Retention (rucira), exhalation, and inspiration of air (vâyu) are said to be the triple breath control; [they are also called] emptying, filling, and holding (kumbhaka). (9)
With prolonged breath (âyâta-prâna), one should thrice recite the gâyatrî together with the formulas (vyâhriti), the pranava [i.e., the sacred syllable om], and the “crest” (shiras)—that is called breath control. (10)
Comments: There are several technical terms in this stanza that call for an explanation. As stated earlier, the gâyatrî is the famous Vedic mantra tat savitur varenyam bhargo devasya dhîmahi dhiyo yo nah pracodayât, “Let us contemplate that celestial splendor of God Savitrî so that He may inspire our visions.” The introductory formulas are bhûih, bhuvah, and svah, standing for earth, mid-region, and heaven respectively. The “crest” is the invocation paro rajase’savad om, “who is beyond all darkness—om,” which is often affixed to the gâyatrî-mantra.
Ejecting the air into the ether, making void the extrinsic (nirâtmaka) [breath], one should force it into a condition of voidness: Such is the description of exhalation. (11)
As a man would suck up water with the mouth by means of a [hollow] lotus stalk, similarly the air should be seized: Such is the description of inhalation. (12)
One should neither breathe out nor breathe in, nor should one move the limbs. Thus should one force the condition: Such is the description of retention. (13)
To see things as would the blind, to hear sounds as would the deaf, and to look upon the body as a log: Such is the description of the pacified [condition]. (14)
Considering the mind is volitional, the wise casts it into the Self and thus concentrates on the Self: This is proclaimed as concentration. (15)
Inference (ûhana) in consonance with the tradition is called reflection (tarka). That which, when obtained, is deemed the same [in everything] is called ecstasy (samâdhî). (16)
[Seated] on the ground on a seat of darbha-grass in a pleasant [location] free from any defects, guarding oneself mentally and reciting the “chariot” [i.e., the sacred syllable om] and the “wheels” (i.e., the formulas and the “crest” mentioned in verse 10), (17)
assuming the Yoga posture (yoga-âsana), the lotus posture (padmaka). the auspicious (svastika) [posture], or even the blessed posture (bhadra-âsana), and facing properly toward the north, (18)
one should—having drawn up the air (marut) while blocking one nostril with a finger—focus on the [inner] fire and contemplate only the sound [om]. (19)
Om is the one-syllabled Absolute. This om should not be exhaled. One should [practice] repeatedly by means of the divine mantra for release from [all] impurity. (20)
Thereafter, the mantra-knowing sage (budha) should gradually, as explained before—and proceeding above the navel—contemplate the coarse and the subtle, commencing with the coarse. (21)
The greatly thoughtful (mahâ-mati) [yogin] who gives up glancing sideways, up, or down and who abides steady and immobile should constantly practice Yoga. (22)
And the duration of concentration is the immobilization (vinishkampa) for the measure of a [hand] clap. However, [the ecstatic stale of] Yoga is known as restraint for the period of twelve measures (mâtrâ). (23)
That which is without soft consonants, without consonants, without vowels, without palatals, gutturals, labials, and nasals, and which also lacks the semivowels and both sibilants: That is the imperishable [sound om] that never ceases. (24)
He who sees the path [to the Absolute], his life force (prâna) approaches [It], Hence one should always practice that [Yoga[ which is for traveling on the path [to Freedom], (25)
[Yogins] know the gate of the heart, the gate of the wind, the gate of the head, and likewise the gate of liberation, as well as the “cavity” (bila), the “hole” (sushira), and the “circle” (mandala). (26)
Fear, anger, sloth, excessive sleep, excessive wakefulness, excessive eating, and non-eating: These the yogin should always avoid. (27)
When practiced constantly, gradually, and correctly according to the rules, wisdom arises of itself undoubtedly within three months. (28)
The Gods are seen within four [months]; within Five the process is extended [to the level of the Creator]; in six months, [the yogin] undoubtedly reaches liberation (kaivalya), as desired. (29)
The earthy [contemplation] is of five measures, the watery of four measures; the fiery is of three measures, and the windy is two-measured. (30)
The ethereal [contemplation] is of one measure. But one should [really] contemplate the nonmeasure (amâtrâ): Having made the connection with the mind, one should contemplate the Self within oneself. (31)
The life force is thirty and a half digits [in length as it leaves the body with the breath], where it is transferred to the [different] prânas. This is known as the life force transcending the external life force. (32)
The breath (nishvâsa) calculated for a day and a night [is said to be] 13,180 and 100,000 [exhalations and inhalations]. (33)
Comments: The total figure 113.180 must be divided by five, since the five prânas are involved. This gives us 22,636 respirations in twenty-four hours, or 15.7 per minute. In other scriptures, the idealized number of respirations is given as 21.600. In either case, this approximates the average number of respirations for an adult person.
The first [form of the life force known as] prânâ is in the heart place; apâna, however, is in the anus; samâna is in the navel region; udâna is situated at the throat; (34)
vyâna always abides pervading all the limbs. Now the colors of the five [kinds of life force] such as prâna in [their proper] order: (35)
The prâna wind is known to resemble a blood-colored gem. The apâna in the middle of this [body] is like the cochineal insect. (36)
The samâna in the middle between both [i.e.. between the prâna and the apâna] resembles white cows’ milk. And the udâna is pale, whereas the vyâna is like a flame. (37)
He whose [life force], having broken through this region (mandala) of the wind, rises to the head, wherever he may die, he will not be born again; he will not be born again. (38)
Comments: Yogins use both recitation of the syllable om and their breath as a means of focusing their awareness, which leads to the ascent of attention coupled to the life force. The idea is to guide the life force upward toward the crown of the head, until it breaks through the fontanel (called brahma-randhra or “brahmic fissure”) and rushes beyond the head into blissful infinity. In Tantra. the life force is thought to kindle the far more potent kundalinî-shakti, which by means of prâna is enticed to enter the axial pathway and ascend to the psychoenergetic center at the crown of the head where it merges with the infinity of Consciousness personified as Shiva.
Nâda-Bindu-Upanishad
The Nâda-Bindu (“Sound-Point”)-Upanishad comprises fifty-six stanzas. It starts with an exposition of the esoteric meaning of the sacred syllable om, which is said to consist of three and a half “measures” (,matra), namely the sounds a, u, m, and the “half-measure” (ardha-mâtrâ), which is the nasalized echo of m, elsewhere referred to as the “seed-point” (bindu). This mantra is called the vairâja-prânava, that is, the “resplendent humming.” In one place (stanzas 9-16), twelve such measures are spoken of, as well as the states of consciousness correlated with them.
There also is a passage describing the practice of the inner sound (nâda), which can be located in the right ear during meditative absorption. Through repeated practice this sound can become so prominent that all external sounds are drowned out by it. It also gives rise to a variety of other inner sounds resembling those produced by the ocean, a water fall, a kettle drum, a bell, a flute, and so on. The inwardly perceived sound becomes increasingly subtle, until the mind becomes so completely one with it that the individual forgets himself or herself. The mind undergoing this process is compared to a bee that is only interested in the nectar of a flower, not the scent that attracted it. The end state is one of total mental repose, perf
ect indifference to worldly existence. The yogin who has achieved this sublime state is described as being a videha-mukta, or one who has reached disembodied liberation.
Dhyâna-Bindu-Upanishad
The Dhyâna-Bindu (“Meditation Point“)-Upanishad, which has 106 verses, expands on the mystical speculations of the Nâda-Bindu-Upanishad. Employing an old Upanishadic metaphor, it likens the syllable om to a bow, with oneself as the arrow and the Absolute as the target. The individual who truly realizes the ultimate import of this metaphor is liberated even while being embodied. Meditation on the lotus of the heart—that is, the esoteric center at the heart—is recommended, and prescriptions for its visualization are given.
From verse 41 on, which lists the limbs of a sixfold Yoga, the text changes gear and reads like a Hatha-Yoga work. Thus, we find a description of other principal psychoenergetic centers (cakra) of the body, including the “bulb” (kânda) in the lower abdomen where the 72,000 currents or pathways (nâdî) of the life force are said to originate. This is followed by a discussion of the ten types of life force animating the body and how the life force relates to the dynamics of the psyche (jîva).
The psyche, it is stated, continually recites what is called the hamsa (“swan”)-mantra. The sound ham (pronounced like “hum”) is associated with inhalation, the sound sa with exhalation. The sequence hamsa- hamsa-hamsa can also be heard as so’ham-so’ham-so’ ham, which has the esoteric meaning of “I am He.” That is to say, “I am the Divine.” Thus, the body itself is constantly affirming its own true essence. This spontaneous recitation, effected by the automatic breathing process, is known as the ajapa-gâyatrî, or the “unrecited gâyatrî.” The yogins of yore calculated that we normally inhale and exhale around 21,600 times in the course of a day. The yogin’s task is to aid this natural process through controlling the breath and thus the mind.
This six-limbed Yoga is clearly a form of Kundalinî-Yoga. The “serpent power” (kundalinî-shakti) is sought to be awakened by a variety of means, including “locks” (bandha) applied to the anal and abdominal muscles and the throat, and such practices as the famous “space-walking seal” (khecârî-mudrâ) and the “great seal” (mahâ-mudrâ), which will both be explained in Chapter 18. Again, the goal of this Yoga is the state of aloneness (kaivalya), or liberation. The term kaivalya is borrowed from Patanjali’s Yoga-Sûtra, but in the present context it means merging with the Divine rather than perfect separation from Nature.
Tejo-Bindu-Upanishad
The Tejo-Bindu (“Radiance Point”)-Upanishad has six chapters with a total of 465 verses. Chapters 2-4 and Chapters 5-6 appear to have once been two independent texts. Only the first chapter and the beginning of the fifth chapter somewhat justify the title of this Upanishad, while the remaining sections are expositions of Vedânta nondualism and have nothing to do with the practice of Mantra-Yoga.
The reader is exhorted to meditate on the “swan” (hamsa), by which here is meant the transcendental Self beyond the three states of consciousness—waking, dreaming, and sleeping. The anonymous composer of this work puts forward a fifteen-limbed (panca-dasha- anga, written pancadashânga) Yoga, consisting of the following:
Discipline (yama), which is defined as the “restraint of the senses by means of the knowledge that everything is the Absolute” (1.17).
Self-restraint (niyama), which stands for “application to the innate [Self] and dissociation from what is alien” (1.18); what is “alien” is everything that is perceived to be other than the Self.
Renunciation (tyâga), which is explained as the “abandonment of the phenomenal world as a result of beholding the true superconscious Self’ (1.19).
Silence (mauna), which in this context is not so much ritual silence as the quieting of mind and mouth in virtue of the awe felt when the transcendental Self appears on the horizon of the meditative consciousness.
Place (desha), which is esoterically explained as “that by which this [world] is eternally pervaded” (1.23)—that is, the transcendental Space of Consciousness.
Time (kâla), which is likewise explained in mystical rather than conventional terms.
Posture (âsana), which is specified as the adept posture (siddha-âsana, written siddhâsana).
“Root lock” (mûla-bandha), which is a Hatha-Yoga practice that is here given a new, occult significance, for the author interprets it as “the root of the world” (1.27).
Bodily balance (deha-sâmya), which is explained as a merging with the Absolute; the conventional interpretation of this term, as the practice of standing like a tree, is explicitly rejected.
Steadiness of vision (drik-sthiti), which is seeing the world as the Absolute rather than the common yogic practice of fixing one’s sight on the spot between the eyebrows where the “third eye” is situated.
Breath control (prâna-samyama), which is defined as “the restriction of all fluctuations [of consciousness]” (1.31).
Withdrawal (pratyâhâra), which is understood here not as sensory withdrawal but as the mental state of locating the Self in the objects of the world.
Concentration (dhâranâ), which is defined as having the vision of the Absolute wheresoever the mind may wander.
Contemplation of the Self (âtma-dhyâna), which yields supreme bliss.
Ecstasy (samâdhi), which is defined as “the complete forgetting of the fluctuations [of consciousness] by repeatedly [assuming] the form of the Absolute, the unchanging fluctuation [of transcendental Consciousness]” (1.37).
The Tejo-Bindu-Upanishad (1.42) makes the further point that the ecstatic state entails the realization of the Absolute as fullness (pûrnatva), whereas the experience of emptiness (shûnyatâ) is considered an obstacle on the path. This is a dismissal of the Mahâyâna Buddhists, who speak of the ultimate Reality as the Void.
The subsequent chapters are more formulaic, giving us hundreds of variations on the great dictum of nondualism—“I am the Absolute.” In Chapter 4, the ideal of living liberation (jîvan-mukti) is referred to. The Self-realized adept, who experiences his or her perfect identity with the Divine while being embodied, is called a jîvan-mukta. By contrast, the videha-mukta is described as having abandoned even the knowledge of being identical with the Absolute.
The whole group of Bindu-Upanishads demonstrates the high level of sophistication in yogic psychotechnology and metaphysical speculation characteristic of the post-Patanjali Yoga tradition, which was greatly influenced by Tantra.
III. SOUND, BREATH, AND TRANSCENDENCE
Unless we are for some reason deliberately seeking to regulate our breath, we are ordinarily quite unaware of breathing. However, as soon as we begin to meditate, we become awkwardly conscious of the sound produced by the two bellows in our chest. For beginners this can be a disturbing experience; for yogins, however, this rhythmic sound is music to their ears, because they can fasten their attention on it until the mind itself is transcended and they enter the soundless domain of the transcendental Reality.
Yogins regard the breath, which is technically known as hamsa (“swan”), as a manifestation of the transcendental Life, or Self, which also is referred to as hamsa. As we have seen in the preceding section, the two syllables of the word—ham and sa—stand for the ingoing and outgoing breaths, as well as the ascending and descending currents of the life force. They contain a great secret, for the continuous sound of the breath conveys the message, “I am He, I am He, I am He.” In other words, the breath is a constant reminder of the absolute truth that we are identical with the great Life of the cosmos, the Absolute, or transcendental Self. This creative idea is at the core of the teaching of the Hamsa-Upanishad,
Hamsa-Upanishad9
This short work consists of twenty-one verses. Those who are incapable of contemplating the Self directly are advised to resort to the craft of silent hamsa recitation, which involves the conscious observation of the spontaneous “prayer” of the breath. In this way, the text states, all kinds of internal sounds (nâda) are generated
. Ten levels are distinguished, and the practitioner is asked to cultivate only the tenth and most subtle level of the internal sound, which resembles that of a thundercloud. It leads to identification with the Self, the realization of Sadâ-Shiva, the “Eternal Shiva,” who is the refulgent, peaceful Ground of all existence.
Brahma-Vidyâ-Upanishad10
A more elaborate treatment of this Hamsa-Yoga is found in the Brahma-Vidyâ (“Knowledge of the Absolute”) -Upanishad, a work of 111 stanzas. The practice of hamsa recitation and meditation is recommended for both householders and forest anchorites, as well as mendicant yogins. It is said to lead to both spiritual perfection and paranormal powers. This form of Hamsa-Yoga is combined with practices designed to awaken the serpent power and conduct it to the highest psychoenergetic center at the crown of the head.
Mahâvâkya-Upanishad11
Like the Tejo-Bindu-Upanishad, the Mahâvâkya (“Great Saying”)-Upanishad, a tract comprising twelve passages, speaks of the goal of the yogic process as fullness. This condition, it states, is not merely ecstasy (samâdhi), yogic perfection, or the dissolution of the mind. It is, rather, perfect identity (aikya) with the Absolute.
Pâshupata-Brahma-Upanishad12
The Pâshupata-Brahma-Upanishad is a Shaiva work of seventy-eight verses distributed over two chapters. It derives its name from the followers of God Pashupati, who is none other than Shiva, the Lord of the “beasts” (pashu), or souls, which are in bondage. This scripture is grounded in the sacrificial symbolism of the brahmins and introduces the practice of the hamsa- mantra as a form of internal or mental sacrifice. This process is also called nâda-anusamdhâna or “application to the [inner] sound”—a term particularly associated with the Kânphata yogins. It is connected with an esoteric notion according to which there are ninety-six “solar beams” in the heart. These are rays, or links, originating in the transcendental Self through which the Divine can be creative in the human body-mind. “This occult fact about the Absolute is not disclosed anywhere else,” states the text (1.25). It is further said that liberation is possible only for the yogin who is able to meditate on the identity of the hamsa as sound with the hamsa as the transcendental Self.
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