Warrior 1
-
Upload
brian-jones -
Category
Documents
-
view
218 -
download
0
description
Transcript of Warrior 1
-
How many people suffer from seasonal allergies every year?
nmlkj 2 in 5 nmlkj 1 in 10
nmlkj 1 in 6
Search
Our free weekly email newsletter on all aspects of the practice. Subscribe
For teachers: free exclusive articles on teaching, philosophy, and more each month. Subscribe
Sign up for the new Daily Insight newsletter and receive a quick dose of yogic inspiration. Subscribe
Read the stuff we didn't have room for in the magazine! Subscribe
Virabhadrasana I (Warrior Pose I)
(veer-ah-bah-DRAHS-anna) Virabhadra = the name of a fierce warrior, an incarnation of Shiva, described as having a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, and a thousand feet, and wielding a thousand clubs, and wearing a tiger's skin.
Virabhadras Pose is also known as the Warrior Pose (there are three variation of Warrior, of which this is customarily numbered 1). It may seem strange to name a yoga pose after a warrior; after all, arent yogis known for theyre non-violent ways? But remember that one of the most revered of all the yoga texts, the Bhagavad-Gita, is the dialog between two famous and feared warriors, Krishna and Arjuna, set on a battlefield between two great armies spoiling for a fight. Whats really being commemorated in this poses name, and held up as an ideal for all practitioners, is the spiritual warrior, who bravely does battle with the universal enemy, self-ignorance (avidya), the ultimate source of all our suffering.
Benefits
z Stretches the chest and lungs, shoulders and neck, belly, groins (psoas)
z Strengthens the shoulders and arms, and the muscles of the back
z Strengthens and stretches the thighs, calves, and ankles
Contraindications/Cautions
z High blood pressure
z Heart problems
z Students with shoulder problems should keep their raised arms parallel (or slightly wider than parallel) to each other.
z Students with neck problems should keep their head in a neutral position and not look up at the hands.
Step by Step
1. Stand in Tadasana . With an exhale, step or lightly jump your feet 31/2 to 4
Click for larger image
Sponsor
Page 1 of 4Yoga Journal : Poses - Use our search tools to find asanas by anatomical focus, therapeutic ap...
04/09/2006http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/1708_1.cfm
-
feet apart. Raise your arms perpendicular to the floor (and parallel to each other), and reach actively through the little-finger sides of the hands toward the ceiling. Firm your scapulas against your back and draw them down toward the coccyx.
2. Turn your left foot in 45 to 60 degrees to the right and your right foot out 90 degrees to the right. Align the right heel with the left heel. Exhale and rotate your torso to the right, squaring the front of your pelvis as much as possible with the front edge of your mat. As the left hip point turns forward, press the head of the left femur back to ground the heel. Lengthen your coccyx toward the floor, and arch your upper torso back slightly.
3. With your left heel firmly anchored to the floor, exhale and bend your right knee over the right ankle so the shin is perpendicular to the floor. More flexible students should align their right thigh parallel to the floor.
4. Reach strongly through your arms, lifting the ribcage away from the pelvis. As you ground down through the back foot, feel a lift that runs up the back leg, across the belly and chest, and up into the arms. If possible, bring the palms together. Spread the palms against each other and reach a little higher through the pinky-sides of the hands. Keep your head in a neutral position, gazing forward, or tilt it back and look up at your thumbs.
5. Stay for 30 seconds to a minute. To come up, inhale, press the back heel firmly into the floor and reach up through the arms, straightening the right knee. Turn the feet forward and release the arms with an exhalation, or keep them extended upward for more challenge. Take a few breaths, then turn the feet to the left and repeat for the same length. When you're finished return to Tadasana.
Anatomical Focus z Ankles
z Calves
z Thighs
z Groins
z Abdomen
z Chest
z Lungs
z Shoulders
z Neck Therapeutic Applications
z Sciatica Modifications & Props
Beginners find it very difficult to keep the back heel grounded and the lower back lengthened in this pose. As a short-term solution, raise the back heel on a sand bag or other height.
Variations
This pose can be performed with the arms in various positions. For example, go through steps 1 to 3 as described above, except with your hands resting on your hips. Then, once the forward knee is bent, swing your arms around behind your torso and clasp your hands. Stretch your hands away from the back torso and lift your chest. It's acceptable to squeeze your scapulas together at first, but be sure, once the chest is lifted, to push them away from the spine. To leave the pose, reach back with your hands and, with an inhalation, "pull" yourself up, straightening the front knee.
Preparatory Poses
z Adho Mukha Svanasana
z Gomukhasana
Ads by Goog
Yoga HoliFrance Small chatPyrenees fdaily classBedrooms www.yoga-in-
Online YoLearn Yog250+ poseDownload Research Softwarewww.yogasan
WellbeingHolidaysYoga RetreCourses FDesigned fAround thewww.wellbein
Tuscany YHolidaysLuxurious farm 9-23r455 share695 single www.mapayo
Advertise on
Page 2 of 4Yoga Journal : Poses - Use our search tools to find asanas by anatomical focus, therapeutic ap...
04/09/2006http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/1708_1.cfm
-
z Parivrtta Parsvakonasana
z Parivrtta Trikonasana
z Prasarita Padottanasana
z Supta Virasana
z Supta Baddha Konasana
z Supta Padangusthasana
z Upavistha Konasana
z Utthita Parsvakonasana
z Virabhadrasana II
z Virasana
z Vrksasana
Follow-up Poses
Virabhadrasana I is commonly used as the beginning position for Virabhadrasana III. It's also a good standing pose preparation for backbends.
Beginners Tip
When the front knee bends into the pose, beginners have a tendency to tip the pelvis forward, which duck-tails the coccyx and compresses the lower back. As you perform step 2 in the main description above, be sure to lift the pubis toward the navel and lengthen the tail toward the floor. Then as you bend the knee, continue to lift and descend these two bones, keeping the top rim of the pelvis relatively parallel to the floor.
Partnering
Here's a partnering exercise for this pose, but you need two partners (of approximately the same height) and a thick pole (like a broomstick). As you perform the pose, have your partners stand, facing you, to either side of your torso. It's helpful if you and your partners are similar in height. They should hold the ends of the pole and hold it above your head. Grasp the pole with your raised hands, then you and your partners push the pole up until your arms are fully extended. Imagine then, as all three of you push, that your torso and legs are "hanging" from the pole.
SUBSCRIBE TO YOGA JOURNAL
Page 3 of 4Yoga Journal : Poses - Use our search tools to find asanas by anatomical focus, therapeutic ap...
04/09/2006http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/1708_1.cfm
-
MORE ARTICLES IN Poses
Standing
Receive 2 FREE Trial Issues and 2 FREE gifts!
If I like it and decide to continue, I'll pay just $15.95,and receive a full one-year subscription (7 issues in all), a 54% savings off the newsstand price! Otherwise, I'll write cancel on the invoice and owe nothing.
Get FREE Trial Issues Yes! Please send me my 2 FREE trial issues of Yoga Journal and my TWO FREE GIFTS:
z Better Posture 101
z Yoga For Neck & Shoulders
A digital guide to assessing and improving your posture
A digital guide to postures that relieve neck, back and shoulder tension.
Pay now and get2 Bonus Issues!
Pay now and get TWO EXTRISSUES FREE! That's 9 issuthe same low price!
>Click Here to PAY NOW
Full Name
City
Address State Select a State
Address (line 2) Zip
Email (required) Submit my order!
Offer valid in US only. Canadian subscriptions | International subscriptions
Copyright 2006. Yoga Journal, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Read our privacy guidelines. The editorial content of Yoga Journal should not be used as a substitute for professional health care. Talk to your doctor before starting any new exercise regime.
Page 4 of 4Yoga Journal : Poses - Use our search tools to find asanas by anatomical focus, therapeutic ap...
04/09/2006http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/1708_1.cfm