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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
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 ...
. Janusirsasana is a variant with one knee bent out to the side; Upavishthakonasana has the legs straight and wide apart.
Etymology and origins
![Jogapradipika 7 Pascimatanasana](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Jogapradipika_7_Pascimatanasana.jpg)
The name Paschimottanasana comes from the Sanskrit words ''paschima'' (पश्चिम, paścima) meaning "west" or "the back of the body";
''uttana'' (उत्तान, uttāna) meaning "intense stretch" or "straight" or "extended"; and ''asana'' (आसन, āsana) meaning "posture" or "seat".
The pose is described in the 15th-century ''
Hatha Yoga Pradipika'', chapter 1, verses 28-29.
The name Dandasana ( sa, दण्डासन;
IAST: ''daṇḍāsana'') is from Sanskrit दण्ड ''daṇḍa'' meaning "stick" or "staff".
The pose is not found in the medieval
hatha yoga texts. 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 ...
'' uses the name Dandasana for a different pose, the body held straight, supported by a rope. The yoga scholar
Norman Sjoman
Norman E. Sjoman (born July 6, 1944, Mission City) is known as author of the 1996 book ''The Yoga Tradition of the Mysore Palace'', which contains an English translation of the yoga section of ''Sritattvanidhi'', a 19th-century treatise by the ...
notes, however, that the traditional Indian ''Vyayama'' gymnastic exercises include a set of movements called "dands", similar to
Surya Namaskar
Sun Salutation, also called Surya Namaskar(a) or Salute to the Sun (), is a practice in yoga as exercise incorporating a flow sequence of some twelve gracefully linked asanas. The asana sequence was first recorded as yoga in the early 20th centu ...
and to the
vinyasas used in
modern yoga
Modern yoga is a wide range of yoga practices with differing purposes, encompassing in its various forms yoga philosophy derived from the Vedas, physical postures derived from Hatha yoga, devotional and tantra-based practices, and Hindu nation- ...
.
The name Janusirsasana ( sa, जानु शीर्षासन;
IAST: ''jānu śīrṣāsana'') comes from the Sanskrit जानु (jānu) meaning "knee" and शीर्ष (śīrṣa) meaning "head".
The pose is a modern one, first seen in the 20th century. It is described in
Krishnamacharya's 1934 ''
Yoga Makaranda
''Yoga Makaranda'' (Sanskrit: योग मकरन्द), meaning "''Essence of Yoga''", is a 1934 book on hatha yoga by the influential pioneer of yoga as exercise, Tirumalai Krishnamacharya. Most of the text is a description of 42 asana ...
'', and in the works of his pupils,
B. K. S. Iyengar's 1966 ''
Light on Yoga''
and
Pattabhi Jois's
Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.
[
The name Upavishthakonasana ( sa, उपविष्टकोणासन); IAST: ''upaviṣṭa koṇāsana'') is from the ]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 ...
उपविष्ट (upaviṣṭa) meaning "open" and कोण (koṇa) meaning "angle". It is not found in medieval hatha yoga, but is described in ''Light on Yoga''. It is independently described under a different name, Hastapadasana ("Hand-to-Foot Pose") in Swami Vishnudevananda's 1960 '' Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga'', suggesting an older origin.
Description
Paschimottanasana is entered from Dandasana (seated Staff pose) by bending forward from the hips without straining and grasping the feet or lower legs. A strap may be placed around the feet and grasped in the hands if the back is stiff. The head may be rested on a folded blanket or bolster, which may be raised on a small stool if necessary. People who have difficulty bending their backs should exercise caution when performing this asana.
Variations
Dandasana or "Staff pose" has the legs extended along the floor and the body straight upright, with the palms or fingertips on the ground.
People who cannot sit on the floor like this can sit on a folded blanket.
Janusirsasana or "Head to knee pose" has one leg extended with toes pointing upward, and the other leg bent with knee pointing away from the straight leg and the sole of the foot in by the groin. The torso folds straight forwards over the extended leg.[
Urdhva Mukha Paschimottanasana, also called ]Ubhaya Padangusthasana
Navasana (Sanskrit: नावासन; IAST: nāvāsana), Naukasana, Boat Pose, or Paripurna Navasana ( sa, परिपूर्णनावासन; IAST: ''paripūrṇanāvāsana'' "Full Boat Pose") is a seated asana in modern yoga as exer ...
, is a balancing form of the pose, legs and hands pointing upwards.
Parivritta Paschimottanasana is the reversed or twisted form of the pose, the body twisted to one side and the hands reversed, so that if the body is turned to the left, the right hand grasps the left foot, the right elbow is over the left knee, and the left hand grasps the right foot.
Trianga Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasana has one leg bent as in Virasana
Virasana ( sa, वीरासन; IAST: ''vīrāsana'') or Hero Pose is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise. Medieval hatha yoga texts describe a cross-legged meditation asana under the same name. Supta Virasana is the reclining form ...
.
Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana has one leg crossed over the other as in Padmasana.
Upavishthakonasana or "wide-angle seated forward bend" has both legs straight along the ground, as wide apart as possible, with the chin and nose touching the ground. Parsva Upavishthakonasana (to the side) has the body facing one leg, and the hands both grasping the foot of that leg, without raising the opposite hip. Urdhva Upavishthakonasana (upwards) is similar to Navasana
Navasana (Sanskrit: नावासन; IAST: nāvāsana), Naukasana, Boat Pose, or Paripurna Navasana ( sa, परिपूर्णनावासन; IAST: ''paripūrṇanāvāsana'' "Full Boat Pose") is a seated asana in modern yoga as exer ...
but with legs wide. It has the first and second fingers grasping the big toes, the legs wide apart, straight, and raised to around head height; the body is tilted back slightly to balance on the sitting bones. The pose can be practised with a strap around each foot if the legs cannot be straightened fully in the position; a rolled blanked can be placed behind the buttocks to assist with balancing.
File:Dandasana yoga posture.jpg, Dandasana
File:Janusirsasana_Yoga-Asana_Nina-Mel.jpg, Janusirsasana
File:Upavisha-konasana.jpg, Upavishthakonasana
See also
* Uttanasana
Uttanasana ( sa, उत्तानासन; ) or Standing Forward Bend, with variants such as Padahastasana where the toes are grasped, is a standing forward bending asana in modern yoga as exercise.
Etymology and origins
The name comes from ...
, a standing forward bend
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
External links
Yoga Journal description
Yoga in Daily Life description
{{Hatha yoga
Sitting asanas
Forward bend asanas
Medieval Hatha Yoga asanas
ru:Растягивающие асаны#Пашчимоттанасана