(3) In sitting down, after dropping the lids, one establishes a plumb-line with the eyes and shifts the Light downward. But if the transposition downward is not successful, then the heart is directed toward listening to the breathing. One should not be able to hear with the ear the out- going and intaking of the breath. What one hears is that it has no tone. As soon as it has tone, the breathing is rough and superficial, and does not penetrate into what is ine. Then the heart must be made quite light and insigni icant. The more it is released, the less important it becomes; the less important, the quieter. All at once it becomes so quiet that it stops. Then the true breathing is manifested and the form of the heart can be made conscious. When the heart is light, the breathing is light, for every movement of the heart brings about breathing power. If the breathing is light, the heart is light, for every movement of the breath affects the heart. In order to steady the heart, one begins by cultivating the breathing power. The heart cannot be in luenced directly. Therefore the breathing power is used as a handle, and this is what is called protecting the collected breathing power.

(1) There is this verse on the subject: — From whom the sun. rises And in whom it sets — in truth, from Breath it lises, and in Breath it sets — Him the gods made law (dharmd)\ He only today and tomorrow will be. Verily, what those [functions] undertook of old, even that they accomplish today. Therefore one should practise but one activity. He should breathe in and breathe out, wishing, which he practises he should desire to fulfil to the end. Thereby he wins complete union with that divinity [i.e. Breath] and residence in the same world.

(20) The Master hinted at this secretly when he said: At the beginning of the work one must sit in a quiet room, the body like dry wood, the heart like cooled ashes. Let the lids of both eyes be lowered; then look within and purify the heart, cleanse the thoughts, stop pleasures and conserve the seed. One should sit down daily to meditate with legs crossed. Let the light in the eyes be stopped; let the hearing power of the ear be crystallized and the tasting power of the tongue diminished; that is, the tongue should be laid to the roof of the mouth; let the breathing through the nose be made rhythmical and the thoughts fixed on the dark door. If the breathing is not irst made rhythmical it is to be feared that there will be dif iculty in breathing, because of stoppage. When one closes the eyes, then one should take as a measure a point on the back of the nose which lies not half an inch below the intersection point of the line of sight, where there is a little bump on the nose. Then one begins to collect one's thoughts; the ears make the breathing rhythmical; body and heart are comfortable and harmonious. The Light of the eyes must shine quietly, and, for a long time, neither sleepiness nor distraction must set in. The eyes do not look outward, they drop their lids and light up what is within. There is Light in this place. The mouth does not speak nor laugh. One closes the lips and breathes inwardly. Breathing is at this place. The nose smells no odours. Smelling is at this place. The ear does not hear things outside. Hearing is at this place. The whole heart watches over what is within. Its watching is at this place. The thoughts do not stray outward; true thoughts have continuity in themselves. If the thoughts are lasting, the seed is lasting; if the seed lasts, the power lasts; if the power lasts, then will the spirit last also. The spirit is thought; thought is the heart; the heart is the ire; the fire is the Elixir. When one looks at what is within in this way, the wonders of the opening and shutting of the gates of Heaven will be inexhaustible. But the deeper secrets cannot be effected without making the breathing rhythmical.

(6) Alone, stationed in a solitary place, self-controlled, free from desire, and not receiving anything from others, the yogi (Practising Dhyanayoga) should unite the mind with Atma.

(1) And it is also the Udgitha. The breath verily is up (uj) for by breath this whole world is upheld (ut-tabdha}. Song (glthd), verily, is speech; ut and githa— that is Udgitha.

(12) Because breath comes out of the heart, unrhythmical breathing comes from the heart's unrest. Therefore one must breathe in and out quite softly so that it remains inaudible to the ear, and only the heart quietly counts the breaths. When the heart forgets the number of breaths, that is a sign that the heart has gone off into the outer world. Then one must hold the heart steadfast. If the ear does not listen attentively, or the eyes do not look at the back of the nose, it often happens that the heart runs off outside, or that sleep comes. That is a sign that the condition is going over into confusion and absent-mindedness, and the seed-spirit must be brought into order again. If, in lowering the lids and taking direction from the nose, the mouth is not tightly closed and the teeth are not clenched firmly together, it can easily happen that the heart hastens outward; then one must close the mouth quickly and clench the teeth together. The five senses order themselves according to the heart, and the spirit must call the breathing-power to aid, in order that heart and breath are harmonized. In this way there is need at most of daily work of a few quarter-hours for heart and breathing to come of themselves into the right sort of collaboration and harmony. Then one need no longer count and breathing becomes rhythmical of its own accord. When the breathing is rhythmical the mistakes of laziness and distraction disappear of their own accord.

(4) This same ancient Yoga has now been taught by Me, for you are My devotee and friend. It is indeed the supreme secret.

(1) As also Brahmadatta Caikitaneya, while partaking of King [Soma], said: 'Let this king cause this man's head to fall off, if Ayasya Angirasa sang the Udgitha with any other means than that, for/ said he, 'only with speech and with breath did he sing the Udgitha/

(5) It is only another name for mastery. One can make the heart move merely by running. Should one not be able to bring it to rest then by concentrated quietness? The great Holy Ones who knew how the heart and breathing power mutually in luence one another, have thought out an easier procedure as a way of helping posterity.

(8) He who closes all the doors of the senses, confines the mind within the heart, draws the prāna into the head, and engages in the practice of yoga, uttering Om, the single syllable denoting Brahman, and meditates on Me— he who so departs, leaving the body, attains the Supreme Goal.

(6) Just as a lamp in a windless place does not flicker, so the disciplined mind of a yogi remains steady in meditation on the self.

(4) Others sacrifice all the functions of the senses and the functions of the vital energy (prana) in the fire of the yoga of self-control, illumined by Knowledge.

(18) Through the grace of Vyasa, I have heard this supreme and most secret Yoga direct from Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, Himself declaring it.

(18) O Arjuna! that unswerving firmness which, by Yoga, holds the functions of the mind, Prana, and bodily organs, is called Sattvic (pure).

(1) Then they [i.e. the gods] said to the In-breath (prana): c Sing for us the Udgitha.' e So' be it/ said the In-breath, and sang for them. Whatever pleasure there is in the in-breath, that it sang for the gods; whatever good one breathes in, that for itself. They [i.e. the devils] knew: 'Verily, by this singer they will overcome us.' They rushed upon it and pierced it with evil That evil was the improper thing thai one breathes in. This, truly, was that evil.

(9) While sitting, one must, therefore, always keep the heart quiet and the power concentrated. How can the heart be made quiet? By breathing. The heart alone must be conscious of the flowing in and out of the breath; it must not be heard with the ears. If it is not heard, then the breathing is light; if light, it is pure. If it can be -heard, then the breathing power is heavy; if heavy, then it is troubled; if it is troubled, then laziness and absent-mindedness develop and one wants to sleep. That is self-evident.

(10) How to use the heart correctly during breathing must be understood. It is use without use. One need only let the Light fall quite gently on the hearing. This sentence contains a secret meaning. What does it mean to let the Light fall? It is the radiance of the Light of one's own eyes. The eye looks inward only and not outward. To sense brightness without looking outward means to look inward; it has nothing to do with an actual looking within. What does hearing mean? It is hearing the Light of one's own ear. The ear listens only within and does not listen to what is outside. To sense brightness without listening to what is outside, is to listen to what is within; it has nothing to do with actually listening to what is within. In this sort of hearing, one only hears that there is no sound; in this kind of seeing, one only sees that no shape is there. If the eye is not looking outward and the ear is not harkening outward, they close themselves and are inclined to sink inward. Only when one looks and barkens inward does the organ not go outward nor sink inward. In this way laziness and absent-mindedness are done away with. That is the union of the seed and the Light of the sun and moon.

(6) In a clean spot, a firm seat should be made, neither too high nor too low, and it should be covered by cloth, skin, and holy grass one over the other. There, being seated, having made the mind one-pointed, controlling the actions of the mind and the senses, let him practice Dhyana Yoga for self-purification.

(11) 'This, the firm holding back of the senses, is what is called Yoga. He must be free from thoughtlessness then, for Yoga comes and goes.'

(6) Yoga is hard to attain by a man who cannot control his mind, but it can be attained by him who has controlled his mind and who strives earnestly by proper means. This is My opinion.