Why do we practice Warrior 1 pose in yoga?

Yoga magazine archives The series is a curated collection of articles originally published in previous issues beginning in 1975. This article on Virabhadrasana I (Warrior 1 Pose) first appeared in the July-August 1977 issue of Yoga magazine.

according to BKS Iyengar‘s Light on yogaThe mode is named after Virabhadra, the powerful hero who arose from the tangled lock of Siva’s hair. (Siva is the Lord of Destruction, one of the Hindu trinity gods.) Virabhadra was ordered to lead Siva’s army in revenge for the murder of Sati, Siva’s wife.

Virabhadrasana 1, otherwise known as Warrior 1 Pose, is named after a warrior because it is definitely a challenging, warming pose, as opposed to cooling asanas that direct the mind more clearly inward, such as a forward bend. A Standing positionVirabhadrasana I develops the strength of the practitioner, both physically and mentally, as the concentration and perseverance needed to hold it are great. However, it is part of a beginning series because it develops those traits necessary in the student to study yoga at any level.

Warrior 1 is a pose in the standing Ashtanga series in which the arms are extended above the head and the torso is extended toward the front leg, at the beginning of a twisting movement. Physically, asana Stretches the calves The hamstrings are in the back of the upper thigh, and increases Strength in the upper arms And the shoulders, as well as in the thigh of the front leg. The pose requires strength to hold and tends to speed up the heartbeat and increase the breathing rate.

in the beginning, the situation It can be practiced without bending the knee by focusing on getting the correct and level rotation of the hips and keeping the knees straight. The student can then begin to practice the pose by bending the front knee at a right angle; The lower the student descends from the body by bending the knee, the greater the need to raise the arms. This helps keep the back straight as well as prevent too much weight from falling on the lower back joints. This lift during the torso descent reflects the dynamic balance of yoga and makes a statement about balance within the body.

Alexander Lewin, author BioenergyHe writes: “Life is both movement and balance, or balance in motion.” Nowhere is this statement more evident than in the practice of this asana. The student must maintain the lift upward to prevent the mind from moving downward, as attention is drawn when the knee is bent. Allowing the mind to drag down is a superficial act; The yoga system enters when the student is able to lower the body, but allow the spine and spirit to feel as if they are rising upward. Only then will the pose reflect the dynamic balance that it can express so beautifully.

For this reason, the head may be tilted back in the final pose, as if the practitioner is saying that the soul is moving upward, even though the pull of gravity and much of the mind is downward, a symbol of being drawn into darkness and away from the true self.

This pose forms part of a series of three warrior poses, all named after the hero Virabhadra. However, this can be practiced in particular using Wall utility. The student presses his back heel against the wall so as not to lose attention of his back leg and knee; It is also helpful to remind the student to focus their awareness in the past using the back leg as well as in the future using the front leg.

However, the more the student can keep his attention directed equally to the front and back legs simultaneously, the more balanced the posture will be and the more balance and poise he will experience in the mind. With practice, this equanimity will be present even in the midst of the energizing energy of the pose, and yoga practitioners believe, in the midst of the disturbances of peace that come with the act of living. It is believed that when a student learns the dynamic balance of such asanas as Virabhadrasana 1, this state of dynamic balance will become one’s way of being in the world and that yoga will become a continuous, moment-to-moment practice.