01
Sit Comfortably
Choose a seat where you can stay both alert and relaxed — a chair works just as well as the floor. Relax your shoulders and let your breath settle before you begin.
Mudra Practice Guidelines
Ten simple principles for getting the most from your practice — none of them complicated, all of them worth knowing.
02
Keep Your Spine Straight
To get the most from your practice, sit with your spine upright rather than slouched. A straight spine is traditionally said to keep the body's energy channels open rather than compressed.
03
Be Gentle
Bring your fingers together with a light touch. Mudras work through intention and contact, not pressure — pressing hard or straining the fingers doesn't make a mudra work any better.
04
Best Time to Practice
Traditionally, early morning — ideally between 4am and 6am — is considered the best window, since the body is thought to absorb and carry a mudra's effects through the rest of the day. Evenings are a good second choice. Beyond that, any time that suits your own routine works fine — the important thing is that you practise, not exactly when.
05
Stay a While
Two minutes is generally considered the minimum for a mudra to take effect — the first thirty seconds or so are what activate the gesture, with the remaining time letting it settle. For very basic mudras, many traditions suggest working up to forty-five minutes a day in total, whether in one sitting or spread across morning, afternoon and evening.
Other, more advanced mudras carry their own recommended duration rather than following this general range — you'll find the specific figure on each mudra's own page in the library. As a general principle, practising any mudra for the duration recommended for it, rather than a longer or shorter one, is what brings the best results.
None of this is a hard rule — these are general guidelines, and your own comfort matters more than hitting a specific number. If a mudra starts to feel painful or uncomfortable, that's your cue to stop.
Above all, a few minutes practised daily will generally do more for you than one long session squeezed in occasionally. If you only have five minutes today, that's a complete practice — not a lesser one.
06
Practice Somewhere Private
Home, or anywhere else you feel fully at ease, is the ideal setting. Practising while travelling or rushed isn't known to be harmful, but it's unlikely to give you the full benefit either — mudras respond as much to a settled mind as to a correctly formed hand.
07
Wait After Eating
Give yourself at least sixty minutes after a meal before practising a mudra. Water is fine beforehand — in fact, staying hydrated is encouraged, much as it is before a yoga session.
08
Wait Before Eating
Once you're done practising, wait at least fifteen to twenty minutes before eating, and ideally closer to thirty. If you're short on time, five to ten minutes is a reasonable minimum — this gap gives your body a chance to settle before you eat again.
09
Wear Loose Clothing
Loose, comfortable clothing that doesn't restrict movement works best. Tight clothing — jeans and the like — can make it harder to sit comfortably for the full duration of your practice.
10
Precautions
If you are suffering from any diseases or critical illnesses, please check with your doctor before practicing mudras. Women, who are pregnant, should also consult a medical practitioner before you start with mudras.
These are general guidelines, not fixed rules. Every body is different — the most reliable guide is always your own comfort. If anything about a mudra ever feels wrong, ease out of it rather than push through.