the significance of slowing down your breathing rate

It is said that nature determines our lifespan on the basis of the number of breaths we take. If we look at different animals, we can conclude that the life span of each of the animals depends on their respective respiratory rate. 

In his book Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda mentions how certain species that breathe fewer times a minute tend to live longer than species that breathe a comparably greater number of times per minute. He writes, “The restless monkey breathes at the rate of 32 times a minute, in contrast to man’s average 18 times. The elephant, tortoise, snake and other animals noted for their longevity have a respiratory rate that is less than that of man. The tortoise for instance, who may attain the age of 300 years, breathes only 4 times per minute.” 

The Vedas teach that the faster we breathe, the faster we die. It’s akin to managing our money. The quicker we spend it, the sooner we go broke. We can either spend it recklessly, emptying our bank accounts or we can budget it diligently so that we can use and enjoy our funds throughout our lives. If we slow down our breathing rate by practicing yoga and pranayama, we can live a longer, disease-free life.