Introduction Shat Karma, or Shat Kriya as they are often known, are six yogic cleansing processes used by yoga practitioners to help purify the physical body. The body has an incredible natural tendency towards homeostasis i.e. the body will always try to heal itself and achieve good health even when we treat it badly. Cut yourself and the body will repair the damage. Eat unhealthy food and the body will still keep going. In yoga we try to protect ourselves from injury and attempt to avoid harming ourselves by overindulging in unhealthy foods. This is part of the practice of ahimsa – avoiding harmful or injuring behavior either towards oneself or any other beings. Despite all our best intentions and efforts our body sometimes needs a little extra boost to reach a state of optimum health. With the rise of industrialization, mass urbanization and financially driven agriculture, the air we breathe, the food available, even the water we drink may not be as pure and unpolluted as we would wish them to be. The Shat Kriyas come to our aid to help us remove built up toxins from our body, with particular emphasis on the respiratory and digestive systems. 1. Neti 2. Dhauti 3. Nauli 4. Basti 5. Kapalabhati 6. Tratak The six Kriyas are: 1 - Neti kriya two component practices named Jala neti & Sutra neti. Jala neti, which is practiced using a neti pot filled with saline solution to cleanse the nasal passages. In this technique, the head is tilted to the side and then salt water is poured into a nostril and exits through the other nostril. In a more advanced technique, the water is poured into the mouth and snorted out the nose. Sutra neti in which a thread is passed through the nostrils and out of the mouth. The yogi then holds both ends of the string, pulling it back and forth to cleanse the nose. The thread should be rolled cotton and is often dipped in beeswax for easier threading. A soft rubber catheter may also be used. Sutra neti is said to be a more effective cleansing technique than jala neti. 2. Dhauti Karma a cleansing process for the alimentary canal, including the oesophagus, the mouth, the stomach, intestines and rectum. There are 11 types of dhauti to cleanse different parts of the gut. One popular way is to swallow a length of cloth in order to remove phlegm, bile and impurities from the esophagus and stomach. Dhauti kriya can be divided into five different practices: Kunjal kriya, vastra dhauti, danta dhauti, vatsara dhauti and agni sara all of which are best practiced on an empty stomach. 1. Kunjal Kriya 2. Vastra dhauti 3. Danta dhauti 4. Vatsara dhauti 5. Agni Sara Kunjal Kriya, also known as vaman dhauti, cleanses the upper digestive tract of excess mucous. The practitioner drinks a large quantity of warm salty water and then vomits. The vomiting can either be induced by vigourously rubbing the back of the tongue or may occur spontaneously. The food one chooses to eat after this practice is very important as the lining of the digestive

1. Shat Kriya

2. Introduction
Shat Karma, or Shat Kriya as they are often known, are six yogic cleansing processes
used by yoga practitioners to help purify the physical body.
The body has an incredible natural tendency towards homeostasis i.e. the body will
always try to heal itself and achieve good health even when we treat it badly. Cut
yourself and the body will repair the damage. Eat unhealthy food and the body will still
keep going. In yoga we try to protect ourselves from injury and attempt to avoid
harming ourselves by overindulging in unhealthy foods. This is part of the practice of
ahimsa – avoiding harmful or injuring behavior either towards oneself or any other
beings.
Despite all our best intentions and efforts our body sometimes needs a little extra boost
to reach a state of optimum health. With the rise of industrialization, mass urbanization
and financially driven agriculture, the air we breathe, the food available, even the water
we drink may not be as pure and unpolluted as we would wish them to be. The Shat
Kriyas come to our aid to help us remove built up toxins from our body, with particular
emphasis on the respiratory and digestive systems.

3. 1. Neti
2. Dhauti
3. Nauli
4. Basti
5. Kapalabhati
6. Tratak
The six Kriyas are:

4. 1 - Neti kriya
two component practices named Jala neti & Sutra neti.
Jala neti, which is practiced using a
neti pot filled with saline solution
to cleanse the nasal passages. In
this technique, the head is tilted to
the side and then salt water is
poured into a nostril and exits
through the other nostril. In a more
advanced technique, the water is
poured into the mouth and snorted
out the nose.
Sutra neti in which a thread is passed
through the nostrils and out of the
mouth. The yogi then holds both ends
of the string, pulling it back and forth to
cleanse the nose. The thread should be
rolled cotton and is often dipped in
beeswax for easier threading. A soft
rubber catheter may also be used.
Sutra neti is said to be a more effective
cleansing technique than jala neti.

5. Jala Neti
Sutra Neti

6. 2. Dhauti Karma
a cleansing process for the alimentary canal, including the oesophagus, the mouth, the
stomach, intestines and rectum. There are 11 types of dhauti to cleanse different parts
of the gut. One popular way is to swallow a length of cloth in order to remove phlegm,
bile and impurities from the esophagus and stomach.
Dhauti kriya can be divided into five different practices: Kunjal kriya, vastra dhauti,
danta dhauti, vatsara dhauti and agni sara all of which are best practiced on an empty
stomach.
1. Kunjal Kriya
2. Vastra dhauti
3. Danta dhauti
4. Vatsara dhauti
5. Agni Sara

7. Kunjal Kriya, also known as vaman
dhauti, cleanses the upper digestive
tract of excess mucous. The
practitioner drinks a large quantity of
warm salty water and then vomits. The
vomiting can either be induced by
vigourously rubbing the back of the
tongue or may occur spontaneously.
The food one chooses to eat after this
practice is very important as the lining
of the digestive tract needs to be
re-established. Traditionally kedgeree,
a mixture of rice and moong dal, is
eaten within the hour after practicing
kunjal kriya.
This can be repeated once or twice each week and is best performed in the morning on an empty
stomach.
Benefits:
Has a beneficial influence on high acidity, allergies and asthma. Eliminates halitosis (bad breath).
Caution:
Do not practice this exercise with high blood pressure or glaucoma.
Kunjal Kriya

8. Vastra
dhauti
Vastra dhauti is done by
swallowing a long thin strip of
cloth. The cloth can be up to 3
metres long and needs to be
soaked in salty water first. This
rather intense practice
removes excess mucous from
the digestive tract.

9. Danda dhauti
The practice of Danda Dhauti is to insert a soft
stick into the esophagus. This stick is usually the
stem of a banana or also a lotus stem. Nowadays
people also practice this technique with a
catheter. In magic shows you can see people
swallowing swords - that is the practice of Danta
Dhauti. When they have an X-ray done during
this trick, you can see the sword in between
their lungs. You should however not do this
yourself or practice it like this.
Always perform this technique with empty
stomach. Sit in Utkatasana and drink a glass of
water, so that the esophagus is wet. Then you
take a banana stem or lotus stem which you
have previously properly cleaned. Bend your
head backwards and slowly insert the stem into
your throat.
Start with only inserting it one centimeter down
the throat. On the next day, you insert it two
centimeters, then four and further and further
until it one day reaches your stomach.

10. Vatsara dhauti
Vatsara dhauti forms an internal cleansing technique in which the intestines are cleaned
with air.
It can be done at any time of the day, but, preferably BEFORE a main meal. Under no
circumstances should it be done during or after a meal. It is sufficient to do this practice one
or two times.
To do this kriya or cleansing technique:
First sit in any comfortable position.
Open the mouth and shape the lips in such a manner so that it resembles a crow's beak.
Now assume that the air is like water and start gulping down the sir as you would while
drinking water. The air may be had in one long gulp sucking in as much or it may be had in a
series of continuous gulps. Of these, choose the technique which you find easy to do. The
idea is to do this till the stomach feels full to the maximum extent possible.
Stop the practice, close your mouth and relax.
You need to do nothing more. Relax completely and do not try to expel the air.
In due course, the air will pass out of the anus in its own time.
This cleansing technique stimulates the digestive system to work in an efficient manner. It is
very useful for gas and for complaints of bloating. It is specially effective for acidity and
heartburn.

11. Agni Sara
Agni Sara is performed by exhaling while
leaning forward and then holding the breath
while pumping the abdomen. It helps to
improve digestion and strengthens the
abdominal region. Practicing regularly will
improve over all energy levels and remove
lethargy.

12. 3 - Nauli
Nauli is a Sanskrit word for an exercise that is carried out to clean the abdominal
area of the body through massaging the internal organs. It is also called “isolation
of the belly” in English.
There are four different versions of this exercises:
madhyana nauli,
vama nauli,
daksina nauli
nauli kriya.
Each of them involves the same basic theory, but is carried out in a slightly
different way from the others.

13. Madhya Nauli
Stand with feet apart, knees bent and
hands holding the thighs.
Take a deep breath and then force the
breath out with a hissing sound.
Contract the belly inwards and
upwards (towards the sternum). This is
called Uddiyana Bandha. This is the
base position for performing all
the Nauli kriyas.
Hold the breath and try to isolate the two ‘abs’ muscles (or rectus abdominis muscles) and force
them towards the center. There is no breathing involved. The breath is stopped with the air
taken out of the lungs (also called Bahya Kumbhaka in Yoga). This takes bit of effort in the
beginning. The main difficulty is in isolating the rectus abdominis muscles. Then you have to
concentrate and position it in the center for at least few seconds. This comes with practice.
Now breathe in and release the position. Come to a fully standing position. Take a few deep
natural breaths before trying again.
Try this few times according to your capacity.
Perfecting this may take from three months to a year for a beginner. Have patience. Once you
master it, the benefits are great.

14. Vama Nauli
Once you forcefully breathe out and perform Bahya Kumbhaka, get ready to do Vama Nauli.
In Vama Nauli only the left rectus abdominis muscles are isolated and pushed to the front.
This will form a cavity in the right side and a muscle protrusion on the left side. Maintain this
position for few seconds.
Breathe in and release the position and come to a standing position.
Take few deep breaths and repeat the process.

15. 4 - Basti
Dhauti cleanses the upper digestive tract. Basti and Shanka Prakshalana
evacuate the intestines and thoroughly cleanse the whole digestive
system .

16. Kapalabhati
Kapalabhati is often considered as a
Pranayama breathing technique, but it is
also an important kriya. The breath is
expelled through the nose by a strong
contraction of the abdominal muscles.
Then the abdomen is relaxed completely
which automatically lowers the position
of the diaphragm creating a passive
inhalation. The abdomen is contracted
and relaxed in this way for a series of
pumpings. The air sharply expelled helps
to remove dust particles from the
respiratory tract and strengthens the
lungs. The increase in air inhaled raises
the oxygen levels in the blood stream
and helps regulate the metabolic rate.
Kapalabhati is useful to practice before
meditation as it induces a calm state of
mind.

17. Tratak
Tratak cleanses the eyes and is used as an approach to meditation. Sitting comfortably
you stare at the wick of a lit candle for a minute or so. Then close the eyes and observe
the afterimage left on the retina. Try to keep this image of the flame steady by keeping
the eyes very calm.
The candle flame should be at eye level and about arms length away from the eyes.
When the after image fades the eyes can be covered with the hands and the image
may be rediscovered. Then the practice is repeated. This deceptively simple exercise
affects the mind on many levels and is excellent for improving concentration,
alleviating sleep disorders and quietening the mind, which is after all the definition
Patanjali gave to yoga.