Mudra means “seal” in Sanskrit. It’s a symbolic or ritual gesture using primarily the hands. Each position is believed to have a specific effect. Specific positions can lead to specific states of consciousness symbolized by the hand positions. For example, if a person frequently and with feeling does a position of fearlessness, they will also be freed from fearfulness in time. Mudras are said to engage areas of the brain and/or soul influencing them, sometimes physically, by their use—not unlike an affirmation, or reflexology for that matter.
“One way that all of us can better care for ourselves is by developing techniques for coping with the irritations and anxiety that are part of life…Think of these gestures as self-talk for your hands. These simple movements, the gestures that we often make unconsciously, can help us focus on our work, calm ourselves, release anger and energize us. Used for centuries by many different cultures, mudras are seen in Eastern dance and meditation, in ancient Egyptian friezes, even in Byzantine icons of Christ. Most of us use them today, too: we wave goodbye, we press a hand to our chest in distress, we wriggle our fingers to release energy, or press fingertips together to calm ourselves.
Easy to learn, mudras can be done anywhere, at any time: at traffic lights, in meetings, in airplanes, when we’re arguing, when we’re grieving, when we need to prepare for sleep. The word mudra can be translated from the Sanskrit as that which brings inner peace, and that s what mudras are: a physical means of quieting our bodies.”
Product description for Mudras: Ancient Gestures to Ease Modern Stress by Emily Fuller Williams.
A great video about mudras: watch?v=e7-iXzMdfIs&feature=player_embedded#at=147
This month’s focus is on the crown chakra and using it to notice the small wonders in our life. The mudra below is specifically for opening your crown chakra. Enjoy!
Sitting with a straight spine, interlock your fingers keeping the thumbs pointing upward .
Bring your hands overhead. Your palms will now be down and the thumbs pointing away from you.
Hold this position for 90 seconds noticing the energetic pulses in your thumbs. Then lower your hands to your heart center and hold for another 90 seconds. Relax and breathe long, deep and slow.
Affirmation: I am connected to and part of the Universal creative energy.
I’d like to add a mantra to this mudra: “So Hum” which means “I am that”.
I’ve also used the interpretation of “I am that” in a powerful yoga practice where we were to silently say our “Sankalpa” or intention for our spiritual purpose; and then out loud we chanted “So Hum” while bringing our hands to our opposite shoulders. This affirms “I am that”. This wonderful experience was brought to me by Lucy Pirner of Awakening Counseling and Wellness in Hudson, WI.
Source: Power Mudras, Yoga Hand Postures for Women by Sabrina Mesko.
