Day 50 : Meditative : Vajrasana (thunderbolt) subroutine from Vinyasa Krama Bow sequence

VIDEO LINK

A relatively straight forward posture in which, as with tadasana and it's hand/arm vinyasas, we can focus on the breath and movement of the arms but also of the hips.

This is also an excellent posture for engaging the bandhas are lengthening the exhalation in the forward bends which me may choose to stay in for a considerable time.

The forward bends are are more challenging than they look as the posture is less stable than in say paschimottanasan and upavishta konasana. As we begging to fold forward our hips want to list and it's is difficult to control the decent and not end up head butting the mat.

Vajrasana may also be used as a posture for pranayama and meditation and may be the ideal alternative if you struggle with padmasana (lotus).

HINTS/TIPS/SUGGESTIONS.

Engage the bandhas, especially Mula bandha, drawing up the anus. this seems to act as an anchor, focusing our attention on where we need to counter the weight of our arms and upper body as it folds forward.

press the lower legs from the knees to the toes into the mat, especially focusing on the toes and dorsal feet.

The counter poses in the last two pictures are excellent positions to begin focusing on raising the hips as far as possible and pushing them forward, exploring nutation( the tilting of the pelvis both clockwise and counterclockwise) and strengthening the quads, all useful preparation for the backbends that come later in the meditative sequence as well as those in other sequences.

NB: These are practice notes that will be tidied up and put into the new edition of my Vinyasa Yoga Practice Book along with the current sequences and subroutines. The book can be freely downloaded HERE. There is a page on Facebook HERE with all the latest sheets and updates. This book is in no way a substitute for Ramaswami's Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga.