Wednesday 9.30a Intro — Week 9 (April 29, 2009)

Focus: Restorative and pranayama.

Note new poses for this week are in bold face.

Discussion: Patanjali Yoga Sutra II.49-50, What is Pranayama?
[See Monday 6.30p Asana I — Week 9 (April 27, 2009) discussion.]
The body is tamasic, the mind rajasic and the Self sattvic. The buddhi reflects the light of the soul onto the citta. In pranayama the process is the same — the sattvic buddhi guides the breath to make the inner walls of the chest more sattvic.


Invocation in Swastikasana

1. Baddha Konasana (10 min)
a. Sit on two blankets folded in half lengthwise, with back to the wall for support.
b. Lower back pain: Sit buttock bones on firm 2X6 atop blankets. Navel back and lift up. This reveals the underlying tightness of the thoracic, instead of the lumbar. Touch the breath to the posterior thoracic area to make it more sattvic and less rajasic. (DN)

2. Ujjayi in Baddha Konasana (5 min)
a. Keep the facial skin soft and relaxed when you inhale, as when you do automatically when you exhale.
b. Observe where the normal breath touches. Spreading the thighs laterally automatically directs the breath to the side ribs.
c. Slow, soft, smooth inhalation. Slow, soft, smooth exhalation.

3. Ujjayi II in Baddha Konasana (5 min)
a. Slow, soft, smooth inhalation. Slow, soft, smooth, slightly longer exhalation.
b. The sound of the glottal breath is as subtle as the wind moving over a rock. Keep the trachea open and take the sound to the back of the throat, to keep it more in the bass register than the treble register.

4. Blanket Supported Savasana (10 min)
a. Two spinewise blankets folded in half lengthwise to make a “bed” for the spinal muscles and raise up the chest. Widen the back body.