The Energetic Effects of Mula Bhanda

The word “bandha” means “to bind” or “to lock”. With mula bandha, this is in reference to the locking of the muscles of the perineum. Bandha can also mean “to redirect,” and here the esoteric meaning of the practice becomes clear. As you “lock” the muscles of the perineum, you “unlock” energy in the pranic body, redirecting the flow upwards and reversing the natural tendency of apana to flow downwards.


At the level of the pranic body, the pranamayakosha, this revered technique is said to awaken muladhara chakra and the kundalini that resides within. Additionally, in the tantras it is written that the 72,000 nadis originate in a place just above muladhara chakra known as “medhra.” Given their proximity, it is believed that mula bandha stimulates all 72,000 nadis at their source, an effect which makes it very powerful.


Beyond the annamayakosha and the pranamayakosha, the physical and pranic bodies, mula bandha is also said to affect the manomayakosha, the mental body. The yogic scriptures describe granthis, or psychic knots, which represent blockages of awareness manifesting as tensions, anxieties, and unresolved conflicts. Brahma granthi, located near muladhara chakra, is believed to be pierced and then untied by an aspirant’s practice of mula bandha.


Mula bandha is believed to affect the manomayakosha by helping to release stored emotional conflicts in perineal and pelvic floor musculature. Accordingly, while performing this practice, one can experience old memories, feelings, and experiences that bubble to the surface of consciousness and burst, releasing them from their structural binding and freeing the aspirant from their depressive effects.


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Kathleen Summers, MD, PhD
Board Certified Internal Medicine
Doctorate Neuropharmacology


Integrating Yoga and Medicine at
theYogadr.com