This chart provides an overview of all the asanas in the book which you should
refer to when planning what to practise in your own set of asanas -just as you look at a map when deciding on your route through a country. The asanas from the Basic Session are illustrated in black, to show you how to incorporate the new poses into the basic pattern. The figures in pink represent the entirely new asanas taught in this Asanas and Variations section. All the variations of both basic and new asanas are described in shorthand fashion, each within its appropriate cycle. Naturally you will have to learn the new asanas and variations from the instructions given on the relevant page before you can use the shorthand versions here-these are intended purely as reminders of the poses, not as directions. No two bodies are the same - an asana that is simple for one student may demand more work for another. For this reason it is not possible to give an intermediate or advanced sequence. You should just proceed at your own pace, taking care always to balance the asanas you choose to practise.
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The Headstand Cycle (102-103)
Leg Raising Vars:
1 Double Leg Raising
2 Foot to palm swing
Headstand Leg Vars:
1 Legs to sides (Side Splits) 2 Leg lowered to front 3 As 1, leg lowered to
side
4 Legs front and back (104·105) The Scorpion Scorpion Vars: 1 Legs straight up 2 Legs horizontal (106·107)
Headstand Arm Vars: 1 Elbows up, palms down 2 Arm(s) outstretched 3 Arms folded to head
(108·109) Lotus Headstand:
Lotus in the Headstand
Var: Legs in Lotus twist
Single Leg Inverted Pose 1 Headstand Wheel with raised leg
The Shoulderstand Cycle
(110·111)
Shoulderstand Leg and ArmVars:
1 Leg to floor
2 Leg bent, arm out
3 Arms up by hips
(full Shoulderstand)
4 Eagle Shoulderstand:
Legs twisted
5 Leg down, leg in Half
�
otus (Half Lotus Plough)(112-113)
Plough Vars:
1 Knees to the side 2 Knees behind head 3 Lotus Plough
Ear to Knee Pose
.. �
(114-115) Bridge Vars:1 Bridge with leg raised 2 Bridge with hips up, ankles held
3 Bridge in Lotus
Fish Vars: � � 1 Lotus Fish
2 Bound Lotus Fish
�
The Forward Bend Cycle(116-117)
The Forward Bend Vars: 1 Palms around soles, fingers under heels 2 Elbows on floor. fingers around arches
3 Arm clasping wrist beyond foot
4 Hands in prayer pose behind back
5 Balancing on buttocks 6 Forward Bend twist
(118-1 19)
Head to Knee Pose
Head to Knee Vars:
1 Hand behind back holding foot
2 Bending to the side, top arm back
3 Bending to the side, head on the floor (120-121)
The Side Splits Twist Vars: 1 Hand behind back holding thigh; torso
along leg
2 Both hands to feet. back along leg
Leg and Arm Stretching Vars:
1 Legs out, body forward (Forward Bend in Side Splits)
2 Legs out. body forward, hands to feet
The Tortoise
The Balancing·Tortoise:
Ankles behind head, balancing on hands
(122-123)
The Inclined Plane Inclined Plane Vars: 1 Leg raising
2 Arm raising
3 Leg and arm raising
4 Leg and arm raising,
hand holding foot
5 Leg and arm raising in Half Lotus
6 Hand holding raised
leg over head (Inclined Plane with Natarajasana)
The Backward Bend Cycle
(124-125) CobraVars:
1 Hands to knees 2 Hands holding feet
Locust Vars:
1 Feet to floor 2 Legs horizontal (126-127) BowVars: 1 One leg held, one straight out (Half Bow) 2 Feet beyond head
3 Feet behind head, arms and legs upward
4 Feet to shoulders
(128-129) The Wheel WheeiVars:
1 Hands on back of legs 2 One leg raised (Eka Pada Chakrasana)
(130-131)
The Kneeling Pose
The Warrior
The Kneeling Wheel:
On knees. clasping ankles
The Diamond
Diamond Var:
Hands holding knees (132-133)
Crescent Moon
Crescent Moon Vars: 1 Clasping back feet (as in Pigeon)
2 Arms stretched back over leg
The Pigeon
The Sitting Cycle
(134-135)
The Spinal Twist
Spinal Twist Vars: 1 Holding ankle
2 Holding ankle behind back in Half Lotus (136-137) LotusVars:
1 Lotus with Scorpion 2 Lotus in Cobra position The Yoga Mudra:
Fists into abdomen, bending forward The Bound Lotus: f-!ands holding toes behind back
The Cock
The Foetus
(138-139)
The Shooting Bow
1 Foot straight above head
2 Hands holding opposite feet
The Leg Behind Head Pose
Leg Behind Head Vars: 1 Lower leg in Half Lotus 2 Lying on back, both legs behind head
1 Forward bending 2 Hands in prayer pose. backward bending 3 Back foot to head. arm to front toe
4 As 3, holding bent back leg (Pigeon Splits)
THE CYCLES OF ASANAS 153
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1
The Balancing Cycle
(142-143)
The Peacock
Peacock Var:
Legs raised in Locust, chin on floor (144-145) The Handstand Handstand Var: Feet to head (Handstand Scorpion) CrowVars:
1 Side Crow, legs to side 2 Legs wide apart 3 Side Crow. arm be tween legs
(146-147) The Eagle The Tree
One Knee and Foot Pose: Knee to floor in Half Lotus
The Tiptoe Pose:
Half Lotus, resting on heel
(149-149)
Standing Splits Vars:
1 Leg up in front, hand holding foot
2 Leg up at side, arm over head holding foot
Lord Nataraja Natarajasana Var:
Head, neck and spine straight
(150-151) Standing Pose
Standing Pose Vars:
1 Stretch balancing on one leg
2 Arm and leg stretching
The Head to Feet Pose
Head to Feet Var:
Legs apart, knee bent, head to toe
Triangle Vars:
1 Twisting backward 2 Legs further apart, knee under arm 3As2, twisting backward
154 ASANASAND VARIATIONS
Kriyas
The Yogi regards his body as a vehicle in which he !s evo
!
ving toward higher consciousness. To run smoothly, th1s veh1cle must be cleansed both internally and externally-just as we wash our hands, we should ·also keep the internal passage ways clean - after all, they are continu_ation_s of the �uter . covering of skin. The six kriyas are punficat1on pract1ces wh1ch cleanse or tone the parts of the body we often neglect. They consist of: Kapalabhati (p. 72); Tratak (pp.95-97); Neti, which clears the nasal passages; Ohauti, which is mainly for thedigestive tract and includes Kunjar Kriya (P-86) and Agni
Sara (p. 1 82), and Vastra Dhauti, shown below; Nauli, which
tones the abdominal viscera; and Basti, which washes out the
colon. By removing toxins from t�e system, the knyas- when
practised regularly- make the mmd sharp and the senses
:::
and increase the body's resistance to disease.�L
Neti should be performed daily,
-,.
standing in front of a mirror, f
with the head tilted back so that
Sutra Neti you can see the opening's, just
Dip the cord in lukewarm salty
inside the nostrils. There are two
-
water. Insert it into the hole JUSt
methods. In Sutra Neti, you pass
inside your nostril. When you
a catheter or a 12 -inch piece of see the tip emerging at the back
waxed cord into one nostril and of your mouth, reach in and out through the mouth, then slowly pull it out.
repeat on the other side. It may take a little practice to make sure the cord comes out of your mouth, rather than going up your nostril or down your throat. In Jala Neti, you use a small pot with a spout to pour lightly . salted water in one nostril and out of the other. If the other nostril is blocked, the water will flow down into your mouth and
can spit it out. After per it on both sides, blow any excess water out, one side at a time.
Jala Neti
With your head tilted to the left. pour water into your right nostril and out of the left (or out of your mouth).