ON PADMASANA
“The
yogi should remain in a clean place on a seat that is neither too high, nor too
low and covered with kusa grass, a deerskin and a cloth.
Making
his mind focused and controlling all the activities of his senses, he should
sit on that seat and engage in yoga for the sake of self-purification.”
Bhagavad-Gita-6:11,12
Sthira-sukam asanam – Patanjali’s Yoga
Sutras 2.46
Yoga is the realization that the perceived
limited jiva[1]
is nothing else than the absolute atma[2].
The two philosophical pillars of yoga as the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras
of Patanjali give a very concise and short description of the ideal asanam[3]: the latter explain that yoga can be
achieved in a position which is steady and then becomes comfortable when in the
Gita yoga can be done seated with the back straight and refraining from the
senses.
The Buddha, Vivekananda, Ramakrishna and
even the mahayogi Shiva are engaged
in the position of the lotus—padmasana. It
seems that the first and most important posture to learn while practicing yoga
is exactly this one.
Is
it really fundamental to achieve this posture if we practice yoga?
A sound NO is my straight answer, still my
own opinion.
Like in life, the easiest things are
sometimes the most difficult one. Padmasana
is thus the best teacher: despite it seems so easy and comfortable; this is one
of the most advanced positions in yoga. To achieve this posture the
practitioner needs to have good joints flexibility, especially ankles, knees
and hips. Knees and ankles are hinge type of joint, permitting only flexion and
extension of the relative limbs, the hips are balls and socket kind of joints,
allowing a motion of 360 degrees. In the ancient India and in the rest of the
Asian continent people adopt squatting positions more often and it was preferred
a seat on the floor to a chair, this allows the joints to remain more flexible.
In this new western lifestyle, India included, people are using chairs from a
early age, sitting on chairs from schools, university to work on chairs the
ligaments at the level of the hips gets harder and harder, becoming ossified in
extremes cases. Practicing other asanas
will eventually help to improve the flexibility of whole the body joints so
from time to time it is suggested to try padmasana
until the final stage of the position is reached. Harda padmasana is a good middle way to train the body to get used
to the final position or can be a good variation of it. Simply do not force this position, even after years of practice if it creates a knees pain lasting even after the state of the asana avoid doing it. Do not worry, no need of padmasana for attaining realization.
During these six-week long training at
Atmavikasa, Mysore, Acharya Venkathesha suggested a very interesting new way of
approaching padmasana: from straight
legs, taking the big toe the right knee is bent and right foot placed well over
the left tight. Then left foot moves close to the right knee for after being
placed over the right tight. (On the picture above I am demonstrating the
classical way to perform it and on the picture below acharya
Venkatesha’s method).
This is a precious and interesting new
approach to the position and I wish I knew it earlier as to give a variation
for the students suffering from ankles pain.
I have chosen to talk about this position
over the many done so far in class because it is the first one I learned at a
young age exactly by looking at the picture of Gauthama the Buddha. In all the
moments I was finding my mind fluctuating, this position was grounding me back.
Before fighting competition, few minutes of this position gave me clarity and
normalize my breathing, allowing me to be very conscious, in the moment and
very intuitive. Since I was a kid I sat at the dinner table in padmasana because I found easy to digest
my food and even more comfortable—my father hated it but never could convince
me that a ‘normal’ seat in the chair was better. Padmasana is the way I love to sit while reading and I found it the
best position to meditate as it keeps my lower back straight and firm—as I
swing a lot during my meditation, this position gives me strong foundation for
my practice. Krishnamacharya, in his Yoga Makaranda claimed that this asana
would cure all diseases related to lower abdomen.[4]
He says there are fourteen vinyasa in
order to achieve and exit this asana, the eight one is the state of the asana. As
we see there are seven vinyasa before and five after the state of the asana
hence remember that it is equally important to dedicate time and attention in
the way we exit from the posture, most injuries happen while carelessly rushing
out of a posture. Just go slow, practice and let your passion grow along with
it.
OM
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