Shakti Mudra: How to Do, Benefits & Precautions

shakti mudra hands in yoga

Our daily schedule and work have a big impact on our minds. This makes our mind stores all the work and thoughts throughout the day. The busy work schedule causes a lot of stress and tension in our mind. This causes sleeplessness and anxiety.

These thoughts, stresses, and tensions revolve in our minds throughout the whole night and do not let us sleep properly. As a result, we spend the whole night tossing in bed.

    Mudras: The Yoga of The Hands

    Know mudras for various health conditions and wellness

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    If you face such a condition of sleeplessness, then yoga has many solutions for you!

    One such soultion is a simple yoga mudra called Shakti mudra. 

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    What is Shakti Mudra?

    Shakti mudra is a ritual hand gesture, that calms the mind and body. In Ayurveda, this mudra is used to relax the mind and body, to get a stable physical and mental health. This mudra has a beneficial effect on the pelvic area, therefore this mudra is considered sensual or feminine.

    Shakti mudra includes the function of all our fingers. This mudra helps in soothing the nervous system and relaxes the brain muscles. As a result, this mudra is very beneficial for sleeping disorders, anxiety, stress, and tension.

    What Shakti Means in Shakti Mudra?

    The term Shakti mudra origins from the Sanskrit language. Here, Shakti means power or strength, and mudra means gesture or seal. Shakti is another name of Hindu Goddess Durga: the Goddess of power and strength. 

    This mudra increases our inner strengths and mental powers, that helps us to make ourself stable, physically as well as mentally.

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    This mudra also is known as Shakti Chalana Mudra.

    How to Do the Shakti Mudra

    Shakti mudra includes the involvement of all fingers of both hands.

    To perform this mudra, you just have to tuck the thumb in the middle of your palm, bend the index and middle finger to wrap the thumb lightly. After that, touch the distal phalanges of the ring finger and little finger with the corresponding fingers of the other hand. Then, touch the middle phalanges of the index finger and middle finger of both hands together.

    To practice this mudra in yoga sessions, follow the following steps:

    Steps

    Before starting the hand movement, you need to be in a proper sitting arrangement, as described below.

    Sitting Posture

    • Sit in a pelvic opening yoga asana such as malhasana or utkata konasana. As this mudra is related to the pelvic area, so performing this mudra in pelvic opening yoga asana will extend its effect.
      Still, you can combine this mudra with other meditative yoga asanas like padmasana and sukhasana.
    • Now, close your eyes, and take some deep breaths. This will help to make a better flow of prana in the body. It will help you to feel the Chitta and concentrate on it.

    If you are uncomfortable while sitting in yoga asana, you can perform it standing in Tadasana or while sitting on a chair.

    This is the sitting posture you need to maintain during the whole session. Now let’s see how fingers are arranged in Shakti mudra

    Finger Arrangement

    finger arrangement in shakti mudra
    • Firstly, tuck the thumb in the center of the palm, and bend all your fingers over it except the ring and little finger. Do this with your both hands simultaneously.
    • After that, extend the ring and little finger as much as possible and bring both hands close to each other.
    • Now touch the distal phalange (uppermost part) of the left hand’s ring finger with the distal phalanges of the right hand’s ring finger.
    • Then, do the same with little finger i.e. Touch the distal phalange of the left hand’s little finger with the distal phalanges of the right hand’s little finger.
    • Now, touch the middle phalange of the index finger and middle finger of both hands together.
    • Lastly, with the same arrangement of fingers bring both hands close to your chest and try to remove all thoughts from your mind. You can also chant OM for better concentration.

    Time and Duration

    There is no specific time to do this mudra. You can do it anytime and anywhere. For better sleep, you can perform it just before going to bed.

    You should perform this mudra maximum of 10-12 minutes in a single stretch. You can perform 2-3 stretch per day for good results.

    Precautions

    Shakti Mudra is very beneficial for our body only if it is done in the right way. Here we will discuss some precautions you need to take for the best results of Shakti mudra.

    • Don’t put too much pressure on your fingers, just put gentle pressure on them. Otherwise, you won’t be able to sit in this posture for longer.
    • Wear comfortable clothes. If you are having a bracelet, watch or other ornaments in your hands, remove them during this whole session. You have to keep yourself as light as possible for better concentration.
    • Turn off all the sources of disturbances such a mobile, Tv or radio. Try to practice this mudra in a quiet and calm place.
    • Last and most important precaution, don’t perform Shakti mudra for a long period. This will make you lethargic and sluggish. So do it in a limited manner.

    Benefits of Shakti Mudra

    Shakti Mudra is a symbolic gesture that comes with many physical mental and spiritual benefits. Let’s know them one by one.

    1. Prevents Sleep Disorders or Sleeplessness

    As mentioned earlier, sleep disorders or sleeplessness is mainly caused by the unstable brain. Due to tension, stress, and pressure, our brain becomes highly unstable.

    Shakti mudra mainly calms the thought process of our brain. Along with this, this mudra soothes the nervous system which is directly connected to our mind. As a result, our mind starts getting stable and relaxed, and slowly slowly, all the stress and tensions from our brain are eliminated.

    Thus, by the regular practice of shakti mudra, our sleeping pattern improves gradually and cures disorder like Insomnia.

    2. Improves the Immune System

    Shakti mudra brings inner strength and stability to our bodies. The calming effect of this mudra boosts internal physical energy.

    This helps in a stable and improved immune system, which makes the whole body fit and healthy. Along with this, this mudra cures weakness in our body

    3. The Perfect Remedy for Disorders Related to the Pelvis Area

    Shakti Mudra is designed in such a way that the flow of prana directly reaches to the pelvic area. This soothes & calms the Pelvis area and all glands in this area. This mudra decreases the tension in this area of the body.  Some of them are the following.

    1. Slow and painful urination is caused by the disorder in the prostate gland in males

    [efn_note] what causes difficulty in urination https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003143.htm [/efn_note]

    . This gland is located in the pelvic area, hence the practice of Shakti mudra rectifies the painful urination problem.

  • Mensurational discomforts are caused by disturbances in the pelvic area, so the practice of Shakti Mudra helps to relieve mensurational discomforts.
  • Along with these, Shakti mudra also cures spasm in the intestine, which is associated with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)

    [efn_note] Colon Spasms https://www.healthline.com/health/colon-spasm [/efn_note]

    .

    4. Stimulates the Sacral Chakra

    Consistent practice of Shakti mudra influence the sacral/svadhisthana chakra that is just a few inches below the navel and very close to the pelvic area.

    The practise of this mudra redirects the flow of prana to the sacral chakra and helps to stimulate it. As a result, it makes you more creative, fearless, and self-worthy.

    Final Words

    In conclusion, sleeplessness, tensions, and stress do not just come out of the blue. They are the result of our daily habits and daily routine. These are the indication that you should now focus on your daily habits and routine.

    Shakti mudra will definitely get you out of stress-related problems & develops divine power within you. Eventually, this will help you in long term health benefits.

    One Response

    1. Devadas January 7, 2022

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