Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 9
गृहीत्वा पवनं बाह्यं यदा पूर यते तनुम् । तदा स पूरको ज्ञेयो रेचकं तु वदाम्यहम्
gṛhītvā pavanaṃ bāhyaṃ yadā pūra yate tanum | tadā sa pūrako jñeyo recakaṃ tu vadāmyaham
जेव्हा बाह्य प्राणवायू ग्रहण करून देह भरला जातो, तेव्हा तो ‘पूरक’ जाणावा; आता मी ‘रेचक’ सांगतो।
Sārasvata (continued narration/teaching)
Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: King (nṛpa)
Scene: A teacher-figure (Īśvara) instructs a seated yogin/kingly disciple; the breath is shown as a subtle stream entering the nostrils, filling the torso like a luminous current; background hints of coastal Prabhāsa shrines and sacred groves.
FAQs
Breath-discipline is treated as a sacred technology for inner control, supporting meditation and spiritual steadiness.
The instruction appears within the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra māhātmya of Prabhāsa, linking yogic practice with the sanctity of place.
Prāṇāyāma is defined: pūraka (inhalation) as drawing in outer breath to fill the body; recaka (exhalation) is introduced for explanation.