Within Ananda Marga, asanas, mudras, and bandhas are woven together as interdependent elements of a disciplined daily sadhana rather than treated as isolated techniques. Asanas are practiced systematically, with attention to breathing patterns and mental concentration, to support physical health, regulate energy flow, and prepare the body and mind for meditation. They are sequenced with the explicit intention of balancing the chakras and harmonizing the nervous and endocrine systems, and are framed as supports for a broader moral and spiritual life grounded in yama and niyama. The emphasis is not on physical fitness as an end in itself, but on creating a stable, sattvic foundation for deeper inner work.

Mudras are incorporated primarily as energetic “seals” within this larger structure of practice, especially in meditation and pranayama. Rather than being treated as merely symbolic gestures, they are used to direct pranic flow, strengthen concentration, and aid in the control of the sensory and motor organs. Certain postural mudras are included within the asana curriculum, and others are linked with higher lessons of meditation, where they are combined with mantra repetition and visualization. In this way, mudras function as subtle tools to refine awareness and support distinct stages of spiritual development.

Bandhas are introduced more selectively and only after a stable foundation of meditation and asanas has been established. Classical locks such as Mula Bandha, Uddiyana Bandha, and Jalandhara Bandha are applied in conjunction with specific asanas and pranayama practices to control and redirect prana within the body. Their role is to intensify the effects of other practices, help raise and stabilize kundalini shakti, and deepen meditative absorption. Because of their potency, they are taught personally by trained acharyas, with clear guidance regarding suitability, frequency, and combinations to avoid.

All three—asanas, mudras, and bandhas—are thus integrated into a coherent, graded system that includes mantra meditation, pranayama, concentration on chakras, ethical observances, and a disciplined lifestyle. They are practiced in a deliberate sequence, typically after bathing and with appropriate dietary considerations, so that the body, breath, and mind are gradually tuned to subtler states of awareness. Within this framework, physical techniques become instruments for inner transformation, aligning the practitioner’s entire being toward spiritual realization rather than remaining at the level of mere technique.