Until recently, I had been doing the same thing regarding the nasal root for a long time. However, while I still continue to slightly open the nasal root at the beginning of meditation because it makes it easier for energy to flow, I have found that it takes less time to work on the nasal root. Therefore, the focus is now shifting to the forehead.

Previously, when channeling energy to the forehead, there were two routes: one that went from the front of the face, including the nasal root, and another that went from the middle of the head. However, regarding the route that goes through the center of the head, it is necessary to channel energy all the way to the head first. To do this, energy needs to be raised from the crown of the head (Sahasrara) or the central axis of the body, through the neck and back of the head, and into the center of the head. While this route is somewhat open, the energy flow in the center of the head is not completely permeating, so channeling energy from the center of the head to the forehead was not very powerful. Previously, I mainly used these two routes: loosening the nasal root and then channeling energy to the forehead.

The basic principle remains the same, but the situation has changed as the energy starts to flow through the nasal root.

Around the nasal root, the left and right energy channels, Ida and Pingala in yoga, run from the body. Previously, I was channeling these energy channels to the nasal root. While these channels seemed to stop at the nasal root and then spread, I now believe that, because the energy has started to flow through the nasal root, the Ida and Pingala channels no longer stop at the nasal root, but instead pass through the nasal root and extend to the forehead as a well-defined energy channel. The core of this route is located near the inner corners of the eyes. From the inner corners of the eyes, the Ida and Pingala channels run slightly outside the nasal root, through the cheeks and neck, on both sides. Because there is a blockage at the inner corners of the eyes, I focus on the inner corners of the eyes during meditation to channel energy through the Ida and Pingala channels.

By channeling energy through the inner corners of the eyes, the amount of energy entering the forehead increases, and I feel that the forehead becomes more relaxed. Furthermore, I feel that not only the forehead but also the area around the nasal root, which is close to the forehead, is becoming more relaxed. Previously, the nasal root was the focus, but now the inner corners of the eyes are the focus.

Currently, this is the situation. In the future, I hope that the forehead will become even more relaxed and integrate with the Ajna chakra in the center of the head, leading to its activation.

As usual, I was meditating and circulating energy through my nose and forehead. Today, compared to the previous time, the movement in the forehead area was less, and I felt a sense of pressure in the head. Usually, from here, the forehead relaxes and movement begins, but today, instead of the forehead, the upper part of the back of my head felt like it was suddenly bulging, and I felt that bulge gradually rising towards the top of my head, like a "topknot" forming.

The bulge felt like a hard balloon that was being inflated but not opening, and although energy had been flowing to the upper half of the back of my head, I didn't feel much bulging or movement there before. The difference is that it's not just an energetic movement, but a feeling of bulging.

Initially, the sensation was only in the lower half of the upper part of the back of my head, which is the second section when the head is divided into four vertically, and it felt like a quarter of that section was bulging. From there, I felt the expansion of energy rising towards the uppermost quarter, or as if two quarters were forming. It hasn't yet reached two quarters, but I feel that the area is expanding from a single quarter, gradually increasing to 1.2 and then 1.4.

At the same time, my consciousness is also rising.

Not only consciousness, but energy is also entering the top of my head, which was still somewhat stiff, and there is a sign that the top of my head will soon relax and bulge.

Energy is entering the top of my head more easily, and the feeling of connection upwards is stronger than before. I feel that the energy from the bulging in the back of my head is making it easier for energy to enter the top of my head.

This route itself has existed for a while, but what used to appear individually and temporarily now appears relatively regularly and continuously.

The moment this change occurred, I was either meditating or just waking up, and suddenly several lines of energy began to pass across the front of my face. It feels like energy now flows more easily across the front of my face. There are still challenges on the front of my face, and I feel like there is still a lot to go, but it feels like energy flows more easily than before.

- Lines that pass from the outside of the mouth, across the cheek, and rise towards the eyes (both sides).
- Lines that pass from the jaw, through the mouth, and rise towards the nose.
- Lines that pass diagonally from the inner corner of the eye towards the forehead, from the direction of the nose or cheek.

These are intertwined, and I feel that the front of my face is becoming more active. And now, I feel these things not just occasionally, but regularly.

Previously, even when similar things appeared locally, I generally felt them "inside the skin." Now, not only regularly, but also the area "slightly away from the skin" is faintly activated, and I can feel it as a sensation of the skin and the area inside it.

The sensation was that the aura was not reaching the surface of the skin on my forehead, but suddenly the aura penetrated, and it spread to both sides of my forehead, just above my eyes.

A little while ago, the aura had penetrated up to below my eyes, but it had not yet penetrated above my eyes. Now, it has penetrated above my eyes as well.

Sometimes, this happens suddenly and causes me to feel unwell.

It seems that in the past, people sometimes described this as "the devil coming." I vaguely remember something similar in the biography of Ignatius of Loyola or something, but I'm not sure.

Recently, I've been thinking that the reason I feel unwell when insects or things get in my eyes is because the aura route (similar to nadis in yoga) on the front of my face becomes blocked by this. When I instinctively react to reject an insect, I tense the muscles on the front of my face, which disrupts my breathing and destabilizes my aura, resulting in a feeling of being unwell.

Afterward, I meditate or sleep for a night, and the next day I recover to some extent, but compared to before an insect got in, the aura on my face feels somewhat blocked.

It's quite common for insects to get in your eyes, so in terms of how to deal with it, I think it's important to be careful not to disrupt the flow of aura. However, it's an instinctive reaction, so it suddenly happens and disrupts the flow of aura. This could be seen as a test of how much mindfulness is present in one's daily life, and thus a measure of one's personal growth.

And (in yoga terms), the flow of prana also improved. In terms of aura, the heart chakra had been relatively activated from before, but in the area close to the physical body, near what seems to be the thymus, a part close to the bone opened up and started to move.

This happened after I tried to activate the aura throughout my body by performing the prayer posture (Gassho line) for about an hour, and approximately 50 minutes into it, the thymus suddenly opened, and I felt a slight opening in the space between the bones in the chest area.

Although this was a change relatively close to the physical body, the physical body and the aura are closely related, so the aura became more flexible because the physical body relaxed.

This is a gradual process, and a little while ago, it felt like several lines were passing through, but gradually, those lines became thicker and connected, and I feel that the energy route, like the width of a river, is changing into a surface or a large river. Although there is still a feeling that the area around the forehead has not fully expanded, the area around the forehead has grown to some extent, and I feel that energy is flowing more easily.

Until now, there were two mountains on either side of the top of the head, and the balance between the left and right sides was not well-maintained.

Suddenly, the center of these two mountains connected and bulged, and the two separate parts merged into one. Then, the aura around the head began to rise, and the center of the head, slightly forward of the top, bulged slightly.

It doesn't quite feel complete, but before, the left and right sides of the head were each a separate, round shape, with different sizes and levels of activation. Suddenly, they connected in the center and began to activate as one. Although they are not completely fused yet, it feels like the mountains that were previously formed on the left and right sides have now come together and integrated to some extent, and the aura has begun to rise.

At the same time, the aura is also gathering on the forehead, above the space between the eyebrows, in the center of the forehead. Previously, the aura had not been able to reach the center of the forehead, but now it is suddenly gathering there.

- The bulging of the aura mountain slightly forward of the top of the head.
- The gathering of aura in the upper center of the forehead.

These are relatively close locations, and I feel that they are activating along a central axis.

Recently, almost simultaneously with a slight swelling of the aura above my head, I felt a faint presence extending upwards, towards the top of my head.

Although not yet fully connected by the aura, there seems to be something faintly connected, something that exists, whether it can be called the "heavens" or not, but I have finally been able to feel a connection with the heavens, not only during meditation but also during my normal life.

During meditation, I close my eyes, so my spatial awareness is limited, and I don't have much of a sense of that kind of thing, although I do have a vague feeling. However, when I am living my life, I have my eyes open, so I have spatial awareness, and then I feel that something is extending above my head.

And that, it seems, is faintly extending from the slightly swollen aura above my head.

Recently, when I wake up, my body returns to a state where the tension is still somewhat present, so I meditate to relax it again. I repeat this process. Although there is this cycle, basically, the area around my eyes and the back of my nose has become more relaxed overall.

The location is in the upper half of my head, and I feel like the inside of my head is becoming empty, with the space inside the skull becoming hollow. And by focusing my awareness on the skull, it gradually relaxes. Compared to before, the skull has become more relaxed, but there are still challenges. The inside has become relatively relaxed, while the skull surrounding it still has some tension.

The tension in the back of my eyes seems to be somewhat related to the stiffness in my neck. When the back of my eyes relaxes, my neck also relaxes. The neck is also connected to my jaw and the back of my mouth, but those areas are already relatively relaxed, so the current challenge is to relax the back of my eyes through my neck.

In the morning, the back of my eyes and my neck are somewhat stiff. If I leave this state unattended, it seems like it could become even stiffer and cause tension and shoulder pain. However, now, by meditating beforehand, I feel like I am addressing the cause.

Previously, I was moving my awareness up and down through the area behind my nose and between my eyebrows. However, with this current state, although some individual issues remain, the overall area has already become more relaxed. So, those issues behind my nose and between my eyebrows are relatively minor, and the overall relaxation seems to be leading to the resolution of those individual issues. To avoid any misunderstanding, I believe that addressing individual issues like the area behind my nose and between my eyebrows was necessary in the initial stages. However, by gradually resolving each of those individual issues, and then relaxing the overall area, it has become easier to address those individual issues. Therefore, while it might have been better to address the overall area from the beginning, that would have required more energy. So, I believe it was necessary to address the individual issues first, and then focus on the overall area, while keeping the overall picture in mind.

Generally, the nose is understood to be the organ for breathing, and therefore related to the lungs and the body's energy. In particular, in yoga, pranayama is practiced to draw in life energy (prana) through breathing and fill the body. However, while this is often explained in terms of breathing, it seems that most explanations and understandings focus on the perspective of breathing.

When practicing pranayama, a breathing technique in yoga, one draws in prana, the life energy. The basic explanation and understanding is that prana is drawn in through breathing.

Indeed, there is a certain truth to this, and breathing is important even in terms of deep breathing, so the explanation is not entirely wrong.

In yoga's pranayama, especially in techniques like alternate nostril breathing, the aim is to balance the energy on the left and right sides. This is achieved through breathing or breath retention, but in reality, the energetic movement is far more important than the physical act of breathing or breath retention.

However, the teachings and what is emphasized can vary depending on the school of thought. Some schools emphasize the physical act of breathing and breath retention, while others, even when practicing pranayama, may not focus as much on the breathing itself. For example, in Kriya Yoga, while breathing (breath) is described, it often refers to the energetic movement rather than the physical act of breathing.

Many yoga schools emphasize breathing in pranayama techniques, while also valuing energetic movement. On the other hand, some schools may describe it as breathing but not pay much attention to the breathing itself, focusing instead on energetic movement. This difference lies in whether a particular school emphasizes the physical aspect, both the physical and energetic aspects, or almost entirely the energetic aspect when practicing pranayama.

In reality, especially in the beginning, one may not understand the energetic movement, so the focus is on the physical aspect. However, even when the movement is physical, energy is always in motion, so even without conscious awareness, energetic changes are always occurring. Therefore, even without conscious effort, energetic movement occurs when practicing pranayama. As one's understanding of yoga deepens, the energetic movement becomes visible, and one may begin to prioritize that energy.

Therefore, it can be understood as a breathing technique, but in reality, it is an energetic change.

Now, returning to the initial topic, the connection between the nose, lungs, and the dantian (energy center) is fundamentally a physical concept. However, there is an energetic connection between the dantian (abdomen) and the nose. This is not a metaphor; there is a real connection between the nose and the abdomen (solar plexus chakra, manipura chakra).

Therefore, when the nasal passages are energetically open, energy flows into the abdomen (dantian, manipura), leading to vitality. The dantian can refer to different energy centers depending on the context, but here it refers to the third chakra, manipura.

Therefore, even when yoga, other exercises, or spiritual practices say, "Breathe deeply and draw in energy," if the nasal passages are not open, not much energy will actually enter the body.

While some textbooks on yoga may state that deep breathing is sufficient or that breathing brings in energy, in reality, the nasal passages must be open to draw in energy.

In some spiritual traditions, this is simply referred to as "universal energy," and the terminology may vary, but the key is that energy is drawn in through the nose, leading to vitality.

Some people may have their nasal passages naturally open, allowing them to draw in energy simply by breathing. However, for those whose nasal passages are not open, even deep breathing may not bring in much energy. To determine whether one's own nasal passages are open, one can judge based on whether deep breathing brings a sense of energy flowing into the abdomen (dantian). If not, it indicates a certain degree of nasal blockage.

A single line that runs from left to right, it initially started on the right side, but that line now almost completely spans from left to right. This seems to need to extend not only left to right, but also front to back and up and down, but for now, I feel like the left to right path has opened up sufficiently. Starting with that, it seems like the energy is gradually expanding from left to right and becoming easier to flow across the surface of the face.

I have been trying to open the up and down pathways, and of course, the front to back pathways as well, but in addition to that, the left to right pathways seem to have opened up. This pathway doesn't stop near the eyes or eyebrows, but continues all the way to both ears, and I feel some sensation in both ears. It's a left to right energy pathway that connects the nasal bone, eyes, and both ears.

This horizontal line has a width in the up and down direction, with the top reaching almost to the eyebrows and the bottom reaching below the eyes or above the cheeks, forming a thick horizontal line.

This can be interpreted as a horizontal line, but there are also parts that are part of the up and down pathways. Especially around the nasal bone, part of the up and down pathways seems to be spreading horizontally, but the area around the nasal bone can be seen as horizontal, front to back, or up and down, depending on how you look at it. And as it flows in multiple directions like that, the energy passing through the nasal bone increases, and at the same time, more energy is flowing into the manipura (solar plexus chakra).

If this continues as is, I felt a slight sensation that the ajna (third eye) might open, but the front to back pathways still have some stiffness, and it feels like it needs a little more. I want to continue like this and see how it goes.

Previously, the nasal root area lacked sufficient energy flow, requiring a gradual approach. This involved repeatedly working to detach the facial skin from the skull, creating space and allowing for a slight increase in energy flow. This process also simultaneously activated the मणिपुर (solar plexus) in the abdomen.

However, the effects were often temporary, although there was some degree of continuity.

Initially, the area was very rigid and stagnant. Over time, cracks would appear, followed by slight movement and the formation of gaps. Then, lines would develop vertically, and several lines would emerge, creating a connection between the throat (Vishuddha) and the space between the eyebrows. This was significant as a vertical connection, representing a major energetic change. However, it was like a narrow stream. Energetic streams were created, connecting the facial skin vertically to the upper and lower regions.

In yoga, these energetic flows are called nadis, and they are created through repeated meditation. However, the flow was limited to the vertical direction. The facial skin seemed to restrict the flow horizontally, making it difficult for the streams to widen.

The breakthrough came with the introduction of horizontal movement. By connecting the left and right sides of the nasal root to both eyes and both ears, horizontal energy channels were created, and these were connected to the previously established vertical routes. This significantly accelerated the relaxation in the nasal root area.

This was literally a connection between the vertical and horizontal directions. As a result, a natural expansion in the front and back directions also emerged. This is because the intersection of the vertical and horizontal axes, which is the nasal root and the space between the eyebrows, allowed for expansion not only up and down but also in the front and back of the facial skin.

With this, the nasal root and the space between the eyebrows became the central axis in eight directions: up, down, left, right, front, and back. This further accelerated the relaxation of the nasal root.

Previously, the feeling that the nasal root could relax further was likely due to this. This area is a place where energy from all directions converges, connecting not only vertically but also horizontally and front to back. Furthermore, it is likely that this area is inherently spherical. The energy extending from this sphere in all directions may be what is referred to as the ajna.

Previously, while this area expanded during meditation, there were challenges in maintaining consistency in daily life. However, now, this has become more established, and not only is it stable, but the energetic activation continues even outside of meditation, leading to further relaxation. While meditation is certainly faster in terms of progress, the stability and gradual progress in daily life are a significant difference compared to before.

As the nasal root expands energetically, the center of the head and the lower half of the back of the head also show corresponding relaxation. There is a sense that the energy flows from the nasal root through that area and connects to the मणिपुर (solar plexus) in the body. This change has a significant impact not only on the energetic activation of the body but also on the relaxation of various parts of the head, particularly the center of the head and the lower half of the back of the head.