Review of “Mudras and health perspective – An Indian Approach” by Suman K. Chiplunkar MA. MEd. MA (published by Abhijit Prakashan, Mumbai).

School of Yoga explains Suman Chiplunkar – Mudras.

Mrs. Suman K. Chiplunkar was born to D. Venkatesh Bhat Marathe and Padmakshi V. Marathe at Karkala (Udipi Dist., Karnataka, India), but moved to Mumbai early in life. 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 Mumbai Municipal Corporation. She was introduced to Mudras by Dr. Lalita Rao, a former Health Minister in the Government of Maharashtra in 2000 AD. After this, she developed her skills on the subject and conducted over 220 workshops on the subject of Mudra. Her first edition on the book of Mudras was in 2008 and this review is on the twenty-fifth edition.

School of Yoga reviews Suman Chiplunkar – Mudras.

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

• Mudras – without doubt, this is the best section. It is put together very well and covers the subject in depth. It is obvious that Suman Chiplunkar has enormous competence, passion and knowledge on the subject. 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 – This section is a good primer on Ayurveda, taking the reader through the basics of Ayuveda, diet and lifestyle control.
• Nature and nutrition – This seems to be a mix of western and Indian concepts on natural healing, health and lifestyle. There seems to be some overlap with the section on Ayurveda.
• Yoga – This section is a good primer on Yoga, touching on various subjects which form to become Yoga. The section then concentrates on Raja Yoga, but skips the asana aspect while laying enormous emphasis on pranayama and nadis.
  

  Suman Chiplunkar – Mudras and Health

• The philosophy of life and health – in this section, the book moves away from material underpinnings of Mudra, Ayurveda and Yoga and takes a more moralistic or religious turn, focusing on behaviour and character development.
• Sun worship and (7) Gayatri Upasana – these two sections move out of the realm of spirituality and health, into the space of religion and worship. 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 confusion and make reading of the book tedious.

This book is obviously directed at the modern Hindu.

School of Yoga concludes review.

“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. Review by Vishwanath R. Iyer