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Yoga is a healing practice that surprises us with its many different forms, such as exercises, power yoga, mudras, and pranayama. Each form carries its own unique power to heal and improve physical, mental, and spiritual health.
One such form is Mula Bandha, a type of mudra that plays an important role in pranayama techniques. Its unique ability to lock energy makes it crucial in yoga practice.
Bandhas help lock energy in the body, guide it through the Sushumna Nadi, and let us connect spiritually with the divine.
It offers various physical and mental benefits, making it an excellent exercise for seniors, pregnant women, and others. Let’s learn more about it in detail here.
What is Mula Bandha?
Mula Bandha is a Sanskrit name, and both words have different meanings. Mula means “root”, and bandha denotes “lock“, so the whole meaning of the combination of words is root lock.
The meaning of its name suggests that it works on the pelvic floor muscles, which are sometimes called the “root” muscles. These muscles support the organs in the lower belly and form the base of the upper body.
They help trap the body’s life energy (prana) and guide its flow through the Sushumna Nadi, which helps people feel more connected spiritually.
There are four main bandhas in yoga: the first one is Mula (root lock), the 2nd is Uddiyana (abdominal lock), and the 3rd one is Jalandhara (throat lock).
The Purpose of Mula Bandha Practice
Mula Bandha is a way to control your energy in yoga. It’s like a gentle lock at the bottom of your body that helps keep your energy from spreading. This lock helps the energy move upward toward your belly, making you feel more focused, strong, and balanced. It’s a simple practice that supports both your body and mind.
Yoga says that it’s a type of energy called apana vayu that moves downward and outward in the body. This energy helps the body go to the bathroom, maintain reproductive health, and feel grounded or stable. It also supports emotional balance and a calm mind.
However, activating mula bandha yoga creates a seal that prevents this energy from leaking. This action redirects the energy upward, merging with Prana Vayu, the upward-moving current centred in the chest.
Another important part of Mula Bandha is that it helps awaken Kundalini Shakti, a hidden spiritual energy at the base of the spine. When this energy wakes up, it’s described as a ‘spiritual awakening‘ in yoga, which is also called the first step in a yogi’s journey of transformation.
When Can One Start Learning Mula Bandha?
In yoga, Mula Bandha is taught at the right time because it takes some experience and regular practice to prepare it properly. Traditionally, it comes only after you’ve built a strong foundation in yoga postures and breathing practices.
First, you learn asanas (yoga poses), then pranayama (breathing techniques). Only after practising both can you begin working with the bandhas. Mula Bandha is usually the second one introduced, after Jalandhara Bandha, the throat lock.
Yoga Poses for Activating Mula Bandha?
Mula Bandha is usually practised while sitting cross-legged. While Padmasana (Lotus Pose) and Siddhasana (Adept Pose) are often preferred, other poses like Sukhasana (Easy Pose), Bhadrasana (Gracious Pose), Ardha Padmasana (Half Lotus), and Baddhakonasana (Bound Angle) can also work well.
Different poses can benefit both genders, like siddhasana, which is a good posture for men. At the same time, Siddha Yoni Asana works best for women practising Mula Bandha because the heel presses against the perineum in these poses. This pressure gently stimulates the pelvic floor, helping to activate Mula Bandha.
Once you’re comfortable with the bandha, you can practise it in any seated posture, even those that don’t provide this natural stimulation.
Also Read – The Butterfly Effect: How Baddhakonasana Transforms Your Physical, Psychic, and Emotional Health
Anatomical Position of the Mula Bandha Muscles
Mula Bandha is about gently tightening the muscles at the base of the body, which are connected to the Root Chakra, or Muladhara—the energy centre linked to stability and grounding. Men and women have different body structures, so the exact place where these muscles and the Root Chakra are felt can be a little different for each one.
- For Men: In men’s Mula Bandha involves lightly tightening the pelvic floor muscles found just above the area between the testicles and the anus. These are the same muscles that are used when trying to stop urination midstream.
- For Women: Mula Bandha means gently engaging the deep pelvic muscles, especially those near the back of the vaginal passage, close to the cervix. Some experienced practitioners say it feels similar to the muscle control that intentionally stops menstrual flow.
In the beginning, it can be tricky to control the perineum because it’s a small, deep muscle that we rarely use. Many people end up tensing nearby areas like the buttocks, lower abdomen, or anus without realising it. This is completely normal. With regular practice, however, you’ll build awareness and strength, and Mula Bandha will start to feel more natural.
One of the main rules of practising Mula Bandha is never to do it in a standing or lying down position. If there are physical limitations, it can be done while sitting upright in a chair or on a meditation bench.
How to Practice Mula Bandha?
Now, here are the steps of practising Mula Bandha. By following them step by step, you can perform it safely:
Preparation
Take the Siddha Yoni Asana pose, gently pressing your left heel against the perineum and your right heel against the reproductive area. Relax your hands on your knees or use them to form mudras.
- Close your eyes and focus on the breath for a few minutes to clear your mind from the external world, then inhale deeply.
- As you inhale, gently tighten the muscles between the anus and genitals.
- Now, pull your belly tight like you’re trying to zip up tight pants; it will activate your deep core muscles, especially those supporting your spine and pelvis.
- After pulling in, imagine lifting that area slightly upward, like you’re drawing energy or strength up inside you. Because this will help you to engage the pelvic floor muscles, which are part of Mula Bandha.
- Slowly relax the pelvic floor muscles as you exhale to release the Bandha position. This completes one cycle of Mula Bandha.
- Mula Bandha can be practised multiple times as long as it doesn’t cause discomfort. However, beginners are recommended to start with 5 to 10 rounds per session.
- At the end of your practice, please take a few minutes to relax in Savasana (Corpse Pose), letting your energy settle and return to its natural state.
Also Read – Corpse Pose – The Ultimate Guide to a Blissful and Calm Mind Every Day
Tips for the Mula Bandha
- Time: There is no time limit for performing mula bandha, but its effect is believed to increase if you practise it on an empty stomach in the morning.
- Posture: You can choose any cross-legged meditation pose, such as Siddhasana or Padmasana, whichever feels most comfortable.
- Series: If you practise Mula Bandha independently, do it after your asana and pranayama practice.
- Awareness: Once you’re comfortable with the physical practice, gently bring your awareness to the Muladhara (Root) Chakra, located at the base of the spine, deep within the pelvic floor.
- Visualisation: During your practice, cultivate a deep sense of grounding by connecting with the earth, or visualise a red, four-petalled lotus gently blooming at the base of your pelvis.
- Mantra: Since Mula Bandha activates the root energy centre, you may silently chant the syllable LAM (लं), the seed (bija) mantra of the Muladhara Chakra, to deepen your focus and energetic connection.
Benefits of Mula Bandha
While we’ve touched on the physical and spiritual value of Mula Bandha, let’s now explore its specific physical benefits in more detail.
1. Strengthens Pelvic Floor Muscles
When you activate Mula Bandha, it directly impacts and strengthens the pelvic area muscles.
2. Supports Lower Back
Engaging the pelvic floor and adjacent muscles stabilises the lower back in daily movements. Asana, pranayama, and meditation require a strong lower back to prevent strain and injury during long practice sessions.
By engaging Mula Bandha, you strengthen the muscles that support the spine during pranayama and help keep the pelvis stable when sitting cross-legged.
3. Boosts Digestion
Mula Bandha mainly engages the pelvic area, but its impact on Apana Vayu also supports the digestive system because Apana Vayu controls energy flow in the body, which is responsible for eliminating, reproducing, and other waste.
4 . Creates Stability
Mula Bandha focuses on the centre area, which serves as the foundation for both our physical and energetic presence.
On a deeper level, Mula Bandha aligns our energy and supports us in overcoming feelings of anxiety, fear, and insecurity.
5. Advantages for Women’s Health
Mula Bandha’s muscle contractions benefit women’s reproductive health in many ways. Here are a few examples:
6. Reproductive System Support: Engaging the pelvic muscles, improving blood flow, and creating a “warm energy” in the pelvic floor. Which cleanses and supports the reproductive organs while also benefiting hormone balance.
After practising Mula Bandha, many practitioners say that it helped them reduce menstrual cramps and discomfort.
7. Postpartum Recovery: Childbirth can stretch and weaken the pelvic floor muscles, but studies suggest that practising Mula Bandha can help speed up postpartum recovery by restoring muscle tone more quickly.
Mental and Spiritual Benefits of Mula Bandha
1. Mind-Body Connection
Mastering a practice like Mula Bandha requires commitment, focus, and dedication, both in mind and body. Which helps develop a strong mind-body connection by promoting energy flow, breath control, and deeper-level self-awareness.
2. Deepens Various Yoga Practices
Activating Mula Bandha keeps pranic energy focused, enhancing the benefits of pranayama. It directs the downward flow of Apana Vayu to higher energy centres along the spine.
This lock controls the downward flow of prana (Apana Vayu), guiding it upward to activate higher energy centres in the spine.
3. Activates Muladhara Chakra
In practices like Kriya and Kundalini Yoga, Mula Bandha channels prana (life force) into the Root and Sacral Chakras, which are key energy centres linked to stability, vitality, and our survival instincts.
Mula Bandha supports the smooth flow of prana, unlocking energy blockages and promoting the balanced functioning of the chakras in the subtle body.
Harmonising these chakras brings many benefits, like enhanced energy, emotional balance, and spiritual growth.
4. Awakens the Dormant Kundalini energy
In yoga philosophy, Kundalini awakening is the process of awakening dormant spiritual energy at the base of the spine, allowing it to travel up the Sushumna Nadi, a subtle energy channel. Awakening and rising this energy helps balance and align the seven chakras in the subtle body.
Mula Bandha is a popular technique for activating energy in the pelvic floor, where Kundalini energy begins to rise. Many types of yoga see this activation as the first important step for spiritual growth and change.
Modification of Mula Bandha
Traditionally, Mula Bandha is applied when holding the breath in. But there’s another layer to explore; try activating it after you exhale, in the stillness before the next inhale. Here’s how to begin:
- Begin with a deep, steady exhale, allowing the lungs to empty completely and calmly.
- As the breath reaches its end, softly lift the muscles at the base of the pelvis to activate the bandha.
- Remain in the breathless pause, keeping the muscular engagement as long as it feels calm and easy.
- When the urge to inhale arises, gently let go of the contraction and allow the breath to return smoothly and with awareness.
- This technique helps calm the mind and shift your focus inward before meditation. But it’s more advanced, so it’s best to try it only after getting comfortable with the basics.
Contraindications of Practising Mula Bandha
Mula Bandha is the safest yoga practice, but there are a few conditions that need to be kept in mind before practising it:
- In the presence of a hernia, peptic ulcers, and other active digestive issues.
- With cardiovascular conditions, such as high blood pressure and heart disease.
- Mula Bandha should be avoided during pregnancy, urinary tract infections, and menstruation.
Remember that these precautions address common concerns, but individual circumstances can differ.
If you have existing health conditions and are uncertain about practising Mula Bandha, it’s best to seek guidance from a qualified yoga therapist and your healthcare provider to ensure its safety and suitability.
Conclusion
After reading all the above information on Mula Bandha, you now understand that continuously practising Mula Bandha can offer numerous benefits, including improved stability, energy flow, and mental clarity.
When used mindfully, Mula Bandha can enhance balance and stability in both the body and mind, serving as a valuable tool for personal development and self-awareness.
At Rishikul Yogshala in Rishikesh, our certified yoga instructors offer expert guidance in mastering all Bandhas. So if you’re interested in learning more about yoga and its other forms, you can connect with us. We also offer a variety of programmes, including our 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Course (YTTC) and retreat plans, to enhance your yoga journey.
