Mula Bandha

Mula Bandha, have you heard about it? If you have been ambling along the yogic path for any length of time, you undoubtedly have,  but do you really understand what it is any why we use it? 

In my years of study i've been to classes all over the country; in chilly church halls, lecture rooms, mouldy basements, Zen Yoga gyms, hotel spas as well as on distant beaches and in shaded gardens. I have woken at dawn to get on trains from London to various parts of the country for regular classes and workshops. I have tried classes in Sweden, France, Spain, Greece and Italy. I have done days of yoga, three- and five-hour sessions and 40-minute bursts; classes where "gurus to the famous" presided and joss sticks were burned; where there was Sanskrit chanting, mystic breathing, and yogic jumping and laughing. I have done classes on my own and classes with up to 100 people....in each of these classes the focus has been different. Mula Bandha has been enthusiastically shouted out, mentioned discreetly, ordered, and not mentioned at all so it has, in truth, left me in a bit of a muddle. 

It wasn't until very recently that a student of mine, herself a teacher and student of yoga for many many years, pointed me in a direction that made sense (to me) so i want to share it with you.

Mūla Bandha is a Sanskrit (मूल बंध) compound term: Mūla denotes "root" or "base" and  Bandha denotes "lock". Root Lock. 

It is often described as an internal lift that involves the drawing in and up of the pelvic floor and it is to be employed in many postures to support and tone the pelvic floor, which is key to the core muscles. Mula bandha is often taught with this instruction ... by contracting and lifting inward and upward the muscles of the perineum...If you are not sure where your perineum is, (to borrow a quote from David Swenson) it is halfway between your anus and the vegetables. (Check out the drawing for a more precise map: the yellow cross marks the spot.) 

The problem i find with this instruction, which was perfectly put into words by my student, is that it is so often about 'doing' Mula Bandha and not feeling it. For this lock to be used effectively the 'lift' should be felt quiet naturally and energetically when you have the pelvis in the right position, so no Mula Bandha face straining and anal clenching needed!

In Latin, "pelvis" means basin. In Tadasana, you want this basin to be in a neutral position so that if the basin were filled with a precious liquid, it wouldn't spill out the front or the back. To find this neutral position, explore the potential placement of the pelvis. 

Stand upright with your feet together, slightly bend your knees and place one hand on your sacrum and one on your pubis. As you inhale, draw the hips and buttocks slightly backward and increase the curvature in the lumbar spine. This is an anterior tilt. Then, exhale and bring the hips and buttocks forward, flattening the lumbar spine and pulling the pelvis into a posterior tilt.

Do this several times, and begin to notice that when the pelvis is in the anterior position, the muscles in the lower back tighten and the inner groins shorten. When it is in the posterior tilt, the buttocks clench and, again, the groins shorten.

To find neutral, you want to be somewhere inbetween the two. Stand with your pelvis anteriorly tilted, then lightly lift first the pubic bone and then the pelvic floor as you lengthen the groins—this is Mula Bandha. To find it from the posterior position, draw your hips slightly back until the buttocks relax and the lumbar spine regains its natural curve. As you do this, lift the pelvic floor and lengthen the waist and groins—again, this is Mula Bandha.

When your pelvis is neutral and you find Mula Bandha in Tadasana, you'll feel a sense of stability without gripping. If you can feel it in Tadasana then you can start to practice searching for this same 'feeling' in other postures too.

The best piece i could give to that is that Mula Bandha does not need to be 'done'. Instead begin to really connect with what happens on the inside when you have correct alignment in a posture...Trust yourself and the lift will happen quiet naturally.