If what you are looking for is really only this definition, the Viṣṇusmṛti might indeed be the source, as pointed out by Sven Sellmer (note also the correct reading gāyatrīṃ- there). Of interest might also Vaikhānasa-Dharmasūtra II 10 (pasted below). The origin of the practice itself, of course, would be quite another matter...

Best regards,
D Haas

brāhmaṇo hṛdgābhiḥ kṣatriyaḥ kaṇṭhagābhir vaiśyas tālugābhir adbhir ācāmeta ātmānaṃ prokṣya pratyarkam apo visṛjyārkaṃ paryety udakasyāgner vāmapārśvaṃ prāṇān āyamya pratyekam oṃkārādisaptavyāhṛtipūrvāṃ gāyatrīm ante saśiraskāṃ trir japet sa prāṇāyāmas trīn ekaṃ vā prāṇāyāmaṃ kṛtvā pūtaḥ śataṃ daśa aṣṭau vā sāvitrīṃ sāyaṃprātaḥ saṃdhyām upāsya naiśikam āhnikaṃ caino 'pamṛjyate dvijātiḥ saṃdhyopāsanahīnaḥ śūdrasamo bhavati brahmacārī svanāma saṃkīrtyābhivādayed ahaṃ bho iti śrotre ca saṃspṛśya guroḥ pādaṃ dakṣiṇaṃ dakṣiṇena pāṇinā vāmaṃ vāmena vyatyasyar āpādam gṛhṇann ānataśīrṣo 'bhivādayaty āyuṣmān bhava saumyety enaṃ śaṃsed anāśīrvādī nābhivandyo mātā pitā gurur vidvāṃsaś ca pratyaham abhivādanīyāḥ

__________________

Dominik A. Haas, BA MA
DOC Fellow, Austrian Academy of Sciences | PhD Candidate, University of Vienna

dominik@haas.asia | ORCID 0000-0002-8505-6112

follow my work on univie.academia.edu/DominikHaas

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Am 30.05.2021 um 15:29 schrieb Sven Sellmer via INDOLOGY:
Dear Colleague!

A quick search in the GRETIL corpus seems to suggest that the ultimate source is Viṣṇusmṛti 55.9, but the verse is also attested, among others, in the Garuḍapurāṇa, so it might be difficult to establish Bhaṭṭotpala's concrete source.

Best wishes,

Sven Sellmer

Gesendet: Sonntag, 30. Mai 2021 um 14:29 Uhr
Von: "Kenneth Gregory Zysk via INDOLOGY" <indology@list.indology.info>
An: "indology@list.indology.info" <indology@list.indology.info>
Betreff: [INDOLOGY] prāṇāyāma

I was wondering if those specialists in yoga on the list might know the origin of this definition of prāṇāyāma found in Bhaṭṭotpala’s commentary to Bṛhatsaṃhitā 95/97.62 in connection with the practice of warding off the effects of bad omens:

savyāhṛtiṃ sapraṇavāṃ gāyatrīśirasā saha/

triḥ paṭhed āyataprāṇaḥ prāṇāyāmaḥ sa ucyate//

Many thanks in advance,
Best,
Ken

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