Tag Archives: sarvangasana

Practice Journal, Inversions

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Fredonia NY October rose (ckg photo)

What is it about being upside down that causes such a rush? Is it the increased blood flow? Is it the heart rest? Is it because Mind rests more easily and fully when the legs are up? Is it more psychological: being upside down forces up to look at the world with a different perspective?

Last night I practiced inversions. Beginning with headstand (sirsasana) where I am still working at moving my legs away from resting upon the wall. This is a years loooong struggle for me.But it took me years to be able to kick up by myself, so the lesson is patience ~ and practice. Being in the unsettled throws of perimenopause, there are many weeks, or months where it is not advisable to practice inversions, so I grow frustrated at my lack of progress. And yet, every breath where my feet are not resting upon the wall I claim as personal victory… over what?  My body or my mind or a bodymind combo that seems intent upon keeping me earthbound when all my heart wants to do is to fly?

Three conscious breaths. That’s all I EVER need. No matter what posture I am inhabiting.

Then I did three pincha mayurasanas without kicking up. You may call these bent arm dogs. An attempt to strengthen my arms for the eventual day when I will be able to kick up! I am resolved to continue the practice, no matter how many years it takes. Then I did one half handstand where the shakes took over and I breathed through them, but then came down into child pose when I felt as if my feet where going to fall off the wall anyway. Can you relate?

Then shoulderstand (sarvangasana) wherein I found a perfect support system ~ ahhh, what joy when the body feels supported and can relax into a pose! I used four blankets folded in quarters and laid one upon the other in a stair step fashion to support my neck and two blankets folded half again laid side by side and angled at one end away from each other making a valley for the neck to drop into with the shoulders supported upon the blankets themselves. A chair placed at the end of my mat provided support for my feet during plough. My back is not feeling particularly strong these days so I scissor kicked one leg at a time down to the chair for ekapada sarvagasana.

I was surprised at the end of the practice that an hour and a half had flown by. All I’d done were four inversions!

A student said today that whenever she practiced legs up the wall, her Mind began to race.  Thanks, but no thanks she said when offered an eye bag. A sandbag placed upon a block with the end resting upon her forehead offered minimal relief. So during this  morning’s class I suggested she try lifting further into an inversion. She is slow and fearful of inversions, so we went for viparita karani with hips supported on a bolster and legs supported as well as ankles belted. Due to persistent hot flashes, we didn’t bother with a blanket tucked around her feet and legs. The set-up did bring her some relief, but we’ll continue working on her moving deeper into inversions. For savasana, I suggested some torso and head support with bolster and blanket.

I’d love to hear how you work inversions into your practice.

Practice Journal, Momyogini on the phone

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Jan.10, 2010 FOCUS: Seated forward bends and twists


viparita karani, legs up the wall pose


This afternoon I practiced viparita karani (legs up the wall) on my platform bed. At first, I thought I’d put on a cd but then decided against it, so I could enter a more meditative state. What happened was that I entered a more somnambulistic state.

My snoring woke me up 45 minutes later! There is something, some unknown quality, to a yogic nap that never fails to leave me feeling refreshed and wonderful.

Ten minutes of supta baddha konasana in the early evening. Became aware of energy moving upwards from lower torso. A good feeling!

At eleven o’clock I started for the studio for my usual before-bed practice. Just as I was heading down into the basement, there was a phone call from my daughter. What’s a mommy-yogini to do? I didn’t want to ignore my daughter, but I also didn’t want to ignore my practice. So I did both!

Donning headphones, I went to my mat that was already set up and waiting for me, and situated on a folded blanket, I practiced seated forward bends and twists as we chatted.

After our conversation, I sat in baddha konasana and practiced ujjayi breathing. I found it a challenge to lift mula bandha on the exhalation in this pose. Faith! practice will get me there.  I kept my eyes open, gaze about two feet ahead of me on the floor and felt like an island of energy, breathing into the universe.

I struggled keeping my mind focused on the breath, much more so than usual. Perhaps it was the phone call, perhaps it was that Mike came down and began practicing on the other side of the room, perhaps it was due to my eyes being open. I almost never practice pranayama with open eyes, but I have been trying to keep my eyes open throughout my practice these days, in an effort to not drop so deep and still. I am striving to stay present, connected, and aware. Lots of room for growth here!

After the pranayama, I reclined for all three versions of supta padangusthasana (reclined leg lifts, holding the big toe) and supta pascimottanasana (two legs up, holding with a strap). Then I shifted to sphinx, and several cobras, playing with my hand positions. I noticed that as I moved my hands farther back, more in line with my waist, that it was easier to pull my tail/pubic bone down, creating more space in my lower back. A couple of bent-arm dogs to bent-arm planks pumped my blood and got the shakes going. I welcomed these muscle-strengthening shakes, though afterward rewarded myself with an extended balasana, child’s pose.

Time for shoulderstand, sarvangasana. My typical set-up uses three blankets and a mat piece on top. That supports my neck and shoulders. Usually I place a folding chair at the end of my mat for my feet to rest on during halasana, plough pose, but since I had stretched the backs of my legs so much with all of those  forward bends, I decided to push it a bit and use a block. That worked fine.

Savasana. Even though my mind was quite active at the beginning of practice, as I remained in corpse, I traveled deeper and into quieter territory. Sometimes the journey within feels physical. Layer by layer dissolves into …what?…ether?, air?, the universe?,…or do we just let the outer layers slip out of our consciousness, they are there all along but we grow less aware of them? This would describe the yogic limb of PRATYAHARA, or sensory withdrawal.

sarvangasana, shoulderstand

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Since I began a discussion of inversions with the benefits of a modified shoulderstand, it might be beneficial to continue with a look at the full pose, sarvangasana. Here are 3 videos for studying. Even if you are an experienced shoulderstander, I recommend you take another look at the pose for tips that perhaps were missed when you first learned the pose.

*Please remember to seek medical advice BEFORE inverting, especially because shoulderstand is contraindicated for menstruation, glaucoma, displaced retina, uncontrolled high blood pressure, certain neck or back issues, as well as other conditions.

*ALWAYS learn the pose from a qualified teacher before attempting it on your own.

*Come out of the pose if it doesn’t feel right for you on that particular day.

*YOU are the only one who knows how your body is feeling on any given day.

* Remember to be patient and begin with short stay in sarvangasana, increase your timing gradually, say 15 seconds more each subsequent shoulderstand you attempt.

*Ringing in the ears, a sense of fullness or pressure in the head, or quickness of breath are signs that you should come down. Please heed them.

*Spend some time transitioning out of the pose. Traditionally, FISH pose is practiced, but you can try a supported fish by sliding your head and shoulders off of the support, and resting your hips elevated on the blankets. Knees can be bent or straightened. Spend at least half the time you were upside-down, in the transition phase to allow the back and mind to settle.

Even early in your practice of sarvangasana, you may begin to reap some of the many benefits of the “Queen” of Yoga. As you grow proficient in the pose, the benefits continue to accrue and deepen.

For those of you who are more experienced with shoulderstand, you may benefit from studying B.K.S. Iyengar teaching a master class.

25 Random thoughts about Laughing Yogini

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dicentra1

dicentra in Fredonia NY (devin photo)

Since I’ve been tagged repeatedly by FaceBook friends, I’ve gotten the message that I should provide a little more “personal” type info. for my beloved readers! So here goes, round two of 25 random thoughts….

25 Random Thoughts about LaughingYogini


chairpose1. Practices asana as a form of prayer.

2. Tore her Achilles doing the “Energy” Yoga tape with Rodney Yee and Patricia Walden ….which she did every morning after the kids left for school and M. went to work….for a solid year…still remembers the “zing” in the back of her heel  (1998 or so)

3. She and Mike spent their 25th wedding anniversary at the London Iyengar Institute in an all-day workshop on standing poses.

4. Loves teaching college students (and younger!) because of their energy and willingness to go where they’ve never gone before!

5.  Wishes her tummy was smaller so she could go deeper in several poses.

6. Is still waiting to get into full splits on the floor, lift into a complete backbend, do a headstand away from the wall, clasp her hands behind her back in gomukhasana…..hmmmm, the list goes on….but who really cares since she is alive and well and feels like a goddess in ardha chandrasana?

dscn25967. Worked intensely for 2 years with a meditation teacher with whom she no longer studies. She did however, ramp up her sitting practice AND learned a lot about herself in the process.

8. No longer publishes her e-zine CIRCLE YOGA. Laughing Yogini blog and website launched in May 2008.

9. Practiced a half hour of ujjayi breath every day for six solid months while grieving a family member’s illness and credits THAT to her own life.

10. While in legs up the wall pose, listened to Pema Chodron cds every afternoon for many many months.

11. Teaches seniors because they ROCK and they don’t hold back!

12.Will probably never become a complete and utter vegetarian, though she really does love her veggies.

13. Has always believed in a higher power…god, the goddess, the Self. The Great Spirit,  energy, collective unconscious….you know what I mean. Believes that higher is within.

14. After returning from living in Mumbai, the entire family — parents and kids: 12, 11, 8 years old — practiced yoga on the living room floor following the suggestions of Richard Hittleman’s YOGA…for about a year.

15. Her back went “electrical” when F. tried to straighten her up in sarvangasana on the last day of her first teacher training! Not to worry, sometimes body parts need adjustments.

16. Gave each other yoga ropes for their 30th wedding anniversary (2 years ago). These are now in the basement studio and add a lot of zing to their personal practice as well as the classes.

17. Researched in Light on Yoga by B.K.S.Iyengar how to help heel spurs after being told by therapist that she’d never be able to walk barefoot…she’d already tried most of traditional medicine’s treatments at that time….after practicing Supta Virasana regularly those pesky heel spurs softened!

18. Graduated from 2 separate teacher trainings. Really LOVED BOTH of them even though they were quite different from each other. Sometimes it’s not the “advanced certificate” that’s as important as much as the knowledge that can be absorbed.

19. Is not happy with what the x-rays said about her lower back (spurs, eburnation, bone on bone) BUT is determined to continue honoring the “sacred space in the lumbar spine” as Vanda Scaravelli says.

20. Wishes she would find time to read and reread all of the yoga and meditation books she has on her shelf.

rope-squat21. Was born bow-legged. Once found a pair of her baby shoes with boards connecting them at the arches which were supposed to straighten out her legs, according to Mom Kieber. She’s still working on straightening those bones!

22. Wishes she were more photogenic so she could create yoga videos just the way she thinks they’d be instructive for her students…ahhh well, they’ll have to make do with podcasts….the oral tradition.

23. While she’s broadcasting wishes: she wishes she had a full and complete studio built over the garage! And …..she’d like to get some training with Tibetans!

24. Was first introduced to YOGA nearly 40 years ago in Mater Dei High School Yoga Club. Blessings on that sweet teacher, whoever and wherever you are today!

25. Has found a deep connection to her yoga kula: students, friends, teachers, online acquaintances. She’s grateful for the wellspring of support and love that she has found there and hopes to return the sweetness with every breath.




Benefits of Inversions, Modified Shoulder Stand

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When the elder yogini grinned up at me from her head on a blanket on the floor – her legs up in the air of the studio – her backside securely perched on the folding chair – I could see that she was in the “correct” position and the correct position felt good!!!

If you are unfamiliar with the pose, check out  Witold Fitz-Simon’s article on supported shoulderstand.

 

Supported shoulderstand on Chair (ckg photo)

 

Why do I like to be upside down? my haloed student asked, hoping, I think, that I’d have an answer.

When I told her that I loved an inversion too, she said that ever since she was a kid, she’d always enjoyed being upside down. She’s a young seventy-something.

Looking at her sparkling blue eyes, and the way that her wavy alabaster curls spread about her head like a halo on the blanket, I wondered why reversing the flow of gravity pulling our physical self to the earth should give such an emotional boost. Sure, yogis have said since ancient times “You are only as young as your spine” ….and the spine strengthens whenever our feet lift and our head drops.

We know the health benefits of inversions:

  • venous blood flow returns to the heart with ease
  • nerves are soothed and headaches relieved
  • thyroid and parathyroid glands are bathed in blood and brought into healthful condition (yogic wisdom)
  • with repeated and regular practice, hypertension, and unstable emotions are regulated

B.K.S.Iyengar calls Salamba Sarvangasana the “Queen of Poses” – Headstand is the “King of Poses.” Though he doesn’t discuss the supported or chair version of the pose in his classic text, Light on Yoga, he does discuss at length the benefits of standing upon one’s shoulders:

The importance of sarvangasana cannot be over-emphasized. It is one of the greatest boons conferred on humanity by our ancient sages. Sarvangasana is the Mother of asanas. As a mother strives for harmony and happiness in the home, so this asana strives for the harmony and happiness of the human system. It is a panacea for most common ailments.  There are several endocrine organs or ductless glands in the human system which bathe in blood, absorb the nutrients from the blood and secrete hormones for the proper functioning of a balanced and well developed body and brain.”

Though I am taking a break from inversions until my neck heals from the injury I incurred in November, I really miss supported shoulderstand as it was a regular part of my daily practice. I found it was indispensable for alleviating the pain of varicose veins. It also helped on a psychological level, promoting seeing the world from a different perspective. This benefit is not often emphasized, but I find very important in my own practice, teaching and life.