Woke up feeling buoyant and launched a revenge attack on Mr. Next Door who treats me to full technicolour renditions of his hawking up repertoire every morning and night without fail, so today I treated him to full volume”Let it Go” as I took my pre- practice shower. Unfortunately our bathroom windows back on to to each other and there is no soundproofing whatsoever – was thinking maybe a Simon and Garfunkel medley tomorrow 🙂
The doorbell went and when I answered Sushila (our cook for the month) came bounding in looking extremely swish with a sparkle in her eye and a big grin. I commented on her rather beautiful sari and she told me she was able to buy it with the baksheesh (tip) I had given her yesterday. This made me very happy as I had been looking and looking and struggling to find the right sari for her as a gift when we leave, so now she has saved me the trouble!
My practice session today was hard – 3 steps forward, 2 steps back kind of carry on – but I have to remind myself that does mean that overall I am still going forward. In my sirsasana journey I haven’t reached my destination yet, but at least I have left the house!
The quote that kept coming back to me again and again during my practice (that both Abhi and Raya have mentioned a lot) was Guruji saying that he used his brain strongly to get into an asana, but once there the brain has to withdraw. It is my tendency to go at it ‘all guns blazing’ and it’ll take me a lifetime of practice to master the art of retaining the desired action and withdrawing the brain, but again, at least I’ve now left the house, even if I am still only dragging my suitcase down the garden path!!
Wonky Cobbler Pose!
Raya’s class this evening was restorative and pranayama (full sequence below). We began with AMS, uttanasana and prasarita paddottonasana. He quoted Guruji who said
“We have to expand our extension and extend our expansion”
He illustrated this point further with a visualisation: Niagara Falls are very wide, not so high but far distance from one side to the other; Angel Falls are narrow and very high, very tall – as we descend into uttanasana / prasarita paddottonasana we have to flow like both of those falls simultaneously. He demonstrated very clearly how in uttanasana holding the heels (gulphasana) we get a superior downward extension, by first widening – starting from the feet pressing into the outer edges, knees and thighs hitting from inner to outer, then the torso widening the ribs and collar bones, how this creates the space for the body to flow completely downwards without any humping of the back.
After sirsasana and chair sarvangasana we finished with some pranayama, first seated on the chair backward with the arms extending downward behind working on an active inhalation and then lying in bent leg savasana with the shins weighted on the chair and the body lying on the stone floor (much better experience to lie so that the body gets the contact with the natural stone floor rather than a sticky mat), working on extended exhalation. He asked us to imagine we were standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking a valley far, far below and you have folded a paper aeroplane which you launch over the edge. First you have to launch, but then it gets carried without any further exertion. So it goes further and further away as you exhale, exhale, exhale, exhale, exhaaale. As you exhale going deeper and deeper down into that stone floor. The inhalation requires nothing from you, it is simply a reaction to the exhalation, almost like a breeze.
Our last proper Pune practice tomorrow – we are travelling to Panchgani after the Women’s class on Saturday and returning Monday just in time to get one last class with Abhi before departing for an overnight trip to Mumbai, plane leaving for Heathrow at 7am. Sigh.
An ox and cart flowing along with the heavy traffic.
25th February – Raya – Pranayama
AMS – Head support to be selected after the height needed was witnessed. On the forehead so that dorsal remained inward. The very top thigh junction had to move up and back to make the space between abdomen and thighs. Transferring the weight to the legs completely, drawing up and back there, height in the buttocks before taking the heels down.
Uttanasana holding the heels gulphasana feet mat width apart – Quote from Guruji “ We have to expand our extension and extend our expansion” Here he showed the superior downward extension achieved by first widening the ribs, broadening the collar bones, making space and then elongating into that space downward, not to bring the head too much in towards the legs, but letting the crown of the head hang naturally down – making sure you are not crowding the neck with the shoulders. We also had to widen the legs, press the outer edges of the feet, press the inner knee to the outer knee, the inner thigh to the outer thigh, back thighs broad.
AMS – Now bring this feeling of width from uttanasana to AMS
Prasarita Paddottonasana – He gave a visualisation here of Niagara Falls, how the falls are so spread and wide and Angel Falls which are high and tall – in prasarita we have to be both those falls simultaneously.
He also gave a demonstration of how each of the ribs has to act in the same manner as the shoulders, in that they roll down and coil in – so as if each ribs was a shoulder blade, rolling down and coiling in as we went forward, half way with the hands on the waist. Then full pose catching the heels and first broadening, then extending downward into that space – I found I was a very long way down. Natural position of the head so that you are absolutely quiet there, head support if head not down.
Uttanasana –
Sirsasana – getting the breadth as well as the width, inner arms hit out, outer shoulders resist in. Now summer is beginning one of the places that holds heat is the region between the legs around the perineum – not just because you are a little sweaty there, but this is one of the places that holds the heat. So take the legs a little apart and aereate that area, make space there. Maintaining the four corners of the knees rolling the top thigh in, but retaining that space around the perineum as you lengthen upward join the legs together – keep a little space for that area to be cool – keep the back thighs spreading. Deeply suck the buttock crease – the buttock thigh junction inward to take the legs back. Baddha Konasana in sirsasana. Keep the heels forward over the perineum and the pelvic well lifted. Even pressure of the feet on each other. Virasana legs – extending the thighs vertically upward and extending the shins and feet downward a little bit coiling the dorsal in and the buttocks forward as if we were going to drop back. Straight legs sirsasana keeping those actions. Repeat virasana this time bending the legs forward towards the chest and hold there. Then come down.
AMVirasana variation – legs a little narrower than usual, hands reaching back and catching the heels. Chin (not throat) raised on a tri folded blanket, folded once more to make a thicker support. Hooking the chest all the way forward with the buttocks firmly grounded on the heels and lengthening in such a way as to keep the dorsal completely inward.
Chair sarvangasana, bolster or 2 pranayama pillows narrow way under the spine. Inserting arms below the crossbar of chair as you go down. Belt tied around the back rest of the chair a few inches lower than than the top bar, to act as a sling for the feet in baddha konasana. 4 arm positions 1) catching the heels of back legs of chair 2)hands on the back as for salamba sarvangasana – here I braced my elbows between the front legs of the chair to stop them from splaying 3)hooking the crook of the elbow around the front legs of the chair 4) like nirlambe sarvangasana arms released over the head with elbows bent and backs of hands on the floor.
Long stay in legs straight, long stay in baddha konasana legs. Breathing from the back chest to the front chest.
Seated pranayama on a backwards chair, legs either side of the back bar (not through). Arms extending down behind with belt around the lower wrist. Armpit chest coiling forward, shoulder blades like the chair sarvangasana. Active inhalation, passive exhalation. Only jalandara bandha if trapezius down and upper vertebrae inward, beginners can keep head up if not getting this action.
Bent leg savasana – calves on seat of chair, with bolster etc on the shins, legs weighted. Be on the stone floor, so that the body gets the contact with a natural substance, far superior to a sticky mat. Extended exhalations – imagine you are standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking a valley far, far below and you have folded a paper aeroplane which you launch over the edge. First you have to launch, but then it gets carried without any further exertion. So it goes further and further away as you exhale, exhale, exhale, exhale, exhaaale, exhaaaale, exhaaaale, exhaaale. As you exhale going deeper and deeper down into that stone floor. The inhalation requires nothing from you, it is simply a reaction to the exhalation, almost like a breeze.
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