Review: Suman Chiplunkar’s ‘Mudras and health perspectives’

Book review by Vishwanath Iyer

About the author of ‘Mudras and health perspectives – An Indian Approach’: Suman K. Chiplunkar MA., MEd., MA (published by Abhijit Prakashan, Mumbai).

Mrs. Suman K. Chiplunkar was born to D. Venkatesh Bhat Marathe and Padmakshi V. Marathe at Karkala (Udupi Dist., Karnataka, India), but moved to Mumbai early in life. Importantly, she has completed MA (History and Sociology), MEd. and MA (Kannada) and served as a Teacher, then Inspector of Schools, and finally as Superintendent of Schools in the Education Department of The Mumbai Municipal Corporation.

Initially, she was introduced to Mudras by Dr. Lalita Rao, a former Health Minister in the Government of Maharashtra, in 2000 AD. Later, she developed her skills in the subject and conducted over 220 workshops on the subject of Mudras.

In fact, her first edition of the book on Mudras was published in 2008, and this review is on the twenty-fifth edition.

Review of Suman Chiplunkar’s book Mudras and health perspectives:

The book may be split into 7 sections, covering a vast number of subjects:

• Mudras – Without doubt, this is the best section. Importantly, it is put together very well and covers the subject in depth. Furthermore, it is obvious that Suman Chiplunkar has enormous competence, passion and knowledge on the subject. Additionally, this section also has a comprehensive chapter on therapeutic Mudras, which makes this section a “must-read” for anyone interested in Yoga!
• Ayurveda and health – Next, this section is a good primer on Ayurveda, taking the reader through the basics of Ayurveda, diet and lifestyle control.
• Nature and nutrition: In fact, this seems to be a mix of Western and Indian concepts on natural healing, health and lifestyle. Additionally, there seems to be some overlap with the section on Ayurveda.
• Yoga – Lastly, this section is a good primer on Yoga, touching on various subjects which form Yoga. Also, the section then concentrates on Raja Yoga, but skips the asana aspect while laying enormous emphasis on pranayama and nadis.
• The philosophy of life and health – In this section, the book moves away from the material underpinnings of Mudra, Ayurveda, and Yoga and takes a more moralistic or religious turn, focusing on behaviour and character development.
• Sun worship and Gayatri Upasana – Finally, these last two sections move out of the realm of spirituality and health, into the space of religion and worship. Importantly, Surya Namaskar is well explained.

This is an excellent book on Mudras and covers other related aspects well. However, there are some repetitions, and some of the cataloguing of topics can be confusing and make reading the book tedious.

This book is obviously directed at the modern Hindu.

Conclusion:

“Mudras and health perspective – An Indian Approach” by Suman K. Chiplunkar is a “Must-Read” for anyone interested in the Indian approach to health, spirituality and Yoga.