Books
03
Apr
2013
Yoga Pose
03
Apr
2013
Wide-Angle Seated Forward Bend
Upavistha Konasana
(oo-pah-VEESH-tah cone-AHS-anna)
upavistha = seated, sitting
kona = angle
Step by Step
Sit in Dandasana, then lean your torso back slightly on your hands and lift and open your legs to an angle of about 90 degrees (the legs should form an approximate right angle, with the pubis at the apex). Press your hands against the floor and slide your buttocks forward, widening the legs another 10 to 20 degrees. As with Dandasana, if you can’t sit comfortably on the floor, raise your buttocks on a folded blanket.
Rotate your thighs outwardly, pinning the outer thighs against the floor, so that the knee caps point straight up toward the ceiling. Reach out through your heels and stretch your soles, pressing though the balls of the feet.
With your thigh bones pressed heavily into the floor and your knee caps pointing up at the ceiling, walk your hands forward between your legs. Keep your arms long. As with all forward bends, the emphasis is on moving from the hip joints and maintaining the length of the front torso. As soon as you find yourself bending from the waist, stop, re-establish the length from the pubis to the navel, and continue forward if possible.
Increase the forward bend on each exhalation until you feel a comfortable stretch in the backs of your legs. Stay in the pose 1 minute or longer. Then come up on an inhalation with a long front torso.
Poem
03
Apr
2013
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
(1807-1882)
The day is cold, and dark, and dreary
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
And the day is dark and dreary.
My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.
Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.
Deepak Chopra
19
Mar
2013
Music
13
Mar
2013
Books
13
Mar
2013
Poem
13
Mar
2013
The words the happy say by Emily Dickinson
The words the happy say
Are paltry melody
But those the silent feel
Are beautiful —
Thoughts
13
Mar
2013
“We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.â€
― Nelson Mandela
Poses
13
Mar
2013
High Lunge, Variation
Step by Step
Start in Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog). Exhale and step your right foot forward between your hands, aligning your knee over the heel. Keep your left leg strong and firm.
Inhale and raise your torso to upright. At the same time, sweep your arms wide to the sides and raise them overhead, palms facing.
Be careful not to overarch the lower back. Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor and reach back through your left heel. This will bring the shoulder blades deeper into the back and help support your chest. Look up toward your thumbs.
Be sure not to press the front ribs forward. Draw them down and into the torso. Lift the arms from the lower back ribs, reaching through your little fingers. Hold for 30 seconds to a minute.
Then exhale, release the torso to the right thigh, sweep your hands back onto the floor, and, with another exhale, step your right foot back and return to Down Dog. Hold for a few breaths and repeat with the left foot forward for the same length of time.
13
Mar
2013
