ARDHAKATI CHAKRASANA

ARDHAKATI CHAKRASANA

Technique

1. Stand firmly along with legs together (as in Tadasana). Press the heels and feet on the floor.

2. Slowly stretch and raise the right arm above the head and extend with inhalation

3. Exhale slowly and move the trunk and right arm towards left side the ear will touch the right upper arm. The left hand should be sided on left leg thigh.

4. Stay in this position for 15 to 30 seconds with normal breathing.

5. Inhale, slowly move the trunk and arm in order to come back to the normal position.

6. Repeat the same be bending on the other side.

7. Practice this exercise two times on both the sides.

Therapeutic Advantages

1. Performing this exercise will help those who are suffering from back pain, stiff back etc.

2. This helps to promote the function of liver and hence performing this exercise will help to cure liver problems.

3. Simultaneously stretching on both sides will help to eliminate extra fat in the abdomen region and also provides good shape to the body.

Precautions:

Those with abdominal and hip injury must avoid this pose

Do not bend forward or backward in this pose.

Tadasana

Tadasana, a position in Yoga, is also called Mountain Pose. It is a very basic standing posture with feet together and hands at the sides of the body. Yoga practitioners consider it a pose that promotes confidence and happiness as well as improving posture and creating space within the body. This creating space within the body may allow internal organs to work more efficiently thus improving respiration, digestion and elimination. The pose strengthens the abdomen and the legs. It may help relive sciatica and reduce flat feet. Poses that help prepare for Tadasana include Adho Mukha Svanasana and Uttanasana. Although Tadasana is a very basic pose it is the basis for many standing poses. Urdhva Hastasana is a very similar pose with the hands raised above the head.
Also: Tree Pose,Tadasana: standing straight palm tree, starting on the right side by standing on the left foot lift the right leg grabbing the right foot from underneath with the left hand, sole of the food facing the ceiling, lift the foot as high as possible and rest on the thigh/hip. Standing leg stays straight/locked position, hips forward, upper body leaning back so body is perfectly straight, stretch your spine up, make sure your hips and shoulders are level with the floor. Bring your right hand to the center of your chest-half prayer position-if you can balance comfortably then bring your left hand up to namaskar-full prayer position. Benefits:improves posture, balance, increases the flexibility of ankles, knees, as well as the hip joints. Strengthens the oblique muscles preventing hernia.

Translation: The Sanskrit word tada means mountain. This posture is also known by the name samasthiti-asana. Sama means unmoved, equilibrium, and sthiti means standing upright or firmly, abiding, remaining, thus samasthiti means standing firmly without moving.

Type of pose: Standing
Tadasana can be practiced as a starting position for standing poses, in between standing poses, or by itself to improve posture.

Benefits

Improves posture
Strengthens thighs, knees, and ankles
Firms abdomen and buttocks
Relieves sciatica
Reduces flat feet (by practicing lifting through the arches)
Contraindications/Cautions:
Headache
Insomnia
Low blood pressure
Step by Step
Stand feet together, with the bases of your big toes touching, heels slightly apart. Lift and spread your toes and the balls of your feet, then lay them softly down on the floor. Rock back and forth and side to side. Gradually reduce this swaying to a standstill, with your weight balanced evenly on the feet.

Firm your thigh muscles and lift the knee caps, without hardening your lower belly. Lift the inner ankles to strengthen the inner arches, then imagine a line of energy all the way up along your inner thighs to your groins, and from there through the core of your torso, neck, and head, and out through the crown of your head. Turn the upper thighs slightly inward. Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor and lift the pubis toward the navel.

Draw shoulders back and down. Lift head, chin parallel to the floor – aligning the spine. Without pushing your lower front ribs forward, lift the top of your sternum straight toward the ceiling. Widen your collarbones. Hang your arms beside the torso.

Balance the crown of your head directly over the center of your pelvis, with the underside of your chin parallel to the floor, throat soft, and the tongue wide and flat on the floor of your mouth. Soften your eyes.

Tadasana is usually the starting position for all the standing poses. But it's useful to practice Tadasana as a pose in itself. Stay in the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute, breathing easily.

Modifications
You can check your alignment in this pose with your back against a wall. Stand with the backs of your heels, sacrum, and shoulder blades (but not the back of your head) touching the wall. For tailbone, back injury or weakness – feet can be hip width apart. For knee injury - knees and quads can be left slightly relaxed.

Variations
You can alter the position of your arms in a variety of ways; for example: stretch the arms upward, perpendicular to the floor and parallel with each other, with the palms facing inward; or, interlace the fingers, extend the arms straight in front of your torso, turn the palms away, then stretch the arms upward, perpendicular to the floor, so the palms face the ceiling; or, cross the arms behind your back, holding each elbow with the opposite-side hand (be sure to reverse the cross of the forearms and repeat for an equal length of time).
Try to recreate the balanced sensation of Tadasana in all the standing poses.

Siddhasana

SIDDHASANA

it is said many saints acquired super natural powers by sitting in this asana. Perhaps on account of this the name has been given as such. “Siddhi” means super natural power. Stout persons find this asana easy.

One of the most popular meditation postures is Siddhasana. The Sanskrit name means "Perfect Pose," because one attains perfection in Yoga by meditating in this position. Siddhasana is useful to learn, since it is used as the practice seat for some of the pranayamas and the mudras. The positions of the legs and the hands also contain the body energies by closing the circuits and allowing awakened vital forces to remain in the system during meditation practice.

Type of Pose: Seated (Meditation) pose

Procedure
Spread a blanket four folded.
Sit over it in the usual way.
Place the heel of one leg just below the anus.
Place the heel of the other leg below the generative organs. See that the regenerative organs are not pressed.
In this pose the joints of the two heels will be just touching each other.
By a continued practice for a fortnight or so it will be easy.
The hands may be placed in chin mindra style.
Then come to the original position.
Keep hands with palms open if done between sunrise and sunset; otherwise reverse the palms.
The spine should always be held erect.

Fruit of Asana
One can conveniently sit in this pose for longer time. This asana will help to keep up brahmacharya. Because sitting is erect the internal organs are not pressed and they are kept in their natural positions.

Note: Ladies need not do this Asana. There is a another variety under this with some slight modification. The hands are joined as we do “Namaskar” (a form of welcome). This pose is taken to seek boons and blessings. This is known asthamasana as described in writing.

What is Siddhasana?

Siddhasana is one of the most popular meditation postures. Siddha in Sanskrit refers to those hidden powers within the body that help individual to attain spiritual upliftment. This asana is also known as "Perfect Pose," because one attains perfection in Yoga by meditating in this position. Siddhasana is useful to learn, since it is used as the practice seat for some of the pranayamas and the mudras.

How to practice Siddhasana?

Start in Sukhasana with legs crossed. Take hold of one ankle or foot, place it on top of he other leg, with the outer edge of the raised foot pressing into the opposite calf, thigh, or groin. If you use this position regularly, make sure you alternate the leg that is raised so you develop flexibility evenly in both legs and hips.

What are the benefits of practicing Siddhasana?

Siddhasana directs the energy from the lower psychic centers upward through the spine thus it stimulates the brain and calms the entire nervous system. It redirects blood circulation to the lower spine and abdomen and tones the lumbar region of the spine, the pelvis and the abdominal organs, and balances the reproductive system and blood pressure. It stabilizes the sexual energy because of the position of the feet with respect to the genitals. It is beneficial to those suffering from wet dreams
Benefits· Siddhasana directs the energy from the lower psychic centers upward through the spine, stimulating the brain and calming the entire nervous system. · Redirects blood circulation to the lower spine and abdomen, toning the lumbar region of the spine, the pelvis and the abdominal organs, and balancing the reproductive system and blood pressure. · Stabilizes and sublimates sexual energy because of the position of the feet with respect to the genitals.

Contraindications/Cautions· Siddhasana should not be practiced by those with sciatica. · For men who are interested in maintaining sexual relations (ie. with no long term commitment to celibacy), use a soft sitting support to lift the genitals high enough so that the base of the penis is not compressed. Take care to situate the heels perfectly in the midline.
Step by Step1. From dandasana, spread your legs slightly. Bend the left knee and slide the left heel into the groin. Then release the left knee onto the floor, rotating from the hip joint. Ideally sitting the heel into the area between the genitals and the anus -(for men, the base of the penis rests against the bottom heel; for women the heel is placed against the soft tissues of the external genitals).

2. Bend the right knee and place the right foot on top of the left foot. Release the right knee onto the floor, rotating from the hip joint. Place the right ankle on top of the left ankle and tuck the right foot between the left calf and hamstrings. The placement of the bottom heel is an important aspect of Siddhasana. Adjust the body until it is comfortable and the pressure of the heel is firmly applied. Ankle bones should be touching and the heels are one above the other. Press the pubis with the top heel, directly above the genitals. (For men, the genitals will therefore lie between the two heels.

3. Place the hands in gyana mudra: lightly touching the thumb and forefinger of each hand, and extend the other three fingers. Rest the hands on the knees, palms facing up.

4. Breathe smoothly and naturally. As you hold the pose affirm mentally, "I set ablaze the fire of inner joy." Or simply: inhale the thought “let”, exhale the thought “go”.

5. Remain in this pose and recite the mantra for as long as desired. The positions of the feet should be switched on alternate days or sittings. As a way of maintaining equilibrium, sit with the right foot on top at the beginning of the class and the left foot on top at the end.

6. To exit, slide the right foot forward off the left foot, straighten the right leg and do the same with the left leg, returning back into dandasana.Note: Siddhasana may be performed with either leg uppermost.

Activating sexual energies higher up in the nervous system has prerequisites also, the main one being the presence of resident inner silence (pure bliss consciousness), which is cultivated through deep meditation. This is why the main group lessons begin with meditation and then move into spinal breathing and the other methods for systematically cultivating our inner life force (sexual energy), also known as "raising kundalini."Yoga involving the use of various means for directly cultivating sexual energy for spiritual purposes has been around for a long time, and is controversial for obvious reasons. Sex gets much of the blame for the abuses and misdeeds of humankind, so has often been suppressed in spiritual practices, even though it has a crucial role to play in the neuro-biology of human spiritual transformation. The result of the denial of the role of sex in spiritual processes has been less enlightenment in the world. The problem with sex is not sex. It is our tendency to become obsessed with the deeply intimate energies of sex, and with orgasm in particular. As we meditate and pure bliss consciousness rises within us, we are gradually able to become more objective about sexual energy, less obsessed, and begin to consciously stimulate it into the higher spiritual channels of our nervous system. Hence the usefulness of tantric sexual methods. Siddhasana was described in an earlier lesson as being the best tantric sexual practice. This is because it can be done for extended periods during sitting practices with no effort, guaranteeing that tantric cultivation will be occurring every day at the most opportune time, while we are doing pranayama, meditation and other advanced yoga practices. This is ideal for producing the best results in yoga, yielding lots of permanently flowing ecstatic energy in our life. Our inner silence, cultivated in meditation, naturally comes to reside within our ongoing ecstasy, raising us to a state of permanent ecstatic bliss and outpouring divine love. The two, inner silence and euphoric ecstasy, become one. This leads to the highest stage of enlightenment. Knowing there is such great benefit using siddhasana to cultivate our ecstatic energy during sitting practices, the question arises, is there more we can do to help this process?Yes, there is. There are many things. In this lesson we will talk about enhancing siddhasana. The version of siddhasana given in the main lessons and discussed here in the tantra group so far is the basic practice -- simply sitting with the heel at the perineum. It can be optimized for more effect in sitting practices. It is done in slightly different ways for women and men, due to anatomical differences. In both cases, it involves positioning siddhasana for maximum effortless sexual stimulation, while remaining steadily preorgasmic. In doing advanced siddhasana, we do not enter into an active mode of masturbation. So besides being in preorgasmic mode, we are also in premasturbation mode. We are just sitting in a more sexually stimulating way, which is a boon to our sitting yoga practices. For women, the shift to advanced siddhasana involves letting the heel come forward to rest snuggly in the entrance to the yoni. It is a natural fit, and is easily accomplished by most enterprising yoginis. There is a second part to advanced siddhasana for women. This is to bring the toes of the outside foot up from under the shin of the inside leg and tuck the toes between the calf and thigh, bringing the heel of the outside foot to the yoni with the heel pressing against the clitoris. So, when accomplished, this form of siddhasana for women has the inside heel pressing comfortably up in the opening of the yoni, and the outside heel pressing comfortably against the clitoris. It is a very stimulating seat for doing advanced yoga practices. As with all advanced yoga practices, it takes some getting used to, and gradually settles in to be a steady and normal way of doing pranayama, meditation and the other advanced yoga practices. The result will be much more ecstatic energy moving up through the nervous system during and long after sitting practices. In time, all of life is illuminated by the ecstatic energies taking up permanent residence in the nervous system.The second part of this siddhasana for women involving the outer leg and bringing the heel to rest effortlessly against the clitoris may not be easily performed by everyone. If it is too difficult, it is okay to leave the outer foot down with the toes tucked under the shin, while keeping the inner heel underneath at the opening of the yoni, as instructed. In this case, the yoni can be cupped with one hand during sitting practices, letting the appropriate fingers rest on the clitoris. This is not for active masturbation. It is just a gentle resting of the hand and fingers in such a way so as to provide some steady, mostly unmoving, stimulation. We want the attention to be free for pranayama and meditation, so if having the hand there is too distracting, then back off with it a bit. The stimulation is not for masturbation for its own sake. It is to support the cultivation of sexual energy for sitting practices. In time, the gentle preorgasmic stimulation will become normal in practices, whether the hand and the heel are used, or both heels.Women who find it difficult to reach either the perineum (yoni opening) or clitoris with their heels may choose to use prosthetic objects to achieve the same effects. It is perfectly okay and is valid yoga, as long as the principle of ongoing preorgasmic stimulation during sitting practices is achieved. So, if the legs do not fold well, and/or the heel(s) do not reach, the effects of advanced siddhasana can still be achieved sitting in a chair, or anywhere, if the appropriate stimulating objects are used. The same goes for men, of course. For men, the advanced siddhasana is similar. The inside heel is brought forward to rest comfortably in the soft place just behind the pubic bone where the urethra comes out. Anatomically, it is analogous to where the opening of the woman's yoni is. As the heel presses comfortably up into the soft area a direct stimulation of the inner energies is experienced. This is also where the heel can easily be used to block ejaculation by leaning forward on it. Once preorgasmic stimulation in siddhasana becomes stable, the blocking is not necessary. In some schools of yoga, siddhasana is taught as a tool to prevent erection. This requires a lot of pressure sustained in siddhasana, squeezing the root of the lingam against the back of the pubic bone, sometimes for extended periods. This is not recommended in these lessons. We always strive for comfortable, pleasurable practice. It is not necessary to try and strangle external expressions of sex that come up during practices. In these lessons, siddhasana is always used in a natural and healthy way to gently coax the ecstatic energies upward. Erection will come and go during sitting practices, with or without siddhasana. As the nervous system becomes accustomed to cultivating sexual energy upward during yoga practices, external arousal and erections become less and less. This settling down of genital arousal and erection in yoga is not at the expense of our sexual relations at other times. It is just a different mode of sexual functioning that happens in sitting practices, where the energy is going up instead of down, so the genital energy turns in and up in that case. Then when it is time for sexual relations, the genitals will naturally turn outward. So we find our sexuality can go in one direction or the other. Of course, in full-blown tantric sexual relations, the sexual function is going both outward and inward at the same time, with the key process being the preorgasmic cultivation during sexual relations. That is what keeps sex in the realm of yoga. As soon as sex is primarily for the goal of genital orgasm, it is not tantric anymore. It is the conscious goal of preorgasmic cultivation (brahmacharya) that makes sex yogic. There is also a second part to the advanced siddhasana for men. The toes of the outer foot are brought from under the shin of the inner leg up between the calf and thigh (or the foot can be put on top of the thigh by men who are used to doing padmasana). The heel of the outer foot is then brought to rest snuggly over the genitals in such a way that the genitals are held comfortably between the inner and outer foot. As with the outer foot maneuver for woman, this may not be easy for some men to accomplish in an effortless and comfortable way. If this is the case, then it is okay to leave the outer foot down with toes tucked under the shin, and use the hand to cup the genitals. This instruction was given a few lessons ago, and is being repeated now for those who have difficulty positioning the outer foot. Using the hand is just as effect (maybe more so) than using the foot, so there is no shortcoming here. The same goes for women using their hand instead of their foot. The idea is for steady preorgasmic stimulation with minimal movement in premasturbation mode. Siddhasana is a seat we want to be in without any attention required on it. This frees our attention to do pranayama and meditation, while effortlessly being sexually stimulated preorgasmically at the same time.As was mentioned in the main lessons, either foot can be used for going under to the perineum, and the feet can be switched mid-routine if it helps to maintain comfort. Do not remain in siddhasana if it is uncomfortable to the point of distracting pranayama and meditation. If it is too sexually stimulating, then back off and give sexual stimulation a rest also. We can always come back later and resume. It is a process of developing familiarity. Along with familiarity comes an increasing ability to cultivate lasting ecstasy from head to toe. It will happen over a period of weeks, months, and years. Using advanced siddhasana in sitting practices will gradually change our relationship with our sexual energy to be much healthier. As our obsession with orgasm becomes less, we find ourselves more and more in a delightful relationship with our divine ecstatic energies. This change will not do away with our desire or ability to engage in normal sexual relations. Rather, siddhasana will expand our ability to have sexual relations that are more loving, much longer, and more spiritually regenerative. If we choose to engage in tantric sex, we will find that our ability to do it successfully will be enhanced because we have been using siddhasana for so many months and years in sitting practices. Our sex life will be naturally expanded into the spiritual dimension, and we will be walking around with divine ecstasy permanently caressing us inside. This is the essential role of sex in yoga, and in our ongoing journey toward experiencing enlightenment in everyday life. And this is the reason for doing advanced siddhasana with our sitting practices.