Thursday 6.30p Intro: Week 1 (Mar 5, 2009)

2 new students for March-April session
Focus on arm poses in Tadasana and leg alignment in standings.

Discussion: Guidelines for Practice
1. All of us unconsciously violate our vow of non-violence when we practice something difficult or new by holding our breath. Breathe normally. Don’t hold your breath.

2. Practice requires steadfast effort, energy and enthusiasm to still the mind. So, according to BKS Iyengar, we must “Do, redo, adjust, readjust, learn, unlearn and relearn to ‘touch’ perfection.” Sometimes, in the course of our lives, we have to “unlearn” everything we “know” because it is tainted by our biases. Only then may we start over with a fresh perspective. Relearning may create conflict - a violence within ourselves - when the acute mind says, “Yes!” but the sluggish body objects with “No!” In preparing for her recent certification, Jean had to challenge her bias of not liking certain difficult poses. That re-examination afforded a better understanding, and, hence, greater mastery and enjoyment of practice. Our axiom is “by the body, for the mind.” It brought her scattered mind closer to a state of “one-pointed” awareness.

3. When stretching, be non-violent: Stretching muscle pain subsides with continued practice. Overstretching causes immediate sharp and shooting pains that worsen if you continue. Other pains to avoid include headaches, nausea, dizziness, cramps (including menstrual), hot flashes, aggravation of previous injuries, etc. It is the student’s duty to inform the teacher if these pains occur. Ask if you are unsure.

Invocation in Swastikasana

1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
a. To straighten the knee, lift both the kneecap and the back thigh up, away from the knee, to make the back knee light. Don’t just throw the knees back. This prevents indentations at either the top or bottom knee.
b. Lift to straighten the knee, not straighten then lift. The latter locks the knee backwards and prevents lift of the leg. Because “the spine receives the action of the limbs,” unless and until the knees lift properly, the pelvis, spine and sternum will collapse, resulting in what Patanjali described as “pain, despair, shakiness, etc.” These ill effects become much more apparent in Trikonasana, where the right leg must bear a disproportionate amount of the weight of the trunk.
c. Brick between thighs to learn inner thigh lift.

2. Urdhva Hastasana
a. Make a connection: Brick between thighs, lift the knees to lift the arms.

3. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
a. Connect the limbs: Brick between thighs, learn to lift the knees in rhythm with taking the arms overhead.

4. Tadasana (Paschima Baddha Hasta arms)
a. Added to bring mobility to the Urdhva arm positions.
b. Holding elbows, roll open from the sternum to the frontal shoulders. Roll the shoulders out, away from the sternum.

5. Tadasana (Gomukhasana arms)
a. Ardha Gomukhasana arms: Right arm up, bend the right elbow. Elbow behind the head. Hold the right elbow with the left hand and side bend to the right to stretch the right side ribs.
b. Left arm in Paschima Namaskarasana to complete Gomukhasana arms. For rotator cuff injuries, do not do this side. Instead, concentrate on upper arm lift, as in Ardha Gomukhasana, to lift the collar bone up and externally rotate the upper arm away from the injury site.
c. Added to bring mobility to the Urdhva arm positions.

6. Urdhva Hastasana

7. Utthita Hasta Padasana

8. Parsva Hasta Padasana

9. Virabhadrasana II
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings.
b. Turn the right leg out more to bring the right femur more into the socket. Connecting the femur into the socket supports the pelvis and trunk.
c. Move the right buttock bone in, anteriorly, to prevent the right knee from wandering in anteriorly.
d. Lift the right pelvic rim up, off of the thigh, to bring more freedom to the hip joint when bending the right knee. Keeping that up, then sit the right buttock down.
e. Inner left knee push laterally into the bone to keep the weight off of the right hip.

10. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Turn the right leg out more to bring the right femur more into the socket. Connecting the femur into the socket supports the pelvis and trunk.
b. Move the right buttock bone in, anteriorly, to prevent the right knee from wandering in anteriorly.
c. Right foot must press the ball down, toes up, to stretch the back of the leg from the heel up to the buttock bone.
d. Inner left knee push laterally into the bone to keep the weight off of the right hip. This also prepares for Prasarita Padottanasana.

11. Parsvottanasana (hands on wall, concave back)
a. Omitted for lack of time. Will do next week.

12. Prasarita Padottanasana (hands on bricks, concave back)
a. Prasarita = spread. Spread the inner knees apart, away from each other.

13. Forward Extensions
a. Urdhva Hasta Dandasana: Sit on a folded blanket or bolster. If you cannot lift the sacrum, you must sit higher up on a blanket.
c. Padangustha Dandasana: Use a belt around the soles of the feet. Second time, if unable to hold the big toes, continue using a belt around the soles of the feet. Arm and leg push/pull action.

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Savasana