Prana: The Vital Wind

Prana is used in both a general sense and a specific sense in Ayurveda. In a general sense, prana is the animating force of the body that we receive through the air we breathe, and the food and water we drink. In Ayurveda prana is intimately connected to vata dosha, and in this sense, vata represents prana in a disturbed state. Ayurveda delineates five specific aspects to prana, as different vayus or ‘winds’ of the body.