2005 240 18:24 12:54

In the vicinity of these moments, breaths undergo a shift of path, from one nostril to the other
and the breath current has other distinctive features at these times. All individuals can
personally experience this effect of Sun, next time on 14 April 2005 at 12:35 GMT and
15th May 2005, 09:47 GMT and at other moments indicated in the Table.

16th December 2005, 12:54 UT will mark the beginning of a new creative cycle when Sun
transits over Lambda Scorpii which is located very close to galactic center.

5. Elaboration of the Yoga Precepts on Zodiac

In view of the numerous notions on Zodiac prevailing in the pseudo scientific practice of
astrology, confusion may be caused by the reference to Zodiac. Present work has nothing
to do with such pseudo scientific notions. According to the tenets of Yoga, the Cosmic
Man of Time or the mathematical abstraction of the apparent solar orbit as the Wheel
of Time is a Yogi engaged in breathing exercise [or Pr n yama in Sanskrit]. Breathing
Cycle of this Cosmic Yogi begins with exhalation during Sun’s transit across sidereal
Capricorn (2700) to Sidereal Cancer (900) and then on the other half inhalation takes place.
One year was thus one breath of the Cosmic Man according to the Yoga tenets.

Further it may be noted that the experienced correlation between the movement of Sun and
breathing behavior gave the appellation of “Pr na-S rya” to breath. Whole of Yoga tradition
in the ancient world thus suggests a correlation between the apparent course of Sun i.e.
rotation and revolution of earth round Sun and the breathing behavior.

6. Circadian and Circaseptan patterns

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Circadian rhythm of breathing begins at sunrise and has quadrangular structure decided by
sunrise, upper transit, sunset and lower transit of Sun. Each quarter are 6 equal divisions
and approximates an hour. Each hour is specified to have the well-known Moon & Sun or
yin and yang or auspicious-inauspicious qualities. Moon’s hour is treated as beneficial
for biomedical aspects during daytime and Sun’s hour for nighttime.

Among the above 24 hourly states of a day, the sequence of 7 each is ascribed special
qualities like the seven weekdays. So a particular breathing sequence beginning on
Saturday has states as represented by different colors as shown or in terms of ancient
symbolism of planets as Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, and Moon, which
repeat in cycles, and the 25th hourly state is the first of the next weekday.

Table -ΙΙΙ (a): Hourly States

Weekday/
Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Hour
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

Table -ΙΙ (b): Hourly States In terms of planetary symbolism

Weekday/
Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Hour
1 Saturn Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus

4
 2 Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury
3 Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon
4 Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday
5 Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter
6 Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars
7 Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun
8 Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus
9 Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury
10 Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon
11 Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday
12 Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter
13 Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars
14 Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun
15 Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus
16 Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury
17 Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon
18 Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday
19 Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter
20 Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars
21 Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun
22 Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus
23 Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon Mars Mercury
24 Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus Saturday Sun Moon

Deeper rhythms or micro patterns in terms of the five elements also find a mention in the
Sanskrit Yoga and Tantra literature. Different weekdays are characterized by special three-
hour patterns within which the five elements are said to rise in the order Earth, Water, Fire,
Air, Ether and then in reverse as Ether, Air… to complete the cycle of 3 hours. Each of the
elements has special duration as shown in Table in minutes. Green is Earth, Yellow is
Water, Red is Fire, White is Air, and sky blue is Ether. Tantra literature attaches special
importance to the rise of these so-called primordial elements, which makes or mars the
auspiciousness in general. Irrespective of the minor details and features that Tantra
literature ascribe, the tenets point towards a deeper time structure of breathing which may
be delineated and put to effective use in chronobiology and chronobiochemistry. 2 each of
three-hour patterns occur between sunrise, upper transit, sunset and lower transit and the
day-quadrants decide the time intervals in the proportion given. Each quadrant is 6 hours or
360 minutes and accordingly we need to look at the numbers 6, 12, 18 .. given as minutes.

Table - ΙΙΙ: 3-Hour States in Weekdays

Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday

6 30 12 24 18 12 18
12 30 18 30 24 18 24

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 18 24 24 30 30 24 30
24 18 30 24 30 30 30
30 12 30 18 24 30 24
30 6 24 12 18 24 18
24 6 18 6 12 18 12
18 12 12 6 6 12 6
12 18 6 12 6 6 6
6 24 6 18 12 6 12

Perhaps, here we are meeting with the Yoga principle that may facilitate a better
chronobiochemistry than the hitherto achieved results. Breathing being the most vital
function and perhaps the reflection of the basic time sense of the body arising from
controllers like SCN or pineal gland, the time structure of breathing may have the potential
to enable a better delineation of the chronome of human beings.

7. Original Precepts in Sanskrit Tantra Literature

(a) Breaths move in the fashion of Ham-sa 21600 times per day

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(b) The following verse describes exhalation as the alphabet ‘ha’ and inhalation as ‘sa’ so that
the breathing may be denoted as “ham-sa” – and epithet of Sun.

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All human beings chant the mantra 21600 times a day and it is this phenomenon that
inspired the T ntriks to divide the path of Sun and Moon into 21600 kal s. It cannot be
otherwise -the design that made on the sky had as its basis an earthly experience.

(c) The following verse describes alternate symbolism of the left nostril as represented by Moon
and the right nostril as represented by Sun.

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Id (left nostril) and Pi gal (right nostril) also are known as Moon and Sun paths and the
same is described as aligned along the route of Pr na.

(d) The following verse describes the change of breathing state in the bright and dark fortnights
of the lunar month.
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“On the first day of the bright fortnight left nostril is more active while for the first day of the
dark fortnight, the right nostril is more active. They remain powerful as described, especially
for the first three days of each fortnight”

(e) The daily breathing pattern of the fortnights are described as:

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“Breath a of Moon or left nostril in light fortnight and breath of Sun or right nostril in dark
fortnight covers the 24 hours of the day, alternately for one hour. Yogis should keenly
understand the onset of light and dark fortnights by the occurrence of the breath in the left
and right nostrils respectively”

Here we see find an ideal pattern of breathing described in relation to the luni-solar
phenomena and as explained in the succeeding verses, the aim of Pr n y ma or breathing
exercise of Yoga is to achieve control over the breathing process to achieve the desired
pattern – one who has control over the two paths viz., the left and right nostril breaths is a
Yogi.

(f) The interrelationship of the breaths and the external luni-solar cycles is clearly stated as:
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“The sun is in control of the sun breath or right nostril and moon is linked to the left nostril.
One who knows the maintenance of this rhythm can have great success in life. Sunrise
during left nostril breathing and sunset in right nostril breath keeps one in the best of
qualities and the opposite is to be avoided”

(g) Significance of the weekdays is explained as:

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“On Monday, Thursday, Wednesday and Friday, especially in the bright fortnight and on
Sunday, Tuesday and Saturday especially in the dark fortnight, the left and right nostrils are
respectively auspicious for undertaking all works”

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 (h) Year beginning and the solstices for the Cosmic Man in Breathing Exercise

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“On the morning of the sidereal Aries ingress or the nearby occurring bright half and for the
sidereal Capricorn and Cancer ingresses the adept Yogi must observe the flow of the five
elements to understand the nature of time ahead”

We thus find a description of the various elements of the luni-solar calendar in relation to the
breathing phenomenon of the human body. Extreme importance attached to astronomy in
the ancient civilizations and Hindu way of life now allows a better comprehension. The left
and right paths of breaths (similar to the Yin and Yang duality) and the simultaneous flow of
breath in both, the three possibilities were known all through out the ancient world as is
evident from the Greek Legend of Aesculapius:

Aesculapius was the son of Apollo, the God of prophecy and healing -the equivalent of the
Siva of Hindus. Aesculapius was tutored in medicine by Centaur and became very proficient
and got killed by Jupiter on the request of Hades who feared that Aesculapius would make
all immortal. Winged staff and the serpent was obviously the symbol of such healers who
had the healing power gained through occult practices like Yoga. A single serpent
represented the simultaneous flow or the serpentine healing power while two intertwined
were left and right nostril paths of breath. There’s no conflict as some people tries to make
out that the staff of Aesculapius had only one serpent. He chose to represent as his symbol
the serpentine healing power represented by simultaneous flow in nostrils instead of the two
paths of Caduceus. Winged Staff as the symbol of healing and the association of Sagittarius
with the God of healing reminds us of the Hindu legends on churning of the Milky way for
the elixir of immortality.

8. Abstraction of the Correlation Between Sun and Breathing

In India the above correlation of the sun and breathing behavior was the basis of the
mathematical formulation of the sidereal zodiac or wheel of time or calendar on the
apparent orbit of Sun. Reference star that facilitated the above abstraction viz., Lambda
Scorpii marked the position of Phallus (2400) on the human body and thus the ancient
civilizations chose to worship time as Phallus. In India, Phallus not only represented time but
also got personified as God Siva – the Preceptor of Yoga, Astronomy, Astrology and all
creative pursuits. Such deep-rooted cultural signatures may be a pointer towards the wide
prevalence of Yoga and occult practices in the ancient world and awareness regarding the
correlation between Sun and the breathing behavior.

9. Conclusions

1. A time structure can be delineated for human breathing behavior based on the Yoga
conception of the wheel of time as abstraction of the correlation between the
apparent course of the Sun and breathing patterns.

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2. Verification of the above time structure can be easily done by watching the 12
monthly transits of breaths from one nostril to the other corresponding to the
apparent solar ingresses to the 12 sidereal signs.

3. Deeper studies can be attempted if (2) above can be accomplished.

4. Breathing rhythms may be reflective of the basic time structure of the human body
and thus of fundamental significance to the rhythms associated with other
physiological variables.

chandrahari81@yahoo.com