Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 76
मंदो द्वादशमात्रस्तु मात्रा लघ्वक्षरा मता । मध्यमो द्विगुणः पूर्वादुत्तमस्त्रिगुणस्ततः
maṃdo dvādaśamātrastu mātrā laghvakṣarā matā | madhyamo dviguṇaḥ pūrvāduttamastriguṇastataḥ
ಮಂದ (ಆರಂಭಿಕ) ಪ್ರಾಣಾಯಾಮವು ದ್ವಾದಶ ಮಾತ್ರೆಗಳದು; ‘ಮಾತ್ರೆ’ ಎಂದರೆ ಲಘು ಅಕ್ಷರದ ಕಾಲವೆಂದು ಗಣ್ಯ. ಮಧ್ಯಮವು ಪೂರ್ವದ ದ್ವಿಗುಣ, ಉತ್ತಮವು ತದನಂತರ ತ್ರಿಗುಣ.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A seated yogin in Kāśī, near a quiet ghat, counting mātrās with a rosary while regulating breath; subtle aura of restraint and measure.
FAQs
Yogic growth is gradual and measurable; prāṇāyāma is taught with precise timing to ensure safe progress.
The instruction belongs to Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s Kāśī-centered dharma of liberation; no specific tīrtha is named here.
A graded timing rule: manda = 12 mātrās; madhyama = 2×; uttama = 3×, with mātrā defined by a short syllable’s duration.