Prāṇa — Vital Energy

The vital force animating the body. The vāyus, breath and the relationship between prāṇa and mind in yogic practice.

223 verses · 10 texts

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Upaniṣads 62

  1. upanishads 4Unmoving, One, swifter than the mind — the gods could not reach It for It ran ahead. Standing still, It outstrips those who run. In It, Mātariśvā sustains the waters.
  2. upanishads 17May my vital breath dissolve into the immortal air, and this body end in ashes. Oṃ. O mind, remember what was done. O mind, remember what was done.
  3. upanishads 17
  4. upanishads 7
  5. upanishads 3
  6. upanishads 5
  7. upanishads 10
  8. upanishads 2Whatever this whole universe is that comes forth and moves, moves impelled by the Prāṇa. It is a great terror, like the raised thunderbolt. Those who know this become immortal.
  9. upanishads 17Of the size of a thumb, the Puruṣa, the inner Self, is always seated in the heart of beings. One should draw Him out from one's own body with firmness, like the stalk from the muñja grass. Know Him as pure and immortal — know Him as pure and immortal.
  10. upanishads 8Through the practice of austerity Brahman is developed, from it food is born; from food, vital energy, mind, truth, worlds, and in actions, immortality.
  11. upanishads 3From him are born the vital breath, the mind, all the senses; the ether, the air, the light, the water, and the earth, the sustainer of the universe.
  12. upanishads 7From him are born in multitude the gods, the Sādhyas, the humans, the animals, the birds; prāṇa and apāna, rice and barley, austerity, faith, truth, student celibacy, and ordinance.
  13. upanishads 8From him arise seven prāṇas, seven flames, seven fuels, seven oblations; seven are these worlds in which the prāṇas of hidden cavities move — seven times seven.
  14. upanishads 1Manifest, near, dwelling in the cavity, it is called the Great Support. Here itself it is offered. Know it as what trembles and breathes, what blinks — the real and the unreal, the adorable, the supreme beyond knowledge, the most excellent of beings.
  15. upanishads 2What has rays, what is subtler than the subtle, in whom the worlds and their inhabitants are established — that is the Immutable Brahman, it is the breath, the word, the mind. That is the truth, that is immortality. That, O noble one, you must know.
  16. upanishads 5In whom the heaven, earth, and space between them are woven, together with the mind and all the prāṇas — to that one alone know as the Self. Abandon other words. This is the bridge to immortality.
  17. upanishads 8Made of mind, leader of the body of prāṇa, established in food, with the heart as seat — by the knowledge of that, the serene contemplate the form of bliss, the immortality that shines.
  18. upanishads 7In whom heaven, earth and the space between are woven, together with the mind and all the prāṇas — that One alone know as the Self. Abandon other words. This is the bridge to immortality.
  19. upanishads 15Transversal, upward, downward, extended, with rays, in space, well-defined — that same serene one, free from sorrow, controlling the prāṇas, with the prāṇas offers as oblation to the Self that has rays.
  20. upanishads 4To him he replied: Prajāpati, the Lord of creatures, desiring progeny, practiced austerity. And having practiced austerity, he created the pair: Rayi and Prāṇa. These two — he said — will produce creatures in manifold forms for me.
  21. upanishads 5The sun, verily, is Prāṇa; the moon is Rayi. All that has form and all that is formless is Rayi. Therefore form itself is Rayi.
  22. upanishads 6Now, when the sun rises and enters the eastern direction, with that it embraces in its rays the living beings of the east. And when it illuminates the south, the west, the north, what is below, what is above, the intermediate directions, when it illuminates everything — with that it embraces in its rays all living beings.
  23. upanishads 7He, that Vaiśvānara of universal forms, Prāṇa, the fire, rises. Of this it has been spoken in a Ṛgveda verse.
  24. upanishads 3To them Prāṇa, the most excellent, said: 'Do not fall into illusion. I alone, dividing myself into five forms, support and maintain this body'. But they did not believe.
  25. upanishads 4He, from pride, as if rose upward. When he went out, all the others also went out; and when he remained established, all remained established. As bees when the queen bee rises, all rise; and when she settles, all settle. So speech, mind, eye and ear, satisfied, praised Prāṇa.
  26. upanishads 6Like spokes in the nave of a wheel, everything is established in Prāṇa: the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, the sacrifice, the warrior class and the priesthood.
  27. upanishads 7As Prajāpati you move in the womb; you alone are born again. To you, Prāṇa, these creatures offer oblations, to you who dwell in the body together with the organs.
  28. upanishads 11You are the Vrātya, Prāṇa, the sole ṛṣi, the consumer of all, the good lord of the universe. We are the givers of what you consume; you, Mātariśvan, are our father.
  29. upanishads 13Whatever is established in the three heavens is under the control of Prāṇa. Protect us like a mother her children; grant us prosperity and wisdom.
  30. upanishads 1Then Kauśalya, son of Aśvalāyana, asked him: Lord, from where is this Prāṇa born? How does it enter this body? How does it establish itself by dividing itself? By what does it go out? How does it support the external? How the internal?
  31. upanishads 3This prāṇa is born from the Ātman. As the shadow is spread over a person, so (prāṇa) is spread over This (Ātman). It comes to this body by the action of the mind.
  32. upanishads 4As an emperor assigns officials (saying): 'Govern these villages, govern those villages', so this prāṇa places the other prāṇas in their separate locations.
  33. upanishads 5Apāna (resides) in the organs of excretion and generation. Prāṇa itself establishes itself in the eye, ear, mouth and nose. In the middle is samāna. It distributes equally the offered food; from it arise these seven flames.
  34. upanishads 6In the heart resides this Ātman. Here there are one hundred and one nāḍīs. Each of them has one hundred branches. Each branch has seventy-two thousand ramifications. In them circulates vyāna.
  35. upanishads 7Furthermore, by one (nāḍī), upward, udāna (leads): by merit, to the world of merit; by demerit, to the world of demerit; by both, to the human world.
  36. upanishads 8The sun, verily, is the external Prāṇa; for rising, it favors the ocular Prāṇa of this one. The deity that is in the earth supports the Apāna of man. The space in between, the Ākāśa, is Samāna. The wind is Vyāna.
  37. upanishads 10What one thinks, with that one enters into Prāṇa. Prāṇa, united with the light, together with the Self, leads to the world according to how it has been conceived.
  38. upanishads 11Whoever thus knowing knows Prāṇa, his offspring does not perish, and he becomes immortal. Concerning this there is this verse.
  39. upanishads 11The intelligent being, together with all the gods, the Prāṇas and the elements, rests where that Indestructible is known. Whoever, O gentle one, knows it, becomes all-knowing, penetrates into all.
  40. upanishads 1Then Sukeṣin Bhārgava asked him: Lord, Hiraṇyanābha of Kauśala, of the school of Śāṇḍilya, was practicing the great vow. At the end of the year he desired: 'May death not find me'. To him he did not tell who approached; but he told him: 'Prāṇa is Brahman, is light; do not say: death'. He, having thus known, at the end of the year desired: 'May death not find me'. To him he said: 'Do not say death, do not say death'. Having said this, he made him know. These, verily, are the parts of Prāṇa called Revatī: the ṛṣis, the ancestors, the gods, the worlds, all beings, whatever is. Whatever is, verily, are the Revatīs of Prāṇa.
  41. upanishads 2As when someone sings the Sāman with enthusiasm, thus Prāṇa is, verily, the Sāman. That which is the Sāman, that is made of speech; in speech it is established.
  42. upanishads 9Controlling the prāṇa here, with disciplined movements, when the breath diminishes one should exhale through the nose. The wise one should hold the mind with vigilance, like a chariot drawn by difficult horses.
  43. upanishads 13Lightness, health, absence of excessive desire, clarity of complexion, good voice and fullness of sound, pleasant odor and scant bodily wastes — these signs manifest the first stage of yoga.
  44. upanishads 1Who is near to the heart, great, who is established in the vitalities as the vitality, who is established in the vitalities both in woman and in man.
  45. upanishads 3Fire his head, eyes the moon and sun, directions his ears, speech his manifested mouth and the Vedas, wind his breath, heart the universe, from his feet the earth —He is the Ātman interior of all beings.
  46. upanishads 5From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  47. upanishads 6From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  48. upanishads 7From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  49. upanishads 8From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  50. upanishads 9From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  51. upanishads 10From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  52. upanishads 11From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  53. upanishads 12From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  54. upanishads 13From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  55. upanishads 14From him the Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, initiation, sacrifice, ritual, animals, all beings, inhalation and exhalation, rice and barley, austerity, truth, vow, regulation, Vedas, sacrifice —from him, from him.
  56. upanishads 1Om. May Mitra be propitious to us, and Varuṇa propitious be; may Aryaman be propitious to us; propitious be Indra and Bṛhaspati to us; may Viṣṇu of vast stride be propitious to us. Reverence to Brahman. Reverence to you, oh Vāyu. You are indeed the perceptible Brahman. I shall declare you as the perceptible Brahman. I shall declare what is right. I shall declare what is true. May That protect me; may That protect the teacher. May That protect me; may That protect the teacher. Om. Peace. Peace. Peace.
  57. upanishads 3This human being is made of the essence of food. This is its head, this its right wing, this its left wing, this its body (ātmā), this its tail, its foundation.
  58. upanishads 4Different from that (body) made of the essence of food, more interior, is the Self made of prāṇa. By it the former is filled. It has the form of a person. Prāṇa is its head, vyāna its right wing, apāna its left wing, space is its body, earth its tail and foundation.
  59. upanishads 5Different from that (body) made of prāṇa, more interior, is the Self made of mind. By it the former is filled. It has the form of a person. The Yajur-Veda is its head, the Ṛg-Veda its right wing, the Sāma-Veda its left wing, instruction is its body, the Atharva-Aṅgirasa hymns its tail and foundation.
  60. upanishads 3Having known that, again he approached Varuṇa his father, saying: 'Lord, teach me Brahman'. To him he said: By tapas investigate Brahman. Tapas is Brahman. He practiced tapas. He, having practiced tapas, concluded: Life is Brahman.
  61. upanishads 4From life, verily, these beings are born; by life, having been born, they live; into life, upon departing, they enter. Having known that, again he approached Varuṇa his father, saying: 'Lord, teach me Brahman'.
  62. upanishads 10One should not condemn food. That is his vow. Life is Brahman, he concluded. From life, verily, these beings are born; by life, having been born, they live; into life, upon departing, they enter. Having known that...

Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā 53

  1. HYP 1.12Yoga is destroyed by six causes: overeating, excessive effort, talking too much, rigid adherence to rules, excessive company, and mental restlessness.
  2. HYP 1.15Yoga is destroyed by these six causes: overeating, excessive effort, talking too much, rigid adherence to rules, company of worldly people, and inconstancy.
  3. HYP 1.19Being āsana the first limb of Haṭha Yoga, it is described first. Āsana provides stability, health, and lightness of body.
  4. HYP 1.38The yogī seated in Padmāsana, filling the air through the channels and retaining it, without doubt attains liberation.
  5. HYP 1.45There is no āsana like Siddhāsana, no kumbhaka like Kevala, no mudrā like Khecarī, no laya like Nāda.
  6. HYP 1.58Thus, Paścimatānāsana, the foremost of āsanas, makes the prāṇa flow toward the west. It kindles the gastric fire, reduces the abdomen, and bestows health upon practitioners.
  7. HYP 1.66With prāṇāyāma practiced correctly, all diseases are destroyed. With incorrect practice, all diseases arise.
  8. HYP 1.67Hiccup, asthma, cough, headaches, ear and eye pain: these and other various diseases arise from the disturbance of prāṇa.
  9. HYP 2.3When the breath is unstable, the mind is unstable. When the breath is stable, the mind stabilizes, and the yogī attains immobility. Therefore, he should control the breath.
  10. HYP 2.4As long as breath remains in the body, there is life. When it departs, there is death. Therefore, one should control the breath.
  11. HYP 2.5While the nāḍīs are full of impurities, breath cannot enter the central channel. How then can the state of no-mind arise? How can there be success in the goal?
  12. HYP 2.6When the entire nāḍī system, previously full of impurities, becomes purified, then the yogī becomes capable of retaining prāṇa.
  13. HYP 2.7With prāṇāyāma practiced correctly, all diseases are destroyed. With incorrect practice, all diseases arise.
  14. HYP 2.8Just as the lion, elephant, and tiger are tamed gradually, so must prāṇa be controlled little by little; otherwise it destroys the practitioner.
  15. HYP 2.10Hiccups, asthma, cough, headache, ear pain, and eye pain — these and other various diseases arise from disturbance of the wind.
  16. HYP 2.13As long as breath remains in the body, there is life. Its departure is death. Therefore, the breath should be controlled.
  17. HYP 2.25Just as the lion, the elephant, and the tiger are tamed very gradually, so too must prāṇa be controlled; otherwise it destroys the practitioner.
  18. HYP 2.39Just as the lion, elephant, and tiger are tamed gradually, so too the breath should be controlled gradually; otherwise it destroys the practitioner.
  19. HYP 2.41Hiccups, asthma, cough, pain in head, ears, and eyes — these and other various diseases arise from disturbance of prāṇa.
  20. HYP 2.44Sūrya Bhedana, Ujjāyī, Sītkārī, Śītalī, Bhastrikā, Bhrāmarī, Mūrcchā, and Plāvinī — these are the eight kumbhakas.
  21. HYP 2.48First perspiration appears, then trembling, in the third stage stability is reached, and then prāṇa moves through the ground (rises up).
  22. HYP 2.50Having balanced prāṇa and apāna that flow within the nose, the yogi, without laziness, should drink the air with attention at the mouth.
  23. HYP 2.53One should retain until it is felt from the hair to the tips of the nails. Then one should exhale slowly through the left channel.
  24. HYP 2.67In the same way, one should move the air in one's own body with awareness. When fatigue arises in the body, then one should inhale through the solar channel.
  25. HYP 2.71In kumbhaka, the intellect is retained; in kumbhaka, one becomes retained. Through kumbhaka, the prāṇas are retained; in kumbhaka, the mind dissolves.
  26. HYP 2.75When kevala kumbhaka is perfected, what is not achieved in this world? One in whose hand death rests, whose orders are not followed?
  27. HYP 3.4Then the path of the void becomes the royal road of prāṇa; then the mind becomes supportless; then death is cheated.
  28. HYP 3.5Mahāmudrā, Mahābandha, Mahāvedha, Khecarī, Uḍḍiyāna, Mūlabandha, and the bandha called Jālandhara...
  29. HYP 3.8O Pārvatī! The ātman retreats from the lower channel by haṭha; and the prāṇa ascends upward through mudrās and bandhas for liberation.
  30. HYP 3.102Having attracted the moon-risen bindu that has moved by itself, united with the air through practice, the capable yogi raises the bindu.
  31. HYP 3.104The lord of the senses is the mind; the lord of the mind is the breath; the lord of the breath is laya (dissolution); that dissolution depends on nāda.
  32. HYP 3.12By applying Jālandhara Bandha to the throat, the air is held upward;just as a snake hit with a stick becomes straight as a stick.
  33. HYP 3.55Uḍḍiyāna, always taught by the guru as natural, when practiced constantly, even the old person becomes young.
  34. HYP 3.56Because it makes the great bird (prāṇa) fly incessantly upward, therefore it is called Uḍḍīyāna;there the bandha is described.
  35. HYP 3.57A posterior extension is made in the abdomen, elevating it above the navel;this Uḍḍīyāna Bandha is the lion to the elephant of death.
  36. HYP 3.60Pressing the perineum with the heel, contracting the anus, and drawing apāna upward — this is called Mūla Bandha.
  37. HYP 3.61Through the union of apāna and prāṇa, the decrease of urine and feces, even the old becomes young through constant practice of Mūla Bandha.
  38. HYP 3.62By raising apāna and bringing prāṇa down from the throat, the yogi, freed from old age, becomes about sixteen years old.
  39. HYP 3.63Now Uḍḍīyāna Bandha: Since by this bandha the prāṇa flies upward through suṣumṇā, therefore it is called Uḍḍīyāna by the yogis.
  40. HYP 3.64Since the great bird flies upward without rest, that is why it is called Uḍḍīyāna, and the bandha is described there.
  41. HYP 3.72When Jālandhara Bandha is performed, characterized by contraction of the throat, the nectar does not fall into the fire nor does the air stir.
  42. HYP 3.75By this same method, the air reaches the solution.Then death, old age, illness, etc. do not arise.
  43. HYP 3.85With effort, through a suitable tube, it should be gradually blown into the vajra cavity, to cause the movement of the air.
  44. HYP 3.97When the semen rises through the air with force, that bindu should be known as amṛta, remembered as nectar of immortality for all.
  45. HYP 4.7One should eat ghee and jaggery before the first hour of the day. When the wind enters suṣumṇā, kevala kumbhaka arises.
  46. HYP 4.114One should retain (prāṇa/mind) until stability is achieved and transcendence occurs. This practice of rāja yoga purifies the nāḍīs.
  47. HYP 4.12Through various asanas, kumbhakas and other various practices, when the great śakti awakens, prāṇa dissolves into emptiness.
  48. HYP 4.14When prāṇa flows through suṣumnā and the mind enters emptiness, then the knower of yoga eradicates all karmas.
  49. HYP 4.21By that which the breath is controlled, the mind is also controlled. And by that which the mind is controlled, the breath is controlled.
  50. HYP 4.34When the prāṇa enters brahmarandhra and the mind always remains there, the knower of mudrā truly understands the mudrā through the word of the guru.
  51. HYP 4.36When the prāṇa is exhausted and the mind is dissolved, then the same essence arises;that is called samādhi.
  52. HYP 4.68When the kumbhaka is perfected, the prāṇa diminished and unsupported, then rajas is burned;That is why the mind achieves purity.
  53. HYP 4.81Where the mind goes, prāṇa goes;where the prāṇa goes, the mind goes.The dissolution of both must be done by one who practices haṭha through nāda.

Śivasaṃhitā 52

  1. ŚS 2.2There are in it seers and sages; all the stars and planets as well. There are sacred pilgrimages, shrines; and presiding deities of the shrines.
  2. ŚS 2.3The sun and moon, agents of creation and destruction, also move in it. Ether, air, water and earth are also there. (2) The Nerve Centers.
  3. ŚS 2.7This has its face downwards, and rains nectar day and night. The ambrosia further sub-divides itself into two subtle parts:
  4. ŚS 2.11It certainly swallows the vital secretions, and ray-exuded nectar. Together with the atmosphere, the sun moves through the whole body.
  5. ŚS 2.13In the body of man there are 3,500,000 nadis; of them the principal are fourteen; 14-15. Sushumna, Ida, Pingala, Gandhari, Hastijihvika, Kuhu, Saraswati, Pusa, Sankhini, Payaswani, Varuni, Alumbusa, Vishwodari, and Yasaswani. Among these Ida, Pingala and Sushumna are the chief.
  6. ŚS 2.14Sushumna, Ida, Pingala, Gandhari, Hastijihvika, Kuhu, Saraswati, Pusa, Sankhini, Payaswani, Varuni, Alambusa, Vishwodari, and Yasaswani are the fourteen principal nadis. Among these, Ida, Pingala and Sushumna are the chief.
  7. ŚS 2.20This has been called in the Shastras the Heavenly Way; this is the giver of the joy of immortality; by contemplating it, the greatYogi destroys all sins. The Siva Samhita – Chapter II (4) The Pelvic Region.
  8. ŚS 2.24It represents the creative force of the world, and is always engaged in creation. It is the goddess of speech, whom speech cannot manifest, and who is praised by all gods.
  9. ŚS 2.29The other nadis, rising from <Muladhar>, go to the various parts of the body, e.g. the tongue, penis, eyes, feet, toes, ears, the abdomen, the armpit, fingers of the hands, the scrotum and the anus. Having risen from their proper place, they stop at their respective destinations, as above described.
  10. ŚS 2.33This fire increases life, and gives strength and nourishment, makes the body full of energy, destroys all diseases, and gives health.
  11. ŚS 2.37In the body thus described, there dwelleth the Jiva, all-pervading, adorned with the garland of endless desires and chained to the body) by karma.
  12. ŚS 2.38The Jiva possessed of many qualities and the agent of all events, enjoys the fruits of his various karmas amassed in the past life.
  13. ŚS 2.41The Jiva that has accumulated an excess of good and virtuous actions receives a happy life; and in the world he gets pleasant and good things to enjoy, without any trouble.
  14. ŚS 2.42In proportion to the force of his karma, man suffers misery or enjoys pleasure. The Jiva that has accumulated an excess of evil never stays in peace – it is not separate from its karmas; except karma, there is nothing in this world. From the Intelligence veiled by maya, all things have been evolved.
  15. ŚS 2.43As in their proper season, various creatures are born to enjoy the consequences of their karma; as through mistake a pearl-shell is taken for silver, so through the taint of one's own karmas, a man mistakes Brahman for the material universe.
  16. ŚS 2.46The illusion of the manifested (objective world) is destroyed when the Maker of the Manifest becomes manifest. This illusion does not cease so long as one thinks, “Brahma is not.”
  17. ŚS 2.47By looking closely and deeply into the matter, this false knowledge vanishes. It cannot be removed otherwise; the delusion of silver remains.
  18. ŚS 2.57Desires such as sexual desire dissolve only through knowledge, and not through any other means.
  19. ŚS 4.1First with a strong inspiration fix the mind in the adhar lotus. Then engage in contracting the Yoni, which is situated in the perineal space.
  20. ŚS 4.6Even those mantras which are deformed (chhinna) or paralyzed (Kilita), scorched (stambhita) by fire, or whose flame has become attenuated, or are dark, and ought to be abandoned, or which are evil, or too old, or which are proud of their budding youth, or have gone over to the side of the enemy, or weak and essenceless without vitality; or which have been divided into hundreds of parts, even they become fertile through time and method. All these can give powers and emancipation when properly given to the disciple by the Guru, after having initiated him according to proper rites, and bathed him a thousand times. This Yoni-mudra has been described, in order that the student may deserve (to be initiated into the mysteries of) and receive the mantras.
  21. ŚS 4.105Exposición de la mudrā śakticālana. El sabio debe despertar a la kuṇḍalinī firme que duerme en el loto del soporte [mūlādhāra], ascendiendo el apāna-vāyu y atrayéndola con fuerza.
  22. ŚS 4.109Para aquel que practica siguiendo las instrucciones del maestro, ¿de dónde podría surgir el temor a la muerte?
  23. ŚS 4.110Para quien la practica con esfuerzo y dedicación, el logro no está lejos.
  24. ŚS 4.14Therefore, in order that the goddess, who is asleep in the mouth of the Brahmarandhra (the innermost hollow of sushumna) be awakened, the mudras should be practiced with the greatest care. The Siva Samhita – Chapter IV 15. Out of the many mudras, the following ten are the best: (1) Mahamudra, (2) Mahabandha, (3) Mahavedha, (4) Khechari, (5) Jalandhar, (6) Mulabandha, (7) Viparitkarana, (8) Uddana, (9) Vajrondi, and (10) Shaktichalana.
  25. ŚS 4.15Aunque hubiera cometido miles de brahmanicidios y hubiera destruido incluso los tres mundos...
  26. ŚS 4.16My dearest, I shall now describe to you the Mahamudra, from whose knowledge the ancient sages Kapila and others obtained success inYoga. (1) Mahamudra.
  27. ŚS 4.19O ye worshipped of the gods! know that this mudra is to be kept secret with the greatest care. Obtaining this, the Yogi crosses the ocean of the world.
  28. ŚS 4.24The best of the Yogis having, through the help of the vayu, pierced with this perforator the knot which is in the path of sushumna, should then pierce the knot of Brahma.
  29. ŚS 4.26The gods residing in the chakras tremble owing to the gentle influx and efflux of air in pranayama; the great goddess, Kunali Maha Maya, is also absorbed in the mount Kailasa.
  30. ŚS 4.29Dirigiendo la mente por el camino de la mente, se logra el dominio del prāṇa.
  31. ŚS 4.33Whether pure or impure, in whatever condition one may be, if success be obtained in Khechari, he becomes pure. There is no doubt of it.
  32. ŚS 4.34The desired fruit, happiness, mastery of the senses — all these belong to the yogi established in yoga.
  33. ŚS 4.36This mudra is the wish-fulfilling cow for seekers; thus have I declared it.
  34. ŚS 4.37Exposition of the Mahābandha.
  35. ŚS 4.38Contracting the anus and perineum, make the apāna move upward.
  36. ŚS 4.40The assembly of essences flows from the network of nāḍīs to the crown of the yogi; this Jālandhara-bandha bestows success upon the practitioner.
  37. ŚS 4.41Through practice, the vāyu unites with the center of suṣumnā; pressing the anus firmly with the heel, the practitioner draws the apāna upward. This is Mūla-bandha, destroyer of decay and death.
  38. ŚS 4.52Having the method from the Guru, the wise Yogi should practice it with great care. This most inaccessible Mudra should be practiced in a retired and undisturbed place. (9) Vajrondi-mudra.
  39. ŚS 4.64Exposition of the Mūlabandha.
  40. ŚS 4.65Drawing the apāna up forcibly, conduct it gradually upward; even while immersed in pleasures, one attains perfection through practice.
  41. ŚS 4.79Even living according to one's own will, without conforming to the rules prescribed in yoga, the householder can attain liberation through the practice of Vajrolīmudrā.
  42. ŚS 4.80This yoga of Vajrolī grants liberation even to one immersed in pleasures; one who practices Shakti-chālana correctly for even two seconds, and with care, is very near to success and should practice it in the proper posture.
  43. ŚS 4.83Even by the left path (vāmamārga), having conducted the bindu, let him restrain the liṅga; let him practice this always for quick success in yoga.
  44. ŚS 4.84According to the Guru's instruction, the yogi should forcibly draw the fluid from the womb, intoning the sound huṃ-huṃkāra through the contraction of apāna; let the yogi desirous of success in yoga drink milk or nectar in this way.
  45. ŚS 4.85With this method the yogi [acts] for the quick attainment of success in yoga; one who always practices this best Shakti-chālana according to the Guru's instructions obtains vigraha-siddhi, which confers the powers of aṇimā and others, and has no fear of death.
  46. ŚS 4.86Know the bindu as of the nature of the moon, and rajas as of the nature of the sun; thus should the yogi unite these two with great care within his own body.
  47. ŚS 4.87I am the bindu, rajas is Śakti; when both unite, the yogi attains the state of success and his body becomes divine and resplendent.
  48. ŚS 4.88Death comes from the fall of bindu; life from its retention; therefore, let the yogi preserve his bindu with great care.
  49. ŚS 4.91The bindu, remaining in the body, produces pleasure and suffering for all beings; for the yogi, preservation of bindu is the supreme yoga and the giver of happiness.
  50. ŚS 4.92Even immersed in pleasures, a man obtains siddhis through practice; through the force of his practice, he becomes an adept in due time, in his present life.
  51. ŚS 4.93Through practice, a man immersed in pleasures attains success; enjoying all pleasures in their entirety certainly through this yoga, the complete perfection of yogis arrives without doubt.
  52. ŚS 4.94Having enjoyed all pleasures without exception, certainly through this yoga, complete perfection definitely arrives for the yogis.

Gorakṣa Śataka 27

  1. goraksha-shataka 14Por la sílaba 'sva' se convierte en prāṇa; Svādhiṣṭhāna es su soporte. Por tanto, por su nombre Svādhiṣṭhāna, el meḍhra (genitales) es así llamado.
  2. goraksha-shataka 17De entre esos miles de nāḍīs, 72 han sido mencionadas. De ellas, diez son recordadas como principales que transportan el prāṇa.
  3. goraksha-shataka 23Siempre transportando el prāṇa, las tres nāḍīs cuyas deidades son Soma (luna), Sūrya (sol) y Agni (fuego) son mencionadas: Iḍā, Piṅgalā y Suṣumnā.
  4. goraksha-shataka 24Prāṇa, Apāna, Samāna, Udāna y Vyāna; y Nāga, Kūrma, Kṛkara, Devadatta y Dhanañjaya.
  5. goraksha-shataka 25Los cinco comenzando con Nāga, los cinco vāyus comenzando con Prāṇa: estos existen en los miles de nāḍīs como formas del jīva (ser viviente).
  6. goraksha-shataka 26El jīva (alma individual), bajo el control de Prāṇa y Apāna, corre hacia abajo y hacia arriba por los caminos izquierdo y derecho; por su inquietud no es visible.
  7. goraksha-shataka 27Como una pelota lanzada al suelo con un palote rebota hacia arriba, así el jīva, impulsado por Prāṇa y Apāna, es arrastrado [de un lado a otro].
  8. goraksha-shataka 28Como un halcón atado con una cuerda, aunque se vaya es atraído de vuelta, así el jīva, atado por los guṇas, es arrastrado por Prāṇa y Apāna.
  9. goraksha-shataka 29Apāna atrae al Prāṇa, y el Prāṇa atrae al Apāna. Estos dos, establecidos en lo superior e inferior: quien conoce esto es un conocedor del yoga.
  10. goraksha-shataka 31Despertada por la unión del fuego (agni), golpeada por el viento (prāṇa/māruta) de la mente, tomando las cualidades vitales, asciende hacia arriba por la Suṣumnā.
  11. goraksha-shataka 33Presionando la barbilla contra el pecho durante mucho tiempo, colocando el talón izquierdo en la yoni (perineo), sosteniendo con las manos el pie derecho extendido, llenando la cavidad abdominal con la respiración y contrayéndola, exhalando lentamente: esta gran mudrā, destruidora de los pecados, es enseñada a los hombres.
  12. goraksha-shataka 40El haṃsa (prāṇa) recorre treinta y seis dedos (aṅgulas) hacia afuera por los caminos izquierdo y derecho; por eso se denomina prāṇa.
  13. goraksha-shataka 42El prāṇa es el viento que reside en el cuerpo; su control es el āyāma (restricción). La medida de una sola respiración: el yogui que la conoce se vuelve como el espacio.
  14. goraksha-shataka 43El yogui en Padmāsana debe llenar el prāṇa por la vía lunar (izquierda/nariz izquierda), retener según su capacidad, y luego exhalar por la vía solar (derecha).
  15. goraksha-shataka 45Atrayendo el prāṇa por la vía solar (derecha), llenando el abdomen lentamente, reteniendo según el método, y luego exhalando por la vía lunar (izquierda).
  16. goraksha-shataka 52Atrayendo el apāna hacia arriba, conduciendo el viento hacia el prāṇa, la energía es llevada a la cabeza; uno se libera de todos los pecados.
  17. goraksha-shataka 60Donde el toro (prāṇa), atado de tres maneras, hace el gran sonido 'rauravi'; ese cakra en el corazón es conocido por los yoguis como Anāhata.
  18. goraksha-shataka 61Trascendiendo el Anāhata y circunnavegando el Maṇipūra, cuando el prāṇa alcanza el Mahā-padma (Sahasrāra), la condición de yogui se vuelve de néctar/inmortal.
  19. goraksha-shataka 62Recordado por la sílaba 'vi', el haṃsa (prāṇa) es llamado puro e inmaculado; por eso, en la garganta, los conocedores de los cakras conocen el cakra llamado Viśuddha.
  20. goraksha-shataka 69La tierra, de color amarillo-verdoso como la oropimenta, amarilla, con la sílaba 'la', unida con el Kamalāsana (lotos), cuadrangular, situada en el corazón: llevando allí el prāṇa, reteniendo con la mente durante cinco ghāṭīs (horas): esta dhāraṇā de la tierra, que causa inmovilidad, siempre produce la victoria sobre la tierra (estabilidad).
  21. goraksha-shataka 70Semejante a media luna, blanco como el jazmín, el elemento agua situado en la garganta, con la sílaba 'va' y la semilla de néctar, siempre unida con Viṣṇu: llevando allí el prāṇa, reteniendo con la mente durante cinco ghāṭīs: esta dhāraṇā del agua, que destruye el veneno del tiempo difícil de soportar.
  22. goraksha-shataka 71El elemento fuego, situado en el ombligo, semejante al escarabajo dorado, triángulo resplandeciente, hecho de la letra 'ra', de color coral, unido con Rudra: llevando allí el prāṇa, reteniendo con la mente durante cinco ghāṭīs: esta dhāraṇā del fuego siempre produce la victoria sobre el fuego.
  23. goraksha-shataka 72Este elemento aire, semejante a una masa de antimonio triturado, redondo, situado entre las cejas, hecho de aire, con la sílaba 'ya', cuya deidad es Īśvara: llevando allí el prāṇa, reteniendo con la mente durante cinco ghāṭīs: esta dhāraṇā del aire hace que los yamines (yoguis) vuelen por el cielo.
  24. goraksha-shataka 73El éter, semejante al agua purísima, situado en el brahma-randhra (coronilla), con la sílaba 'ha', unido con Sadā-Śiva, pacífico: llevando allí el prāṇa, reteniendo con la mente durante cinco ghāṭīs: esta dhāraṇā del éter, hábil en abrir la puerta de la liberación, es enseñada.
  25. goraksha-shataka 78El primer cakra, el ādhāra (Mūlādhāra), semejante al oro fundido, fijando la mirada en la punta de la nariz, meditando: uno se libera de las impurezas.
  26. goraksha-shataka 94Cuando el prāṇa se contrae y la mente se disuelve, entonces la unidad en la igualdad de sabor es llamada samādhi.
  27. goraksha-shataka 96Las dhāraṇās [requieren] cinco nāḍīs (ghāṭīs/horas); el dhyāna, sesenta nāḍīs; y en doce días: samādhi, el control del prāṇa.

Bhagavad Gītā 9

  1. BG 1.33
  2. BG 15.14Having become Vaiśvānara, established in the body of living beings, united with prāṇa and apāna, I digest the four types of food.
  3. BG 18.33
  4. BG 4.29Others, having restrained the flow of inhalation and exhalation, dedicated to prāṇāyāma, and others of regulated food, offer the prāṇa into the prāṇa.
  5. BG 5.27Excluding external contacts, placing the gaze between the eyebrows, equalizing prāṇa and apāna that move in the nasal cavities...
  6. BG 6.13Holding the body, head and neck erect and aligned, motionless and steady, gazing at the tip of the nose, not looking in other directions.
  7. BG 6.25Gradually, little by little, one should become quiet through the intellect held with firmness. Having established the mind in the Self, one should not think of anything.
  8. BG 8.10At the time of death, with unwavering mind, endowed with devotion and with the power of yoga, drawing the prāṇa between the eyebrows, one reaches completely that Divine Supreme Person.
  9. BG 8.12Controlling all the gates of the senses, confining the mind in the heart, raising the prāṇa of the being to the head, established in yoga concentration.

Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra 6

  1. Dhāraṇā 1Prāṇa rises upward, jīva descends. Between these two points of origin, through fullness, the state of fullness arises.
  2. Dhāraṇā 6In the resting place of the inner prāṇa, or from external activity — thus the form of Bhairava is revealed through Bhairavī.
  3. Dhāraṇā 29Meditating on the void between the paths of apāna and prāṇa — Bhairavī, who has the form of the Vijñāna Bhairava knowledge, reveals herself spontaneously.
  4. Dhāraṇā 47By some yoga of the sense organs, or by restraint of prāṇa, or by meditation on reality-categories, or by void — consciousness again arises in the Self.
  5. Dhāraṇā 55Agitating śakti at the base with intense effort of the bandhas — at the junction of apāna and prāṇa, as said before, [arises] the dawn of Bhairava.
  6. Dhāraṇā 100By the stopping of all currents, with prāṇa-śakti ascending gradually, at the moment of ant-sensation, supreme happiness expands.

Aṣṭāvakra Gītā 6

  1. ashtavakra-gita 3I am not the body, nor the senses, nor the breath, nor the mind, nor the intellect.
  2. ashtavakra-gita 15The body, the breath, and the intellect — I am not the doer, nor the enjoyer.
  3. ashtavakra-gita 17Not yours is the body, not the breath, not the intellect, not the mind.
  4. ashtavakra-gita 6There is no bondage for me, nor liberation, nor body, nor breath.
  5. ashtavakra-gita 14The body is not mine, nor the prāṇas, nor the intellect, nor the mind.
  6. ashtavakra-gita 11There is no body, prāṇas, intellect, or mind that is mine.

Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali 4

  1. Sūtra 3.24From saṃyama on strengths, the strength of an elephant and others arise.
  2. Sūtra 3.31From saṃyama on the tortoise channel arises stability.
  3. Sūtra 3.39From mastery of udāna arises non-adhesion to water, mud, thorns, and the like, and ascension.
  4. Sūtra 3.40From mastery of samāna arises radiance.

Yoga Yājñavalkya 3

  1. yoga-yajnavalkya 7It should be known for all beings by their own fingers, O beloved!. The prāṇa is twelve finger-breadths beyond the body.
  2. yoga-yajnavalkya 4The wise one should establish the mind united with prāṇa and apāna. Having stabilized it in their center, that dhāraṇā is considered supreme.
  3. yoga-yajnavalkya 9Prāṇa, apāna, samāna, udāna and vyāna. Nāga, kūrma, varāha, kṛkara and dhanañjaya.

Yoga Vāsiṣṭha 1

  1. yoga-vasistha 4Clinging to the certainty that the Self alone is everything, equalizing inhalation and exhalation, one remains established as one whose vision is the supreme peace.

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