I am looking for some input on this. My primary Buddhist teacher is a wonderful speaker and shows great compassion, but he does not practice Hatha Yoga. My primary Yoga teacher is another wonderful soul and exudes the Eight Limbs in a humbling yet noble way, but he is not well versed in Buddhist practices.
Om Ah Hum
This is a breathing meditation found in many Buddhist circles. My experience with it is within the New Kadampa Tradition via the teachings of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. There are numerous articles and books on the topic with great depth, so I will keep this explanation intentionally short to focus on my question at hand.
The general concept is that you think "OM" when you breath in, "AH" between the inhale and exhale, and "HUM" upon the exhale. This breathing meditation is useful for calming the mind, although does not replace in any way the contemplative meditations one undertakes when practicing Buddhism. The "thoughts" of those sounds is a summary, but what you should actually be concentrating on is not so much the sound, but the meaning. These are each linked to three things: OM links to Buddha's Body; AH to Buddha's Speech; HUM to Buddha's Mind. One could argue (I think with some success) that replacing the old Tibetan sounds with English words Body Speech Mind would be just as effective if the intent is the same.
With the links to the enlightened body, speech and mind in these sounds, we should be contemplating the meanings in some detail for the full effect, but it is beyond my expertise to provide a teaching on this subject in this space at this time. If you are unfamiliar but interested, a simple internet search with reveal numerous learning paths.
Hatha Yoga
The practice of Hatha Yoga focuses on the poses and positions used to strengthen, heal, and re-center the body. Breathing is obviously an important component of such practice, and teachers will often instruct students on this. Maybe it's a simple reminder to breath during long poses, as one's tendency may be to hold the breath in during exertion. Across various poses, different breathing methods are more or less appropriate. Sometimes deep belly breathing, filling the lower lungs first by pushing down the diaphragm, then filling the upper lungs last, is correct. At other times, expansion of the upper chest is applicable.
Quandary
Where my question arises is the point in poses when one breathes deeply, holds for a moment, then exhales. At this point, my mind wants to link this action with the breathing meditation. Often I will think OM AH HUM during this set of poses. I do not know if this is correct. To my mind, the benefit is calming the mind while strengthening the body. However, it may also be a cause of distraction. If I am focused on the teachings of Buddha during a yoga session, I am not focused on my teacher's words nor my body's responses to the poses. If I lose concentration during yoga, I will not receive the maximum benefits of the practice.
Open Question: is it good practice to combine a breathing meditation with yoga poses?
One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself. -- Leonardo da Vinci
