Yoga Asanas Yoga asanas, or poses, are the predominant physical activities associated with yoga. Asanas are completed while standing, seated, lying supine (face side up), on “all fours” lying prone (face side down), and while in an inverted position (head below the feet). Below is a list of poses worked during the course, minus inversions, along with web links directing the student to online resources with pictures. By the end of the course students will be able to identify these poses.

Standing Poses

Mountain (Tadasana) – Standing, feet hip width apart, weight equally distributed, arms extended at sides, palms facing forward

Tree (Vrksasana) – Standing on one leg, with other leg bent at knee, foot on the inside of the standing leg, arms overhead

Triangle ( Trikonasana) – Standing, wide stance, one foot pointing to side, the other pointing slightly inward from 90 degrees; arms extend out to sides; use obliques to tilt upper body toward leg pointed to side; keep hips open; repeat, other side

Revolved Triangle (Parivrtta Trikonasana) – Standing, wide stance, feet same position as Triangle; arms extended out to sides; rotate torso to face the back; use obliques to tilt upper body toward leg pointed to side; repeat other side

Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I) – Basic lunge position, rear foot turned out, torso facing direction of front leg, arms extended

Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II) – Basic lunge position, rear foot turned out, arms extended at each shoulder

Warrior III (Virabhadrasana III) – Standing on one leg, bent at hip, other leg extended parallel to floor, both arms extended parallel to floor

Chair (Utkatasana) – Standing, feet hip width apart, weight equally distributed, hips and knees flexed as if sitting in chair, arms extended overhead, outside of ears

Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) – Feet hip width apart, trunk flexed, arms extended overhead with palms placed on floor

Eagle (Garudasana) Standing on one leg, with other leg flexed at knee and crossed over standing leg, foot hooked behind standing leg. Arms crossed at elbows, elbows flexed, forearms crossed to meet palms of hands together

Extended Side Angle (Utthita Parsvakonasana) – Basic lunge position, rear foot turned out, front arm with palm on floor, rear arm extended overhead, in line with rear leg.

Half Moon (Ardha Chandrasana) – Standing on one leg, bent at hip, other leg extended parallel to floor; standing side arm extended downward, hand to floor, lifted side arm extended into air, even with shoulder and toward ceiling

Extended Hand to Toe (Utthita hasta Padangusthasana) – Standing on one leg, other leg turned out and extended at the knee; fingers grasping big toe of lifted foot

Raised Hands Pose (Urdhva Hastasana) – Standing, feet hip width apart, weight equally distributed, arms extended overhead

Standing Half Forward Bend (Ardha Uttanasana) – Standing, feet hip width apart, weight equally distributed, hips flexed, arms extended parallel to floor

Seated Poses Staff Pose (Dandasana) – Sit, weight equally distributed across “sits bones” in pelvis, legs extended in front of body, hips width apart, ankles dorsiflexed

Cow Face (Gomukhasana) – From staff pose, flex knees, with one leg on top of the other, knees on top, feet to sides toward hips; top leg side arm extended down at side, bent at elbow, bottom leg side arm extended upward at side, bent at elbow, fingers of both hands hooked

Cobbler’s Pose (Baddha Konasana) – Seated on “sits bones,” knees flexed so soles of feet are together in front of body

Half Lotus Pose (Ardha Pdmasana) – From staff pose, bend one knee and place ankle on opposite thigh, tucking heel in toward torso; bottom leg bends and tucks underneath top knee.

Hero Pose (Virasana) – From all fours, with feet wider than hips, flex hips, gradually moving buttocks to sit between feet; use block or blanket if buttocks cannot touch floor or if there is knee or back discomfort

Wide Angle Seated Forward Bend (Upavishtha Konasana) – From staff pose, spread legs to a wide angle, lean torso forward, walking arms forward

Boat (Paripurna Navasana) – Seated on “sits bones,” hips flexed with legs extended in the air, torso straight but leaning back, arms extended toward legs

Seated Twist (Bharadvajasana 3) – From staff pose, flex knees, tucking legs toward one side, twisting in opposite direction of legs

All Fours/Prone Poses Cobra (Bhujangasana) – From prone position, palms near shoulders, back extends so torso moves upward toward ceiling, head remaining in line with spine

Upward Facing Dog (Urdhva Mukha Svanasana) – From Four Limbed Staff Pose, bring body weight forward, allowing the ankle to plantar flex so top of foot rolls toward floor, arms extended with wrists beneath shoulders

Bow (Dhanurasana) – From prone position, both knees flex, arms extended at sides toward legs and lifted, hands grasping around outside of ankles, extending back so upper body and hips lift upward away from floor

Child’s Pose (Balasana) – Hips flexed, knees flexed, lower legs tucked under body, torso facing forward, arms extended forward or relaxed alongside legs

Sphinx (Salamba Bhujangasana) – From prone position, elbows under shoulders, extend back so torso lifts upward

Plank Pose – From Downward Facing Dog, extend at hips until body is straight, wrists below shoulders, palms remain in contact with the floor, toes on floor

Four Limbed Staff (Chaturanga Dandasana) – From plank, elbows flex so they are pointing toward feet, lowering upper body toward floor

Cat (Marjaryasana) – From “all fours” position, round spine toward ceiling, head down

Cow (Bitilasana) – From “all fours” position, round spine toward floor, head up

Supine Poses Corpse (Shavasana) – Lying down, face up, arms at sides with palms up toward ceiling

Reclining Big Toe (Supta Pandangusthasana) – From corpse pose, bend first knee in toward torso while pressing the other leg downward to floor and its heel forward (ankle dorsiflexion); place strap under arch of first foot, holding strap with both hands; straighten the first knee; repeat with other leg

Bridge (Setu Bandhasana) – From corpse pose, turn palms down, bend knees so feet are flat on floor; using hamstrings and gluteals, extend hips toward ceiling

Modified Happy Baby (Anda Balasana) – From corpse pose, bend knees so feet are flat on floor; flex one hip to bring knee toward outside of body; keeping same side hand on outside of foot; switch to other leg (traditional pose brings in both legs at once)

Supine Spinal Twist (Jathara Parivartanasana) – From corpse pose, bend knees so feet are flat on floor, and take arms out to sides at shoulders, palms down; rotate hips to one side, knees following, stopping if opposing shoulder lifts off floor Pictures were created by Witold Fitz-Simon, under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. Link to the author’s page where photos were retrieved is here: http://www.yogaartandscience.com/poses/poses.html

Yoga Asanas: Web Resources Yoga Journal: http://www.yogajournal.com/category/poses/ Yoga Basics http://www.yogabasics.com/practice/yoga-postures/ ABC-of-Yoga.com http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/yogapractice/postures.asp Yoga Online http://yoga.org.nz/postures/yoga_positions_images_page.htm Santosha http://www.santosha.com/asanas/ Yogaglo http://www.yogaglo.com/poses.php Reference: Fitz-Simon, Witold. "Poses." Poses. Witold Fitz-Simon, n.d. Web. 8 Sept. 2014. http://www.yogaartandscience.com/poses/poses.html