 (veer-ah-bah-DRAHS-anna)
Virabhadra = the name
of a fierce warrior, an incarnation of Shiva, described
as having a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, and a
thousand feet; wielding a thousand clubs; and wearing
a tiger's skin.
Step by Step
Stand in Tadasana, exhale and fold foward to Uttanasana.
From Uttanasana, exhale and step your left foot back
into a high lunge position. Your right knee should
be more or less at a right angle. Lay the midline
of your torso (from the pubis to the sternum) down
on the midline of the right thigh (from the knee to
the hip crease) and bring your hands to your right
knee, right hand to the outer knee, left hand to the
inner. Squeeze the knee with your hands, lift your
torso slightly, and with an exhalation, turn it slightly
to the right.
Now from the lunge position, stretch your arms forward,
parallel to the floor and parallel to each other,
palms facing each other. Exhale and press the head
of the right thighbone back and press the heel actively
into the floor. Synchronize the straightening of the
front leg and the lifting of the back leg. As you
lift the back leg, resist by pressing the tailbone
into the pelvis.
Normally students come up into Virabhadrasana III
by lunging the torso forward. This tends to shift
the body weight onto the ball of the front foot and
unbalance the position. Don't allow the torso to swing
forward as you move into position; instead, as you
straighten the front knee, think of pressing the head
of the thighbone back. This centers the femur in the
hip joint, grounds the heel into the floor, and stabilizes
the position.
The arms, torso, and raised leg should be positioned
relatively parallel to the floor. For many students
the pelvis tends to tilt. Release the hip [of the
raised leg] toward the floor until the two hip points
are even and parallel to the floor. Energize the back
leg and extend it strongly toward the wall behind
you; reach just as actively in the opposite direction
with the arms. Bring the head up slightly and look
forward, but be sure not to compress the back of your
neck.
Stay in this position for 30 seconds to a minute.
Release back to the lunge on an exhalation. Bring
your hands to the floor on either side of the right
foot, and on an exhalation, step your left foot forward
to meet your right. Stay in this forward bend for
a few breaths, then repeat for the same length of
time on the other side. |
