Bandha

Bandha means bond, lock or tie. Three are named most often: mula bandha, a lift at the pelvic floor; uddiyana bandha, a drawing in and up of the lower abdomen; and jalandhara bandha, a chin lock at the throat. Applying all three at once has its own name. They are usually taught in breath practice first and then carried into movement.

What they are for is stability and pressure management. A lightly engaged pelvic floor and lower belly give the lumbar spine something to work against, which is why they make a jump back or a balance feel suddenly organised. In breath work they regulate how air moves and give retentions somewhere to sit. The common error is force: a bandha is a lift of maybe twenty percent effort, not a clench, and gripping it hard mostly stops you breathing.

In a KEO session you will hear this described in plain language rather than by name — draw the lower belly in a little, lift from underneath, keep the ribs where they are. In standing balances and in any transition onto the hands, that light lift is the instruction that fixes most wobbles. It is also the one cue we repeat for anyone with a sensitive lower back.