Mula, Uddiyana and Jalandhara: The Three Bandhas Explained
Written and reviewed by The Kriya Yogi · Updated 22 September 2026
Of everything in the classical mudra literature, the three bandhas are the pieces most likely to appear in an ordinary modern class — often folded quietly into a pranayama instruction without much explanation. This page gives each one its own honest treatment: what the texts describe, how it is generally taught today, and where a plain caution belongs.
Before you read on
- Mula bandha is a subtle lift and engagement at the pelvic floor; uddiyana bandha draws the abdomen up and back after a full exhalation; jalandhara bandha is a chin-to-chest throat lock.
- In the classical texts, the three bandhas are usually practised together with breath retention, not on their own as isolated exercises.
- Modern teaching often introduces each bandha individually and gently, without retention, as a way to learn the muscular action safely before combining anything.
- Uddiyana bandha is always done on an empty stomach and only ever with the breath held out — never against a held inhalation.
- Jalandhara bandha needs particular care with neck problems, and any bandha combined with retention needs care with high blood pressure and glaucoma.
Why three locks appear everywhere
Mula, uddiyana and jalandhara bandha recur throughout the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and the Gheranda Samhita — individually, in pairs, and all three together in maha bandha. In the texts' traditional physiology, each lock seals or redirects prana at a particular point in the body, and the three together are described as central to advanced pranayama and to several of the ten mudras discussed elsewhere in this cluster. Their prevalence in modern teaching, even outside advanced practice, comes from this same centrality: teachers introduce them early because the texts return to them constantly later.
Mula Bandha
Mula bandha ("root lock") is described as a lift and engagement around the perineum — for practical teaching purposes, an action close to (though not identical with) the pelvic floor. The classical description is subtle: not a hard clench, but a fine, sustained engagement that in the texts is said to redirect prana upward.
In contemporary teaching, mula bandha is usually introduced as a gentle, low-level engagement — noticeably less than a hard squeeze — held lightly during seated pranayama or during specific postures, and released fully afterward. Because the muscles involved are not usually under conscious control in daily life, most students spend real time simply learning to locate and isolate the action before attempting to hold it through breathing.
Uddiyana Bandha
Uddiyana bandha ("upward-flying lock") is performed after a complete exhalation: with the lungs empty and the breath held out, the abdominal wall is drawn up and back, creating a visible hollowing beneath the ribs. The Hatha Yoga Pradipika describes it as one of the most significant of the mudras for its effects on the subtle body within its own framework.
This is the bandha with the clearest hard rule attached to it: it is done only with the breath held out after exhalation, never with the breath held in after inhalation, and never on a full stomach. Attempting the same abdominal lift against a held inhalation, or on food recently eaten, is a straightforward misapplication of the technique, not a variation of it.
Jalandhara Bandha
Jalandhara bandha ("throat lock" or "net lock") draws the chin down toward the chest, lengthening the back of the neck, typically applied during breath retention in seated pranayama and as a component of several of the mudras discussed on the previous page. Traditionally it is described as sealing prana at the throat, preventing its escape upward during retention.
Modern teaching generally introduces jalandhara bandha as a gentle chin lock during comfortable, brief retention, with real attention paid to keeping the back of the neck long rather than crunched — a jammed, forceful version of the lock is both uncomfortable and unnecessary for the action it is meant to perform.
How the three are commonly sequenced today
A typical, gentler modern introduction teaches the locks individually, seated, without retention at first: locate mula bandha on an ordinary breath; learn uddiyana bandha standing, hands on thighs, after an exhalation, without holding it through inhalation; learn jalandhara bandha as a comfortable chin position during a brief natural pause after exhaling. Only once each is separately familiar does a teacher typically combine two, and eventually all three, with genuine breath retention — which is the maha bandha of the classical texts, covered on the previous page.
Honest cautions
Uddiyana bandha, performed with the breath held in rather than out, or on a full stomach, is simply an error, not an advanced variation — treat that rule as fixed. Any bandha combined with meaningful breath retention carries the same cautions as breath retention generally: unsuitable during pregnancy, and requiring real caution with high blood pressure or glaucoma, where sudden changes in intra-abdominal or intraocular pressure are relevant. Jalandhara bandha specifically needs care with existing neck problems or cervical spine issues — the instruction to lengthen rather than crunch the neck is there for a reason. None of the three needs to be forced; each is described in the classical texts as a subtle, sustained action, and teaching that turns any of them into a hard, gripping effort has usually overshot the instruction.
How to work with it
Learn each bandha separately before combining any
Locate mula bandha on an ordinary seated breath; learn uddiyana bandha standing, after an exhale, without retention; learn jalandhara bandha as a light chin position during a natural pause.
Practise uddiyana bandha only on an empty stomach, breath held out
Morning practice, before eating, is the traditional and most practical timing. Never attempt the lift against a held inhalation.
Keep jalandhara bandha long, not crunched
Lengthen the back of the neck as the chin lowers rather than jamming the chin down hard. Comfort in the throat matters more than depth of the lock.
Add gentle breath retention only after each lock is familiar alone
Combine mula and jalandhara bandha first with brief, comfortable retention before introducing uddiyana bandha or attempting all three together.
Release fully between rounds
Each bandha should have a clear, complete release. A lock that is never fully released is not being practised correctly, whatever effort is being put into it.
Safety, stated plainly
- Never perform uddiyana bandha with the breath held in, or on a full stomach.
- Avoid meaningful breath retention combined with any bandha during pregnancy.
- Approach breath-retention practice combined with the bandhas cautiously, or avoid it, with high blood pressure or glaucoma.
- Take particular care with jalandhara bandha if you have a neck or cervical spine problem; keep the neck long rather than forcing the chin down.
- Stop if you feel dizziness, a headache, or unusual pressure in the eyes or head — these are signals to release the lock and breathe normally, not to push through.
What the research supports
The bandhas are described in the classical texts within a traditional physiology of prana and subtle channels that has not been tested by biomedical research; this page reports the texts' own claims without treating them as clinical findings. Separately, the physiological effects of breath retention and increased intra-abdominal pressure — on blood pressure and on intraocular pressure specifically — are recognised in general yoga-safety and physiology literature and are the basis for the cautions given above.
Questions people ask
+ Do I need to use bandhas in ordinary pranayama practice?
+ What's the difference between mula bandha and just 'engaging the pelvic floor'?
+ Can uddiyana bandha be done every day?
+ Is jalandhara bandha the same as just looking down?
+ Should I feel the bandhas working, or is it subtle?
References
- Svatmarama, Hatha Yoga Pradipika, chapter 3.
- Gheranda Samhita, chapter 3.
- Mallinson, J. & Singleton, M., Roots of Yoga (Penguin Classics, 2017).
Educational content, not medical advice. Check with a doctor before starting new practices if you have a health condition or are pregnant.