Month: February 2022

 We all know how to make hand signals, be it a wave, come here, or even a middle finger, but mudras are hand signals with a deep spiritual meaning. In Sanskrit Mudra means ‘seal’, ‘mark’, or ‘gesture’. In Buddhism and Hinduism, they are symbolic gestures that are used either in ceremonies, dance, sculpture, or paintings and have been an integral part of many Hindu and Buddhist rituals. The specific origin of mudras is unknown, although they have been around for thousands of years, have appeared in various religions and traditions, and are used extensively in Yoga, meditation, dance, and across various disciplines. Most mudras are performed with the hands and fingers often in combination with movements of the wrists, elbows, and shoulders; some involve the entire body. They act to stimulate different parts of the body, which affects the flow of energy and even one’s mood. It is said that there exist close to 399 mudras, but I’m going to just touch on 10.  

Find a quiet place and sit comfortably, either cross-legged or in a chair, what’s most important is your spine is straight, and your hands and arms are relaxed. Close your eyes and breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose. Follow your natural breath as it moves through your body then gently place your hand into whatever mudra takes your fancy or if you like you can apply one with my other guides on Meditation, Mantra, or Chakra.

Adi Mudra (First Gesture) 

This is a symbolic and ritualistic hand gesture used to quiet the mind and nervous system. It also boosts the passage of oxygen to the brain, expands the lungs’ capacity, and can prevent snoring.                                       

A light fist is formed by placing the thumb at the base of your little finger and curling the other fingers over the thumb. Now, with your palms facing upwards lay your hands on your knees. 

  Jnana/Gyan Mudra (Psychic gesture of Knowledge) 

  This mudra is one of the most fundamental yoga mudras for increasing concentration and knowledge.                               

Fold your index fingers so that they touch the inside root of your thumbs. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing down, place the hands on the knees.  

Chinmaya Mudra (Awareness) 

This mudra is one of the most effective mudras for physical and mental well-being, enhances digestion, and improves the flow of energy in the body.                       

Form a ring with the thumb and forefinger, then curl the other three fingers into the palms of the hands. Now, with your palms facing upwards lay your hands on your knees.  

Prana Mudra (Life) 

This mudra is for balancing your body’s life element and is a crucial mudra because it activates your body’s energy. It strengthens your immune system, enhances your vision, and helps you feel more energised by combating lethargy. 

 Bend your ring and little fingers and place the tips of both of these fingers on the tip of your thumb. Straighten each hand’s other two fingers, keeping them relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Prithvi Mudra (Earth) 

This mudra helps to increase blood circulation throughout the body. It improves patience, tolerance, and concentration. It also aids in strengthening weak and lean bones. Surprisingly, it aids in the increase of body weight, as well as the reduction of weakness and mental dullness. 

Make a connection between the tip of your ring finger and the tip of your thumb. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Shunya Mudra (Sky) 

This mudra is also known as the paradise mudra, and it can help you achieve a state of tranquillity if you practice it regularly. This mudra relieves earaches and helps with hearing due to age or disease. It also aids in the treatment of motion sickness and vertigo. 

Using your thumb, press the first phalanx of your middle finger. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Surya Mudra (Sun) 

This mudra is for balancing the sun aspect of your body. To make use of the sun’s vitality, you must do it first thing in the morning. It aids in the reduction of bad cholesterol and weight gain, anxiety, and digestion. 

Press your ring finger with the thumb. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Vayu Mudra (Air) 

This mudra is for balancing your body’s air element. It aids in the expulsion of excess air from the body, which relieves chest pain caused by trapped gas. 

Fold your index finger in half, and with the base of your thumb, press the second phalanx bone of your index finger. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Agni Mudra (Fire) 

This mudra is for balancing your body’s fire element, and should only be done on an empty stomach, in a sitting position early in the morning. It aids in the reduction of abdominal fat, increases metabolism, and manages obesity. It also aids digestion and strengthens the body. Avoid if you have indigestion or acidity.

Fold your ring finger and press the base of your thumb against the second phalanx bone. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Varun Mudra ( Water) 

This mudra is for balancing the water element and aids in the activation of fluid circulation in the body, keeping it hydrated. It can be used to improve one’s appearance, by allowing your body’s fluids to circulate freely and keeping your skin hydrated and glowing. It prevents pimples, treats skin illnesses, infections and relieves muscle problems. Avoid pressing the tip of the little finger against the nail, instead of balancing your body’s water level, this could create dehydration.       

Touch the tip of your little finger and the tip of your thumb together. Straighten each hand’s remaining three fingers so that they are relaxed and slightly apart. Now, with the palms facing up, place the hands on the knees.  

Well, that’s a wrap on my guide’s series. I hope whoever read these guides has found them simple and useful. 

 I’ll be back soon with a new series ‘What is …..?’ 

Lots of love

Sounds strange, doesn’t it? But Chakra (cakra in Sanskrit) means disk or wheel and were found in the Vedas, (a large body of religious texts originating in India) in the early traditions of Hinduism, between 1500 to 500 BCE. They are said to be shaped like flowers with many petals and are thought to be spinning disks of energy in specific parts of your body. The petals are associated with unique alphabetical sounds (phonemes) of the Sanskrit language. The vibration of each individual sound opens them up and the higher the frequency, the more in line they will be.  It’s important that they stay open and aligned, as they correspond to bundles of nerves, major organs, and areas of your energetic body that affect your emotional and physical well-being. Their numerous focal points are used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, the esoteric or inner traditions of Hinduism.  There are 114 different chakras in your body but I’m only going to touch on the seven main ones which are situated in your central channel. This channel runs from the base of your spine to the crown of your head, and each chakra with its different amount of petals, some facing upwards and some downwards has a specific place inside it. But I’m going to keep it simple and only talk about the specific place, and colour.

THE SEVEN MAIN CHAKRAS:

The root chakra – Muladhara 

This is the first and primary chakra, believed to be red in colour, located at the base of your spine, and represents the earth element. It is thought to affect how you connect to the world and control’s your feelings of survival, ambition, dependency, and stability. As the primary source of energy, its unbalance can lead to feelings of deep fear and insecurity that harm your drive to succeed, causing feelings of frustration and lack of purpose. When the root chakra is balanced, it is thought to create feelings of security, positivity, energy, independence, and strength.

The sacral chakra – Svadhishthana    

This second chakra is believed to be orange in colour, located below the navel and represents the water element. It is considered to be responsible for sexuality, creativity, intuitiveness, self-worth, compassion, and adaptability. When it is unstable, it’s thought to cause emotional outbursts, a lack of creativity, and sex-obsessed thoughts.

The solar plexus chakra –Manipura   

This third chakra also called the city of jewels, is believed to be yellow in colour, found at the solar plexus, between the ribcage and the navel, and represents the fire element. It is considered to be the centre of self-esteem and emotions like ego, anger, and aggression. It is thought to present itself on a physical level through, liver problems, or diabetes. On an emotional level, if the solar plexus chakra is imbalanced, it is believed to cause feelings of low self-esteem. When it’s balanced, it would become a source of energy, productivity, and confidence.

The heart chakra –Anahata  

This fourth chakra is believed to be green in colour, found at the heart, and lies in the middle of the cardiovascular system, and represents air. It directly affects the heart, lungs, chest, arms and hands, and connects the lower chakras to the higher ones. It is considered a link to compassion, trust, passion, and love for self and others. When it is out of balance, it is believed to cause anger, lack of trust, anxiety, jealousy, fear, and moodiness. An overactive heart chakra is thought to lead to high blood pressure, heart palpitations, and heart problems.

The throat chakra – Vishuddha   

This fifth chakra is believed to be blue in colour, found at the throat and represents ether or space. It is thought to control the neck, mouth, tongue, and other parts of the throat area.  It is tied to self-expression, communication, and confidence. Balancing the throat chakra is believed to regulate the flow of hormones and help inner thoughts to be spoken positively. 

The third eye chakra –Ajna  

This sixth chakra is the third eye or Ajna and is believed to be indigo in colour, set between the eyebrows, and has no elemental association. Often used as a focal point, it is believed to control your intellect, intuition, wisdom, and spiritual power. According to this belief system, an open and balanced third eye chakra allows you to notice the connections in this world and beyond. An underactive third eye chakra is thought to manifest as a headache, a migraine, or blurry vision. When balanced it is believed to free you from earthly attachments.

The crown chakra –Sahastrara 

The seventh chakra is at the top of the head, is believed to be white or purple in colour and is the highest of the seven main chakras. It is also known as the “thousand petal lotus” chakra and is considered the most spiritual of the central chakras because it is tied to inner wisdom and the cosmos. Opening the crown chakra is believed to connect a person to their higher self since it’s the place of spirituality, enlightenment, and energetic thoughts. . When unbalanced, the crown chakra is thought to influence depression, disconnection from the outside world, frustration, and destructive emotions.

In this article, I will explain a simple but effective way to get in touch with all seven chakras.

• Finding a quiet place to sit, in nature would be ideal but a quiet, well-ventilated room will also be fine. Make sure you are wearing loose-fitting clothes, and then sit cross-legged. If this is not possible just sit in a comfortable position, on a chair or lay down. Most impotant is that your back is straight.
• Close your eyes, take a deep, steady breath in through your nose, and as you exhale, let everything go and relax fully.            
• Follow your natural breath for a few minutes,and allow your mind to go inside your body as your breath moves through it.   
• Gently shift your attention to the bottom of the spine and visulise your central channel with a red spinning ball of energy. If you feel adventurous you could even visualise this ball of energy as a wheel or a red lotus flower with vibrating petals.                                    
• Imagine it vibrating more and more ferocity as you breathe into it, and allow it to hum. 
• Stay with this visualisation for as long as you can, keeping the light spinning and humming while you breathe into it.                         
•  Slowly move up to the next chakra changing to that chakras colour, and doing the same visualisation. Stay with the visualisation for as long as you can.   
• Continue through all the chakras, changing to their colour until you reach the crown chakra at the top of your head.   
• Rest here as long as you can, keeping your breath normal and relaxed, as you start to feel the new sensations all over your body.   
• When you feel the sesson is over, give love and gratitude to yourself for creating time to do this meditation.                                    
•  Gently open your eyes and enjoy the new way you see the world and feel connected to the universe.

Have a great day.

We all talk to ourselves from time to time, be it in our heads or out loud, the nattering is there. So why not make it meaningful and do a mantra instead?  It could be very helpful especially when you are nervous about a situation and negative thoughts are stressing you out, or just to give your mind a rest from its constant projecting onto the outside world.  I’m sure, at times you’ve all repeated a sentence in your head over and over “Let me win the lottery,”  “Let me get the promotion/pay rise,” “Let the queue at the supermarket be short,” and so on. So why not make it more significant? Maybe the word mantra sounds a bit unusual or strange to some of you, but actually when broken down into two parts: “man,” means mind, and “tra,” means transport or vehicle, so in other words, a mantra is an instrument of the mind. A powerful sound or vibration that you can use to enter a deep state of calm or meditation. Some believe that uttering the sacred sound, syllable, word, or group of words, which are usually in Sanskrit, Pali, or Tibetan, to have religious, spiritual, or magical powers. and we could all do with some of that!

Usually, a mantra is repeated with a mala or rosary with 108 beads. Why 108 you may ask? According to Ayurveda, we have 108 marma points (vital points of life forces) in our body and each chant represents a journey from our material self towards our highest spiritual self. This helps to bring the body in harmony with the vibrations of the universe. Once you are feeling this connection I’m sure anything and everything has a possibility to manifest. Imagine standing in the long line in the supermarket and instead of being angry with the woman with the overloaded trolley in front of you; you just chant your mantra and enjoy the experience of all the action, sounds, and life around you. Imagine the checkout person when you greet him or her with a loving smile instead of a grumpy, impatient face.

What is a mala?

Mala is a Sanskrit word meaning garland and usually consists of a string of 108 beads, that are used for keeping count during specific meditations. They are powerful tools that can help guide and enhance mindfulness, and keep you focused on the mantra. Many people, who use a mala to meditate with a recitation of mantra, find that they help increase concentration and promote a more beneficial meditation experience. A mala doesn’t need to include gemstones or other expensive materials to work well for you, anything with 108 beads will be fine. But this doesn’t mean you cannot recite a mantra without a mala. Remember the supermarket queue?

There are many different types of mantras and the uttering of these words is intended to use your thoughts as a guide to concentration and activates a particular kind of energy in a different part of the body. Without this necessary awareness, just repeating the sound only brings dullness to the mind. Any repetition of a sound always makes your mind dull. But when it is done with proper awareness, and an exact understanding of what it is, a mantra could be very powerful. But certain mantras should not be chanted without an empowerment or initiation from a qualified master, which grants permission and gives access to the benefits of the mantra. In this article, I’m just going to talk about the king of mantras, Om (pronounced Ah-Uu-Mm). This is a sacred Hindu symbol and is considered by many ancient philosophical texts to be the sound of the universe resonating at 432 Hz. It is the entire world in just one intensely pleasurable sound. When chanted it symbolically and physically tunes us into that sound and acknowledges our connection to everything in the world and universe.

Ready to give it a try?

• If you can find a calm, quiet place outside in nature, that would be perfect. But if that’s not possible then a quiet room will also be fine. For maximum comfort, sit cross-legged, but if that is difficult for you, then sit as best as you can or if necessary, sit in a chair. What is most important is that you keep your back erect. Make sure you are wearing loose-fitting clothes in light shades, this can help you feel free and not held, back. and allows the channels of your body to flow freely.
• Close your eyes, relax your jaw and let your lips be slighty apart and loose. Roll your shoulders back, then turn your left palm up and keep it close to your navel, then place the back of your right hand onto your left palm. Maintain this position for the rest of the steps.
• Make sure both your body and mind are at ease, as you follow your natural breath. Feel the vibrations that run through the body.
• Once you have paid attention to the sounds and vibrations in your body, slowly and deeply breathe in through your nose and mentally count to five, exhale through your nose, and count to seven. Repeate this 3 times. (As you practice more, you will be able to breathe in and breathe out for longer durations).
• Then as you breathe out for the third time, chant “AAAAA” and feel your abdomen vibrating.
• Breathe out completely and simply relax.
• Then take a deep and slow inhalation. As you breathe out, chant “UUUUU” and feel your chest and neck vibrating.
• Breathe out completely and relax again.
• Take a slow and deep inhalation. As you breathe out, chant “MMMMM” and feel your head and neck vibrating.
• Breathe out completely and simply relax once more.
• Take a slow and deep inhalation, and as you breathe out chant all three sound together in one beautiful AAAAAUUUUUMM . You should spend 80 per cent of your chanting “A-U,” and only 20 per cent should be devoted to the syllable, “M.”
• Relax and feel the vibration.
• Following your natural breath, inhale and exhale AAAAAUUUUUMM. (Repete).
• The chanting of Om (AUM) should initially be done three times. Slowly, you can work your way up to nine times.
• When you have finished, breathe normally, spend five minues following the inhalation and exhalation of the breath, and feel your body energised and tuned in with nature.
• Open your eyes and take in your whole environment. notice how your sences have woken up and everything around you has come alive and vibrant. You will see colours where you’ve never noticed them before ,smell the sweet air, and hear the birds sing. Gently stand up and feel the earth under your feet as you walk, now you are at one with the universe not just passing through.

I hope this is helpful and you enjoy it.

Have a great day.