देवा ह वै मुद्राः सृजेमेति भगवन्तमब्रुवन् । तान्होवाच भगवानवनिकृतजानुमण्डलं विस्तीर्य पद्मासनं कृत्वा मुद्राः सृजतेति । स सर्वानाकर्षयति यो योनिमुद्रामधीते । स सर्वं वेत्ति । स सर्वफलमश्नुते
devā ha vai mudrāḥ sṛjemeti bhagavantamabruvan | tānhovāca bhagavānavanikṛtajānumaṇḍalaṃ vistīrya padmāsanaṃ kṛtvā mudrāḥ sṛjateti | sa sarvānākarṣayati yo yonimudrāmadhīte | sa sarvaṃ vetti | sa sarvaphalamaśnute
«The gods said to the Lord: «let us create the mudrās». To them said the Lord: «having spread the circle of the knees on the ground and having made the lotus posture, create the mudrās». Who studies the mudra of the womb, he attracts all; he knows everything; he partakes of every fruit».
ae19dcc9b62b · publicado 7 ago 2026, 5:19:24 UTC
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The fourth part begins — on mudrā, «seals», that is, on positions of the fingers. Before this it is bidden to sit: padma-āsanam kṛtvā, «having made the lotus posture», and to spread the knees on the ground. Before the hands — the posture, and this is reasonable: one cannot hold the hands steady if one sits poorly.
The word mudrā means «seal, mark, ring»; in ordinary usage it names the signet ring with which a letter is sealed. A position of the fingers, then, is called a seal — that by which one certifies that the letter is from you. An excellent likeness. A seal conveys nothing new; it attests who sent it; so too a mudra adds no words to a prayer, but shows whose prayer it is.
In Vaishnava practice there are few mudras, but they exist: joined palms, a bow, the position of the hands when making an offering. The difference is that there the hands are more often occupied with a task than with a sign — the same palms are told to wash, to serve, to fan. This is not a dispute with mudras, but a different custom: where some set a seal, others carry water.