Krishnamacharya, turning practice on it's head.

Yoga Makaranda 1936

When I came back from Santorini I posted my Morning practice outlining how I was cutting back the asana, pretty much to the bare minimum recommended by Krishnamacharya and Ramaswami,  to accommodate 80 pranayamas (60 - 90 minutes).

Of course you don't have to go so far as 80 pranayamas, you could add just twelve, twenty-four, forty-eight to your regular practice, this is an experiment, an exploration.

1938 documentary footage

As well as the practice outlined in the earlier post  I've also started exploring this later Krishnamacharya approach, with the inversions earlier on in the practice. Here's an outline of Krishnamacharya logic behind it.

'Numerous asanas have been mentioned in the treatises on yoga. Each has it's own special benefits. But of all the asanas the Shirsasana and Sarvangasana hold the top place, as they give the greatest benefit, and the shastras extol their benefit. 


...When once a fair proficiency has been attains in asana and pranayama, the aspirant to Dhyana has to regulate the time to be spent on each and choose the particular Asanas and pranayama which will have the most effect in strengthening the higher organs and centres of perception and thus aid him in attaining Dhyana.


...The best asanas to choose for this purpose Shirsasana and Sarvangasana. These are to be done with proper regulated breathing and bandhas.


...Follow with some sitting asana. In Shirshasana, the organs in the head and in the brain get a copious supply of blood, the internal organs in the body get displaced upwards. the two minutes rest normalises. in Sarvangasana, the blood supply to the head is restricted by resting the body on the neck and making the chin lock. the thyroid and the upper part of the body get the the extra blood supply. But here again the internal organs of the body get displaced upwards. the two minute rest normalises. When a sitting asana is now done the internal organs regain their proper positions. this is the reason behind doing the asanas in this particular order.


...Sayanchanacharya has mentioned six specific asanas for daily practice. he, however, proscribes that along with these other asana (this may vary each day) should be done.


...As Dhyna is practiced in one of the sitting postures, these asanas should also be practiced to strengthen the muscles that come into play in keeping the postures steady'.


In my own morning practice I've set it out something like this, bold are the minimum recommended asana by Krishnamacharya, regular type, those from Ramaswami. There's flexibility here of course, lots of Vinyasa Krama variations that can get added and taken away here and there depending on time. It's pretty much the same as before but with the inversions earlier on.

Asana

10 Minute tadasana sequence

Trikonasana

Utthita hasta padangusthasana 

Shoulderstand prep

Shoulderstand (5 minutes)

Salabhasana  (counterpose)

Sirsasana (Headstand) - ujjayi pranayama - 24 rounds (2 breaths per minute) 12 minutes, 2 minute rest

Savangasana (Shoulderstand) - ujjayi pranayama - 24 rounds 12 minutes

2 minutes rest

Urdhva Dhanurasana (counterpose)

Paschimottanasana

Purvottanasana

Parighasana

Maha mudra

Mayurasana

Badha Konasana

Badha padmasana

Pranayama (80 pranayama's)

Suryabhedana,

Ujjayi

Kapalabhati /Nadishodana,

Vilouma ujjayi shodana

Bhastrika/Sittali

Pratyahara (withdrawal of senses)

yonimudra (inner gazing)

trataka (outer gazing)

Dharana (Concentration): Fixing the attention on a single object.

Metta (loving kindness)

Effulgence

Japa (mantra)

Savasana (10 minutes - Ramaswami's chanting)

-------------------------------

Yogasanagalu, 1970's edition

Nice reminder that Krishnamacharya was always big on inversions, here he is in the 1938 documentary. I think he's about the same age in this as I am now, 48 going on 49 (next week).



There's evening practice too of course but that's exploring Krishnamacharya's Yoga Makaranda/Yogasanagalu approach while we  work on the Yogasanagalu translation (actually Satya's doing all the real work, I'm not doing much).