Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 20
योगप्रकारनिर्णयः
Classification and Definition of Yoga
पर्यंकं च यथेष्टं च प्रोक्तमासनमष्टधा । प्राणः स्वदेहजो वायुस्तस्यायामो निरोधनम्
paryaṃkaṃ ca yatheṣṭaṃ ca proktamāsanamaṣṭadhā | prāṇaḥ svadehajo vāyustasyāyāmo nirodhanam
Les postures (āsana) sont décrites comme étant au nombre de huit — telles la posture paryaṅka et la posture yatheṣṭa (selon le souhait). Prāṇa est le souffle vital né dans son propre corps ; sa régulation disciplinée, jusqu’à le contenir, est le prāṇāyāma.
Suta Goswami (narrating Shiva’s yogic teaching in the Vāyavīyasaṃhitā to the sages at Naimisharanya)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga account; it defines āsana (eightfold) and prāṇāyāma as regulation/restraint of the internal vital wind (prāṇa-vāyu).
Significance: Prāṇāyāma and stable āsana are presented as practical means to purify nāḍīs and steady the mind for Śiva-dhyāna, enabling the soul (paśu) to become fit for Śiva’s grace (anugraha).
FAQs
It frames yoga as disciplined inner purification: āsana steadies the body, and prāṇāyāma is defined as the restraint/regulated control of the life-wind, preparing the seeker (paśu) for Shiva-oriented concentration and release from bonds (pāśa).
By stabilizing posture and regulating prāṇa, the devotee becomes fit for sustained dhyāna and japa—practices commonly directed to Saguna Shiva (including Linga contemplation) as a support leading the mind toward Shiva’s higher realization.
Adopt a steady āsana and practice prāṇāyāma as controlled restraint of prāṇa; this can be paired with Shiva-japa (e.g., the Panchakshara) as the mind becomes calm and inward-turned.