Healing Practice
Khechari Mudra
Sanskrit: Khecarī Mudrā
A highly esoteric practice centered on the tongue, which the Hatha Yoga Pradipika describes as gradually trained, over an extended period, to rest above the soft palate.
- Tradition
- Yogic Tradition
Introduction
Khe (space/sky) and chari (moving) together suggest "moving in space." The Hatha Yoga Pradipika describes a gradual process — extending the tongue's reach over a long period through specific preparatory practices the text details — so that it can eventually rest reversed, above the soft palate and into the nasal cavity. The text associates the completed practice with the arising of a subtle inner nectar (amrita) said to sustain the yogi.
Given the degree of physical preparation the text itself describes, and the esoteric terms in which it frames the practice, this entry is presented strictly as a historical and educational overview of Khechari Mudra's place in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. It is not instructional, describes no technique to attempt, and the preparatory practices the text outlines are not safe to undertake without direct, qualified, in-person teacher supervision.
Sources & References
- The Hatha Yoga Pradipika — Svatmarama; trans. Pancham Sinh, The Panini Office (Sacred Books of the Hindus, vol. XV) (1914) · Link
Public domain. Classical c. 15th-century Sanskrit hatha yoga text; this early-20th-century English translation is the standard public-domain edition consulted for these entries.