dhanurasana
Warm-up:
- Take time to warm up your whole body before doing the Bow -
especially extending your spine. You can also work with specific
upper thigh stretches and shoulder/chest openers. Communicate
with your body the need for both strength and flexibility.
- Use the Divine Light Invocation, a spiritual practice that focuses
on tension and relaxation, breath and visualization, to warm up
both the body and the mind. (Click here for
instructions on the Divine Light Invocation.)
The Pose:
- Start by lying face down on your mat and stretching out your
whole body. Awaken your body's intelligence and prepare for the
back bend by creating length and space so the movement is free.
- Slowly, in a cobra-like movement, lift your head and shoulders
off the floor, reach your arms back and firmly clasp your ankles
with your hands.
- As you lift upward, be aware of the foundation of the pose: Where
is the pressure down? What allows the lift up?
- Tighten the buttocks. Feel all the movements of your body as
your hands pull your legs toward your head: thighs pull away from
the floor, chest lifts up, eyes look forward, back bends.
- Visualize your spine curved like a bow, your arms stretching
like the bow's string.
- Breathe and hold the pose, feeling into it.
- Release down and move into the Child's pose.
Note: If you cannot reach your ankles, you may want to try bending
your knees, firming your buttocks and stretching back just one
arm at a time toward your ankle. Or exercise your concentration
by visualizing yourself doing the pose.
Questions for reflection
Ask yourself:
- What is my target? Is there a main target in the distance and
intermediate ones closer by?
- How do I combine strength and flexibility to become a useful
instrument?
- As you bend backwards, ask: When is enough truly enough?
This material is provided courtesy of ascent
magazine. Click here to
read the full article.
Resource book: Hatha
Yoga the Hidden Language by Swami Sivananda Radha
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