Shirshasana (

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 ...

: शीर्षासन, IAST: śīrṣāsana) Salamba Shirshasana, or Yoga Headstand is an inverted asana in 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 ...

; it was described as both an asana and a mudra in classical hatha yoga, under different names. It has been called the king of all asanas. Its many variations can be combined into Mandalasana, in which the legs are progressively swept from one variation to the next in a full circle around the body.

Etymology and origins

The name Salamba Shirshasana comes from the Sanskrit words सालम्ब ''Sālamba'' meaning "supported", शीर्ष, ''Śīrṣa'' meaning "head", and आसन, ''Āsana'' meaning "posture" or "seat". The name ''Śīrṣāsana'' is relatively recent; the pose itself is much older, but had other names and purposes. Like other inversions, it was practised as

Viparita Karani Viparita Karani ( sa, विपरीतकरणी; ) or legs up the wall pose is both an asana and a mudra in hatha yoga. In modern yoga as exercise, it is commonly a fully supported pose using a wall and sometimes a pile of blankets, wher ...

, described as a mudra in the 15th century '' Hatha Yoga Pradipika'' and other classical texts on

haṭha 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 ...

. Viparita Karani, "the Inverter", holds the head down and the feet up for hours at a time, so as to cause gravity to retain the prana. The practice is claimed by the '' Dattatreya Yoga Shastra'' to destroy all diseases. to increase the digestive fire, and to banish signs of ageing. The pose is described and illustrated in halftone as Viparita Karani in the 1905 '' Yogasopana purvacatusca''.

Hemacandra Hemachandra was a 12th century () Indian Jain saint, scholar, poet, mathematician, philosopher, yogi, grammarian, law theorist, historian, lexicographer, rhetorician, logician, and prosodist. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he g ...

's 11th century ''Yogaśāstra'' names it ''Duryodhanāsana'' (" Duryodhana's pose") or ''Kapālīkarana'' ("head technique"), while the 18th century '' Joga Pradīpikā'' calls it ''Kapālī āsana'', head posture; it is number 17 of the set of 84 asanas described and illustrated there. However, 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 ''Śīrṣāsana'' as well as ''Kapālāsana'', while the ''

Malla Purana Malla-yuddha (Sanskrit: मल्लयुद्ध, ) is the traditional form of combat-wrestling originating in India. It is closely related to Southeast Asian wrestling styles such as naban and is one of the two ancestors of kushti. Indian ...

'', a 13th-century manual for wrestlers, names but does not describe 18 asanas including ''Śīrṣāsana''. File:Kapala Asana (headstand) from Jogapradipika 1830.jpg, Headstand (labelled ''Kapālī Āsana'') in '' Joga Pradīpikā'', 1830 File:Headstand as Viparita Karani in Yogasopana.jpg, The mudra

using a headstand in '' Yogasopana Purvacatuska'', 1905

Description

In the Supported

Headstand The headstand, or sometimes head stand, is a pose that is an inversion posture of standing head down. The technique is used in different settings such as yoga, breakdancing, acrobatics and beginner gymnastics. Health risks If the headstand is no ...

(Salamba Shirshasana), the body is completely inverted, and held upright supported by the forearms and the crown of the head. In his '' Light on Yoga'', B. K. S. Iyengar uses a forearm support, with the fingers interlocked around the head, for the basic posture Shirshasana I and its variations; he demonstrates a Western-style tripod headstand, the palms of the hands on the ground with raised elbows, for Shirshasana II and III; and other supports for further variants. Iyengar names and illustrates ten variants in all, as well as several preparatory and transitional poses. The yoga headstand is nicknamed "king" of all the asanas.Among the sources making this claim are: * * * * A variety of other asanas can be used to build the required upper body strength and balance. Shirshasana, alongside Sarvangasana and Padmasana, is one of the asanas most often reported as the cause of an injury.

Variations

Shirshasana permits many variations, including: Mandalasana, Circle pose, is not a single variation but a sequence of movements in Shirshasana in which the legs move in a full circle around the body from one of these headstand variations to the next.

Notes

References

External links

Step by Step Instruction
{{Hatha yoga Inverted asanas Articles containing video clips Medieval Hatha Yoga asanas ru:Перевёрнутые асаны#Ширшасана