The Pit
Jalandharnath, also Jalandharipa and in the eastern traditions Hadipa, is one of the Navnath, the nine masters of the Nath tradition, and the story attached to him is the strangest in the group.
He was buried alive and it took twelve years.
The account
A king had him put in a pit.
The accounts vary on which king and on the reason, and the version most told is that it was the ruler of Bengal, the father of Gopichand, whose entry follows in this batch.
The reason given is the ordinary one when a court and a yogi fall out: he had been insufficiently respectful, or had refused something, or had said something a king did not want said.
And he was put into a pit and it was covered with horse dung, and the accounts specify the material, and it is not a detail anybody would invent for dignity.
And the queen kept him alive
Mainavati, the king's wife, who was herself a disciple of the Naths.
She fed him in secret. For years, without her husband's knowledge, in a situation where discovery would have been dangerous for her.
And that went on for twelve years.
And then her son needed a teacher
Gopichand, her son, came to the throne, and she wanted him to renounce it, and that story is the next entry in this batch.
And when he asked who would initiate him, she told him where a teacher was.
And they dug him up.
And the accounts have him alive and undamaged, which is where the story leaves history behind, and which is not the interesting part.
What the interesting part is
The queen.
For twelve years a woman carried food to a covered pit in her own husband's territory, kept it secret, told nobody, and did not stop.
And the tradition's interest is entirely in the yogi, who is the one with the name, the lineage and the miracle.
Mainavati is a supporting character in her own story, and she is the one who did all of the work, and this app is going to say so.
What the story is actually about
The relationship between kings and yogis, which was genuinely difficult.
Nath ascetics were not comfortable subjects. They did not belong to a settled institution, they moved, they had no property to seize, they were popular, and they were not impressed.
And a king cannot easily control somebody who wants nothing.
So the courts did two things, and the record shows both: they patronised the Naths heavily, giving them land, temples and honours; and they occasionally tried to destroy individual ones.
Which is the standard pattern of any state's relationship with an authority it did not create.
And the Nath stories preserve both halves, which is why the tradition has both this story and the entry below on the Jodhpur court, where a maharaja built the Naths a temple.
Jalore, Jodhpur, and the Buddhist Lists
Where he is worshipped
Jalore, Rajasthan.
The Jalandharnath temple stands on the Jalore fort, on the hill above the town in southern Rajasthan, and it is the principal shrine associated with him.
And the Nath presence in Rajasthan is substantial and it has a political history.
Jodhpur
The Nath sampradaya was extraordinarily powerful at the Marwar court in the early nineteenth century.
Maharaja Man Singh of Jodhpur, who ruled from 1803, was a committed Nath devotee, attributing his accession to the tradition's intervention, and the Naths acquired enormous influence at his court: land, revenue grants, and a place in the administration.
And he built them the Mahamandir, the great temple, at Jodhpur in 1812, which is a Nath temple with over eighty carved pillars and depictions of yoga postures on its walls.
Which is worth going to see for the postures alone: it is one of the few places where the hatha yoga tradition is carved rather than written.
And the honest note about the influence
It went too far and it ended badly.
The Nath establishment at the Jodhpur court accumulated power to a degree that produced serious conflict with the nobility, and the record includes accusations of interference in the state's affairs, and the whole arrangement came apart in the reign that followed.
Which this app records for the same reason it recorded the Dadu Panth's regiments and the Naraharitirtha regency: religious institutions with access to state power have a poor general record, and the pattern repeats.
And the temple is still there, and it is a good building, and both facts hold.
Jalandhar the city
The Punjab city shares his name and the connection is traditional rather than established.
Two derivations are offered: from Jalandhara, an asura of the puranic literature who has his own cycle of stories and a connection to the region; and from the Nath.
And the honest position is that nobody can settle it, that the puranic derivation is the older attested one, and that the Nath association is a live local tradition that this app reports as such.
The Buddhist lists
And this is the part that is genuinely interesting about the whole Nath question.
Jalandharipa appears in the list of the eighty four Mahasiddhas, the accomplished ones of the Vajrayana Buddhist tradition, whose lives are collected in Tibetan sources.
And he is not the only overlap.
Matsyendranath appears as Luipa or Minapa. Gorakhnath appears as Goraksha. Kanhapa, the Buddhist siddha, is identified in the Nath lists as Kanifnath, who has a shrine at Madhi that this app has an entry on.
What that means
That in the period these figures come from, roughly the eighth to the twelfth centuries in eastern India, the boundary between a Shaiva siddha and a Buddhist siddha was not where a modern reader expects it.
These were wandering practitioners with overlapping techniques, shared vocabulary, common texts in some cases, and a shared attitude to institutional religion, which they were mostly outside.
And the traditions that later organised themselves into distinct religions each claimed them.
Which is not a problem to be solved. It is a description of what that period was actually like, and the fact that the same names appear in a Tibetan Buddhist list and a Marathi Nath book is evidence about a shared world rather than a dispute about ownership.
And it is the same fact as the Nepal chariot in the previous entry, from the other end: two traditions holding the same figure, without either of them having to give anything up.
The Lock Named After Him
There is a piece of yoga practice that carries his name and it is worth knowing about.
Jalandhara bandha
The chin lock.
What it is: the chin is drawn down toward the notch at the top of the breastbone, while the spine stays long and the chest lifts slightly to meet it.
Where it appears: throughout the classical hatha yoga texts, including the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Gheranda Samhita and the Shiva Samhita, all of which come out of the Nath tradition.
And it is one of three bandhas that the texts treat together:
- Mula bandha, at the pelvic floor
- Uddiyana bandha, drawing the abdomen back and up
- Jalandhara bandha, at the throat
And the three performed together are the maha bandha.
What the texts say it does
In the traditional account: it seals the upward passage, so that the energy raised by the practice does not disperse, and it is described as preventing the loss of amrita, the nectar, which the texts locate at the palate.
In physical terms: it compresses the throat, affects the pressure in the chest and abdomen during breath retention, and is used specifically in kumbhaka, the holding of breath.
Which is why it exists. The bandhas in the classical system are not postures, they are what you do with the body while the breath is held, and they belong to pranayama rather than to asana.
The safety note, and this app is going to give it properly
Learn breath retention from a teacher in person.
Not from a video, not from a book, and not from an entry in a devotional app, which is why this section describes the practice rather than instructing it.
And there are conditions under which retention and the throat lock should not be done at all, or should only be done under supervision, including:
- High or unstable blood pressure
- Heart conditions
- Glaucoma or raised eye pressure
- Epilepsy
- Recent surgery, particularly abdominal or eye surgery
- Pregnancy
- Any neck injury or cervical spine problem, which is the specific one for this bandha
- Vertigo or a history of fainting
And the general rule: if a practice makes you dizzy, breathless, panicky or headachy, stop, and do not push through. Pranayama done wrong is one of the very few parts of yoga that can actually hurt somebody, and the traditional texts say so at length, which is the part usually left out.
What is safe and available to anybody
Sitting still and breathing normally.
Which is the practice the whole tradition is built on, and which requires no technique, no retention, no locks and no supervision, and which almost nobody does.
A note on the Nath contribution to yoga
Since this batch is about them, the point should be made once.
Hatha yoga as a system comes substantially out of the Nath tradition.
The Hatha Yoga Pradipika, fifteenth century, by Svatmarama, is the standard text, and it opens by saluting Adinatha, Matsyendra and Goraksha, and it lists dozens more of the tradition's siddhas.
And what that tradition was doing was not exercise.
The postures in the classical texts are few and most of them are seated. The system is about breath, the locks, the internal work, and the states that follow, and the physical culture of postures that the word yoga now names in most of the world is a twentieth century development with its own separate and interesting history.
Which does not make modern postural yoga illegitimate, and it is good for people, and this app is not going to sneer at it.
It makes it a different thing with the same name, and knowing that is useful.
The Short Version
Who: Jalandharnath, also Jalandharipa and in the eastern traditions Hadipa, one of the Navnath, the nine masters of the Nath tradition.
The pit: a king had him put into a pit and covered with horse dung, the accounts varying on which king and giving as the reason the ordinary one when a court and a yogi fall out. The queen, Mainavati, herself a disciple of the Naths, fed him in secret for twelve years, without her husband's knowledge, in a situation where discovery would have been dangerous for her. When her son Gopichand came to the throne and needed a teacher, she told him where one was, and they dug him up alive. The interesting part is the queen: for twelve years a woman carried food to a covered pit in her own husband's territory and told nobody, and the tradition's interest is entirely in the yogi, who has the name, the lineage and the miracle, while she is a supporting character in her own story.
What it is about: the relationship between kings and yogis, which was genuinely difficult. Nath ascetics belonged to no settled institution, moved, had no property to seize, were popular and were not impressed, and a king cannot easily control somebody who wants nothing. So courts did two things and the record shows both: they patronised the Naths heavily with land, temples and honours, and they occasionally tried to destroy individual ones.
Jalore and Jodhpur: the Jalandharnath temple stands on the Jalore fort in southern Rajasthan. At Jodhpur, Maharaja Man Singh, ruling from 1803, was a committed Nath devotee and the tradition acquired enormous influence at his court, with land, revenue grants and a place in the administration, and he built them the Mahamandir in 1812, with over eighty carved pillars and yoga postures depicted on its walls, which is one of the few places where the hatha tradition is carved rather than written. The influence went too far, produced serious conflict with the nobility, and came apart in the following reign, which this app records for the same reason it recorded the Dadu Panth's regiments.
The Buddhist lists: Jalandharipa appears among the eighty four Mahasiddhas of the Vajrayana tradition, and he is not the only overlap, since Matsyendranath appears as Luipa or Minapa, Gorakhnath as Goraksha, and the Buddhist siddha Kanhapa is identified in the Nath lists as Kanifnath. In the period these figures come from, roughly the eighth to twelfth centuries in eastern India, the boundary between a Shaiva siddha and a Buddhist siddha was not where a modern reader expects it: they were wandering practitioners with overlapping techniques and a shared attitude to institutional religion, and traditions that later organised into distinct religions each claimed them.
Jalandhara bandha: the chin lock, drawn toward the notch at the top of the breastbone, appearing throughout the classical hatha texts, and one of three bandhas with mula at the pelvic floor and uddiyana at the abdomen, the three together being the maha bandha. It belongs to pranayama rather than asana, being what is done with the body while breath is held. Learn breath retention from a teacher in person, and do not attempt it with high or unstable blood pressure, heart conditions, glaucoma, epilepsy, recent surgery, pregnancy, neck injury or a history of fainting. If a practice makes you dizzy, breathless, panicky or headachy, stop.
Reader Questions Answered
Who was Jalandharnath?+
One of the Navnath, the nine masters of the Nath tradition, also called Jalandharipa and in the eastern traditions Hadipa. The story attached to him is that a king had him buried alive in a pit covered with horse dung, and the queen Mainavati, herself a disciple of the Naths, fed him in secret for twelve years until her son Gopichand needed a teacher and she told him where one was. He is worshipped at the Jalandharnath temple on the Jalore fort in southern Rajasthan, and Jalandhara bandha, the chin lock of hatha yoga, carries his name.
Who was Mainavati?+
The queen who kept Jalandharnath alive. She was the wife of the king who had him buried, and herself a disciple of the Naths, and she carried food to a covered pit in her own husband's territory for twelve years, in secret, in a situation where discovery would have been dangerous for her, and told nobody. She is also the mother of Gopichand, and the one who wanted her son to renounce the throne. The tradition's interest is entirely in the yogi, who has the name, the lineage and the miracle, and Mainavati is a supporting character in her own story while being the one who did all of the work, which this app says plainly.
Why do the same names appear in Buddhist and Nath lists?+
Because in the period these figures come from, roughly the eighth to the twelfth centuries in eastern India, the boundary between a Shaiva siddha and a Buddhist siddha was not where a modern reader expects it. Jalandharipa appears among the eighty four Mahasiddhas of the Vajrayana tradition; Matsyendranath appears as Luipa or Minapa; Gorakhnath appears as Goraksha; and the Buddhist siddha Kanhapa is identified in the Nath lists as Kanifnath. These were wandering practitioners with overlapping techniques, shared vocabulary, common texts in some cases and a shared attitude to institutional religion, which they were mostly outside, and the traditions that later organised themselves into distinct religions each claimed them. It is not a problem to be solved but a description of what that period was actually like, and it is the same fact as Hindus and Buddhists pulling one chariot in Nepal, seen from the other end.
What is Jalandhara bandha?+
The chin lock, in which the chin is drawn down toward the notch at the top of the breastbone while the spine stays long and the chest lifts slightly to meet it. It appears throughout the classical hatha yoga texts, including the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Gheranda Samhita and the Shiva Samhita, all of which come out of the Nath tradition, and it is one of three bandhas treated together with mula bandha at the pelvic floor and uddiyana bandha at the abdomen, the three performed together being the maha bandha. The traditional account is that it seals the upward passage so the energy raised does not disperse. In physical terms it compresses the throat and affects pressure in the chest and abdomen during breath retention, which is why it belongs to pranayama rather than asana: the bandhas are what you do with the body while the breath is held.
Is breath retention safe to practise on my own?+
Learn it from a teacher in person, not from a video, a book, or an entry in a devotional app, which is why this entry describes the practice rather than instructing it. There are conditions under which retention and the throat lock should not be done at all or only under supervision, including high or unstable blood pressure, heart conditions, glaucoma or raised eye pressure, epilepsy, recent surgery particularly abdominal or eye surgery, pregnancy, any neck injury or cervical spine problem, which is the specific one for this bandha, and vertigo or a history of fainting. The general rule is that if a practice makes you dizzy, breathless, panicky or headachy, stop and do not push through. Pranayama done wrong is one of the very few parts of yoga that can actually hurt somebody, and the traditional texts say so at length, which is the part usually left out. What is safe and available to anybody is sitting still and breathing normally, which is the practice the whole tradition is built on and which almost nobody does.
Is modern yoga the same as Nath hatha yoga?+
No, and knowing that is useful. Hatha yoga as a system comes substantially out of the Nath tradition, and the standard text, the fifteenth century Hatha Yoga Pradipika of Svatmarama, opens by saluting Adinatha, Matsyendra and Goraksha and lists dozens more of the tradition's siddhas. But what that tradition was doing was not exercise: the postures in the classical texts are few and most of them are seated, and the system is about breath, the locks, the internal work and the states that follow. The physical culture of postures that the word yoga now names in most of the world is a twentieth century development with its own separate and interesting history. That does not make modern postural yoga illegitimate, and it is good for people, and this app does not sneer at it. It makes it a different thing with the same name.
About the author
Pandit Ravindra Sharma · Vedic Rituals & Bhakti, 22+ years
Pandit Ravindra is the Vandnaa editorial team's resident specialist on aarti, chalisa, and daily devotion. He has performed home and temple pujas across Varanasi and Delhi for over two decades and contributes the bhakti-focused articles on this site.
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