Asanas, Mudras, and Pranayama for the Chakras
Pranayama
The Govinda book outlines a few pranayama practices for specific chakras.
Chakra 1 – Govinda describes a variation of Ashwini Mudra. In a deep squat (similar to Garland except no hip opening), inhale, retain the breath and pull the anal sphincter muscle slightly upward. Relax and exhale. Try belly breathing for chakras 1 and 2.
Chakra 2 – Govinda offers Ashwini Mudra again from a supine position with the knees drawn in and feet crossed. You might try a Modified Kapalabhati, which you learn in the Hips, Shoulders and Core course since the sacral chakra deals with the hips and abdomen.Try belly breathing for chakras 1 and 2. Use Alternate Nostril breathing to bring balances to the extremes and try Equal Ratio breathing to bring balances to the dualities.
Chakra 3 – Govinda describes a breath with an Abdominal Lift that is much like the Uddiyana Bandha work you learned in our Hips, Shoulder and Core course. It makes sense if you think about the location of the diaphragm and the solar plexus. Work with the breath with the bandha.. Note that if the 3rd chakra doesn’t get enough air, the heart chakra will be deficient/sluggish because fire needs air to burn. On the other hand, if the 3rd chakra gets too much air, the flames get high and reach into heart chakra, which means heart disease or heart issues may occur. Keep the 3rd chakra pranayama steady and not extreme. For example, using the breath with Uddiyana Bandha is a good option, but doing extreme Kapalabhati or Lions Breath or Bees Breath might be too much.
Chakra 4 – Govinda teaches an “Opening the Heart’ exercise where she coordinates a breathing exercise with arm movements. Any chest expansion breath would work well here. Focus on an active inhale, coming into the chest, and allow a more passive exhale.
Chakra 5 – Lions Breath and a breath from Sukhasana, where you take a chin lock, breath in, retain the breath and then exhale as you tuck your chin into your chest are recommended in the Govinda book. You should consider Alternate Nostril breathing, Ujjayi and Bee’s Breath. Adding breath retention to 5th chakra pranayama is helpful because you bring the prana into the thread and when you release it, it moves upward.
Chakra 6 – I recommend alternate nostril breathing and bee’s breath (so does Nischala Joy Devi). Govdina offers Humming Breath, which looks like a variation of our lineage’s Bees Breath (we teach this in the 200 hour course, but you can find it online if you didn’t learn it in your program).
Chakra 7 – Alternate Nostril breathing.
Asanas
If you have the Govinda book, there are specific asanas listed for each chakra. We will also discuss physical asanas on a Zoom call.
Mudras
We will discuss Mudra on a Zoom call. I also recommend Mudras of Yoga: 72 Hand Gestures for Healing and Spiritual Growth by Cain Carroll. This card deck comes with a small booklet that contains an index of specific health conditions. If you look at the condition, such as cancer or brain issues, you can cross reference that with the information Chakras and Bodily Functions to find which chakra is related to that issue. Then, you’ll know which mudras go with the chakra. The deck also list which mudras work for improving concentration, devotion, intuition or to decrease fear and anxiety. There is a list of specific mudras for each chakra, as well.
On a Zoom call, I will show you a very simple technique for using a mudra with each of the 7 chakras.
