Shloka 40
प्राणाख्यम् अनिलं वश्यम् अभ्यासात् कुरुते तु यत् प्राणायामः स विज्ञेयः सबीजो ऽबीज एव च
prāṇākhyam anilaṃ vaśyam abhyāsāt kurute tu yat prāṇāyāmaḥ sa vijñeyaḥ sabījo 'bīja eva ca
అభ్యాసం ద్వారా ప్రాణమనే వాయువును వశపరచే శిక్షణనే ప్రాణాయామం అంటారు; అది ‘సబీజ’ మరియు ‘అబీజ’ అని రెండు విధాలుగా బోధించబడింది।
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Definition of prāṇāyāma and its two modes (sabīja/abīja)
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: authoritative
Concept: Prāṇāyāma is the disciplined mastery of prāṇa through sustained practice, taught as ‘with seed’ and ‘seedless’ modes.
Vedantic Theme: Atman
Application: Practice gentle, safe breath regulation under guidance; treat breath as a bridge to mental steadiness, moving from supported attention (sabīja) to quiet absorption (abīja).
Vishishtadvaita: Breath-control is framed as a means to steady the mind for Supreme-oriented contemplation, not as an end in itself—consistent with Vishishtadvaita’s teleology of God-realization.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
Here prāṇāyāma is defined as the disciplined mastery of the life-breath through sustained practice, presented as a core yogic means within the Moksha section that steadies the mind for higher realization.
He frames prāṇāyāma as having two forms: sabīja, supported by a “seed” (an object, intention, or focal support), and abīja, in which practice becomes supportless—subtler and more interior, oriented toward stillness.
Even when the verse speaks in yogic terms, it belongs to the Purana’s liberation-teaching where inner control and clarity ultimately serve devotion and realization of Vishnu as the Supreme Reality guiding cosmic order and the soul’s release.