Jump to content

Parshvottanasana

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Parshvottanasana variant with hands brought to the floor

Parshvottanasana (Sanskrit: पार्श्वोत्तानासना, IAST: Pārśvottānāsana) or Intense Side Stretch Pose is a standing and forward bending asana in modern yoga as exercise.

Etymology and origins

[edit]
Postures in Niels Bukh's 1924 Primary Gymnastics[1] resembling Parighasana, Parsvottanasana, and Navasana, supporting the suggestion that Krishnamacharya derived some of his asanas from the gymnastics culture of his time[2]

The name of the pose is from the Sanskrit पार्श्व (parshva) meaning "side", ुत (ut) meaning "intense", तन (tan) meaning "to extend", and आसन (asana), meaning "seat" or "pose".[3]

The pose is unknown in medieval hatha yoga, but is described in Krishnamacharya's 1935 Yoga Makaranda,[4] and taken up by his pupils Pattabhi Jois[5] and B. K. S. Iyengar[6] in their respective schools of yoga.[7] A similar pose appears in Niels Bukh's 1924 Primary Gymnastics;[1] Mark Singleton suggests that Krishnamacharya, influenced by the general gymnastics culture of the time, adopted gymnastics poses into his flowing style of yoga.[2]

Description

[edit]

The pose is entered from Tadasana. The hands are pressed palms together in prayer position behind the back, fingertips upwards. The feet are placed about a leg length apart, both legs remaining straight. The forward foot points directly forwards; the rear foot is turned forwards some 60 degrees. The hips are aligned at right angles to the feet, so that the body can move downwards in a forward bend straight over the front leg.[8][3] The hands may be taken to the floor to intensify the stretch.[9]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 Bukh, Niels (2010) [1924]. Primary Gymnastics. Tufts Press. ISBN 978-1446527351.
  2. 1 2 Singleton, Mark (2010). Yoga body: the Origins of Modern Posture Practice. Oxford University Press. pp. 161, 200–203. ISBN 978-0-19-539534-1. OCLC 318191988.
  3. 1 2 Mehta, Mehta & Mehta 1990, pp. 40–41.
  4. ↑ Yoga Makaranda.
  5. ↑ Jois, K. Pattabhi (2002) [1962]. Yoga Mala (in Kannada). New York: North Point Press. ISBN 978-0-86547-662-2. OCLC 50567767.
  6. ↑ Iyengar 1979.
  7. ↑ Sjoman, Norman E. (1999) [1996]. The Yoga Tradition of the Mysore Palace. Abhinav Publications. pp. 100–102. ISBN 81-7017-389-2.
  8. ↑ Iyengar 1979, pp. 78–80.
  9. ↑ Anon (28 August 2007). "Intense Side Stretch Pose". Yoga Journal.

Sources

[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Parshvottanasana&oldid=1360417137"