Simply translated as Earth gesture, Prithvi mudra is one of those common yoga mudras that is used to invoke earth element in the body.
Among five gross elements (Panch Maha Bhutas – earth, water, fire, air, and ether) of which our whole body is made up, the earth element is the most dominant and dense.
Hence, to balance the earth element, we need practices that are intense in nature and promotes grounding.
This article explains Prithvi mudra benefits and steps to perform it in a way that you can incorporate it in your daily yoga practice.
What is Prithvi Mudra
Sanskrit word “Mudra” means “gesture” and “Prithvi” literally means “vast one”, here representing the Earth.
In yogic practices, mudras refer to particular hand positions, often involving gentle pressure between the fingertips. This gesture is held in place for a length of time, from a few seconds to the duration of a long-form meditation.
Prithvi mudra is a hand yoga gesture that is performed by lightly pressing the tip of the ring finger against the thumb tip while keeping the rest three fingers straight. It’s also called Earth Mudra or gesture of earth.
Because Prithvi mudra mainly focuses on balancing the earth element, it’s good to adopt this hand gesture in grounding meditation. Physically, the earth element is responsible for building basic body structure, therefore doing Prithvi mudra helps in weight gain, strengthen hair, and muscles.
Though the earth element has many characteristics that make us grounded and remain healthy in life, it gets out of balance by our routine activities. Therefore, it is very important to maintain its balance by Prithvi mudra practice. It helps us gain confidence, physical and mental stamina, and a sense of being firmly grounded.
How does Prithvi mudra work on body
As stated earlier, the five fingertips in our hand are said to contain five gross elements. On holding fingertips in different yoga mudras, we tend to increase, decrease or balance the proportion of these elements in our body.
In Prithvi mudra, we press the ring fingertip (associated with the earth element) against the thumb tip (associated with the fire element). When the earth element comes in contact with the fire element, this gesture of fingers fires up the augmentation of the earth element.
It means any deficiency of earth element in the body, on doing Prithvi mudra, get restored. This mudra basically fires up the body’s mechanism related to the growth and development of tissues, muscles, bones, teeth, and fats.
According to Kundalini yoga, the earth element is governed by root chakra, the first of the 7 major chakras. Since it’s associated with stability, solidity, and strength, doing Prithvi mudra balances root chakra, helps you feel grounded and able to withstand challenges. It helps eliminate anxiety, depression, rage, low self-esteem, resentment, and even suicidal thoughts.
Since this mudra increases the earth element proportion in the body, it’s also called “Prithvi Vardhak Mudra”, where “vardhak” means increasing. This property of increasing earth element makes this mudra good for improving body strength and self-confidence, as well as making the body and mind more stable and concentrated.
Also, in which proportion the earth element gets increases by this mudra, in that same proportion fire element gets reduced. To overall balance the five elements, the fire element automatically goes down in proportion to the earth element. Therefore, Prithvi mudra is also called “Agni Shamak Mudra”, where “shamak” means extinguisher.
How to Practice Prithvi Mudra
Before getting started with prithvi mudra, rub your hands together fastly and feel that warm senstation on your palm. It will activate the nerve endings on your hand.
- Sit in cross-legged posture; preferably Padmasana or sukhasana. One can sit on chair or do it in standing postion (keeping back straight) as well if having joint pain in sitting cross-legged posture.
- Place the hands on the respective kneecaps and take 4 deep breaths. Inhale deep-exhale deep. Bring your focus on breathing.
- Open your both hands facing up resting on respective kneecap.
- Now curl the ring finger of your hand towards the thumb. Touch the ring fingertip to thumb tip.
- Keep the other three fingers slightly extended straight.
- Hold this hand gesture for 15 minutes in one sitting. Take a break then and hold it again.
Generally, 30 to 45 minutes is considered the ideal duration to hold yoga mudras. You can do Prithvi mudra 3 times a day; in each sitting try to hold it for 15 minutes duration. Brahma Muhurat is considered most ideal to do mudra meditation. Take a break whenever you feel tired of holding.
Precautions
While performing Prithvi yoga mudra, you should keep these points in mind.
- Don’t force your index, middle and little finger to extend straight, just stretch them gently. Overstretching them will make you tired in less time.
- Don’t press the tips of thumb and ring finger strongly on each other, else it will be hard to concentrate.
- Try to cover maximum area of both fingertips when touching each other.
- Keep the arms and the hands relaxed in order to allow the proper flow of energy through them while doing Prithvi mudra.
Benefits of Prithivi Mudra
- Build muscle and bone strength – Prithivi mudra increase earth element of body which helps build stronger bones and strengthen muscles.
- Help reducing hair fall – Prithvi mudra is best mudra for hair growth. Since hair roots and whole scalp itself is product of earth element, practicing prithvi mudra stregthen hair and reduce hair fall.
- Improve sense of smell – Prthivi mudra can improves sense of smell and hence beneficial in smell disorders and nasal cavities related issues.
- Assist in weight gain – Prithvi mudra help one gain weight because with increased earth element overall mass of the body tissue (muscles, flesh, bones) get increased.
- Build self-confidence – Since prithvi mudra balances root chakra, in turn, it builds confidence, physical and mental stamina.
- Maintain healthy digestion – Prithvi mudra helps reduce cholesterol and maintain healthy digestion
- Good for skin – Increase of earth element from prithivi mudra makes skin-tight, smooth, and glowing.
- Alleviate physical weakness – Regular practice of Prithvi Mudra benefit by removing weakness, lack of stamina and energy or fatigue
- Reduce symptoms of thyroid – By maintaining optimum body weight, prithvi mudra shows positive results in thyroid-related problems. Earth mudra should be incorporated with Ujjayi breathing for overactive thyroid.
- Improve mental stability – Since Prithvi Mudra enhances the sense of security by balancing root chakra, it provides mental stability and eliminates negative thoughts.
Who should avoid doing prithvi mudra
However there aren’t any side effects of Prithvi mudra, kapha dominant person shouldn’t be practised it. In imbalanced Kapha dosha, the earth element is already present in excess. Practising this mudra in such a case can further increase body weight and mucus.
In the case of Asthma or any other breathing issues, Prithvi mudra should be performed in moderation under the guidance of an experienced yoga teacher. The excess of Prithvi mudra leads to mucus accumulation and disturb Kapha dosha.
Prithvi mudra is also not recommended for women in pregnancy. As, in this stage, the body becomes much sensitive, so even a slight excess of any element could cause a problem. So, during pregnancy women should not perform this mudra.
Conclusion
Prithvi mudra, also known as earth mudra, is a hand gesture that works on increasing earth and decreasing fire element. This mudra is good to reduce hair fall and gain some bodyweight.
It’s best practiced in meditative pose and cures root chakra imbalanced symptoms. Practice this mudra for 30 to 45 minutes. It can be done in one sitting of 45 minutes or in a gap of 3 sittings, 15 minutes per sitting.
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Thank you for this insightful post! I had no idea that Prithvi Mudra could have such a positive impact on my health and well-being. I’m definitely going to incorporate it into my daily routine. Also, I appreciate the precautions you mentioned—it’s essential to practice safely. Looking forward to more informative articles!
Can we do Prithvi mudra in the morning and Agni mudra in the evening .Just to balance , please advise .
Sir, namaste. thank you so much for such a knowledgeable post. Does this Prudhvi mudra helps in increasing the height as well for kids ?
Namaste, height is influenced by genetics, nutrition, and overall health. The Prithvi mudra is indeed associated with balancing the earth element within the body which may indirectly contribute to overall health and so the height. However, its impact on height increase is not firmly established. To support healthy growth in children, maintaining a nutritious diet, regular exercise, and proper sleep are crucial.
My weight is not gaining using Prithvi Mudra. I have also noticed that my weight is loss when I practice prithvi mudra. Is it possible?
kindly reply
While Prithvi Mudra is believed to be associated with grounding and stability, individual responses can vary.
Weight management involves a combination of factors, including diet, exercise, and overall lifestyle. If you’re noticing weight loss while practicing Prithvi Mudra, it might be due to other factors rather than the mudra alone.
For weight gain, you can also consider doing Aditi mudra.
Hi Sir, I want to do Prithvi mudra for stopping hair fall and to get good hair growth but at the same time I dont want to gain weight. So how should I balance it? It is not possible to do Prithvi mudra just for hair and not affecting weight ? Or is there any other mudra that you can suggest which will stop hair fall and grow better hair without weight gain
Hello! Thank you for your comment. If you want to practice Prithvi mudra for hair fall and growth but don’t want to gain weight, you can try practising it for a shorter duration, such as 10-15 minutes a day, and monitor how your body responds to it.
Alternatively, you can try other mudras for hair health which are known to promote hair growth and reduce hair fall, without any known effects on weight gain.
One alternative way is after doing Prithvi mudra, do Surya mudra to balance its weight gain effects.
Dear Ashish!
Sub: Acute Vata Dosha
I am really benefited by doing the Vayu & Prithvi Mudra regarding my Naval Disolacement issue.
Still the blockage of Air, Indigestion & Acid Reflux are quite bothersome & unbearable.
I am 50 years old and has no other health issues. Pse advise.
Begds
Kamal
Kamal if you’re seeking advice in regards to mudra practice, you should add Samana mudra (the one where all fingertips are joined) in your practice. It would be helpful in indigestion and acid reflux as well.
Sir, since Prithvi Mudra balances the earth element, while Aditi Mudra increases the earth element, shouldn’t Aditi Mudra also assist in hair growth and thickness attainment?
Thank you.
Yes certainly, Aditi mudra will assist in hair growth!
Dear Ashish,
I have a question: which of these mudras, Prithvi or Aditi, is better for gaining weight?
In comparison to Prithvi mudra, I would say Aditi Mudra is better to gain weight. The reason is; Prithvi Mudra aims to make optimal use of earth element (which gives us form and weight) while Aditi mudra aims to increase and provide more solidity to the earth element (which implies more body weight).
क्या इसे केवल भूखे पेट ही करना चाहिए या भोजन के उपरांत भी कर सकते है
Yes, one can do Prithvi mudra after eating as well.
I am practicing these days I am experiencing a lot of changes. So, I was trying to get more information. Thank you for sharing the deep information.
In hyperthyroidism, when you lose weight, can this mudra be performed to gain the desired weight?
Yes, Prithvi mudra helps you gain weight.
how many day take it to effective. or visually you can see the effect
A mudra may take 4 to 6 weeks time to show physical effect.
Hi Ashish. Loved this article. You go into great depths to explain the mudra, the purpose, benefits, and side effects. Knowledge that’s so important when one is starting out on the hasta mudra journey.
I wanted to check with you if it’s ok to perform any hasta mudra during pregnancy? Or is it advisable to wait till delivery?
And lastly, is there any mudra that can help women facing infertility issues. I understand that the mudras are not the cure for all ailments, however, even a small uplift to our ongoing battles through simple hand gestures is a welcome medicine.
Hello Appy, one can do linga mudra and yoni mudra in case of infertility issues in women. However, you should be aware (very important), at what time of pregnancy a mudra is suggested. So here are some mudras you should check:
Apana mudra, linga mudra, and yoni mudra.
M underweight plz tell if it is really helpful in gaining weight
Yes, Prithivi mudra is helpful in gaining weight because of its effect on the earth element of the body. An increase in earth element nurtures the body muscles, tendons, and maintain metabolism.
Along with this, you can try Aditi mudra – Place thumb tip at the base of the ring finger and hold it 10 to 15 minutes, 3 times a day.
me takriban 2 mahine se prithvi mudra ka abhyas kar raha hu isse muje labh bhi mala par merd weight bhi bad gaya 8 dinose mene iska abhyas band kar diya he muje agar dubara iska abhyar karna he to kab se shuru kar sakta hu aur weight bhi na bade iske liye kripaya margdarshan kijiye
Weight gain through Prithvi mudra is very obvious because it increases earth element in the body. To avoid weight gain after this mudra, you should do Surya mudra after its practice for the same duration as Prithvi mudra.
Kya usse weight gain hota h….. Mera h weight bahut jam h plz mujhe suggest kare ki issse weight gain hota h?