Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 78
विषादं हि तृतीयेन सिद्धः प्राणोथ योगिनः । भवेत्क्रमात्सन्निरुद्धः सिद्धः प्राणोथ योगिना । क्रमेण सेव्यमानोसौ नयते यत्र चेच्छति
viṣādaṃ hi tṛtīyena siddhaḥ prāṇotha yoginaḥ | bhavetkramātsanniruddhaḥ siddhaḥ prāṇotha yoginā | krameṇa sevyamānosau nayate yatra cecchati
En verdad, por el tercer grado vence el abatimiento; entonces el prāṇa del yogui queda perfeccionado. Cuando, con el tiempo, el prāṇa es plenamente contenido y dominado, mediante práctica constante conduce al yogui adondequiera que él lo desee.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A yogin in deep restraint; prāṇa visualized as a luminous current coiling within suṣumṇā; the city of Kāśī appears as a sacred mandala behind, suggesting inner and outer pilgrimage merging.
FAQs
Persistent, graded discipline culminates in prāṇa-siddhi, where mastery of breath supports mastery of one’s inner and outer movement.
The teaching is embedded in Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s Kāśī-oriented liberation tradition, without naming a specific tīrtha in this verse.
Advance to the third grade to overcome dejection; continue gradual practice until prāṇa is thoroughly restrained and mastered.