बाह्याभ्यन्तरविषयाक्षेपी चतुर्थः॥५१॥
baahya = external; abhyantara = internal; viShaya = sphere, range; AkShepI = surpassing; chaturthaH = fourth;
Sw. Satchidananda
“There is a fourth kind of pranayama that occurs during concentration on an internal or external object.”
Bryant
“The fourth [type of pranayama] surpasses the limits of the external and the internal”
Taimni
“That Pranayama which goes beyond the sphere of internal and external is the fourth (variety).”
Discussion
In sutra 2.50, Patanjali talked about three stages of pranayama – inhalation, exhalation, and breath retention. In sutra 2.51 again he talks about the ability to hold the breath. So, what’s the difference between the two? On reading different commentaries, one realizes that there is no consensus among commentators as to the exact nature of this “fourth pranayama”. The words “vishaya” and “akshepi” in the sutra have been translated and interpreted differently by different authors. Vyasa tries to clarify the difference by stating that whereas in the third type of pranayama, the breath retention happens by a single effort, in the fourth type, the breath retention happens gradually after long periods of practice.
In my understanding, the third type of pranayama involves breath retention either after inhalation or after exhalation. This is how we practice pranayama techniques like the “alternate nostril breathing” or “ujjayi pranayama” etc. Sutra 2.50 also states that when these three – inhalation, exhalation and breath retention are practiced with careful control and observation of desha (location), kāla (time duration), and saṃkhyā (count), the breath becomes long and very subtle. When you continue to practice this approach over a long period of time, the breath may become so subtle that it my get automatically suspended for a period of time. This, according to some authors, is known as “sahaja” or “kevala” (spontaneous) kumbhaka. This is what has been referred to as the “fourth” pranayama in the current sutra.
There are many parables in history, both in ancient times and in modern times, where people are known to have the ability to suspend their breath for long periods of time. I know of a scientist in New Delhi, India, who, in the mid-70s did an experiment on a Himalayan yogi to check out his yogic abilities. The scientists made the yogi go inside a vacuum chamber. The yogi was wired to continuously monitor his vital signs. Gradually, the chamber was made completely devoid of all oxygen. The yogi stayed in the chamber for over two hours with no oxygen intake. His heart rate began to drop and became almost imperceptible. When the experiment was over, they brought the yoga out of the chamber. He stayed in the state of trance for a few more moments. Gradually, he began to come back to his natural state and opened his eyes with a smile. His vitals came back to normal over a short period of time. There are many other similar stories available in the yoga literature. A popular story relates to the famous yogi Swami Rama of the Himalayas. He was tested in a similar manner at the Menninger Institute in the USA with very similar results as shown by the experiment done in New Delhi.
Patanjali also talks about some of the supernormal powers that one can attain through the practice of yoga in the third chapter “Vibhūti Pāda”. However, he warns that the yogi should not get hung up on these achievements and start showing off to impress others. If so, the yogi will not be able to achieve the end goal of total liberation.
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