Action Makes An Asana

JOIN ME JULY 6-AUGUST 10 for my ONLINE SUMMER COURSE: ASANA SKILL BUILDING TECHNIQUES AND PHILOSOPHY OF THE HATHA YOGA PRADIPIKA. www.davidgarrigues.com In Ashtanga yoga when we stay in a pose for a prolonged length of time we call it being in “the state of the asana”. We single out the fact of holding a position and give it a name because our practice also includes doing many transition poses that we don’t hold. You might even say that half of our practice is doing momentary transition poses and the other half is holding poses and being in the state of the asana. Also it is true that to be in a pose is to be in a state of body and mind. To be in the state of the asana is not an ordinary way of being in your body or using your mind. It is an exceptional, heightened state of being where, through pure effort and intently focusing your mind, you work to become saturated with vitality, awareness and dynamism. You expend the energy that is necessary to achieve the state of the asana to train yourself to become more skillful in being here now. One main part of practicing is to continually wonder about how to be in your pose when you are staying there, what to think about, what is the goal(s), what to do with your body, when to be effortful and when to relax? In answer to these questions, in this podcast, I discuss the concept of action in the state of the asana and give tips on how to come to a more subtle understanding of yoga through creating actions throughout the body when you are in a pose. I also talk about how the famous yoga sutra 2-46 ( Stira (Steady) Sukham (Agreeable) Asana (Posture)) provides you with two essential qualities to seek and to manifest when you are in the state of the asana.