The Serpent Power — Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) (1924)
1 According to Hindu ideas semen (Shukra) exists in a subtle form throughout the whole body. Under the influence of the sexual will it is withdrawn and elaborated into a gross form in the sexual organs. To be ūrddhvaretas is not merely to prevent the emission of gross semen already formed but to prevent its formation as gross seed, and its absorption in the general system. The body of a man who is truly ūrddhvaretas has the scent of a lotus. A chaste man where gross semen has formed may on the other hand smell like a buck goat. Some Yogīs can make both the Penis and testes disappear in the pubic arch so that the body has the appearance of that of a woman.
p. 203
(Moksha), which is the common end of all schools of Yoga. This school, proceeding on the basis that the Vritti or modification of the mind always follows Prāna,¹ and on the sufficiency of that fact, held that by the aid of the union of Ha and Tha in the Sushumnā, and the leading of the combined Prānas therein to the Brahmarandhra, Samādhi was attained. Though the reciprocal action of matter and mind is common knowledge, and bodily states influence psychic or mental states as the latter the former, the Hathayoga method is preponderantly a physical one, though the gross physical acts of the preparatory stages of this Yoga are succeeded by Kriyājnāna and subtle vital processes which have Prāna as their subject.
Under the heading of gross physical training come provisions as to the place of residence, mode of life as regards eating, drinking, sexual function, exercise, and so forth.
The practice and exercises connected with Hathayoga are divided into seven parts or stages—namely, cleansing (Shodhana) by the six processes (Shatkarma); the attainment of strength or firmness (Dridhatā) by bodily postures (Āsana); of fortitude (Sthiratā) by bodily positions (Mudrā); of steadiness of mind (Dhairya) by restraint of the senses (Pratyāhāra); of lightness (Lāghava) by Prānā- yāma; of realisation (Pratyaksha) by meditation (Dhyāna); and of detachment (Nirliptatva) in Samādhi.
Those who suffer from inequality of the three “humours”² are required to practise the “six acts” (Shatkarma) which purify. the body and facilitate Prānāyāma. For others who are free from these defects they are not necessary in such case, and according to some teachers the practice of Prānāyāma alone is sufficient. These form the first steps in the Hathayoga. On this cleansing (Shodhana) of the body and Nādis, health is gained, the internal fire is rendered more active, and restraint of breath (Kumbhaka) is facilitated. Recourse is also had, if necessary, to Oshadhiyoga, in which herbal preparations are administered to cure defective health.
1 Chitta has two causes—Vāsanā and Prāna. If one is controlled, then both are controlled (Yoga Kundalī Up., Ch. I).
2 Vāta, Kapha and Pitta. These will be found described in my Introduction to the Prapanchasāra Tantra, Vol. III of Tantrik Texts, and in my volume on “Life”.
Cleansing (Shodhana) is effected by the six processes known as the Shatkarma. Of these, the first is Dhauti, or washing, which is fourfold, or inward washing (Antardhauti), cleansing of the teeth, etc. (Dantadhauti), of the “heart” that is throat and chest (Hriddhauti), and of the anus (Mūladhauti). Antardhauti is also fourfold—namely, Vātasāra, by which air is drawn into the belly and then expelled; Vārisāra, by which the body is filled with water, which is then evacuated by the anus¹; Vahnisāra, in which the Nābhigranthi is made to touch the spinal column (Meru); and Vahishkrita, in which the belly is by Kākinīmudrā² filled with air, which is retained half a Yāma,³ and then sent downward. Dantadhauti is fourfold, consisting in the cleansing of the root of the teeth and tongue, the ears, and the “hollow of the skull” (Kapālarandhra). By Hriddhauti phlegm and bile are removed. This is done by a stick (Dandadhauti)
1 The intestines are depleted of air and then by the action of the anal muscles water is sucked in. It naturally flows in to fill the void created by the depletion of air in the intestines. Another feat which I have seen is the drawing in of air and fluid into the urethra, from there into the bladder and out again. Apart from its medical value as a lavement of the bladder it is a mudrā used in sexual connection whereby the Hathayogī sucks into himself the forces of the woman without ejecting any of his force or substance—a practice which (apart from any other ground) is to be condemned as injurious to the woman who “withers” under such treatment.
2 Gheranda Sanghitā, Third Upadesha (v. 86); see also Hathayogapradīpikā, II. 21—38.
3 A Yāma is three hours.
p. 205
or cloth (Vāsodhauti) pushed into the throat, or swallowed, or by vomiting (Vamanadhauti). Mūladhauti is done to cleanse the exit of the Apānavāyu, either with the middle finger and water or the stalk of a turmeric plant.
Vasti, the second of the Shatkarma, is twofold, and is either of the dry (Shushka) or watery (Jala) kind. In the second form the Yogī sits in the Utkatāsana¹ posture in water up to the navel, and the anus is contracted and expanded by Ashvinī Mudrā; or the same is done in the Pashchimottānāsana,² and the abdomen below the navel is gently moved. In Neti the nostrils are cleansed with a piece of string. Laulikī is the whirling of the belly from side to side (see Plate X). In Trātaka the Yogī, without winking, gazes at some minute object until the tears start from his eyes. By this the “celestial vision” (Divya Drishti) so often referred to in the Tāntrik Upāsanā is acquired. Kapālabhāti is a process for the removal of phlegm, and is threefold: Vātakrama, by inhalation and exhalation; Vyūtkrama, by water drawn through the nostrils and ejected through the mouth; and Shītkrama, the reverse process.
These are the various processes by which the body is cleansed and made pure for the Yoga practice to follow.
Āsana, or posture, is the next, and when the Shatkarma are dispensed with, is the first stage of Hathayoga.
Dridhatā, or strength or firmness, the acquisition of which is the second of the above-mentioned processes, is attained by Āsana.
1 Gheranda Sanghitā, Second Upadesha (v. 23). That is, squatting resting on the toes, the heels off the ground, and buttocks resting on heels. A Hathayogī can give himself a natural enema by sitting in water and drawing it up through the anus. The sphincter muscles are opened and shut, and suction established.
2 Ibid., v. 20.
The Āsanas are postures of the body. The term is generally described as modes of seating the body. But the posture is not necessarily a sitting one; for some Āsanas are done on the belly, back, hands, etc. It is said¹ that the Āsanas are as numerous as living beings, and that there are 8,400,000 of these; 1,600 are declared to be excellent, and out of these thirty-two are auspicious for men, which are described in detail. Two of the commonest of these are Muktapadmāsana² (the loosened lotus seat), the ordinary position for worship, and Baddhapadmāsana.³ Kundalīyoga is ordinarily done in an Āsana and Mudrā in which the feet press upon the region of the genital centre and close the anal aperture, the hands closing the others— nostrils, eyes, ears, mouth (Yonimudrā). The right heel is pressed against the anus and the left against the region of the genital centre and in order to close the aperture of the penis, it is contracted and withdrawn into the pubic arch so that it is no longer seen. The tongue is turned back in Khecharī Mudrā so as to close the throat also where these two Mudrās are combined.
There are certain other Āsanas which are peculiar to the Tantras, such as Mundāsana, Chitāsana, and Shavāsana, in which skulls, the funeral pyre, and a
1 Gheranda Sanghitā, Second Upadesha. In the Shiva Sanghitā (Ch. III, vv. 84—91) eighty-four postures are mentioned, of which four are recommended—viz., Siddhāsana, Ugrāsana, Svastikāsana, and Padmāsana. Another account given me added four more—Baddhapadmāsana, Trikonāsana, Mayūrāsana, Bhujangāsana.
2 The right foot is placed on the left thigh, the left foot on the right thigh, and the hands are crossed and placed similarly on the thighs; the chin is placed on the breast, and the gaze fixed on the tip of the nose (see also Shiva Sanghitā, Ch. I, v. 52).
1 According to Hindu ideas semen (Shukra) exists in a subtle form throughout the whole body. Under the influence of the sexual will it is withdrawn and elaborated into a gross form in the sexual organs. To be ūrddhvaretas is not merely to prevent the emission of gross semen already formed but to prevent its formation as gross seed, and its absorption in the general system. The body of a man who is truly ūrddhvaretas has the scent of a lotus. A chaste man where gross semen has formed may on the other hand smell like a buck goat. Some Yogīs can make both the Penis and testes disappear in the pubic arch so that the body has the appearance of that of a woman.
p. 203
(Moksha), which is the common end of all schools of Yoga. This school, proceeding on the basis that the Vritti or modification of the mind always follows Prāna,¹ and on the sufficiency of that fact, held that by the aid of the union of Ha and Tha in the Sushumnā, and the leading of the combined Prānas therein to the Brahmarandhra, Samādhi was attained. Though the reciprocal action of matter and mind is common knowledge, and bodily states influence psychic or mental states as the latter the former, the Hathayoga method is preponderantly a physical one, though the gross physical acts of the preparatory stages of this Yoga are succeeded by Kriyājnāna and subtle vital processes which have Prāna as their subject.
Under the heading of gross physical training come provisions as to the place of residence, mode of life as regards eating, drinking, sexual function, exercise, and so forth.
The practice and exercises connected with Hathayoga are divided into seven parts or stages—namely, cleansing (Shodhana) by the six processes (Shatkarma); the attainment of strength or firmness (Dridhatā) by bodily postures (Āsana); of fortitude (Sthiratā) by bodily positions (Mudrā); of steadiness of mind (Dhairya) by restraint of the senses (Pratyāhāra); of lightness (Lāghava) by Prānā- yāma; of realisation (Pratyaksha) by meditation (Dhyāna); and of detachment (Nirliptatva) in Samādhi.
Those who suffer from inequality of the three “humours”² are required to practise the “six acts” (Shatkarma) which purify. the body and facilitate Prānāyāma. For others who are free from these defects they are not necessary in such case, and according to some teachers the practice of Prānāyāma alone is sufficient. These form the first steps in the Hathayoga. On this cleansing (Shodhana) of the body and Nādis, health is gained, the internal fire is rendered more active, and restraint of breath (Kumbhaka) is facilitated. Recourse is also had, if necessary, to Oshadhiyoga, in which herbal preparations are administered to cure defective health.
1 Chitta has two causes—Vāsanā and Prāna. If one is controlled, then both are controlled (Yoga Kundalī Up., Ch. I).
2 Vāta, Kapha and Pitta. These will be found described in my Introduction to the Prapanchasāra Tantra, Vol. III of Tantrik Texts, and in my volume on “Life”.
Cleansing (Shodhana) is effected by the six processes known as the Shatkarma. Of these, the first is Dhauti, or washing, which is fourfold, or inward washing (Antardhauti), cleansing of the teeth, etc. (Dantadhauti), of the “heart” that is throat and chest (Hriddhauti), and of the anus (Mūladhauti). Antardhauti is also fourfold—namely, Vātasāra, by which air is drawn into the belly and then expelled; Vārisāra, by which the body is filled with water, which is then evacuated by the anus¹; Vahnisāra, in which the Nābhigranthi is made to touch the spinal column (Meru); and Vahishkrita, in which the belly is by Kākinīmudrā² filled with air, which is retained half a Yāma,³ and then sent downward. Dantadhauti is fourfold, consisting in the cleansing of the root of the teeth and tongue, the ears, and the “hollow of the skull” (Kapālarandhra). By Hriddhauti phlegm and bile are removed. This is done by a stick (Dandadhauti)
1 The intestines are depleted of air and then by the action of the anal muscles water is sucked in. It naturally flows in to fill the void created by the depletion of air in the intestines. Another feat which I have seen is the drawing in of air and fluid into the urethra, from there into the bladder and out again. Apart from its medical value as a lavement of the bladder it is a mudrā used in sexual connection whereby the Hathayogī sucks into himself the forces of the woman without ejecting any of his force or substance—a practice which (apart from any other ground) is to be condemned as injurious to the woman who “withers” under such treatment.
2 Gheranda Sanghitā, Third Upadesha (v. 86); see also Hathayogapradīpikā, II. 21—38.
3 A Yāma is three hours.
p. 205
or cloth (Vāsodhauti) pushed into the throat, or swallowed, or by vomiting (Vamanadhauti). Mūladhauti is done to cleanse the exit of the Apānavāyu, either with the middle finger and water or the stalk of a turmeric plant.
Vasti, the second of the Shatkarma, is twofold, and is either of the dry (Shushka) or watery (Jala) kind. In the second form the Yogī sits in the Utkatāsana¹ posture in water up to the navel, and the anus is contracted and expanded by Ashvinī Mudrā; or the same is done in the Pashchimottānāsana,² and the abdomen below the navel is gently moved. In Neti the nostrils are cleansed with a piece of string. Laulikī is the whirling of the belly from side to side (see Plate X). In Trātaka the Yogī, without winking, gazes at some minute object until the tears start from his eyes. By this the “celestial vision” (Divya Drishti) so often referred to in the Tāntrik Upāsanā is acquired. Kapālabhāti is a process for the removal of phlegm, and is threefold: Vātakrama, by inhalation and exhalation; Vyūtkrama, by water drawn through the nostrils and ejected through the mouth; and Shītkrama, the reverse process.
These are the various processes by which the body is cleansed and made pure for the Yoga practice to follow.
Āsana, or posture, is the next, and when the Shatkarma are dispensed with, is the first stage of Hathayoga.
Dridhatā, or strength or firmness, the acquisition of which is the second of the above-mentioned processes, is attained by Āsana.
1 Gheranda Sanghitā, Second Upadesha (v. 23). That is, squatting resting on the toes, the heels off the ground, and buttocks resting on heels. A Hathayogī can give himself a natural enema by sitting in water and drawing it up through the anus. The sphincter muscles are opened and shut, and suction established.
2 Ibid., v. 20.
The Āsanas are postures of the body. The term is generally described as modes of seating the body. But the posture is not necessarily a sitting one; for some Āsanas are done on the belly, back, hands, etc. It is said¹ that the Āsanas are as numerous as living beings, and that there are 8,400,000 of these; 1,600 are declared to be excellent, and out of these thirty-two are auspicious for men, which are described in detail. Two of the commonest of these are Muktapadmāsana² (the loosened lotus seat), the ordinary position for worship, and Baddhapadmāsana.³ Kundalīyoga is ordinarily done in an Āsana and Mudrā in which the feet press upon the region of the genital centre and close the anal aperture, the hands closing the others— nostrils, eyes, ears, mouth (Yonimudrā). The right heel is pressed against the anus and the left against the region of the genital centre and in order to close the aperture of the penis, it is contracted and withdrawn into the pubic arch so that it is no longer seen. The tongue is turned back in Khecharī Mudrā so as to close the throat also where these two Mudrās are combined.
There are certain other Āsanas which are peculiar to the Tantras, such as Mundāsana, Chitāsana, and Shavāsana, in which skulls, the funeral pyre, and a
1 Gheranda Sanghitā, Second Upadesha. In the Shiva Sanghitā (Ch. III, vv. 84—91) eighty-four postures are mentioned, of which four are recommended—viz., Siddhāsana, Ugrāsana, Svastikāsana, and Padmāsana. Another account given me added four more—Baddhapadmāsana, Trikonāsana, Mayūrāsana, Bhujangāsana.
2 The right foot is placed on the left thigh, the left foot on the right thigh, and the hands are crossed and placed similarly on the thighs; the chin is placed on the breast, and the gaze fixed on the tip of the nose (see also Shiva Sanghitā, Ch. I, v. 52).
No commentary for this page.