Four-limbed staff pose is one of the most dreaded poses in vinyasa classes for two reasons. First, there are often LOTS of them in an hour and a half class (about 60 in a typical Ashtanga class!), and secondly, it requires good core and upper body strength to do well. Until then, it just kinda […]
Asana tip sheet #17 – Ashtavakrasana
This pose is named after Ashtavakra who was born with eight (ashta) bends (vakra) in his body. The legend goes that while in the womb he laughed at his father’s pronunciation of the Vedic texts. The father cursed the son for laughing and the child was born crippled. Sage Ashtavakra went on to become a […]
Asana tip sheet #20 – Halasana
Plow pose is a wonderful inversion that’s typically placed at the end of a yoga class, for good reason. This pose and other inversions encourage the mind and body to slow down, preparing you for savasana, meditation or pranayama. Many inversions, including this one, can deliver a deep stretch into the neck and for those […]
Asana tip sheet #36: Pincha Mayurasana
Pincha Mayurasana (“feather of the peacock” pose) is named for the lift of a peacock’s tail feathers before they spread open. Hold this image in your mind as you play with this pose to help you embody this beautiful creature and increase your success with this arm-balance inversion. This stunning Indian native with its iridescent […]
Asana tip sheet #33 – Parivrtta Parsvakonasana
Crazy posture! That’s what Guruji (Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the father of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga) called parivrtta parsvakonasana. He had put parivrtta parsvakonasana into the Ashtanga standing poses in the late 80s because his Maui students loved it. So why DID Guruji call parivrtta parsvakonasana “crazy pose”? I’m guessing here, but this is a pose that […]