Shankh Mudra
The left hand is enclosed in the right fist with the left thumb touching the right index finger — the two hands together take the shape of a conch. Held at the sternum during chanting, it steadies and clarifies the voice.
Meaning of the name
The seal of the conch. The śaṅkha is blown to open a ceremony — the sound that clears the air before anything sacred begins.
How to practise
- 1
Wrap the four fingers of the right hand around the left thumb.
- 2
Bring the left four fingers together and lay them flat against the back of the right hand.
- 3
Touch the tip of the right thumb to the middle finger of the left hand.
- 4
Hold the joined hands in front of the sternum.
- 5
Chant OM aloud, or breathe out with a long humming sound, feeling the sternum vibrate under the hands.
Benefits
- Clears and strengthens the voice; long used by singers and chanters
- Relieves sore throat, hoarseness and thyroid-related throat discomfort
- Improves speech clarity and helps with stammer
- Settles the mind before ritual, teaching or performance
- Supports the thyroid and parathyroid through vibration at the throat
What happens in the nervous system
Humming raises nasal nitric oxide production roughly fifteen-fold, and vocal cord vibration stimulates the recurrent laryngeal branch of the vagus nerve. Between them these give chanting a direct, measurable route to both improved sinus ventilation and increased parasympathetic tone — the physiology behind why every tradition that sits still also sings.
Related practices
KSN Yoga & Healing