Understand why the visualisation matters, not only the breath

Kozhevnikov’s 2013 study found the forceful vase breathing makes heat, but the visualisation is what sustains it.

Por qué funciona

Kozhevnikov and colleagues measured armpit (core) temperature and brain activity in expert practitioners in remote monasteries of eastern Tibet, and compared Western participants instructed to use only the somatic component — vase breathing — without the meditative visualisation. Reliable increases into the slight-to-moderate fever range (up to 38.3°C) appeared among meditators only during the Forceful Breath type of tummo, and tracked increases in alpha brain activity. The authors conclude there are two factors: the breathing causes heat production, and the visualisation helps sustain the rise for longer. Without visualisation, meditators and non-meditators alike could keep up Forceful Breath vase breathing only for a limited time, and temperatures stayed within the normal range. The practice the tradition teaches is the combination, not the breath alone.

Cómo hacerlo

1. Read the abstract of Kozhevnikov et al. (2013), “Legend and Reality,” and note its two studies.
2. Note the two types of practice the authors describe from oral tradition: Forceful Breath, to raise heat, and Gentle Breath, to maintain it.
3. Notice that the breathing alone, without the visualisation, produced only limited increases that stayed within normal temperature.
4. Let this inform how you judge “tummo breathing” courses that teach only the breathing: by this study’s findings, they leave out the part that sustained the effect.
5. Leave the actual visualisation and vase breathing to a qualified teacher.

Evidencia

Kozhevnikov et al. (2013) report reliable axillary temperature increases up to 38.3°C only during Forceful Breath tummo, correlated with alpha power, and conclude that a somatic component causes thermogenesis while a neurocognitive component, the visualisation, aids in sustaining it; without visualisation, both meditators and non-meditators could use Forceful Breath only for a limited time, with increases in the normal range. The paper describes vase breathing as holding the breath after inhalation while contracting abdominal and pelvic muscles, and notes that the Gentle Breath type, not the Forceful one, is used in the wet-sheet ceremony. A related study by Amihai and Kozhevnikov found that two other Vajrayāna meditations, deity and rigpa practice, produced arousal rather than the relaxation seen in Theravāda practices. (observational)

The authors name a small sample as a limitation, owing to the sacredness of the practice and difficulty of access to practitioners. The study measured temperature and brain activity; it did not test benefits or safety, and the Amihai study did not test tummo.

Fuentes

• Kozhevnikov, M., Elliott, J., Shephard, J., & Gramann, K. (2013). Neurocognitive and Somatic Components of Temperature Increases during g-Tummo Meditation: Legend and Reality. PLoS ONE, 8(3), e58244.
• Amihai, I., & Kozhevnikov, M. (2014). Arousal vs. Relaxation: A Comparison of the Neurophysiological and Cognitive Correlates of Vajrayana and Theravada Meditative Practices. PLoS ONE, 9(7), e102990.

Error común

Concluding that because the breathing makes heat, the breathing is tummo. In this study the breathing alone could be kept up only briefly, and the tradition never separates it from the visualisation and its purpose.