Back to basics

For the past few days I have been working on two of the first standing poses I ever learned - Virabhadrasana II (Warrior II) and Utthhita Parsvakonasana (Side Angle Pose, or PVK for short). For both of these poses, Iyengar mentions stretching the hamstrings of the back leg. My first reaction was something like,"How can you not stretch the hamstrings???"

One thing I have learned from this Light on Yoga in general, is that although Iyengar does not say a lot about each pose, what he does choose to call attention to almost always makes a difference. So, for both poses I focused on keeping my hamstrings long and open as I bent my front knee. It made a difference. That small addition of awareness helped me go more deeply into each pose, and feel more solid.

The next thing I keyed in on in PVK was "moving the chest up and back". It took me a few tries to understand what this motion was. I found that when my bottom hand was on the floor (I couldn't quite get it flat) it was harder to engage this shift than when my hand was on a block (palm flat). I knew when I found it because I immediately senses more extension through my back body. The grounding of the palm made the difference.

It was one of those days when yoga was my elixir...I am grateful for finding such an amazing practice and grateful for all the other things in my life that have followed.

I hope that your holiday is filled with joy and gratitude as well. Happy Thanksgiving!