Fourth Kriya Shankarananda

Swami Shankarananda explains that the purpose of the Fourth Kriya is to establish oneself in the breathless state. FOURTH KRIYA first part Place your awareness at Ajna in the center of the head. Exhale sweetly from Ajna to the heart Chakra (very short breath); visualize the energy come down through the front. Focus on the heart Chakra and feel the Prana. Concentrate on the equilibrium state between inhalation and exhalation. Remain in this condition without breathing for some seconds. Then let natural inhalation start. Following this natural inhalation raise the awareness in Ajna. Concentrate on the equilibrium state between exhalation and inhalation. Repeat again and again until the breath is almost non-existent. FOURTH KRIYA second part Place your awareness at Ajna. Inhale sweetly from Muladhara to Ajna and draw the Prana into Ajna Totally forget the existence of other Chakras. Concentrate on the equilibrium state between inhalation and exhalation. Exhale sweetly from Ajna down the spine but do not come down to Muladhara. You will see that the exhaling current reaches spontaneously a certain point in the spine. It is not possible to foresee where this point will be. But it is fundamental to observe where it is because this point becomes the new starting point. [I repeat: forget the existence of other Chakras. There is only a hollow tube between Muladhara and Ajna: all the process happens there.] Now inhale again from this point into Ajna. The current comes up through the spine and the length of the way is obviously shorter. Concentrate on the equilibrium state between inhalation and exhalation. Exhale sweetly down the spine and you will see that the exhaling current makes a shorter path, shorter than the previous. There is a new starting point. Go on in this way and you will see that the breath becomes shorter and shorter until there is no breath. ..... Remain with no breath in Ajna, in the center of your head. But if the breath appears again (as it usually happens) start again the process since the beginning (inhalation from Muladhara to Ajna) Be unperturbed, patient. Again reach a point with no breath... one day you will remain in Ajna absorbed in the perfect breathless state.