Importance of power of breath has been touched upon at many places in the Vedas. Here is an example.
Rishi Bhargava Vaiddarbhi says the following in Sukta 11.4:
11.4.1 Salutations to Breath who is the God residing in all and who controls the entire universe.
11.4.2 Salutations for your roar, for your thunder, for your lightening and for your rain.
11.4.3 By your roar you generate medicines, you generate Veerya, you activate the wombs and multiply
life.
11.4.4 When you call up medicine and vitality whole world delights.
11.4.7 Salutations to the incoming breath, salutations to the outgoing breath, salutations to the standing
breath (filled in) and salutations to the sitting breath (empty).
11.4.9 Hey Pran (breath), gift us the ability to love, ability to be grateful and gift us fearlessness in life.
11.4.10 You protect life like a father all around and you are the Lord of those which breathe as well of
those which do not.
11.4.11 You can give death, you can give disease; learned ones worship you and you can take truthful
ones to the best world.
11.4.12 You are vast, you show the path, you provide motivation, you provide joy.
11.4.14 Life practices breathing inside the womb and takes birth when satisfied.
11.4.20 The way father enters the son life enters all through breath.
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