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Thread: Prana

  1. #1

    Prana

    Prana : Copied From the Atharva Veda., XI, 4.

    1. Praise to the Breath of Life!
    He rules this world,
    master of all things,
    on which all things are based.

    2. Praise, Breath of Life, to your uproar!
    Praise to your thunder!
    Praise to your lightning!
    Praise, Breath of Life, for your rain!

    3. When Breath of Life with his thunder
    roars o'er the plants,
    then, pregnant with pollen,
    the flowers burst forth in abundance.

    4. When Breath of Life in due season
    roars o'er the plants,
    all things on earth
    rejoice with great rejoicing.

    5. When Breath of Life the broad earth
    with rain bedews,
    the cattle exult:
    "We shall have plenty," they say.

    6. The plants converse with this Breath,
    drenched by his moisture:
    "Our life is prolonged,
    for you have made us all fragrant."

    7. Praise to you, Breath, when you come
    and praise when you go!
    When you stand up
    and when you sit still, to you praise!

    8. Praise to you, Breath of Life, breathing
    both in and out!
    To your turning this side
    and that, to the whole of you, praise!

    9. Grant us, O Breath, your dear form
    and the one dearer still
    that we may live!
    Give us your healing power!

    10. Breath of Life clothes all beings with care
    as a father his son;
    master of all things,
    whether they breathe or breathe not.

    11. Breath of Life is death, is fever,
    revered by the Gods.
    In the highest world
    he sets the man who speaks truth.

    12. Breath of Life is Queen, is Guide,
    revered by all things;
    he is sun, he is moon;
    he is also the Father of all.

    13. The two breaths are rice and barley,
    Breath the ox that pulls.
    In barley resides i
    inbreath; out-breath is called rice.

    14. A man breathes in, he breathes out,
    within the womb.
    Quickened by you,
    to birth he comes once more.

    15. The mighty Wind they call him, or Breeze.
    The future and the past
    exist in him.
    On Breath of Life all things are based.

    16. When you, Breath of Life, quicken them,
    then the plants of the Atharvans and Angirases,
    of Gods and of Men, come to birth.

    17. When Breath has poured down with the rain
    upon the vast earth,
    then plants come forth
    and herbs of every sort.

    18. The one who knows you thus, O Breath,
    and that which forms your support,
    to him will all offer
    tribute in yonder highest heaven.

    19. Just as all creatures owe tribute
    to you, Breath of Life,
    so may they bring it
    to the one who hears you, O renowned!

    20. He moves among the Gods, an inner seed;
    becomes, is, is reborn.
    He has entered the son
    he, the father, who was, is, and shall be!

    21. If the sunbird, rising, extracted
    his foot from the sea,
    neither today nor tomorrow
    would exist, neither night, day, nor dawn.

    22. The eight--wheeled moves on one rim,
    to and fro, thousand-syllabled.
    With one half it engendered
    all creation. Of its other half what sign?

    23. Of all that is born is he Lord,
    of all that moves.
    Of swift bow like the rest,
    to you, O Breath of Life, homage!

    24. Of all that is born is he Lord,
    of all that moves.
    Untiring he, steadfast;
    may my prayer bring Breath to my aid!

    25. Erect he keeps watch among the sleeping.
    he falls not prone.
    None ever heard
    that he among the sleepers should slumber.

    26. Breath of Life, do not forsake me.
    You are, indeed, I.
    Like the Embryo of the Waters
    I bind you to me that I may live!"

  2. #2
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    Re: Prana

    Hari Om
    ~~~~~~

    Quote Originally Posted by Bob G View Post

    Prana : Copied From the Atharva Veda., XI, 4.

    1. Praise to the Breath of Life! He rules this world, master of all things,
    on which all things are based.
    Namaste BG,
    thank you for the slokas on prana.... if its okay, I thought to extend the idea a bit if I may.

    IN the Chandogya Upanishad (5.2.1) Prana asks "What will be my food?" This is the question prana sets before the other sense organs ( seeing, smelling, tasting, touching, thinking, speaking, etc).

    This prana is the force of life, more then just breath. As breath is the carrier of this life-force. It is from an or breathing or living + pra or properly. It is also ana or food , or sustenance, that which one depends on for life to occur.

    If we take this 'an' and add prefixes to it we get the 5 prana's that we exercise daily:
    Pra+ana - properly moving; or forward moving; or to breathe forth
    Ap+ana - or downward ( 'a' for not or opposite)
    Sam+ana - sam or even-ness , balanced
    Vy+ana - outward moving
    Ud+ana - upward moving
    Now when things are eaten and understood, then the following gets established ( so says the Chandogya Upanishad in Chapter 5).

    This prana has an external signification, that is, within us and outside of us ( the individual) at the same time:

    Prana - is connected with the eyes. The eyes are connected / influenced by the sun for light to see. When there is contentment of the eyes, the sun too is content by what is 'eaten'. The whole atmosphere is satisfied, the individual and the atmosphere, as sun rules here.

    Apana - is connected to speech. It is said vac ( speech) is ruled by agni. Agni is the ruler over earth. Mar's plays a key role with agni. When this speech and agni are satisfied, this earth is then satisfied. We as inhabitants are then too satisfied.

    Samana - is connected to the mind. The divine mind is Indra. He is owner of lightening and rain. The moon is the graha connected with the mind. When the mind is satisfied, it brings sama, balance. The ultimate balance is yoga.

    Vyana - is connected with the ears. Vayu allows sound to be carried and from all directions ( the 4 cardinal directions) that resides in space ( akaska) - as does all things. This Vayu is connected to Sani (Saturn).
    When the ears are satisfied, then all good comes from all directions and there is 'plenty' for the native.

    Udana - is connected to air and touch. This air (Vayu's) abode is that of akasha where all things reside. This akasha is connected to Guru, or Jupiter who brings blessings and expansion. When satisfaction arrives here, then all things are satisfied as all things reside in akasha.

    So, what will be prana's food? What ever is eaten ( seen, viewed, touched, tasted, smelled, thought of, etc) from all the other senses, is the 'food' of prana. Then He too Vaishvanara, which is also the eater of food, and is satisfied.

    So, as prana goes, so do the senses. He or she that manages/ befriends prana is able to manage and control the various dimensions of prana - the mind, taste, touch, etc. This is the principle behind pranayam and the key tenets we find in the Vijanana Bhairrava Tanta verses (karikas) on using the breath as a upaya [ techniques , method, vehicle] for sadhana.


    thank you again for shaing thoughts on prana

    prana-ms,
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Post Re: Prana

    Namaste Yajvan,

    an means "to breathe", ana is "breath", Ana is "breathing", and annam is "food".

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    Re: Prana

    Quote Originally Posted by sarabhanga View Post
    Namaste Yajvan,

    an means "to breathe", ana is "breath", Ana is "breathing", and annam is "food".

    beautiful~!
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: Prana + yama

    Hari Om
    ~~~~~

    If we take this 'an' and add prefixes to it we get the 5 prana's that we exercise daily:
    Pra+ana - properly moving; or forward moving; or to breathe forth
    Ap+ana - or downward ( 'a' for not or opposite)
    Sam+ana - sam or even-ness , balanced
    Vy+ana - outward moving
    Ud+ana - upward moving
    from sarabhanga
    an means "to breathe", ana is "breath", Ana is "breathing", and annam is "food".
    Namaste,
    As we are talking prana...
    Pranayama (prāṇāyāma) - we know as the regulation of the breath.
    Prana + yama - Prana is the life force we have discussed in this string and several other places.
    Yama from the root 'yam' यम् - to sustain , hold up , support or to hold or keep in , hold back , restrain , check , curb , govern , subdue , control.
    So in pranayam one is controling or regulating the breath; Yet if we take yam and add the A to it, Ayam we now have to stretch (like a bow) , to grow long ,to lengthen or extend.

    So this word prāṇāyāma gets interesting. It is a method to control the breath/life force, but at the same time āyāma, to extend it. The ulimate extention is perfect balance, the center or madhya, of breath-and-no-breath.

    Where else is this madhya or centering discussed? We had a discussion on several HDF postings¹ reviewing Vijnana Bhairava Tantra. But is there another reference?
    • If one looks to the Bhagavad Gita Chapt 4.29 , Krsna talks of the sadhu that practices pranayama and the result therein. Where else do we find this?
    • In Patanjali's Yoga Sutras , Chapt 2.29 as the 4th limb of Yoga (yama,niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi)
    Other places? Hatha Yoga sees it as a cleansing process and another place of balance . I think one technique is called Ujjayi breathing , as I am not conversant on this, perhaps someone else can discuss this.

    Maybe sarabhanga can provide us the etymology of Ha+tha.

    This pranayama becomes a central theme or technique that is of great value to the sadhu's development. What I find appealing is something that we do thousnds of times a day without noticing much, can be used as part of ones sadhana.

    1. This is the discussion on the HDF Posting: Vijnana Bhairava Tantra and Breath post

    Pr-ana-ms
    Last edited by yajvan; 01 August 2008 at 08:33 PM. Reason: corrected some fonts and spelling
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Arrow Re: Prana + yama

    Namaste Yajvan,

    haTha indicates violence, force, obstinacy, pertinacity or persistency, oppression or suppression, and absolute or inevitable necessity (especially as the cause of existence and activity).

    haThayoga is a kind of forced yoga or abstract meditation (forcing the mind to withdraw from external objects) performed with tapas.

    See: haTha yoga

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    Re: Prana

    We eat with our fingers because of prana... we take back in our own prana, life force seething out the fingers. /EM

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    Re: Prana + yama

    Hari Om
    ~~~~~


    Quote Originally Posted by sarabhanga View Post
    haTha indicates “violence, force, obstinacy, pertinacity or persistency”, “oppression or suppression”, and “absolute or inevitable necessity (especially as the cause of existence and activity)”.
    Namaste sarabhanga (et.al)
    Yes , this etymology of this word is interesting... If one were talking to a Hatha Yoga sadhu and asked what they're doing, they may answer 'finding balance' or 'working with and balancing the sun and moon forces'. Now how can we get to this notion offered by the sadhu from this word hatha?

    We know if we look at some of the roots it may help us:
    ham हम् an exclamation expressive of anger or courtesy or respect.
    We then can see where some of this force & obstinacy may come from, from this root; yet lets also consider the following:
    haT हट् - to shine , be bright
    Tha ठ - the moon's disk, a disk

    We can see where this notion of sun ( bright) and moon (disk) may have its origin.

    Why sun and moon? From a Jyotish perspective, Sun is Atman, moon is mind, home of the senses. It is the notion of the co-operation of the mind-body-atma working in concert that brings harmony and health to ones body.

    Sun and moon are sometimes viewed as day and night, opposites. Hatha is designed to integrate night and dark (opposites) to the benefit of the practitioner.

    More on this...
    The sun and moon divide time into day and night and only meet during the twilight known as sandhya (gap),where we are able to take advantage of not-sun , not-moon , but that wonderful gap in time. The harmonizing time for meditation.

    Yet when one does Hatha Yoga, each pose is held for a few moments, some for minutes... that is the grooming of sandhya in that pose; to bring balance to the mind-body-atman and perhaps to easily allow haTha “violence, force, obstinacy, pertinacity or persistency" to dissipate.

    As we are influenced by the sun-moon's movements [ they are considered the creative principle in Jyotish] this stimulates the human biological system to the cycles of the sun and moon. Hatha is designed to harmonize these influences for the benefit of the sadhu and sadhu-ette!


    pranams,
    Last edited by yajvan; 30 November 2007 at 08:37 PM. Reason: spelling updates....
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  9. #9

    Re: Prana

    Respected Sir,

    Learned Sarabanga writes "haTha indicates violence, force, obstinacy, pertinacity or persistency, oppression or suppression, and absolute or inevitable necessity (especially as the cause of existence and activity).

    As a practitioner of Hatha Yoga I would like to add that each pose of any asana is an unnatural position restraining a particular part of the body i.e. "oppressing" it so that certain internal organs get more blood. Example is Sirasana which is an inverted which is an abnormal pose designed for blood to flow into the head. Once a pose is reached one is supposed to remain in that position for some seconds/minutes achieving "balance" in that pose. Apart from the physical act, mentally the practitioner is supposed to think of the deity for that pose and some times observe a specific mudra. Most of the asanas require breathing in, holding breadth and also exhaling. Thus all the expressions mentioned above by the learned Sarabanga is practically achieved in Hatha Yoga!

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    Re: Prana

    Hari Om
    ~~~~~
    Quote Originally Posted by syvedi40 View Post
    As a practitioner of Hatha Yoga I would like to add that each pose of any asana is an unnatural position restraining a particular part of the body i.e. "oppressing" it so that certain internal organs get more blood. Example is Sirasana which is an inverted which is an abnormal pose designed for blood to flow into the head. Once a pose is reached one is supposed to remain in that position for some seconds/minutes achieving "balance" in that pose. Apart from the physical act, mentally the practitioner is supposed to think of the deity for that pose and some times observe a specific mudra. Most of the asanas require breathing in, holding breadth and also exhaling. Thus all the expressions mentioned above by the learned Sarabanga is practically achieved in Hatha Yoga!
    Namate syvedi
    Thank you for your post... this notion in Hatha Yoga for balance and centering is most welcomed. That is, mAdhya ( माध्य ) or middlemost , intermediate , central, standing between two , impartial , neutral.

    What is one between or in-between? The in-and-out breath that is calm. Over time it blossoms to turiya.

    We can find this in Hatha and other sadhanas, and is the blessing found in the practice.

    pranams
    Last edited by yajvan; 31 March 2008 at 01:37 PM.
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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