APPENDICES

L
PA R T 4 | Section

E N E R G I Z AT I O N
EXERCISES

The Energization Exercises teach how to re-

charge the body battery with fresh life current
by increasing the power of will. They strengthen
and re-charge the muscles with vital force, not
only collectively but individually, and teach
how to surround each body cell with a ring of
super-charged electrical vital energy and thus
keep them free from decay or bacterial inva-
sion. They keep not only the muscles, but all
the tissues of the body, bones, marrow, brain,
and cells in perfect health, and cause the resur-
rection of dying tissue cells and worn out facul-
ties, and the formation of billions of new cells.”
~ !aramhansa Yogananda ~

! TA B L E O F CO NTE NTS !
Guidelines for practicing 2
Energization Exercises 5
 GUIDELINES FOR PRACTISING Double Breathing
THE ENERGIZATION EXERCISES Some of the exercises require “double breathing,” while
in others this breathing pattern is not necessary, or is op-
tional. Double breathing allows you to inhale and exhale
Awareness of cosmic energy more deeply and to oxygenate the blood. The double
While your concentration should be at the cen- inhalation is done by using the diaphragm to draw into
tre of the muscle or muscles you are tensing, the nostrils (with mouth closed) first a sharp, short in-
you should try to become increasingly aware of halation, followed immediately by a longer, smoother
the flow of cosmic energy which enters the body inhalation. The double exhalation follows the same pat-
through a subtle doorway, located at the medulla oblongata, at the base tern, with a short and then a longer exhalation from the
of the brain, and floods downwards, directed by the will power. Once you mouth and nose, with the sound “ha-haaaa.”
have learned the exercises, try to keep your eyes closed and directed up-
wards towards the centre of will power, at the point between the eyebrows. !
! Isolate each muscle
Do your best to focus on one muscle only (in
Use conscious will during the exercises some exercises concentration is required on two
The energy flow is directed to the various body parts or four muscles simultaneously), causing only
through the instruments of our will power and con- that muscle to vibrate. There are, of course,
centrated mind. Try to apply Yogananda’s axiom, fibres which connect many of the muscles, so
“The greater the will, the greater the flow of energy.” complete isolation is not possible. To obtain the
with each exercise. maximum benefits from these exercises, attempt
to visualise and focus in the centre of the appro-
! priate muscle or muscles, while maintaining the
“Tense with will, relax and feel” other muscles relaxed. Energy follows thought,
During the tension phase of each exercise, we deliber- and the prana will arrive to those areas in which
ately and gradually bring each muscle from low to high our mind is focused.
tension, and then vibrate it with great will power. The
vibration phase should be done with as much power as
!
possible, without exaggerating to the point where the Where to practice
muscle becoms damaged. During the relaxation phase we gradually bring These exercises can be done in almost any location. It is
the muscle to a state of complete relaxation, feeling the flow of energy ideal to practise them in the fresh air, either outdoors or
infusing the area which has been energized. Both the tension and the re- in front of an open window. When these conditions are
laxation phases should be gradual and smooth, increasing and decreasing not possible (while seated on an airplane for example),
in a flowing rhythm. In this way we bring the flow of prana under our the exercises can still be done, many of them even in a
conscious control, an ability which we can then use in all aspects of life. seated position, or lying down.
~ 2~ ~3 ~
 Practise regularly and often
The more you practise the exercises, the more capable you become in THE ENERGIZATION EXERCISES
drawing prana into your body and mind at will. Try to practise the entire THE PRACTICE
set at least once, preferably twice a day, and use the 20-part recharging ex-
ercise as often as possible. In situations where you are not able to perform Practice each exercise three to five times, or more if you
them in a standing position (in public transportation, during periods of wish. In those exercises which recharge both sides of the
illness when you are confined to abed, etc.), you can vibrate those muscles body alternately, always begin on the left side.
which you can reach, and do the other exercises mentally.

PRAYER
“O Infinite Spirit,
Recharge this body with
Thy cosmic energy;
this mind with Thy concentration;
and this soul with Thy ever-new joy.
O eternal youth of body and mind,
! abide in me forever and ever.”
Cautions
If you suffer from high blood pressure, use medium rather than high ten- 1
sion during the exercises. If any muscle has been injured, it should be Double-breathing with palms touching
recharged either with light tension if possible, or if you are unable to tense With your arms extended to the side at shoulder level, and with a double
at all, then do the exercise only mentally. If you have a condition which exhalation, bring your arms together in front of you, with the palms
prevents you from practising any of the exercises as instructed, try your touching, and the knees bent. With a double inhalation, tense the entire
best to approximate the exercise, or do it mentally. If necessary, any or all body upwards in a wave, as you straighten your legs and pull the arms
the exercises can be done sitting in a chair. back outward against a resisting force. With a double exhalation relax the
body downward, closing the arms again and flexing the knees.
!
Do the exercises joyfully
The will power which is used in performing the exercises
is not grim or severe. Yogananda preferred the word “will-
ingness” to indicate an attitude of openess and enjoyment
in bringing a nourishing meal of energy to the body. The
cells rejoice when we energize. You can keep this affirma-
tion in mind, “Awake! Rejoice, awake my body cells.”
~ 4~ ~5 ~
 2 6
Calf recharging, with Back recharging
C
a) Tense and relax the lower back muscles, in the lumbar
3 B
area, alternating left and right three times; b) then the
ankle rotation A middle back muscles, between the shoulder blades; c)
Balancing on the right leg, pull the left leg up- and finally the upper muscles, above the shoulder blades.
wards, bending at the knee, tensing the calf muscle
as though pulling against a weight. Relax briefly,
and then push the leg down against a weight. Prac- 7
tice three or more times and then rotate foot with Shoulder rotation
tension in the ankle, three times in each direction. With your fingers resting on your shoulders, rotate the
Repeat with the other leg. shoulders with tension in large circles, three or more
times in each direction.

4 8
Calf and forearm; thigh and upper arm Throat recharging
With your weight on the right leg, place your left Tense and relax the entire throat and neck muscles three
leg slightly in front, and simultaneously tense the times, and then alternate on the left and right sides of
calf and forearm gradually from low, to medium, to the neck three times.
high tension, and then vibrate them. Relax gradu-
ally in reverse order. Repeat this with the thigh and
upper arm muscles. Alternating between the upper
9
Neck recharging
and lower muscles, do this three times on the left
side, then three times on the right. Then with your With a double exhalation, slowly relax and lower your
weight on both legs equally, tense both calves and head until your chin touches or is near your chest. As if
both forearms simultaneously, and relax; and then the chin were tied to the chest, and with a double inhala-
both thighs and both upper arms, and relax. Re- tion, pull the head slowly up and back, vibrating the neck
peat at least three times. muscles. Relax slowly downwards with a double exhala-
tion, and repeat several times.

5 !º
Buttock and chest recharging Neck rotation, cervical adjustment
Gradually tense and vibrate the left buttock and Tensing the muscles on the inside and outside of the
left chest muscles together, and gradually relax neck, rotate your head three times in one direction, and
them, and repeat on the right side, alternating left then in the other direction. Repeat the rotations without
and right at least three times. tension.
~ 6~ ~7 ~
 !¡ !∞
Lower spinal adjustment Upper spinal adjustment
With the feet apart, and the arms bent at the With the feet apart and the arms straight out in
elbow and placed at the level of the hips, twist the front of the body at shoulder height, and keeping
hips and lower body in one direction while the the legs and hips stationary, draw the arms back to
shoulders and arms move in the other direction. the left with tension, bringing the right hand to the
The motions are brisk and defined, moving left and chest. Relax back to the starting point, and repeat
right several times. to the right side. The head follows the motion of
the arms.
!™
Spinal rotation !§
Brain cell recharging
With the feet apart, the hands on the waist, the head
in line with the spine and looking straight ahead, Briskly rap the entire skull and forehead with the
bend slightly forward arching the spine. With ten- knuckles, stimulating the energy in the brain cells.
sion in the arched spine, rotate the upper body at
least three times in each direction, maintaining the
legs and hips stationary.
!¶
Scalp massage
Press the fingertips firmly on the scalp and move the
!£ scalp forwards and backwards, left and right, and
Lateral spinal stretching then rotate in each direction. Then move the fingers
With the feet still apart, hands on the hips, and with and repeat until the entire scalp has been massaged.
tension in the spine, push against that tension to the
left, and then to the right, several times.
!•
Medulla memory exercise
!¢ Joining the forefinger, middle finger and ring finger
Vertebrae adjustment of each hand, place them at the medulla oblongata
Bend slightly forward with your fists pressing firmly and with pressure rotate them in small circles in
on the muscles on each side of the spinal column. each direction several times. Then bring your head
Starting at the base of the spine, and pressing inward slowly back against the pressure of your fingers, with
and upward with the knuckles, arch your spine and a double inhalation. With a double exhalation, relax
thrust the upper body backwards, coming up onto the tension and bring the chin down to the chest,
the toes. Repeat this movement with the knuckles with a decisive but not violent movement. Repeat
positioned one vertebrae higher with each cycle. several times.
~ 8~ ~9 ~
 !ª @¡
Biceps recharging Weight lifting in front
With your hands clasped over or resting on With your arms down at your sides, and the
your head, gradually tense, vibrate and then fists facing each other, tense your arms as if
relax the biceps, alternating to the left and you are pulling up heavy weights. Vibrating
right several times. the arms, bring the fists to your chest, relax
briefly, and push them down, with the fists
20 19 @º still facing each other. Repeat several times.
Optional double inhalation with the upward
18 17 Twenty-part body recharging
movement and exhalation with the down-
16 15 PHASE ONE: With a double inhalation, ward movement.
14 13 gradually tense all body muscles simultane-
ously (low-medium-high), vibrate the whole
12 11
9
body strongly, and relax gradually with a @™
10
8 double exhalation.
7 Double breathing with elbows touching
6 5 PHASE TWO: Gradually tense and relax each With your elbows bent, lift your arms to the
of the twenty body parts individually, alter- side of the head at shoulder level. With a
nating from left to right: feet, calves, thighs, double exhalation, bring the elbows together
4 3
buttocks, lower and upper abdominal mus- in front of the chest as you bend at the knees.
cles, forearms, upper arms, chest muscles, With a double inhalation, vibrate and pull
2 1 the arms back to the starting position, as you
neck (left side, right side, front and back).
tense the lower body in a wave upwards, sim-
PHASE THREE: Repeat the exercise, this time maintaining the tension at a ilar to the first exercise. Repeat several times.
medium level in each part, as you slowly inhale. When the entire body is
tense, vibrate it briefly and strongly, and then... @£
PHASE FOUR: Relax each muscle individually in the reverse order as you Weight pulling to the side
slowly exhale. Begin the relaxation phase by bringing the chin to the chest With the arms extended to the sides at shoul-
and thus relaxing all four parts of the neck. der level, and parallel to the floor, clench
your fists in an upward position, and draw
PHASE FIVE: With the chin still on the chest, take a double inhalation and the arms towards the head, as though pulling
gradually tense, and vibrate the whole body, and then gradually relax, with heavy weights towards you. Relax briefly and
a double exhalation.* push the arms out again, making them vi-
*In a conversation with Swami Kriyananda about the exercises, he remarked: “Yogananda brate. Repeat several times. Optional double
continued to refine the exercises. He showed us this addition to the 20-part recharging and breathing.
instructed us to practice it and teach it this way.”

~1 0 ~ ~ 11~
 @¢ @¶
Arm rotation in small circles Arm recharging in four phases
With the arms extended to the side at shoul- Bring the fists up to the chest in
der level and the fists upwards, rotate the arms the starting position.
in small circles, tensing harder and harder all
the time. Then relax momentarily, and rotate
in the opposite direction.

@∞ (a) While inhaling, push the arms out to

Weight pulling to the forehead
Begin with the backs of your fists near your the sides with tension, relax briefly, and
forehead. Extend your arms straight out in then pull them back with tension to
front, vibrating them as though pushing the starting position, and relax briefly.
weights. Relax briefly, and pull the weights
back in. Optional double breathing.

@§ (b) With tension again in the arms, and exhal-

Finger recharging ing, push the arms out in front of you, relax
With the arms relaxed down at your sides, briefly, and pull them back with tension to
open and close the hands vigorously several the starting position.
times, with tension. Repeat the exercise with
the arms extended laterally, then again with
the arms extended in front of the body, and
finally with the arms extended over the head.
(c) Now with tension and a double
inhalation, lift them over your
head, coming onto the toes.

(d) With relaxed arms and a double exhalation,

bring the weights down first to the chest,
and then down to your sides.
~1 2 ~ ~ 13~
 @• #™
Overhead weight lifting Fencing
Tense your left arm as though holding a weight With both fists on your chest, step forward
in your hand, and inhale with a double breath as with your left leg and, with a double exhala-
you lift it over your head, coming up onto your tion, thrust the right arm and fist to the front,
toes. With a double exhalation, relax the arm as as though you were pushing a heavy door. Keep
you bring it back down. Repeat with alternate the spine straight and tense, with tension as well
arms, several times. in the chest, the back leg and the extended arm,
as you move from the standing to the thrusting
@ª position. Both feet are flat on the floor. With a
Lateral weight lifting double inhalation, relax and return to the stand-
With the feet apart, tense the left arm as though ing position, and repeat the exercise with the
holding a weight, and with a double inhalation other leg and arm, alternating several times.
bring the arm up laterally until the upper arm
touches the head, bending very slightly to the #£
right side. With a double exhalation relax the Arm rotation in large circles
arm downwards, and repeat with alternate arms, As you inhale, lift the tensed arms in a large arc
several times. over your head, and with an exhalation bring
them down behind you, relaxing them. Repeat
at least three times in each direction.
#º
Walking in place
Walk in place with an exaggerated marching #¢
step, lifting your knees high and swinging the Stomach recharging
opposite arm. Continue for 50-100 steps, be- FIRST PHASE: known as udyana bandha. Ex-
coming aware of the energy flowing to and hale completely, as you bring the upper body
through the body. forward, resting the heels of your hands on the
thighs. With the breath still out, draw your
stomach in strongly and hold it against your
#¡ spine for as long as you comfortably can.
Running in place
Run in place, lifting the knees as before, and at SECOND PHASE: exhale again and resume the
the same time bring the heels up to touch the forward position, this time drawing the stomach
buttocks if you can. The arms remain stationary, More advanced phases of this in and pushing it out as many times as you
bent at the elbows. 50-100 steps. exercise are shown on the video comfortably can.

~1 4 ~ ~ 15~
 #∞
Double breathing with palms touching
This exercise is the same as the first one.

#§
Calf recharging, with
#¶
ankle rotation
This is a repetition of the second exercise.

#•
Hip recharging
Balancing with your weight on the right leg,
rotate your straightened left leg in medium
circles, with the foot close to the floor, three
or more circles in each direction. Repeat on
the right side.

#ª
Double breathing without tension
Keeping your mind at the point between
the eyebrows and looking up with closed
eyes, bring your hands to the chest, holding
them forward. With complete relaxation,
and a double exhalation, extend the arms
slowly in front of you. Pause and enjoy
the flow of energy you feel throughout the
body. With a double inhalation slowly draw
the arms back to the chest, pausing again
to feel the energy flow. Repeat many times.

~1 6 ~