Hand Shapes that Heal

Our hands are the extension of our selves. They are the appendage that touches and feels. Next to our face, hands are the most expressive part of our body. They express through touch and gesture. When you touch your child’s face or give your pet a scratch behind the ears, it’s a gesture of love. In the same way, we can stab the middle finger into the air to communicate well…you know.

Mudras and the Power of Gesture

The power of gesture is what the ancient yogis harnessed and systemized into hand shapes called mudras. Mudras can bring about mental, emotional and physiological balance.

Mudras are accessible to anyone, even those with limited mobility. All you do is create a shape with one or both hands. If you practice yoga, chances are you’ve done mudras at least at the start and/or end of your practice where you place the hands together in prayer position at your heart. This gesture, called Namaskar or Anjali mudra, is a gesture of respect and gratitude. Literally translated means “I salute your essence”.

One of the most interesting exercises I do with my workshop participants is a series of five mudras, each drawing on the qualities of the five elements; earth, water, fire, air and space. Each element has a kind of vital energy or quality. For example, earth is heavy and helps ground, water’s moisture helps dissolve, aiding in transitions, fire is hot and transforms one thing into another, air is mobile so gets things moving and space is open and clearing. I like to think of the 5 elements as superpowers; there to help us when we need them.

In the exercise Exploring the 5-Elements below, you will feel the effect of each of these hand gestures physically as well as energetically. The more you practice mudras, the more you feel their affect. It’s definitely my favourite “party trick”. Even people who don’t know anything about yoga, Ayurveda or mind-body medicine can usually feel “something” when I do this with them.

How Mudras Work

Mudras are used as tool to guide the vital energy of the mind and body. Most Eastern traditions believe that when this vital energy, or “prana” is depleted or blocked it manifests at the physical, mental or emotional level. This imbalance causes some form of discomfort, for example digestive complaints or anxiety.

From a Western perspective, we can understand the hands as a perfect tool for guiding our energy because they contain a rich network of neural networks which communicate messages to the brain. The brain then responds by triggering a chemical response via the endocrine system to either stimulate or relax the nervous system and help us take appropriate action.

A good example of this connection between the hands and the brain is when you touch something hot. Your hands sense the heat and in microseconds, the brain receives the signal “danger” and cortisol produces a shot of adrenaline and you pull your hand away from the burning heat. In the same way, touching something warm, soft and cuddly will send the signal “safe” and initiate a relaxation response.

Having a repertoire of mudras in your self-care kit can give you some power over the challenges of life and help you stay more balanced physically, mentally and emotionally.

I periodically do workshops focusing on the power of mudras so watch for upcoming opportunities to learn more about mudras.

Give it a Try

There are hundreds of different mudras and they are sometimes interpreted and named differently. The way you experience them is perfect. Practice the mudras below regularly so you have them at your fingertips when you need to draw on the superpowers of the 5 elements.

Exploring the 5 Elements with Mudras

Give the 5-Elements mudra practice a try and let me know what you think in the comments below.
Happy exploring!
=)
Lori