Focus: Add Ardha Chandrasana to the November 24 sequence.
Discussion: What is Spiritual Yoga Practice?
“Yoga practice guides the mind towards its source, the core of being, or the soul (atman)” In the West, we tend to perceive the body and mind as completely separate, but Indians hold a different point of view: “For me, the body is but the gross form of the mind,“ observes Guruji Iyengar. If they are separate, “Where does the body end and the mind begin, or where does the mind end and the Self begin?” he challenges.
[B.K.S. Iyengar, “The Yogic Mind,” 7-7-09 Guru Purnima address, Pune]
[B.K.S. Iyengar, Iyengar, His Life and Work, Timeless Books, Porthill, Idaho, 1987]
Just as in “all roads lead to Rome,” although the methods differ and the words may vary, all paths lead towards the soul. This is the great universal concept that all Indians accept implicitly.
Patanjali Yoga Sutras state that we exist both to experience worldly pleasure and to liberate ourselves from our spiritual ignorance. [PYS II.18, II.21] Along with wealth and pleasure, this inborn inclination towards liberation and dharma, or duty, comprise the four aims of life. For an Indian, following his spiritual dharma, which also means “support”, will automatically support his temporal endeavors.
Patanjali’s yoga is an internal practice. For example, the ancient Vedic agni fire ceremony became internalized in the form of early morning pranayama practice. When ghee was fed to the fire, the flame would shoot up, symbolizing a blessing from Agni, the god of fire. The fire was a metaphor for burning the impulses and desires that bind the soul. For Patanjali, this scorching comes primarily from abhyasa and vairagya, practice and detachment, which burn the “seeds” of suffering.
[Mircea Eliade, Yoga — Immortality and Freedom, Princeton, N.J. Princeton University Press, 1969]
1. Invocation in Swastikasana
a. Sit straight, back erect. Lift your spine upward, sides of the navel lifting up. Lift the sternum chest upward. Shoulders roll back. Trapezius down. Descend the triceps to keep the shoulders descending. Keep the head straight, eyes deeper in. Look within. Ear drums going deeper inside. The tongue resting on the lower palate. Remain silent.
b. Quieten the brain cells. Ascend the trunk without disturbing the brain. From the head, pull the whole body upward. Relax the jaw. Relax the tongue. Keep both eyelids receding. Both the inner corners of the eyes going deeper back.
c. From the base, legs and thighs receding. Lift the base of the pubic bone upward. Raise the sides of your navel. Ascend from the base of the spine and do not allow the skull or rib cage to fall onto the abdomen. As if there is a thread pulling on the top of your skull, lift the whole body.
d. Slow soft inhalation and a slow soft exhalation, both sides of the trunk receiving equal energy to lift. As the body gets lifted, lift from the anterior face of the sacrum and spine. Ascend the organic anterior body upward. Maintain that lift.
e. Brain quiet and body firm. The flow of quietness must penetrate from the brain to the body, without the body losing its lift. Remain silent for a while.
2. Tadasana/Samasthiti
3. Urdhva Hastasana
4. Tadasana (Gomukhasana arms)
5. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
6. Tadasana (Paschima Baddha Hasta arms)
7. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Left outer leg and thigh in as preparation for Ardha Chandrasana.
b. The dharma of the legs in the standing poses is to support the pelvis so that the spine may elongate.
8. Virabhadrasana II
a. Left outer leg and thigh in as preparation for Ardha Chandrasana.
9. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. Left outer leg and thigh in as preparation for Ardha Chandrasana.
10. Ardha Chandrasana
11. Virabhadrasana I
12. Utkatasana
13. Parsvottanasana
14. Prasarita Padottanasana
a. From Parsvottanasana
15. Baddha Hasta Uttanasana
16. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Salamba Sarvangasana
b. Ekapada Sarvangasana
c. Halasana
17. Forward Extensions
a. Dandasana
b. Padangustha Dandasana
Omitted for time and emphasis.
18. Savasana
Showing posts with label Week 6. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Week 6. Show all posts
Friday, January 8, 2010
Tuesday 4.30p MS — Week 6 (December 8, 2009)
Focus: Chest opening and Virasana.
No new students.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Salamba Purvottanasana
2. Chair Bharadvajasana
3. Virasana
a. Folded sticky mat behind knee for knee pain (MF)
b. Shins on two bolsters if unable to plantar flex (LM)
4. Parvatasana in Virasana
5. Parsva Virasana
a. As in Bharadvajasana, take both legs to the left, but do not cross the left ankle on the right instep. Instead, keep the shins parallel. Sit on a brick
b. Looping a belt around the left thigh at the groin, hitch it at the top and pull down to externally rotate the thigh and descend the left hip.
6. Savasana on spinewise blankets
No new students.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Salamba Purvottanasana
2. Chair Bharadvajasana
3. Virasana
a. Folded sticky mat behind knee for knee pain (MF)
b. Shins on two bolsters if unable to plantar flex (LM)
4. Parvatasana in Virasana
5. Parsva Virasana
a. As in Bharadvajasana, take both legs to the left, but do not cross the left ankle on the right instep. Instead, keep the shins parallel. Sit on a brick
b. Looping a belt around the left thigh at the groin, hitch it at the top and pull down to externally rotate the thigh and descend the left hip.
6. Savasana on spinewise blankets
Friday, October 16, 2009
Tuesday 4.30p MS — Week 6 (October 6, 2009)
Focus: Leg actions in standing poses against the wall.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
1. Invocation in Swastikasana
a. Soft, slow, smooth inhalation. Soft, slow, smooth exhalation. Lift the spine. Shoulder blades down the back body.
2. Tadasana/Samasthiti
a. Backs of the thighs away from each other. Lift inner knees with brick between inner thighs.
b. Lift the kneecap and back knee towards the buttock bone to prevent collapsing into the back of the knee, especially in Trikonasana.
c. Shoulder blades down the back body. Paschima Baddhanguliyasana arms to roll open shoulders.
3. Utthita Trikonasana
a. With the back to the wall, and holding the wall ropes to prevent fatigue or falling due to lack of balance and stamina.
b. Lift the kneecap and back knee towards the buttock bone to prevent knee or right posterior ankle pain.
c. Keep the femur in the socket, lifting from outer knee towards outer hip, when coming into the pose.
4. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. With the back to the wall, and holding the wall ropes to prevent fatigue or falling due to lack of balance and stamina.
b. Extend from the outer knee towards the outer hip to engage the femur in the socket when coming into the pose. If the knee turns in, then the greater trochanter will fall out. Pressing down the ball of the big toe, lift the toes to lift the inner ankle bone and inner knee prevents the knee from turning in.
5. Viparita Karani (15 min)
a. Substituted for Sarvangasana Cycle
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
1. Invocation in Swastikasana
a. Soft, slow, smooth inhalation. Soft, slow, smooth exhalation. Lift the spine. Shoulder blades down the back body.
2. Tadasana/Samasthiti
a. Backs of the thighs away from each other. Lift inner knees with brick between inner thighs.
b. Lift the kneecap and back knee towards the buttock bone to prevent collapsing into the back of the knee, especially in Trikonasana.
c. Shoulder blades down the back body. Paschima Baddhanguliyasana arms to roll open shoulders.
3. Utthita Trikonasana
a. With the back to the wall, and holding the wall ropes to prevent fatigue or falling due to lack of balance and stamina.
b. Lift the kneecap and back knee towards the buttock bone to prevent knee or right posterior ankle pain.
c. Keep the femur in the socket, lifting from outer knee towards outer hip, when coming into the pose.
4. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. With the back to the wall, and holding the wall ropes to prevent fatigue or falling due to lack of balance and stamina.
b. Extend from the outer knee towards the outer hip to engage the femur in the socket when coming into the pose. If the knee turns in, then the greater trochanter will fall out. Pressing down the ball of the big toe, lift the toes to lift the inner ankle bone and inner knee prevents the knee from turning in.
5. Viparita Karani (15 min)
a. Substituted for Sarvangasana Cycle
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tuesday 4.30p MS — Week 6 (June 9, 2009)
Focus: Fatigue because of lack of sleep, recurrence of occasional MS dizziness worsened by inversion, and concussion-type symptoms in three different students.
One new student.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Adho Mukha Swastikasana (forehead on chair seat)
a. Sit on bolster, head on chair seat.
b. To relieve pain due to ankle and hip stiffness: Sit higher up on extra blanket on bolster with blanket under feet. Insert rolled blanket perpendicular to shins, between the ankles. (LM)
2. Supta Baddha Konasana
a. Knees on bolster. Use arm support to prevent forcing open the chest. Sandbags on groins. On Simhasana Box for firmer support for scoliosis (LM).
b. To reduce dizziness, roll under edges of blanket to cradle head for additional stability and roll open shoulders to reduce strain on head and neck (BR).
One new student.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Adho Mukha Swastikasana (forehead on chair seat)
a. Sit on bolster, head on chair seat.
b. To relieve pain due to ankle and hip stiffness: Sit higher up on extra blanket on bolster with blanket under feet. Insert rolled blanket perpendicular to shins, between the ankles. (LM)
2. Supta Baddha Konasana
a. Knees on bolster. Use arm support to prevent forcing open the chest. Sandbags on groins. On Simhasana Box for firmer support for scoliosis (LM).
b. To reduce dizziness, roll under edges of blanket to cradle head for additional stability and roll open shoulders to reduce strain on head and neck (BR).
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Thursday 6.30p Intro — Week 6 (April 9, 2009)
Focus: Continue to review and refine hip opening from Week 4: Virabhadrasana II, Trikonasana, and Parsvakonasana to open the right hip. Lack of hip opening often masquerades as hamstring stiffness. Add a couple of poses from Week 5 and work more on arm work with Rope 1 for Sarvangasana.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Discussion: Patanjali Yoga Sutra I.2, What is Yoga?
The entire purpose of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra is to provide a practical guide to alleviate suffering. Pain, injury, disability — these are just the most salient features of a life characterized by our identification with an unsteady, fluctuating consciousness.
The term citta (consciousness) embraces a wider concept than the more narrowly defined Western interpretation of mind. Yoga treats the mind as a function of consciousness. According to B.K.S. Iyengar, citta is like a box that includes manas, which refers to the perceiver of sensations, as well as the buddhi, or intellect, which is the faculty of discrimination, and the ahamkara, the ego. The brain is the part of the mind that perceives the world, and acts on behalf of the mind.
To alleviate suffering, yoga emphasizes, above all, first hand “subjective” knowledge. It is knowledge based on skilled experience, as opposed to “objective” knowledge gathered from sacred texts and the testimony of others.
Yoga, as defined in Patanjali Yoga Sutra I.2, is the culmination of a highly intense practice that few persons reach: samadhi, or enlightenment, wherein the consciousness is left in a completely undisturbed state of silence. Everything else is not yoga:
PYS I.2 Yogah - citta - vritti - nirodhah
Yoga - consciousness - movements - cessation
Yoga is the cessation of the movements of consciousness.
Yoga is the restraint of the fluctuations of consciousness... Yoga shows ways of understanding the functionings of the mind and helps quiet their movements, leading towards the undisturbed state of silence which dwells in the very seat of consciousness.
PYS I.3 Then the seer dwells in his own state.
PYS I.4 At other times the seer appears to identify with the movements in the consciousness.
Vritti nirodha
According to Patanjali, in the absence of samadhi, all other states of consciousness are considered a modification, a vritti — an alteration of one’s true nature. Other translations of vritti (root: “to whirl”) besides movement, include agitation, fluctuation, activity, or oscillation. Each of these translations, when used in a specific context, defines a distinct aspect of what a vritti is: While the colloquial use of “agitation” expresses a specifically negative, disturbing, aspect of movement, the more abstract term “fluctuation”, indicates merely a change. Although it suggests less suffering, it is still destabilizing.
Perhaps the most difficult term to translate in Yoga Sutra I.2 is nirodha, the word used to describe the negation of the vrittis. It has been variously called control, restraint, dissolution, restriction, suppression, and resolution. When the vrttis are restrained, they cease to disturb the consciousness.
Gunas and vritti nirodha
Nirodha relies upon an understanding of how the process of involution occurs according to Samkhya philosophy. Commentator Vyasa describes the three functions of consciousness — cognition, volition and stability — which are produced by the gunas: sattva is illumination, rajas is characterized by action and pain, and tamas is distinguished by inertia and feebleness. The gunas, the very “bases of substantive matter,” may be compared to strands of multicolored rope that, when woven together, form the “cord” of prakrti, matter, that tethers the soul to the body, making it appear that the soul itself, not the body, undergoes change. The Bhagavad Gita states that the soul is bound to the body by sattvic happiness and knowledge; by the rajasic fruits of work; and by tamasic ignorance, laziness, and excessive sleep.
The gunas, the constituents of matter, constantly mutate and undergo change; they are not permanent. Only the soul is permanent. The yogin seeks to liberate himself from the tyranny of the gunas so that he may experience equanimity. Only when the yogin reaches the highest level of samadhi, do the gunas cease to evolve any further and are absorbed, or dissolved, back into their respective causes, thus freeing the yogin from the bonds of physical nature (described by Patanjali in Yoga Sutras IV.32-34). Vyasa (VB II.27) likens their dissolution to crumbling boulders rolling down a hill.
When the gunas cease to evolve, the vrttis that they produce will cease their waxing and waning. However, the more we try to directly suppress the vrttis, the more we become attached to them, as when we challenge ourselves “to not think of pink elephants.” How is it possible for the mind to govern itself?
Consistent with Patanjali, B.K.S. Iyengar’s method is indirect: “by the body, for the mind.” By focusing the wandering citta on the intricacies of asana, we indirectly restrain the citta and guide it towards vritti nirodha. That’s why in his translation of Yoga Sutra II.46 defining asana, he has acknowledged vritti nirodha with “steadiness in intelligence” as well as “firmness in body.”
Asana — awakening the intelligence with alignment
The Iyengar method of yoga is not entirely transparent. B.K.S. Iyengar has developed a “user friendly interface” to make it attractive for the beginner. Although working to perfect an asana is physical work, it is only a means to an end. The deeper we immerse ourselves in asana practice, the less we categorize it as physical. Asana becomes a device for honing the intellect and refining its quality, sattvic intelligence. Without awakening this intelligence, which lies dormant in each and every practitioner, how could the perfection in asana result in the end of duality (PYS II.48)?
Alignment is the linchpin of B.K.S. Iyengar’s method of practice. Alignment coordinates perception and intelligent action to bring “steadiness in intelligence.” We often conceive of alignment in the gross sense, as “the uniform alignment of bones, joints and soft tissues within the frame of each asana.” Amidst the difficulties of practice, every so often we get a glimpse of understanding, a correlation that explains the fruit of our actions: “If I move my leg this way, my back stops hurting and I can breathe more easily. My head feels clearer, less clogged. My brain feels less confused.” The result is greater stability and equanimity. However improved, the acts of observing, evaluating, and correcting are still dualistic. Until attaining samadhi, we are swayed by the opposites of rajasic action and tamasic inertia, causing the citta vrttis.
Asana — aligning the body with the Self
But B.K.S. Iyengar conceives of alignment in a more subtle way. The buddhi, the intellect and the most sattvic aspect of the citta, has the power to discriminate. It redirects citta, away from being colored by the vrttis of the external world, towards the non-fluctuating Seer, or the soul, for guidance. The yogin transcends duality when he takes refuge in the soul. As the Bhagavad Gita proclaims: “ “with intelligence - yoked (buddhi-yuktas) (to the Self), one frees oneself of (the duality of) good and bad deeds... Yoga is skill in action.” (BG II.50)
Only in samadhi can the yogin distinguish between the sattva buddhi (refined illuminative intelligence) and the Seer (PYS III.36). B.K.S. Iyengar writes, “Spiritual intelligence [viveka jnanam], which is true wisdom, dawns [in samadhi] only when discrimination ends. It does not function in duality. It perceives only oneness.” (PYS I.7; II.26; III.55) Describing this oneness, B.K.S. Iyengar has said that the Self exists in every cell: “Each and every fiber, each and every cell, each and every capillary has to be connected to the Self. Alignment in the asanas means alignment of the Self with the body, and the body with the Self. So, when the Self engulfs the entire body, without neglecting one part, it is alignment.”
Asana — sattvic practice
Up until that time, we have to study the effects of the gunas, else we will unknowingly remain subject to their influence. Our initial aim is to make all of our actions sattvic, illuminated and intelligent. But sometimes we must employ rajas, and even tamas, in the service of sattva.
For example, in Virabhadrasana II, the legs must be firm and stable, a tamasic quality, while also lifting, or rajasic. (If they were too rajasic, they would be consistently moving, jumping up and down.) Because we are using the buddhi to discriminate, the work is neither mindless nor taxing. It should “feel right” without aggressively overworking, becoming too rajasic. But, if the pelvis and trunk are tamasic, and just collapse onto the right leg, the right knee will take the load, and become very heavy and dull, or tamasic, along with the mind. Therefore, the pelvis must strongly lift up, a rajasic action, in order to bring lightness and mobility, or sattva, into the right hip joint. This results in greater clarity, making the mind sattvic.
Unless and until sattvic action permeates the entire asana, the disturbing vrttis will continue to impose on the consciousness. When completely sattvic, the consciousness becomes benevolent, as B.K.S. Iyengar describes the results of perfection of asana in Yoga Sutra II.46.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
2. Rope 1
a. Roll upper arms out to open shoulders and further facilitate Urdhva Hastasana.
3. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
a. Omitted for lack of time.
4. Tadasana (Paschima Baddha Hasta arms)
a. Roll open shoulders to prepare for Sarvangasana. When this is mastered, can introduce Paschima Namaskarasana.
5. Tadasana (Gomukhasana arms)
6. Virabhadrasana II
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings.
b. Left heel at the Rope Wall.
7. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as above, move the right outer thigh towards the wall to lengthen the right leg.
b. To straighten the knee, lift both the kneecap and the back thigh up, away from the knee as in Tadasana, to make the knee light.
9. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as in Virabhadrasana II.
b. Repeat the actions as above, the sit the buttock down to take the right hand to the floor.
10. Virabhadrasana I
a. With Urdhva Hastasana arms, press wrists into Upper Wall Rope to lift the pubic plate and sternum.
11. Utkatasana
12. Parsvottanasana (hands on chair seat, head on brick on chair seat)
a. Pull right hip back, left hip forward.
13. Chair Kurmasana
a. Preparation for Adho Mukha Svanasana hip movement.
b. Thighs on chair seat, bend forward from the hips.
14. Adho Mukha Svanasana
a. Hands turned out 90° at wall. Don’t “let the consciousness leak out” from beneath the forefinger knuckle. Press it down then stretch the inner armpit towards the hip.
15. Baddha Hasta Uttanasana
a. Substitute for Uttanasana (concave back feet apart and feet together)
b. Omitted for lack of time. Will do next week.
16. Padangusthasana
a. Pull belt looped around feet to get concave back.
b. Omitted for lack of time. Will do next week.
17. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Wall Ekapada Sarvangasana
Get more on top of the shoulders and walk the feet up the wall. With the left foot on the wall, straighten the right leg vertically towards the ceiling. Then repeat on the other side.
b. Salamba Sarvangasana
Straighten both legs.
18. Forward Extensions
a. Paschimottanasana (forehead on chair seat) substituted for Paschimottanasana to provide more support and rest. Legs wide apart in Dandasana for greater hip mobility, holding the chair arms to keep the chest open, rest the forehead on the chair seat.
19. Savasana
a. Back chest on blanket folded in half, trifold blanket beneath head.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Discussion: Patanjali Yoga Sutra I.2, What is Yoga?
The entire purpose of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra is to provide a practical guide to alleviate suffering. Pain, injury, disability — these are just the most salient features of a life characterized by our identification with an unsteady, fluctuating consciousness.
The term citta (consciousness) embraces a wider concept than the more narrowly defined Western interpretation of mind. Yoga treats the mind as a function of consciousness. According to B.K.S. Iyengar, citta is like a box that includes manas, which refers to the perceiver of sensations, as well as the buddhi, or intellect, which is the faculty of discrimination, and the ahamkara, the ego. The brain is the part of the mind that perceives the world, and acts on behalf of the mind.
To alleviate suffering, yoga emphasizes, above all, first hand “subjective” knowledge. It is knowledge based on skilled experience, as opposed to “objective” knowledge gathered from sacred texts and the testimony of others.
Yoga, as defined in Patanjali Yoga Sutra I.2, is the culmination of a highly intense practice that few persons reach: samadhi, or enlightenment, wherein the consciousness is left in a completely undisturbed state of silence. Everything else is not yoga:
PYS I.2 Yogah - citta - vritti - nirodhah
Yoga - consciousness - movements - cessation
Yoga is the cessation of the movements of consciousness.
Yoga is the restraint of the fluctuations of consciousness... Yoga shows ways of understanding the functionings of the mind and helps quiet their movements, leading towards the undisturbed state of silence which dwells in the very seat of consciousness.
PYS I.3 Then the seer dwells in his own state.
PYS I.4 At other times the seer appears to identify with the movements in the consciousness.
Vritti nirodha
According to Patanjali, in the absence of samadhi, all other states of consciousness are considered a modification, a vritti — an alteration of one’s true nature. Other translations of vritti (root: “to whirl”) besides movement, include agitation, fluctuation, activity, or oscillation. Each of these translations, when used in a specific context, defines a distinct aspect of what a vritti is: While the colloquial use of “agitation” expresses a specifically negative, disturbing, aspect of movement, the more abstract term “fluctuation”, indicates merely a change. Although it suggests less suffering, it is still destabilizing.
Perhaps the most difficult term to translate in Yoga Sutra I.2 is nirodha, the word used to describe the negation of the vrittis. It has been variously called control, restraint, dissolution, restriction, suppression, and resolution. When the vrttis are restrained, they cease to disturb the consciousness.
Gunas and vritti nirodha
Nirodha relies upon an understanding of how the process of involution occurs according to Samkhya philosophy. Commentator Vyasa describes the three functions of consciousness — cognition, volition and stability — which are produced by the gunas: sattva is illumination, rajas is characterized by action and pain, and tamas is distinguished by inertia and feebleness. The gunas, the very “bases of substantive matter,” may be compared to strands of multicolored rope that, when woven together, form the “cord” of prakrti, matter, that tethers the soul to the body, making it appear that the soul itself, not the body, undergoes change. The Bhagavad Gita states that the soul is bound to the body by sattvic happiness and knowledge; by the rajasic fruits of work; and by tamasic ignorance, laziness, and excessive sleep.
The gunas, the constituents of matter, constantly mutate and undergo change; they are not permanent. Only the soul is permanent. The yogin seeks to liberate himself from the tyranny of the gunas so that he may experience equanimity. Only when the yogin reaches the highest level of samadhi, do the gunas cease to evolve any further and are absorbed, or dissolved, back into their respective causes, thus freeing the yogin from the bonds of physical nature (described by Patanjali in Yoga Sutras IV.32-34). Vyasa (VB II.27) likens their dissolution to crumbling boulders rolling down a hill.
When the gunas cease to evolve, the vrttis that they produce will cease their waxing and waning. However, the more we try to directly suppress the vrttis, the more we become attached to them, as when we challenge ourselves “to not think of pink elephants.” How is it possible for the mind to govern itself?
Consistent with Patanjali, B.K.S. Iyengar’s method is indirect: “by the body, for the mind.” By focusing the wandering citta on the intricacies of asana, we indirectly restrain the citta and guide it towards vritti nirodha. That’s why in his translation of Yoga Sutra II.46 defining asana, he has acknowledged vritti nirodha with “steadiness in intelligence” as well as “firmness in body.”
Asana — awakening the intelligence with alignment
The Iyengar method of yoga is not entirely transparent. B.K.S. Iyengar has developed a “user friendly interface” to make it attractive for the beginner. Although working to perfect an asana is physical work, it is only a means to an end. The deeper we immerse ourselves in asana practice, the less we categorize it as physical. Asana becomes a device for honing the intellect and refining its quality, sattvic intelligence. Without awakening this intelligence, which lies dormant in each and every practitioner, how could the perfection in asana result in the end of duality (PYS II.48)?
Alignment is the linchpin of B.K.S. Iyengar’s method of practice. Alignment coordinates perception and intelligent action to bring “steadiness in intelligence.” We often conceive of alignment in the gross sense, as “the uniform alignment of bones, joints and soft tissues within the frame of each asana.” Amidst the difficulties of practice, every so often we get a glimpse of understanding, a correlation that explains the fruit of our actions: “If I move my leg this way, my back stops hurting and I can breathe more easily. My head feels clearer, less clogged. My brain feels less confused.” The result is greater stability and equanimity. However improved, the acts of observing, evaluating, and correcting are still dualistic. Until attaining samadhi, we are swayed by the opposites of rajasic action and tamasic inertia, causing the citta vrttis.
Asana — aligning the body with the Self
But B.K.S. Iyengar conceives of alignment in a more subtle way. The buddhi, the intellect and the most sattvic aspect of the citta, has the power to discriminate. It redirects citta, away from being colored by the vrttis of the external world, towards the non-fluctuating Seer, or the soul, for guidance. The yogin transcends duality when he takes refuge in the soul. As the Bhagavad Gita proclaims: “ “with intelligence - yoked (buddhi-yuktas) (to the Self), one frees oneself of (the duality of) good and bad deeds... Yoga is skill in action.” (BG II.50)
Only in samadhi can the yogin distinguish between the sattva buddhi (refined illuminative intelligence) and the Seer (PYS III.36). B.K.S. Iyengar writes, “Spiritual intelligence [viveka jnanam], which is true wisdom, dawns [in samadhi] only when discrimination ends. It does not function in duality. It perceives only oneness.” (PYS I.7; II.26; III.55) Describing this oneness, B.K.S. Iyengar has said that the Self exists in every cell: “Each and every fiber, each and every cell, each and every capillary has to be connected to the Self. Alignment in the asanas means alignment of the Self with the body, and the body with the Self. So, when the Self engulfs the entire body, without neglecting one part, it is alignment.”
Asana — sattvic practice
Up until that time, we have to study the effects of the gunas, else we will unknowingly remain subject to their influence. Our initial aim is to make all of our actions sattvic, illuminated and intelligent. But sometimes we must employ rajas, and even tamas, in the service of sattva.
For example, in Virabhadrasana II, the legs must be firm and stable, a tamasic quality, while also lifting, or rajasic. (If they were too rajasic, they would be consistently moving, jumping up and down.) Because we are using the buddhi to discriminate, the work is neither mindless nor taxing. It should “feel right” without aggressively overworking, becoming too rajasic. But, if the pelvis and trunk are tamasic, and just collapse onto the right leg, the right knee will take the load, and become very heavy and dull, or tamasic, along with the mind. Therefore, the pelvis must strongly lift up, a rajasic action, in order to bring lightness and mobility, or sattva, into the right hip joint. This results in greater clarity, making the mind sattvic.
Unless and until sattvic action permeates the entire asana, the disturbing vrttis will continue to impose on the consciousness. When completely sattvic, the consciousness becomes benevolent, as B.K.S. Iyengar describes the results of perfection of asana in Yoga Sutra II.46.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
2. Rope 1
a. Roll upper arms out to open shoulders and further facilitate Urdhva Hastasana.
3. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
a. Omitted for lack of time.
4. Tadasana (Paschima Baddha Hasta arms)
a. Roll open shoulders to prepare for Sarvangasana. When this is mastered, can introduce Paschima Namaskarasana.
5. Tadasana (Gomukhasana arms)
6. Virabhadrasana II
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings.
b. Left heel at the Rope Wall.
7. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as above, move the right outer thigh towards the wall to lengthen the right leg.
b. To straighten the knee, lift both the kneecap and the back thigh up, away from the knee as in Tadasana, to make the knee light.
9. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as in Virabhadrasana II.
b. Repeat the actions as above, the sit the buttock down to take the right hand to the floor.
10. Virabhadrasana I
a. With Urdhva Hastasana arms, press wrists into Upper Wall Rope to lift the pubic plate and sternum.
11. Utkatasana
12. Parsvottanasana (hands on chair seat, head on brick on chair seat)
a. Pull right hip back, left hip forward.
13. Chair Kurmasana
a. Preparation for Adho Mukha Svanasana hip movement.
b. Thighs on chair seat, bend forward from the hips.
14. Adho Mukha Svanasana
a. Hands turned out 90° at wall. Don’t “let the consciousness leak out” from beneath the forefinger knuckle. Press it down then stretch the inner armpit towards the hip.
15. Baddha Hasta Uttanasana
a. Substitute for Uttanasana (concave back feet apart and feet together)
b. Omitted for lack of time. Will do next week.
16. Padangusthasana
a. Pull belt looped around feet to get concave back.
b. Omitted for lack of time. Will do next week.
17. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Wall Ekapada Sarvangasana
Get more on top of the shoulders and walk the feet up the wall. With the left foot on the wall, straighten the right leg vertically towards the ceiling. Then repeat on the other side.
b. Salamba Sarvangasana
Straighten both legs.
18. Forward Extensions
a. Paschimottanasana (forehead on chair seat) substituted for Paschimottanasana to provide more support and rest. Legs wide apart in Dandasana for greater hip mobility, holding the chair arms to keep the chest open, rest the forehead on the chair seat.
19. Savasana
a. Back chest on blanket folded in half, trifold blanket beneath head.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Saturday 10:30a Intro: Week 6 (Apr 11, 2009)
Focus of class on keeping weight evenly distributed on the feet, the legs and keeping the torso centered and lifted and/or long.
1. Tadasana
2. Virabhadrasana 2
3x;
3rd time move into...
3. Utthita Parsva Konasana
2x;
2nd time move into...
4. Utthita Trikonasana
Then back to Parsva Konasana;
5. Uttanasana
2x;
1st: Hold elbows and hang;
Most students hanging buttocks back behind line of heels - take weight into toe mounds to even weight distribution;
2nd: Hands down to bricks;
6. Utthita Trikonasana
2x;
7. Padangusthasana
2x; use belt around big toes to pull up;
1st: concave back;
2nd: head down, elbows out to sides to lengthen side chest down;
8. Adho Mukha Svanasana
3x; hands/thumbs & index fingers at wall;
2nd: bricks between upper thighs to get leg action;
9. Halasana
Feet to chair seat;
10. Salamba Sarvangasana
11. Savasana
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Friday 6:00a Asana 1: Week 6 (Apr 10, 2009)
NOTE: This is an Asana 1 class and not for beginners. All students have been attending classes at Yoga St. Louis for at least one year.
5 students, one on her menstrual period. Focus of the class on preparing for seated forward bends.
1. Tadasana
2. Virabhadrasana 2
2x;
2nd into...
3. Utthita Parsva Konasana
4. Uttanasana
5. Virabhadrasana 1
6. Uttanasana
Repeat and deepen;
Keep hips over heels, not leaning back;
7. Utthita Trikonasana
2x;
2nd into...
8. Utthita Parsva Konasana
Return to...
9. Utthita Trikonasana
Into...
10. Ardha Chandrasana
Into...
11. Parsvottanasana
Into...
12. Uttanasana
Return to Tadasana and repeat cycle of poses #7 - #12 on other side;
13. Virabhadrasana 1
14. Prasarita Padottanasana
15. Virasana
Sit on heels;
16. Adho Mukha Virasana
Knees apart;
Actively extend arms to prepare for...
17. Adho Mukha Svanasana
2x;
18. Purvottanasana
2x; roll upper arms back & push through palms, triceps firm;
1st: knees bent, feet on floor;
2nd: legs straight;
19. Adho Mukha Svanasana
20. Dandasana
21. Janu Sirsasana
If lifted, prop knee on brick or blanket;
22. Dandasana
23. Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana
Cradle ankle as you move it to upper thigh, bending forward to keep knee low;
If lifted, prop knee on brick or blanket;
24. Dandasana
25. Triang Mukhaikpada Paschimottanasana
Sit on brick or blanket under extended leg buttock to balance hips;
If cannot reach hands to foot, use belt;
26. Dandasana
27. Savasana
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Tuesday 6.30p Intro — Week 6 (April 7, 2009)
Focus: Continue to review and refine hip opening from Week 4: Virabhadrasana II, Trikonasana, and Parsvakonasana to open the right hip. Lack of hip opening often masquerades as hamstring stiffness. Add Adho Mukha Svanasana, Wall Ekapada Sarvangasana, and Janu Sirsasana. Repeat Tuesday 6.30p Intro — Week 4 (Mar 24, 2009) for Virabhadrasana I preparatory work at home.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Discussion: What is Iyengar Yoga?
See Thursday 6.30p Intro — Week 5 (April 2, 2009) for the discussion.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
2. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
3. Virabhadrasana II (3 X)
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings.
b. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope to keep from leaning into the right leg, make the left side the stable side, so that the right side becomes more mobile. Extend the inner left leg towards the Rope Wall while bending the right knee.
c. Turn the right leg out more to bring the right femur more into the socket. Connecting the femur into the socket stops hip cramping and lower back pain because the spine receives the action of the limbs.
4. Utthita Trikonasana (3 X)
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall.
b. Right foot on brick to bring the right femur more into the socket.
5. Utthita Parsvakonasana (3 X)
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as in Virabhadrasana II.
b. Repeat the actions as above, then sit the buttock down to take the right hand to the floor.
6. Parsvottanasana (hands on chair seat, head on brick on chair seat)
a. Pull right hip back, left hip forward.
b. Inserted prior to Virabhadrasana I to provide rest and stretch left calf.
c. Preparation for Adho Mukha Svanasana.
7. Virabhadrasana I
a. Do more work on Week 4 sequence to help learn this pose.
8. Utkatasana
a. Omitted for time and emphasis.
9. Uttanasana
a. Omitted for time and emphasis. Substituted Adho Mukha Svanasana as a preparation for Sarvangasana.
10. Adho Mukha Svanasana
a. Hands turned out 90° at wall. Don’t “let the consciousness leak out” from beneath the forefinger knuckle. Press it down then stretch the inner armpit towards the hip.
11. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Wall Ekapada Sarvangasana
b. Salamba Sarvangasana
Get more on top of the shoulders and leave the feet on the wall to relieve the choking sensation. When the range of motion of the arm is increased there will be less pressure on the neck. The spine receives the actions of the limbs.
12. Forward Extensions
a. Substituted Urdhva Hasta Janu Sirsasana for Paschimottanasana to continue groin work of standing poses and because of leg stiffness.
b. Chair Urdhva Hasta Janu Sirsasana: Sit on two folded blankets, head on chair seat, hands up, holding chair arms.
13. Savasana
a. Back chest on blanket folded in half, trifold blanket beneath head.
Note new poses for this week are in bold face.
Discussion: What is Iyengar Yoga?
See Thursday 6.30p Intro — Week 5 (April 2, 2009) for the discussion.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
2. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
3. Virabhadrasana II (3 X)
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings.
b. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope to keep from leaning into the right leg, make the left side the stable side, so that the right side becomes more mobile. Extend the inner left leg towards the Rope Wall while bending the right knee.
c. Turn the right leg out more to bring the right femur more into the socket. Connecting the femur into the socket stops hip cramping and lower back pain because the spine receives the action of the limbs.
4. Utthita Trikonasana (3 X)
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall.
b. Right foot on brick to bring the right femur more into the socket.
5. Utthita Parsvakonasana (3 X)
a. Left heel at the Rope Wall, holding the lower wall rope as in Virabhadrasana II.
b. Repeat the actions as above, then sit the buttock down to take the right hand to the floor.
6. Parsvottanasana (hands on chair seat, head on brick on chair seat)
a. Pull right hip back, left hip forward.
b. Inserted prior to Virabhadrasana I to provide rest and stretch left calf.
c. Preparation for Adho Mukha Svanasana.
7. Virabhadrasana I
a. Do more work on Week 4 sequence to help learn this pose.
8. Utkatasana
a. Omitted for time and emphasis.
9. Uttanasana
a. Omitted for time and emphasis. Substituted Adho Mukha Svanasana as a preparation for Sarvangasana.
10. Adho Mukha Svanasana
a. Hands turned out 90° at wall. Don’t “let the consciousness leak out” from beneath the forefinger knuckle. Press it down then stretch the inner armpit towards the hip.
11. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Wall Ekapada Sarvangasana
b. Salamba Sarvangasana
Get more on top of the shoulders and leave the feet on the wall to relieve the choking sensation. When the range of motion of the arm is increased there will be less pressure on the neck. The spine receives the actions of the limbs.
12. Forward Extensions
a. Substituted Urdhva Hasta Janu Sirsasana for Paschimottanasana to continue groin work of standing poses and because of leg stiffness.
b. Chair Urdhva Hasta Janu Sirsasana: Sit on two folded blankets, head on chair seat, hands up, holding chair arms.
13. Savasana
a. Back chest on blanket folded in half, trifold blanket beneath head.
Tuesday 4.30p MS — Week 6 (April 7, 2009)
Focus: To reduce vertigo behind the right eye.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Bolster Adho Mukha Virasana (40 min)
a. Demo: Blanket under shins, bolster and brick support beneath sternum and head down, to elevate the spiritual heart, to quiet the mind. 35# weight on sacrum to release the shoulders and pull the weight off of the brain. Crown of head touching stacked sandbags to prevent anything from moving.
2. Bolster Savasana (10 min)
a. 35# weight on a second bolster on thighs, use a neck roll, and use arm support to stop vertigo. Sandbags on groins. Eyebags in palms, bandage forehead.
Invocation in Swastikasana
1. Bolster Adho Mukha Virasana (40 min)
a. Demo: Blanket under shins, bolster and brick support beneath sternum and head down, to elevate the spiritual heart, to quiet the mind. 35# weight on sacrum to release the shoulders and pull the weight off of the brain. Crown of head touching stacked sandbags to prevent anything from moving.
2. Bolster Savasana (10 min)
a. 35# weight on a second bolster on thighs, use a neck roll, and use arm support to stop vertigo. Sandbags on groins. Eyebags in palms, bandage forehead.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Friday 6:00a Asana 1: Week 6 (Feb 6, 2009)
NOTE: This is an Asana 1 class and not for beginners. All students have been attending classes at Yoga St. Louis for at least one year.
5 students. One student with sinus problems, one with clogged ear from airplane travel.
Class discussion from BKS Iyengar talking about asana (“Devotion: An Interview With Guruji” by Linda Di Carlo, Yoga Samachar Vol. 12 No. 2):
“Asanas are like the sun. As the rays of the sun touch the earth evenly if there are no clouds. But in us as sadhakas (a seeker, an aspirant), there are a lot of thick clouds in our intelligence as well as in our mind. … That is why so many asanas are given, to remove the clouds that cover the intelligence and consciousness.”
1.) Tadasana
— Observe, compare, contrast & find where you are “cloudy”, where the intelligence cannot yet penetrate;
2.) Utthita Trikonasana
Move into…
3.) Utthita Parsvakonasana
Move into…
4.) Utthita Trikonasana
Move into…
5.) Utthita Parsvakonasana
6.) Tadasana
— Reevaluate cloudiness, where you are stuck;
7.) Virabhadrasana 2
Move into…
8.) Utthita Parsvakonasana
Move into…
9.) Utthita Trikonasana
Move into…
10.) Utthita Parsvakonasana
Move into…
11.) Ardha Chandrasana
Move into…
12.) Parsvottanasana
— No bricks, hands on floor;
13.) Uttanasana
14.) Tadasana
15.) Paschima Baddha Hastasana
Paschima = West, back side of body
— Hold elbows, upper arms belted;
16.) Utthita Trikonasana
— With arms belted;
17.) Gomukhasana (2x) arms only
Go = cow, Mukha = face
18.) Virabhadrasana 1
19.) Virbhadrasana 3 (3x)
— First time, middle of room;
— Second & third times at wall, arms/hands supported in rope holes;
— Extend through back heel;
20.) Uttanasana
21.) Adho Mukha Svanasana (3x)
— First time, palms turned out & bisected on edge of bricks; work on not dumping into wrists, press into mounds of fingers to open shoulders;
— Second time, same bricks at hands, add brick between upper thighs; compare how different from first dog pose – lighter on hands?;
— Third time, no bricks;
22.) Halasana
23.) Salamba Sarvangasana
24.) Baddha Konasana in Sarvangasana
— Feet together, knees apart to move tailbone up; rejoin legs;
25.) Ekapada Sarvangasana
26.) Halasana
27.) Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
28.) Savasana
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