Practicing Precision: Mudras

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How you do the little things is how you do everything.
- Sharon Pearson

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In the YSC Part 2 training last month, Renata (Sonia Sumar’s daughter) was breaking down the pose Yoga Nidrasana to our class one morning. 

This pose requires a fine balance of flexibility and strength: open hips and shoulders, flexible spine, and a strong core.  She was asking us to slow down and do the pose step-by-step. 

She broke each individual movement down for us to practice one at a time.  First, the feet come together.  Then, the hips rotate externally and the knees move to the side.  Then, you grab your ankles.  Etcetera, etcetera.  

Precision is the mark of an advanced yoga practitioner.  It is not enough to rely on one’s natural flexibility or strength and then just hold the pose.  The advanced practitioner fine tunes each pose with concentration, moving further and going deeper as they practice.

A mudra is a gesture, also called a “seal,” which both represents and enhances a specific state of being by sealing the energy in the certain areas of the body.  Mudras are an aspect of yoga often glossed over but represent the subtle way small changes affect not only our practice but our energy level, our mental engagement, and our emotional condition. 

So mudras are a fabulous way to practice this month’s theme, precision.  Check out some mudras commonly used in classes.