Asanas
(Part II)
Erich on Class Meditation Dualistic Nature of Asana Practice Headstands Erich On Ekapada Rajakapotasana I Optimizing Lines of Energy Urdhva Mukha Pasasana Mulabandha Revisted SI Joint Yoga Symposium.15.268
Erich Schiffmann (schiffmann, 5/5/99 5:19:32 PM)
Personally, I would avoid making an announcement that you are about to do a meditation in class and if anyone wants to leave then they should leave. It makes everyone wonder. Just do the meditation. And if someone leaves, let them leave. I've had zillions of people like that. At least they are doing what their inner feeling is prompting them to do... and that's what you want to encourage. They feel awkward enough in that moment. Maybe take them aside and ask them to leave more quietly, and let them know it's okay with you that they leave, at least they like the rest of the class. If she hangs in there long enough with you maybe she'll become willing, in spite of the fact that she now hates meditation, to try out what you're suggesting and stay the extra few minutes to see what it's all about. It's always a little weird when someone leaves before the class is over, but just stay on the beam and deal with what's in front of you to deal with -- teach the meditation, for example -- without letting it disturb your peace. Why people leave usually has nothing to do with you or how well you are teaching the class. More than once people have left class early and my feelings got hurt, me thinking they didn't like the class. And, almost always, they come up to me later and apologize for leaving, telling me of something important they had to attend to.pranams,
Erich
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A look at "warming up" for yoga . . . (earthworm, 5/12/99 9:27:14 AM)
Sometimes for no obvious reason my musculo-skeletal body seems to crave a particular kind of deep stretch. I find it is common at this time in my psoas, belly, ribs, groins. If I follow the urge to move into the craving I find that I can enter a deep position, which at other times was unavailable to me. My body is not "warmed up" by the traditional muscle warming through movement, but the transforming "energy" seems to have warmed the tissue.On the other hand I find that when I attempt a deep pose without the "inner prompting" I feel traumatized on many levels for at least a day.
So I ask . . . What is Asana? What is it's purpose? Why are the postures this way and not that way?
Just another mental layer that I hope to harness. I
It's just . . . Curious Gena.
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Bob Cox (tympanachus cupido, 5/12/99 11:20:58 AM)Gena have a look at Iyengar's '88 The Tree of Yoga - chapter "The Flower," where he explicates the "dualistic nature" of asana practice. I hooted [bonobo like ;-) ] at SuZ when she brought it home but upon closer inspection (stepping warily over the authoritarian BS) have found it's worth the time and thought.
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Tree of Yoga (YogaSuz, 5/12/99 1:56:38 PM)Synergy! A fellow yogi (Kripalu style) lent me Tree of Yoga last week. It is worth a read. It shows a different side of Iyengar and also the same side...if that makes sense. I understand his asana asana asana style better, if I do not fully agree.
The section on Kriyas is interesting, too. He considers them an extreme measure, not something that should be used unless you are very sick.
Last night I laid down and did an "energy scan" .. tried to notice the energy in my feet, legs, buttocks, back, etc. Then, felt inspired to do a few poses out of that; not necessarily to correct the energy flow, but to change it. I found sphinx to give a nice flow, especially through the buttocks where sometimes I get a kind of static-y, undischarged energy feel.
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Headstand (denice, 7/1/99 9:18:34 PM)
Anyone--
Headstands have always been a problem for me. Not having been taught by a teacher to do them, i don't really know where on the head i should be, i.e. closer to the forehead, more on the top; all seem uncomfortable. i know the arms are supposed to take most of the weight. i can do it for short periods of time against a wall, but fear falling and breaking my neck so much i'm afraid to try it freestanding. also, abdominals are not strong enough to get my legs up without just 'throwing' my legs up against the wall. Do i just need more practice? (of course, duh!) What specific things can i do to strengthen key areas?
DeniceYoga Symposium.15.302
headstand -sirsasana (Shakti Das, 7/2/99 1:13:44 AM)Hi Denice; Well to be on the safe side, try placing the head on the ground so that the weight is focused as far back as possible on the head. Because most people often are afraid of falling backwards, they too often compensate for this fear by placing the weight way too far forward( toward the forehead) which tends to strain the neck through over compression of the cervical vertebra.
It's ok to have the wall as a safety until you get used to it, but don't use it as a constant brace except but only when you actually lose your balance when falling backward otherwise other imbalances will form.
In other words, place the head between the triangle formed by the forarms with the elbows about forearm length apart (not wider than shoulder width) placing the weight on the top BACK of the head. Walk the knees toward the armpits and KEEP THE SCAPULA TOWARD THE TAILBONE (caudad). This will keep the chest open supporting behind the heart moving the heart forward. Likewise keep the scapula up toward the sky (away from the ears) lifting the back away from the elbows. Slowly bring the knees into toward the chest and then lift them up slowly toward the sky keeping the chest open as before. Do not kick up. Here if you have trouble getting the legs up wityhout kicking that is fine. Stay here with that and build up the strength and open to the stretch here even if it takes a week. There is no rush. Once this place becomes open and bridged, you will be gently able to lift the legs into full handstand without strain.
Again common mistakes are to place the weight too far toward the forehead so place it VERY far back, avoid slumping the shoulders toward the elbows (or similarly toward the ears), but rather lift teh sacpula up toward the tailbone (and the shoulder tops away from the ears) letting the heart move forward and allowing the neck to stay long. See if the humerus can stay perpendicular with the earth, the breath deep, the belly relaxed, the legs long out of the hip socket, the feet dorsi flexed, the inner and outer thighs long, the navel toward the spine, and the hips in neutral (neither flexed nor extended). When you get strength in the abdomen you will be able to lift your legs up and down easily and when you get the opening and needed strength in the upper torso and chest, you will easily be able to hold the full pose effortlessly while being able to get into the variations and other subtle alignments.
The headstand can be very relaxing and totally stress free when approached "correctly". Let me know how this works for you, and maybe we can fine tune it better?
donny
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Headstand (YogaSuz, 7/2/99 6:15:33 AM)A good awareness to have during headstand is to try and press the forearms evenly into the blanket. That is, every inch of the forearm should press down, not just the part closer to the elbows.
If you fold a sticky mat a couple of times and go up into handstand, when you come down you will have an impression in the mat of your arms. Examine this impression and you can tell where your weight is distributed. Now, do the pose again and see if you can press down a little harder in the places where the mat were not pressed in deep enough.
A lot of people let their elbows splay apart in headstand, too. The elbows should stay in. You can use a belt to strap the upper arms together before doing handstand. Tighten the belt around your upper arms, just above the elbows. The elbows should be shoulder-width apart. Then, go into the pose. (If you don't have a belt, use a tie or sash.)This can be a little awkward, but it helps you understand how the arms should be placed.
What Donny said about keep the shoulder blades moving toward the waist is really important, too. Everything he said is excellent!
Good luck. I love headstands.
Suzanne
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Headstands (Kit Spahr, 7/3/99 1:16:11 PM)One thing I think that keeps people kicking up into headstand is not getting the hips up over the shoulders first...getting too anxious to be upside down and this all blended with the fear of falling backwards. Unless you're practicing with a teacher to give you feedback, a wall works best for this exploration. After you have your head and arms set walk in, and walk in and walk in...the back of your hips will almost move to the wall and at that point if you tuck your knees in your toes will almost lift themselves.
In terms of balance...it really helped me to take note of how it felt to be standing on my own two feet first...even putting my arms in headstand position over my head. The fear of falling backwards keeps us leaning forward in the pose and keeps a lot of tension in the body. When I was able to take weight back a bit my body suddenly relaxed...ohhhh so that's where the balance is!
Kit
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Erich Schiffmann (schiffmann, 11/9/99 6:56:31 PM)
I like that pose, Ekapada Rajakapotasana I, that is. I teach it in class frequently, or at least the stages moving in that direction. It is one of the few poses where I recommend using a prop, in this instance a strap. Put one end of the strap around the rear foot and hold the other end in one hand, then straighten the arm toward the ceiling as you straighten the back leg until the foot touches the floor. Use as much [or as little] strap as you need to get both the arm and leg straight. Then press the top of your rear foot firmly into the floor as you stretch up and back through the top arm, and s-t-r-e-t-c-h! This feels great! Doing the pose with the back leg straight helps spread the curve more evenly throughout the spine. Then switch hands, then do it with both hands holding the strap [the rear leg is still straight], then bend the rear leg and walk your hands down the belt until your head rests on the foot. I think this is one of the most beautiful poses. Hmm.. I'm suddenly in the mood again. I think I'll go do a little
I'll be back...Yoga .15.468
kevin wood (sahaj, 11/16/99 4:19:05 PM)
Erich, When you say to run energy down a line and follow a perfect flow do you mean a specific line of energy like from the navel out the tips of the fingers or are you speaking in a more intuitive less defined line of energy [more like a feeling to move comes and you follow it]?
Namaste
KevinYoga Symposium.15.472
Erich Schiffmann (schiffmann, 11/16/99 11:45:49 PM)
Kevin,
Thanks for making the distinction above. So, yes, I was referring to specific lines or energy flows. My practice is to run energy down my arm, for example, then let my arm go up or down or rotate in or out...whatever...until it is singing best...until it has the clearest sound. And when it begins to get stale or wants to change its alignment, I let it do so and search for the new perfect feeling. I think most people tend to do it this way intuitively... you know, until we're taught otherwise
The other thing I'm interested in in my own practice is that of really relaxing as deeply as possible... even if I'm stretching hard, doing a difficult pose, or running strong current.
And, yes to the second part of your question also. When the inner feeling to move arises, I go with it.
That's the whole practice, pretty much. The idea is to move into stillness, like a wave sinking into itself/the ocean, so that the movement of the "ocean" can register with you. Pause...listen...feel...then dare to do as your deepest feelings prompt you to do, and doing this not only when you're on the yoga mat, but, more importantly, as many moments of the day as you can... so you're doing yoga (being "in union with") all day long.
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Mulabandha Revisted (Shakti Das, 12/8/99 9:04:12 AM)
Sharon, what I was trying to say (inadroitly) is that the details are endless -- after many years of practicing and teaching I realized that "I" know nothing really! All that is required is a practice that is working for you and a sincere desire to share your process. This has its own power and process of revelation but in. Whenever some people in the "yoga field" remark that one must really master yoga and be an expert in order to do their own practice or to teach, I find disempowerment and extraction. If we take that trip there is only false ego at the end (like there is some "i" that is an expert or master while conversely the opposite tack takes us into the inner teacher -- the asana practice leads us to the river. As long as you contribute to that end, "i" feel that you are teaching authentic yoga whether or not you know all the terminology or the directions. There may be "key" vectors that help facilitate the pose as well as potentially harmful vectors to be warned against that may be helpfully applied and taught, but such details are NEVER sufficient either to prevent injury nor to empower the student (bring them home).
Rather I agree that it is a balance that has to be struck and this balance is most often lacking in "expert" teachers. In other words we go to the sacred waterfall where left and right brain tension and dualism no longer exist -- where there is no longer fighting, but rather integration. We bring our students there to experience and feel it -- to taste it and then they will seek learn how to seek it out themselves within. You know all of this alraedy -- how can you hold it in without sharing?
Kevin, are we talking about mulabandha when the pivot point of the torso/spine at the tailbone/pubic bone becomes long from the vertex? Certainly on backward bends when we talk about retroverting (dropping the back of the pelvis back and down while pointing the tailbone L O N G what happens if we also point the pubic bone long also at the same time even though the ASIS moves in the opposite direction -- mulabandha?Mulabandha is perhaps the most subtle and perhaps less easy to teach but they work with the asanas very synergistically. Also in forward bends (hip flexion) we necessarily have the opposite movement in the pelvis i.e., the ASIS moves forward toward the femur as the front groin sinks in. But even though the sit bone raises in back (as the ASIS sinks in front) the tailbone can (should?) drop down and stay grounded/long. So mulabandha can be valuable in both forward and back bends -- but it seems to be a progressive awareness of this relationship between the muladhara, the cranium and the spine.
In craniosacral therapy and osteopathy it is taught that the healthy spinal cord is supposed to move freely in the spinal canal except for an attachment at lower sacrum and at an attachment right below the occiput condyles at C2/C3. Then we are taught how to open up the spinal cord by subtly elongating, smoothing it out, and straightening it between those two points. Here the tailbone is best being long (not pushed in toward the back of the pubis or the ganglion impair) but it rather is kept elongated. Not only is the S1/L5 joint considered mobile, but also the SI joint and the sacro-coccygeal joint are considered mobile as well.
There are at least nine (or is it twelve?) muscles that attach to the sacrum -- upward/downward, forward/backward, and left/right many of them are short yet strong and which we can not palpate (nor see their attachment points/joints) yet they may well be "pivotal" as well as supporting. Lot's happening there.
Thanks for the discussion.
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kevin wood (sahaj, 12/8/99 6:51:08 PM)
If the tailbone elongating is a function of mulabandha then we could say that the purpose(at least physically) of mulabandha would be grounding and stabilization. But there is also an element of lift that is happening inward and upward at the center of the pelvis behind the pubic bones, this naturally pulls the tailbone to elongation. Energetically the lift simultaneously grounds us at the base and coaxes the upwards movement of prana (kundalini?). Once again,one must go down to go up or what foundation would we rest on, and how would we define upward if downward didn't happen first?
It seems that the pelvic sacral area is the foundation of the house of the body.Yoga Symposium.15.518
SI Joint (Shakti Das, 12/15/99 11:05:02 AM)
The sacrum, tailbone, pelvis, hip joint, and SI joint are both big and pivotal subjects that is widely ignored in our sedentary and "top down" culture. Perhaps we are talking more about embodied consciousness and "attitude" in general, more than just physical position/attitude or asana, because I find that when I am not rushed, when I am present in the moment, when I am deeply connected with the earth, when I am honoring life in the body, when I walk the earth as a soft living interactive/inter-connective communion then I also keep the pelvis open, mobile, supple, and loose as a consequence and thus then I need to pay less attention to it in asana (and need less asana practice to get me re-connected).I am glad that you have ears/eyes for this topic) one that is very dear to me also). Thus the following is a bit more detailed discussion that will be too technical except for most, but I assume that others may also enjoy this as well.
Because the feet, ankles, shins, and especially the femur are such huge levers/vectors into the hip joints almost all standing poses have a potential to exert large forces into the pelvis and thus into the SI. Further especially ipsilateral or asymmetric poses may be the most challenging in the regard as to not create tension or imbalance at the SI joint.
Not to say that standing asymmetric poses are to be avoided, but rather they can be the most challenging in this regard. Because of the structure of the hip and SI joints if compression (hyper-adduction) of the SI joint is a possible problem then INTERNAL rotation of the femur ( at the hip joint) helps widen the SI joint. In other words avoid excessive external rotation of the femur/hip joint especially when the hip is abducted. In other words adduction and internal rotation are safest i.e., poses like garudasana, gomukhasana, Matysendrasana, virasana, and other positions that create internal rotation of the hip, will create vectors that can travel into the SI joint (like a lever) to widen the sacrum in back when done "correctly". In standing poses as long as the hip is not externally rotated, the SI joint should be relatively "safe" even if the legs are abducted and that is why we point the toes straight forward (not away) in prasarita padottanasana (standing konasana), downward dog, squat, urdvadhanurasana, purvottanasana, Hanumanasana, and so forth so that the motion is open first being transmitted FROM the openness at the sacrum and then the hip joint, femur, shin, ankle, and lastly the feet and toes.
The motion that we are looking for (using the ASIS and the ischial tuberosities as signposts) is that the ASIS moves in (posterior) as the sitbones (ischial tuberosities) move lateral (abduct). This motion is also valuable in backward bends, forward bends, sitting poses, twists, inversions, supine, and prone poses as well as standing.
In short whenever the toes appear to be pointing outward (away from the midline of the body) I would be concerned to keep the sacrum open. Big abductions like upavista konasana or baddha konasana especially the upper part of the SI joint may need conscious abduction as people may tend to force the performance of the pose by incorrectly adducting the SI joint. This is also true in padmasana.
In any and all cases thus, I simply call the motion that I am describing as swadhi bandha (as it occurs in the swadhistana chakra region). I feel it as an opening and lifting backwards of the lower belly as the two SI points hinge in toward the sacrum (and perhaps in toward each other slightly as both the sitbones and the iliac crests widen outward in back away from each other (left and right). This motion may be aided by the femur/hip joint or come independent, but what I was trying to point out is that when this motion is opposed by actions of the femur (usually in external rotation or abduction) that we maintain swadhi bandha at the same time. In other words, all the motions of the legs are fine as long as swadhibandha is not lost (the SI joint gets compressed).
Most people's SI joints are frozen or not very mobile. A further not uncommon abnormality is that they are compressed and the cartilage is worn down between them so than in many cases the bone of the pelvis is rubbing against the bone of the sacrum. Neither of these conditions are desirable. Although the above is more common, the opposite condition is also possible where the SI joint is hyper-mobile (also called unstable). This is usually caused by over stretched ligaments (not muscles) and often is part of a birth abnormality, but can also be caused through a trauma like a hard fall. From my experience I have not seen it caused from yoga, but it is always possible to force or stress a joint untowardly if we approach the process through goal orientation rather than being present and listening to and honoring their body and energy and the great mother.
Jai Ma!
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Different Strokes (Shakti Das, 12/15/99 12:21:10 PM)The above technical description about how to keep the center back of the pelvic girdle (sacrum) wide will not make much sense to: 1) Those who SI joint is already mobile. You know who you are because you can do most of the hip openers with ease, including padmasana. You only may need this info if you are a teacher or trying to help others who may be stuck here.
2) Those who have almost no motion (the ilia and sacrum move as one) so that these movements do not ever seem to happen. You know who you are because your asana practice is pretty tight and rigid especially in regard to the hip openers.
3) Those who have little or no anatomical/biomechanics training.
This is only one approach out of many and although I have given vent to my natural curiosity on this subject by investigating the anatomy and kinesiology of this region, I am not saying that for some one else an entirely different approach may not be even more beneficial. Here I am balancing the right brain intuitive knowledge with the left brain mechanistic/anatomical and objective hoping for synergy, harmony, and synchronization. When the energy flows and pulsates, I am happy, so I am simply exploring whatever means that may work.
Jai!
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SuZett Estell (suz coyote, 12/16/99 1:58:59 PM)I appreciate all the SI information. It is very useful. Donny, you are right when you say the lower leg assembly is important. I am finding that almost all SI problems have a corresponding "grounding" problem. I have been studying a small book,The Egoscue Method of Health Through Motion, written by Pete Egoscue. It is excellent, simple (a series of easy motion exercises) and has corrected some problems that I spent years trying to fix. Egoscue recommends doing regular "weight checks" to see how one is balanced. A weight check is simply a moment of awareness to see how one is grounded - if the feet are equally balanced and flat on the ground.
These weight checks help in becoming aware of how my feet are connecting with the ground at various points during the day, I stop and ask myself if my weight is balanced, or if I'm standing on one edge or another or with one or both of my feet splayed out. The key is to just to notice and then correct.
To this end, I have purchased a pair of dancer's jazz boots. The have very little support, and are very thin - not much more than slippers, but they look OK as street wear. They provide only basic protection, and no arch support, but they allow me to really feel the floor under my feet, which aids awareness in checking my grounding. Rock-climbing shoes have a similar feel, but are far less comfortable, and have to be made of tougher materials to withstand the rock - and they tend to be more expensive. I have found jazz boots to be the next best thing to bare feet, and the won't get you thrown out of the grocery store. I wear them as often as possible (but they don't do well in snow or rain.)
To balance the hips, one focuses on standing and moving with the feet straight and slightly apart, not quite Tadasana, but almost, with the ankles directly under the knees. If the lower assembly is grounded correctly, the hips will swing around and the SI joint will loosen (at least that has been my experience)and the surrounding cartilege will recover.
If one or the other hip is externally rotated (do the toes of one of your feet point out, when you are not paying attention?) there is a loss of ability to move the pelvis at the same time that femur (thigh) bone is moving. Egoscue notes that a mortar-and-pestle-like action occurs as the femur moves while the hip immobilized, which is very hard on the joint. If the feet are splayed or one is rotated out, you end up walking on the hip joint, rather than the leg assembly, and that serves to compress the SI.
Namaste
SuZ
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Urdhva Mukha Pasasana (Kit Spahr, 1/10/00 2:26:00 PM)
Erich, if you're around...I recently rediscovered the yoga journal piece you did on above mentioned yoga pose...and I've been playing around with the 4th and 5th steps. A couple of questions...does the knee you are turning away from lift off the floor a bit? In regular pasasana, if I'm not mistaken, one knee shifts forward a little.
Also...if you were to use this in a class...can you give me some suggestions as to what you might lead up to this pose with (the more advanced steps) and what might follow? I found shoulderstand delicious after doing this posture.
Thanks.
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Erich Schiffmann (schiffmann, 1/12/00 4:59:04 PM)
Hi Kit,
Regarding Urdhva Mukha Pasasana... In case no one else knows which pose you are referring to, this one is like Parsva Karnapidasana [from Plow walk both feet to the left or right, then bend both knees down by the ear], except a little deeper.As far as I know, I made up those last stages, at least I had never seen them before... and I couldn't find a name, so I just made the name up: Urdhva {Upward} Facing {Mukha} Pasasana {Noose Pose}, because it is similar to Pasasana, only inverted. I think it is a terrific pose.
Yes, the knee you are turning away from tends to float away from the floor. I try to minimize this, sometimes by letting my knees spread a little wider, but mostly by doing whatever I need to do to stay grounded/heavy there.. this requires more twisting ability. In class I save this for the end of class, partly because some people find it frustrating and mostly because it needs a lot of prep in order to keep it safe.
I do Setubandha Sarvangasana I {bridge pose with arms overhead on floor}, Setu II {hands clasped under hips, arms straight}, then Halasana {Plow}, Karnapidasana {Knees Bent by Ears}, and Parsva Karnapidasana {both knees by one ear}. I go slowly through all of these so the neck and back stretch fully, then roll down and rest for a moment. Then I demonstrate stages 1-3, have the people do them, then I demo stages four and five, then have the people do them. Sliding in the demo's gives them rest time while they are watching. Most people will not feel like doing Sarvangasana {Shoulderstand} after all that, so just proceed with counterposes, but as you said Sarvangasana is delicious at that point, and if your people have the ability then just keep going that direction. Make sure you include a longer than usual Savasana.
I hope this helpful. Maybe I'll teach this in tomorrow mornings class..
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kevin wood (sahaj, 1/12/00 10:25:06 PM)I don't see the difference between parsva karnipidasana and urdva parsva pasasana. Is it in the arm position? How could opening the heart and chest be bad, unless there was alot of tension while doing the pose?
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Erich Schiffmann (schiffmann, 1/13/00 12:18:24 AM)Yes, the main difference is in the arm positioning, which makes it a tighter twist. Rather than resting the knees on the floor by one ear, with the arms behind the back as in Sarvangasana {Shoulderstand}, the arms wrap around the leg/ legs to clasp the hands behind you, like Pasasana (Noose Pose}. Also, the way to get into it is different. The next stage is to do it with your legs in lotus. That's pretty hard... I like chest openers, too. I have not experienced any problem with them, subtle or otherwise. It's just that in some poses, Urdhva Dhanurasana {the Wheel, or Upward Bow}, for example, it is a good idea to keep the top sternum moving toward the bottom sternum, so that the two frontal ribs and the elbows move away from one another so that you get maximum range of motion in the shoulders.
Erich
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