“By systematically restraining the prana (breath), the nadis and chakras are purified, allowing the prana to enter the sushumna.”
The verse: Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.41
The quote above is our paraphrase. This is the verse as it reads in the Pancham Sinh translation (1914):
“When the system of Nâdis becomes clear of the impurities by properly controlling the prâṇa, then the air, piercing the entrance of the Suśumṇâ, enters it easily.”
About the text: Hatha Yoga Pradipika
The Hatha Yoga Pradipika is a Sanskrit manual of hatha yoga compiled by Svatmarama, usually dated to the 15th century. Its four chapters cover postures, cleansing practices and breath control, mudras and bandhas, and meditation, and it is among the most influential surviving hatha yoga texts.
More from the Hatha Yoga Pradipika
- “Moola bandha helps guide the energy upward to higher centers, promoting spiritual evolution.”
- “One who desires complete dominion of yoga should explore nada and abandon all thoughts.”
- “Shambhavi mudra with breath control induces a state of superconscious absorption.”
- “Guru is not merely a yoga teacher. He is the only one who can enlighten your soul by the luminosity of his revealed spirit.”
- “Nada is like the net that snares the deer (mind) inside, also acting as the hunter who slays it.”
- “Nada yoga captivates the mind like music and draws it into internal absorption.”