Shloka 45
प्राणापानौ समानश्च उदानो व्यान एव च / नागः कूर्मश्च कृकरो देवदत्तो धनञ्जयः
prāṇāpānau samānaśca udāno vyāna eva ca / nāgaḥ kūrmaśca kṛkaro devadatto dhanañjayaḥ
Prāṇa and Apāna, Samāna, Udāna and Vyāna as well—along with Nāga, Kūrma, Kṛkara, Devadatta, and Dhanañjaya—these are the vital airs operating within the being.
Lord Vishnu (in dialogue with Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Ten vāyus (five primary and five subsidiary) as functional energies sustaining life and bodily processes.
Vedantic Theme: Prāṇa as a key link between gross body and subtle body; supports discrimination between Self (ātman) and instruments (prāṇa, mind, body).
Application: Observe breath and bodily reflexes (belching, blinking, sneezing, yawning, post-mortem gas retention) as vāyu expressions; use this to refine prāṇāyāma and mindful living.
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: body-microcosm
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.32.46–47 (vāyus established; digestion/food transformation)
FAQs
This verse lists the five principal and five subsidiary vāyus, showing that life and bodily functions are governed by subtle energies—key to understanding how the jīva operates and departs at death.
By naming Udāna and Dhanañjaya, it points to the mechanisms associated with departure and post-mortem bodily changes, supporting the Garuda Purana’s account of how the subtle body continues beyond physical death.
Cultivating disciplined breath, diet, and conduct supports balanced prāṇic function—encouraging steadiness of mind and preparedness for the inevitable transitions described in the Garuda Purana.