LDS Yogis: Always Remember Him

Anjali mudra or "prayer pose."

This post explores, from an LDS perspective, the roots of namaskara (or anjali mudra), one of yoga's most-popular mudras (hand gestures).  Additionally, I share how "prayer pose" has helped me to observe my baptismal covenant to always remember Jesus Christ.  My purpose is to encourage members of the LDS faith to consider the harmony, which I believe exists, between yoga and the LDS system of beliefs.

What Does "Prayer Pose" Mean for Yogis?

When I first began practicing yoga, I remember feeling uneasy about bowing with a group of strangers, hands clasped in adoration, and chanting "namaste."  I thought that doing so was some sort of betrayal of my faith.  For years, I guiltily played along out of fear of offending my instructor by not participating.  Little did I know that this fear was preventing me from benefiting from the mudra's intended purpose.

In order to overcome my unsettledness, I needed to overcome the misconception that yoga is a religion—it's not.  It happens to be one of many spiritual paths accepted by Hinduism, but many religions include yoga as a way to augment their respective faiths.  Performing "prayer pose" does not mystically transform a Christian into a Hindu, nor does it take away from the practitioner's own personal religion.  For Latter-day Saints verbalizing "namaste" may signify their recognition of the Light of Christ (and/or the divine nature) within themselves as well as within those practicing around them.  

Understanding the language also helped me break down the cultural barriers that prevented me from fully benefiting from this mudra.  In Sanskrit, mudra means “seal” or “sign” and refers not only to sacred hand gestures but also whole body positions that elicit a certain inner state or symbolize a particular meaning.  Namaskara or anjali mudra is but one of thousands of types of mudras that are used in Hindu rituals, classical dance, and yoga.  Anjali literally means “offering,” and in India this mudra is often accompanied by the word “namaste.” Nama means "bow," as means "I," and te means "you." Therefore, namaste literally means “bow me you” or “I bow to you.” Namaste is commonly translated as "the divine light/energy/spirit in me honors the same within you."

This salutation is at the essence of the yogic practice of seeing the Divine within all of creation (Mosiah 4:9).  Hence, this gesture is offered equally to temple deities, teachers, family, friends, strangers, and before sacred rivers and trees (see Intelligence in the LDS Guide to the Scriptures).  Understanding this helped me make sense of why many yoga teachers respectfully offer this name (namaste) and sign to their students at the end of class—as a way to individually recognize, honor, and express gratitude for the divine connection shared by all at end of a peaceful, clarifying practice.

Symbolism of Namaskara or Anjali Mudra

• In yogic philosophy, hands represent action.

• Hands pressed together is a symbol of unity. You form anjali mudra or "prayer pose" by bringing the palm of the left hand (feminine/Shakti) together with the palm of the right hand (masculine/Shiva), fingertips touching.  The pressing of palms together represents the co-existence and harmony of the two inseparable realms (spiritual & physical), which are actually one (D&C 29:30-31). It also signifies the connection between the practitioner and the Divine.

• Traditionally, yogis might visualize their ishta devata (or personal connection to God) within the shrine of their hands.  If you slightly part your palms as if to make a cup with your hands, it will resemble the bud of a lotus flower.  In yogic texts and art, the opening of the heart chakra is commonly depicted as a budding lotus flower.  Anjali mudra nourishes this lotus heart with awareness, gently encouraging it to open as water and light do a flower.

Blossoming lotus flower.

• Depending on your spiritual orientation, you can metaphorically plant within your anjali mudra a seed in the form of a prayer, mantra, affirmation, or even a single-word quality such as “peace,” “clarity,” or “vitality." (E.g., Similarly, Buddist monks and Catholic nuns move beads through this sacred space as they recite prayers or repeat intentions.)

• Anjali mudra is not only performed at the beginning of practice (to set an intention) and at the end of practice (to connect through gratitude), but throughout the practice. In your next practice, notice the use of the anjali mudra during sun salutations, mountain pose, warrior I, tree pose, and many other asanas (source).

• If you'd care to learn more about the benefits of setting an intention before your yoga practice, I recommend reading these two posts: 3 Parts of Setting an Intention (beginner), and Why is it helpful in our yoga practice to set an intention and how do we make it meaningful? (Intermediate).

Anjali Mudra & the LDS Faith

Until recently, I had never considered how often "prayer pose" is used throughout any given yoga practice.  For example, in my yoga practice this morning, I hadn't noticed how frequently the instructor, Adrienne, moved through "prayer pose" throughout the practice.  It's even on the cover of the her video thumbnail, (ironically entitled, Be Aware).

That got me thinking about how easy it is for me to fail to recognize the Lord's hands throughout my day as I get caught up in the mindless routines of life. I believe He is constantly at work in our lives, but some days, I only pause to recognize Him during my morning or evening prayers. This concerns me because baptized members of the LDS Church are commanded to remember God "at all times, and in all things, and in all places" (Mosiah 18:8-9). The Lord has ordained partaking of the weekly sacrament as an official way for us to remember and renew our baptismal covenant with Him. But remembering Him once a week is not enough.

This idea of always remembering Christ was illustrated to me by the dedicated Muslim shopkeepers of Old Jerusalem, when I visited in 2014.  I was awed and inspired by the unceremonious commitment these men and women embodied as they slipped away to face east five times a day for salat (ritualistic prayer).  While I may not observe salat, I can regularly remember God in my own way—and yoga can help in two ways.

1. Yoga asanas afford me the opportunity to reflect on the inner meaning of the anjali mudra throughout my brief, morning yoga practice. Though this practice may be as short as 15-30 minutes, it acts as a microcosm for my day. These deliberate moments of remembrance while on my yoga mat can help me establish a pattern of seeking Him throughout the rest of my day, amidst the distractions and commotion of life.  As a simple but thoughtful hymn urges:

Take time to be holy, the world rushes on; spend much time in secret with Jesus alone. By looking to Jesus, like him thou shalt be; thy friends in thy conduct his likeness shall see.

2. In addition to seeking God directly throughout my day, I use anjali mudra to recognize the divinity within myself, and to connect with the divinity within all of the spiritual brothers and sisters (Psalms 82:6; Acts 17:28-29; Heb. 12:9), which is another—perhaps less-considered—form of remembering Him (Matt. 25:40; Mosiah 2:17).  There's an Israeli story that goes along with this idea too:  Early one morning, I was pondering Christ's atonement, in the Garden of Gethsemane—that sacred grove of olives trees less than a mile east of the Temple Mount.  As I sat beneath one of then trees, I received the distinct impression that if I wanted to demonstrate my love for the Savior, I needed to develop greater love toward myself and toward my fellowman, especially the more-vulnerable populations (E.g., kids, elderly, sick, poor, etc.).  I made a personal commitment to find ways to follow that prompting.

Later that day, I found myself in an olive-wood shop in Bethlehem where I bought this sculpted pair of prayer hands. I pulled a twig of olive leaves from my pocket, which I had picked up off of the ground in Gethsemane, and instinctively joined them with my new purchase.  Since returning home, this sculpture has always been somewhere visible during my morning routine.  It reminds me of my on-going intention to be Christ's hands in the lives of others. Now, as I move through anjali mudra, I see the hands and recall my promise.

Currently sitting under my bedroom TV.