Breath

What this passage does

The fourth limb. Breath control is defined as cutting off the flow of breath (2.49), refined by measure until long and subtle (2.50), with a fourth kind beyond outer and inner (2.51). Its fruits look forward: the covering over the light wears away (2.52), and the mind becomes fit for concentration (2.53), the sixth limb, which opens the third pāda (3.1).

Learning goals

• Explain how the text defines breath control and what the tradition takes 'cutting off the flow' to mean.
• Distinguish the outward, inward and held forms from the fourth, as Vyāsa does.
• Name the two fruits of breath control and how they lead to the inner limbs.

The argument, step by step

1. With posture in place, breath control is the cutting off of the flow of in-breath and out-breath.
2. It is outward, inward or held, and measured by place, time and number it becomes long and subtle.
3. A fourth kind goes beyond the range of outer and inner.
4. Vyāsa: the third stops in a single effort, while the fourth comes as the stages are mastered in order.
5. Then the covering over the light wears away.
6. And the mind becomes fit for concentration, the sixth limb.

The sūtras

1. 2.49 tasmin sati śvāsapraśvāsayor gativicchedaḥ prāṇāyāmaḥ
   With posture in place, breath control is the cutting off of the flow of in-breath and out-breath.
2. 2.50 bāhyābhyantarastambhavṛttir deśakālasaṃkhyābhiḥ paridṛṣṭo dīrghasūkṣmaḥ
   It is outward, inward or held; measured by place, time and number, it becomes long and subtle.
3. 2.51 bāhyābhyantaraviṣayākṣepī caturthaḥ
   The fourth goes beyond the range of outer and inner.
4. 2.52 tataḥ kṣīyate prakāśāvaraṇam
   Then the covering over the light wears away.
5. 2.53 dhāraṇāsu ca yogyatā manasaḥ
   And the mind becomes fit for concentration.

Study

The fourth limb rests on the third. 2.49: "With posture in place, breath control is the cutting off of the flow of in-breath and out-breath." Vyāsa reads 'with posture in place' as 'once posture is mastered', and defines the terms. In-breath is drawing in the outer air; out-breath is expelling the air of the belly; breath control is cutting off the flow of both, the absence of both (Woods p. 193). Vācaspati applies this to holding the breath in after inhaling, out after exhaling, and to suspension (Woods p. 193). The classical sense is deliberate stopping. Teachers should say so, and should also say that breath holding is learned in person from a qualified teacher, never from a page or an app.

2.50 refines it: "It is outward, inward or held; measured by place, time and number, it becomes long and subtle." Vyāsa: it is outward when there is no flow after breathing out, inward when there is none after breathing in, and the third is where both stop through a single effort, as water dropped on a hot stone shrinks on every side (Woods pp. 193–194). Each is observed by place, the extent of space the breath covers, by time, a count of moments, and by number. Vācaspati adds that it lengthens gradually, over days, fortnights and months, and that 'subtle' means reached through very fine attention, not weakness (Woods p. 195).

2.51 adds: "The fourth goes beyond the range of outer and inner." Vyāsa draws the line (Woods p. 195). The third stops in one effort, without regard to where the breath goes. The fourth comes after the stages of observation have been mastered one by one, when the breath has gone beyond both outer and inner ranges. Vācaspati: the fourth is not instant, and is completed by many efforts (Woods pp. 195–196).

The fruits look forward. 2.52: "Then the covering over the light wears away." Vyāsa: the karma that covers discriminative knowledge weakens moment by moment, and he quotes a saying that there is no discipline higher than breath control (Woods p. 196). Vācaspati adds that it makes that karma powerless without removing it altogether, so discipline is still needed (Woods p. 196). 2.53: "And the mind becomes fit for concentration." Vyāsa supports it with 1.34 (Woods p. 197). Concentration is the sixth limb, defined at 3.1.

Readings differ on the fourth kind: a spontaneous stillness of breath in deep quiet, or a mastered breath so fine it barely moves. Vyāsa's account supports gradual arrival through observation. There is also a gap between this text and later haṭha manuals, which develop many breathing techniques. The Yoga Sūtras' own account is short and centred on observation and its effect on the mind.

For practice, the point of breath control here is the mind: the light uncovered, and fitness to concentrate. Ordinary students can meet it safely by noticing and counting, without any holding, which is what the cards teach.

For discussion

1. Why does breath control need posture 'in place' first?
2. How does Vyāsa tell the third kind of breath control from the fourth?
3. What does it mean to observe the breath by place, time and number?
4. What is the 'covering over the light' for Vyāsa, and why would breath practice affect it?
5. Why might the text put breath control just before withdrawal and concentration?

A common misreading

Prāṇāyāma is often taught as deep breathing for relaxation. The text defines it as cutting off the flow of breath (2.49) and values it because it uncovers the light and readies the mind (2.52–2.53); its holding forms belong with a qualified teacher.

A practice for the room

Seated. Two minutes of ordinary breathing, simply noticing where the breath is felt and how far it reaches. Two minutes counting the length of each exhale, letting it grow by one count only if it wants to. Two minutes counting breaths from one to ten, starting again when lost. No one holds the breath, and anyone who feels strain returns to ordinary breathing. End with one minute of sitting with no technique at all.