Śivasaṃhitā 4.40

This verse offers the subtle physiological explanation of the mechanism of Jālandhara-bandha: it is not simply a throat lock but the means by which the rasa — vital fluids, essences — circulating through the 72,000 nāḍīs are directed toward the mūrdhā, the crown. The image is that of an inverted irrigation system: the pressure created by the bandha forces vital juices upward.

Nāḍījāla — ‘network of nāḍīs’ — employs jāla (net, mesh), the same word that appears in Jālandhara according to popular etymology: jāla (net) + dhara (that which holds, contains), the bandha that ‘holds the net’ of energies. Rasavyūha combines rasa (juice, essence, vital fluid, also aesthetic ‘flavor’) with vyūha (formation, assembly, organized deployment).

In the subtle anatomy of the Śivasaṃhitā, the mūrdhā is the dome where amṛta accumulates: the pressure of the chin against the chest in Jālandhara acts as a valve preventing this nectar from descending toward the gastric fire and being consumed. The daily practice the text prescribes reflects the medieval understanding that accumulation of ojas (refined subtle energy) requires consistency, not episodic intensity.