Tse Mudra (Taoist Gesture of Three Secrets): meaning, steps and benefits

How to do Tse Mudra

1. Sit upright on a chair or cushion and rest your hands on your thighs, palms facing up.
2. On each hand, fold your thumb into the palm and place its tip at the root of your ring finger.
3. Close your index, middle, ring and little fingers over the thumb to make a soft fist.
4. Breathe in slowly through your nose, pause for a moment, then breathe out slowly and let your belly draw gently in.
5. Repeat for seven slow breaths, then open your hands, spread your fingers and rest for a few breaths.
6. Repeat the cycle if you like, for up to 5 minutes in total.

Tse mudra is a hand gesture in which the thumb folds into the palm, its tip touching the root of the ring finger, and the four fingers close over it. It is done with seven slow breaths and then a pause with the hands open. Modern mudra books describe it as a Taoist practice for chasing away sadness, fear and worry. The diagram above shows where the thumb goes.

Tse mudra meaning: the Taoist gesture of three secrets

Tse mudra is usually translated as the "gesture of three secrets". The word mudra is Sanskrit, and the pairing with a Chinese name shows that this is a gesture passed on through Western books rather than an old Indian yoga text. Its exact origin is not clear, and sources do not agree on what the three secrets are.

Spanish readers searching for tse mudra significado or beneficios will find the same meaning here: a gesture for a lighter mind.

Taoism does have well-known threes. In Taoist inner practice, the three treasures of Taoism are jing (essence), qi (vital energy) and shen (spirit). The Tao Te Ching names a different set of three treasures: compassion, simplicity and humility. Some teachers connect the "three secrets" with these ideas; treat that as a helpful image, not a fact of history. The Tao Te Ching itself, despite books that promise its secret teachings, says nothing about hand gestures, and neither do classic translations such as James Legge's The Texts of Taoism, Part I.

Taoist practices and rituals behind the gesture

What is the key message of Taoism? To live in harmony with the Tao, the natural way of things: to act simply, avoid force and let things unfold. The core teachings of Taoism favour softness over hardness, which fits a mudra done with a loose fist and slow breath. The yin-yang circle, the best known of the Taoist symbols of balance, stands for this. Other Taoist symbols and their meanings, such as the eight trigrams, describe the same play of opposites.

Taoist practices and rituals range from temple ceremonies to daily breathing and movement, such as qigong and tai chi. The sacred rituals of Taoism are led by trained priests, with Chinese Taoist ritual implements such as incense burners, bells and ritual swords; the home practices of Taoism are simpler, and lay followers keep a few basic precepts, such as not lying or stealing, rather than long lists of rules to follow. If you want to understand Taoism through practice, Tse mudra is a gentle start, though it is not a full guide to how to practice Taoism. It also fits well after Taoist qigong opening exercises, such as slow arm circles and gentle shaking of the body.

How to do Tse mudra with seven breaths

• Thumb position: the thumb tip goes to the ring finger root, where the finger meets the palm. In Adi mudra the thumb goes one finger further, to the little finger root.
• The pause: after seven breaths, open the hands on your thighs and just notice how you feel.
• Which mudra is this? If you see a fist with the thumb tucked inside, look at the thumb tip: ring finger root means Tse, little finger root means Adi.
• When: morning is traditional, as part of a morning yoga routine, but any time you feel low is fine.

Tse mudra benefits: what can you expect?

The traditional tse mudra benefits are a lighter mood, less worry and more calm. Does mudra really work? There are no clinical studies on this gesture. Slow breathing does calm the stress response, and a short ritual can help you pause a spiral of anxious thoughts. That is a fair way to see this mudra and its benefits.

For low mood that keeps coming back, regular movement helps more than any hand gesture. See our yoga for depression and yoga for anxiety pages, which have their own guided sessions. Keep any treatment your doctor has given you.

Tse mudra and other mudras

Why do we use mudras at all? They give the body a clear, simple shape that signals to the mind that practice has started. Here is where this gesture sits among the mudras in yoga and their benefits:

• Mudra to reduce stress: Tse mudra or Gyan mudra with slow breathing; either is a good mudra for stress relief.
• Mudra for an energy boost: prana mudra, ring and little fingertips to the thumb.
• Mudra for stomach problems: vayu or apana mudra are the traditional picks.
• Difference between chin mudra and jnana mudra: same fingers, different palm direction. The benefits of chin mudra (palms down) are described as grounding.
• Touching the earth mudra: Bhumisparsha mudra, the Buddha's gesture of steadiness.
• Sleep mudra benefits and lung mudra benefits: these popular names cover several gestures; slow breathing does most of the work.
• Mudra for heart health, a heart problem, blood pressure or blood circulation: apana vayu mudra is the traditional choice, always alongside medical care.
• Mudra for weight loss, skin problems or pain relief: no hand gesture treats these, and claims about vayu mudra benefits for hair have no evidence either.

No gesture is one mudra for all problems, and the best mudra for overall health is simply the one you practise daily. The benefits of vayu mudra, kubera mudra, yoga mudra and ashwini mudra (a pelvic floor lock, not a hand gesture) each have their own aims. Instead of an illustrated guide to mudras in book form, see all hand mudras and their benefits on our mudras page.

More mudras

Mudras are a traditional practice for focus and relaxation. Research on specific health effects is limited; use them alongside, not instead of, medical care.