Halasana (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

: हलासन;

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...

: ''halāsana'') or Plough pose is an inverted

asana An asana is a body posture, originally and still a general term for a sitting meditation pose,Verse 46, chapter II, "Patanjali Yoga sutras" by Swami Prabhavananda, published by the Sri Ramakrishna Math p. 111 and later extended in hatha yoga ...

hatha yoga Haṭha yoga is a branch of yoga which uses physical techniques to try to preserve and channel the vital force or energy. The Sanskrit word हठ ''haṭha'' literally means "force", alluding to a system of physical techniques. Some haṭha ...

and modern

yoga as exercise Yoga as exercise is a physical activity consisting mainly of postures, often connected by flowing sequences, sometimes accompanied by breathing exercises, and frequently ending with relaxation lying down or meditation. Yoga in this form has ...

. Its variations include Karnapidasana with the knees by the ears, and Supta Konasana with the feet wide apart.

Etymology and origins

Marguerite Agniel posing with her back arched and legs stret Wellcome V0048584

The name Halasana comes from Sanskrit हला ''hala'', "

plough A plough or plow ( US; both ) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting. Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses, but in modern farms are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden, iron or ...

" and आसन ''āsana'', "posture" or "seat". The pose is described and illustrated in the 19th century ''

Sritattvanidhi The ''Sritattvanidhi'' (, "The Illustrious Treasure of Realities") is a treatise written in the 19th century in Karnataka on the iconography and iconometry of divine figures in South India. One of its sections includes instructions for, and ill ...

'' as ''Lāṇgalāsana'', which also means plough pose in Sanskrit. Karnapidasana is not found in the medieval

texts. It is described independently in Swami Vishnudevananda's 1960 '' Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga'' in the Sivananda Yoga tradition, and by '' B. K. S. Iyengar'' in his 1966 ''

Light on Yoga ''Light on Yoga: Yoga Dipika'' (Sanskrit: योग दीपिका, "Yoga Dīpikā") is a 1966 book on the Iyengar Yoga style of modern yoga as exercise by B. K. S. Iyengar, first published in English. It describes more than 200 yoga postur ...

'', implying that it may have older origins. The name comes from the Sanskrit words ''karṇa'' (कर्ण) meaning "ears", ''pīḍ'' (पीड्) meaning "to squeeze", and ''āsana'' (आसन) meaning "posture" or "seat".

Description

The pose is entered from

Sarvangasana Sarvangasana ( sa, सर्वाङ्गासन, translit=sarvāṅgāsana), Shoulder stand, or more fully Salamba Sarvangasana (Supported Shoulder stand), is an inverted asana in modern yoga as exercise; similar poses were used in medieval ...

(shoulderstand), lowering the back slightly for balance, and moving the arms and legs over the head until the outstretched toes touch the ground and the fingertips, in a preparatory variant of the pose. The arms may then be moved to support the back into a more vertical position, giving a second variant pose. Finally, the arms may be stretched out on the ground away from the feet, giving the final pose in the shape of a traditional plough.

Variations

Karnapidasana (ear-pressing pose) or Raja Halasana (royal plough pose) has the knees bent close to the head and grasped by the arms. Parsva Halasana (sideways plough) has the body vertical, the trunk twisted to one side, and legs out straight with the feet touching the ground (to that side). Supta Konasana (supine angle pose) has the legs as wide apart as possible, the toes on the ground, like an inverted

Upavistha Konasana Pashchimottanasana ( sa, पश्चिमोत्तानासन, translit=paścimottānāsana), Seated Forward Bend, or Intense Dorsal Stretch is a seated forward-bending asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise. Janusirsasana is a ...

; the fingertips may grasp the big toes. All these variations may be performed as part of a cycle starting from

(Shoulderstand).

References

Sources

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External links