Tuesday, April 25, 2017

All-cure mudra

It is extremely annoying when you visit a doctor to be told that at your age arthritis is inevitable. This was told to me after a mobike accident, so I shut off from the gibberish that doctors sometimes dole out to you. I know that I am fitter now than when I was in my twenties and that the body is a miracle of healing and a lot of sickness in my youth came from my middle-class fears about my future, my timidity, and general angst a youthful person has. And having hurt your shoulder joint in an accident has nothing to do with arthritis! And as far as rheumatoid arthritis is concerned, even today science has not cracked what exactly causes it. Though tentatively, knowing how silly and inhibited science can be about checking out connections between the mind and body, it has been established that a highly sensitive person is often prone to it, as well as prone to other ailments where the immune system begins to attack itself.

So, while blogging on anti-aging mudra I realised that since the kapha personality is very strong, it has no anti-aging mudra as such simply because the other two elements -- air and fire -- are often the causes of diseases. So, in that case how come the kapha person can be beset with equally debilitating diseases? It is because this element is so strong, it can be stubborn about healing, if it chooses to suffer. This often also happens because the kapha person, while slow to anger, often when deeply hurt can hold on to hurts for far longer than the other two doshas. So, a kapha arthritis would be were the joints have collapsed to the point of having effusions in them. Often arthritis in a kapha person also happens due to obesity where the weight of the body, begins to overload the joints,

So, in that case, if properly diagnosed as joint pain from excessive fluid in the joint, the jal shaamak mudra (Destroying water element in body mudra ) may be practiced. This is another reason to understand why mudras cannot be casually prescribed. Because if the joint pain is from inflammatory condition and dryness, you practice the opposite type of mudra called jal mudra (water element hand gesture) where the tip of the little finger just touches the tip of the thumb. In this mudra, the water element increases. In the Destroying the water element mudra (jal shaamak)  the little finger is pressed down.

The pressure and holding of the mudra, despite using the same fingers, is different in either of the above mentioned mudra.

SURABHI MUDRA: 
Where you are confused as to what ayurvedic personality type you are, or are not sure what is the cause of your disease, you could try this tridoshic mudra (mudra that is good for three doshas) called Surabhi mudra.  It is a bit complicated. Your little finger in each hand touch the tip of the ring finger in each hand. They cross over each other. Then the index finger of each hand touch the middle finger of each hand. The fingers will cross over again. The thumb of each hand of course are also lightly touching. 

There are no contraindications as such. And it is a bliss mudra, and uplifts you too. 
Happy sadhana! 


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