DRASHTA
← Back

kashmir shaivism · Vijnana Bhairava Tantra (Kashmir Shaivism), one of the 112 dharanas taught by Bhairava to Devi

Vijnana Bhairava: Kumbhaka (Breath Retention)

A dharana using suspended breath — held out after a full exhale, or held in after a full inhale — as a way of stilling the fluctuations of mind that ordinarily ride along with the rhythm of breathing.

The theory, briefly

Vijnana Bhairava Tantra presents 112 dharanas as direct means of recognizing one's identity with consciousness through ordinary experience, rather than through doctrine. Breath is one of its most used gateways, appearing across several consecutive dharanas in the text — this one specifically concerns Kumbhaka, the suspension of breath.

The premise is that the mind's usual activity is closely tied to the rhythm of inhalation and exhalation; when that rhythm is deliberately suspended — breath held gently after it has fully gone out, or after it has fully come in — the mental fluctuations that ride along with breathing lose their usual support and naturally begin to settle. The text frames the resulting stillness not as an effect to be achieved through effort, but as something that becomes available once the ordinary momentum of breath-driven thought is interrupted.

The practice

Suspending the Breath

10–20 minutes · Seated, upright and steady

  1. 1Breathe naturally for several cycles until the body feels settled.
  2. 2The text names two points where breath already pauses on its own — just outside the nose after a full exhale, and at the body's center after a full inhale. Bring attention to these two points rather than forcing a pause anywhere else.
  3. 3After a complete, unforced exhale, let the breath rest at that outer point for a comfortable moment, without straining or holding tensely.
  4. 4Notice what happens to the mind in this pause: without the rhythm of breathing to ride on, mental activity tends to quiet on its own.
  5. 5The text is specific that this isn't about holding the breath by force — the deeper stillness comes first, from thought itself settling, and the pause in breath follows as a result rather than a cause.
  6. 6Release into the next inhale naturally when the pause has run its course, without any sense of gasping or recovering.
  7. 7Optionally alternate with the same suspension at the body's center after a full inhale, again without strain, always releasing before discomfort arises.
  8. 8Repeat gently over several rounds, letting the difference between exhale and inhale itself soften into one tranquil quality — this settling stillness is what you're resting in, not the technique of holding breath.

Any breath retention practice should be done gently and never to the point of strain, dizziness, or breathlessness; stop and breathe normally if discomfort arises.

You might also like