Moon day
Posted in ashtanga yoga on 05/08/2009 08:20 am by karenNice. Just what I needed. Slept in until 5:15 AM, when Maxine stood by the bed and put her head on my pillow.
Moon days are nice: I can drink my coffee at a leisurely pace, surf the web, read some blogs. Today I also decided to have an early breakfast and watch Richard Freeman’s intermediate DVD, from pasasana to eka pada sirsasana — I wanted to get a look at his transitions, particularly those from ustrasana to supta vajrasana. It seems like lots of people do a knees-bent half-handstand (kind of like this) that pauses at the top. RF does a straight-legged hop up and immediate fall (if RF can be said to “fall”) into chaturanga. So more a hop than a press. Needless to say, I consider this good news.
Also worth noting was that he did not stretch his hands down his feet in ustrasana (like Arjuna is doing here); instead, he cupped his heels with his hands, keeping thumbs on the inside.
Also, his knees were not together in parsva dhanurasana. Close, but not touching. I’ve been killing myself trying to glue my knees together in that pose, and it’s a structural challenge: I have wide hips and short thighs (yes, all relatively speaking). So I have to remember to feel my way toward more closeness, rather than force my knees together. (Force is so much easier!)
So those were just a couple random tidbits.
Oh, wait! There’s more:
If you look at still photos of the Yoga Journal variety, you see very dramatic dhanurasanas — all chests and legs pretty much perpendicular to the floor. One thing I love about watching RF (and Sharath, for that matter) on DVD is that they are economical with their movements. There is no peacock business. No Yoga Journal poses. Would a still of RF’s dhanurasana be deemed suitable for the cover of Yoga Journal? Nope. The power is in the vinyasas — in the movement. In the economy of the movement.
I think we sometimes forget that, and have the peculiar illusion that our practices should look like a bunch of Yoga Journal cover shots all strung together. That illusion, of course, is pretty much dispelled as soon as you start working your way through the actual practice using flesh, bones and oxygen — but still, I think there’s a miniscule, lingering, glossy expectation that lives somewhere in the back of my mind.
***
No practice, due to Moon day. But perhaps a cold dropback or two later in the afternoon…
***
A thought to Guruji. I’m grateful for this practice.
05/08/2009 at 8:55 am
(me too)
05/08/2009 at 9:14 am
I’m grateful for this practice too! What an incredible thing to discover in life… something started so far away. We’re lucky to live during this time, I think.
Sweet photo.
Interesting notes on RF style. He’s pretty amazing- so floaty. I do the knees bent 1/2 handstand, but don’t always make it more than a donkey kick. Those poses take a lot out of me (opening that chest!). I grab my heels, with thumbs in, rotating my chest out and up for Ustrasana because I need it. I can do hands down the feet, but I want to crack open my ribcage.
That knees together thing in parsvo D is definitely structural. I don’t find any struggle in it, but I’ve seen people with beautiful and strong practices have a hard time putting their knees together. It’s not because they’re choosing not to!
Cold back drops. oye.
Still haven’t mustered up the courage yet, but maybe later today. Good luck with yours!
05/08/2009 at 10:11 am
‘One thing I love about watching RF (and Sharath, for that matter) on DVD is that they are economical with their movements.’
YYes yes economical with their movements, especially Sharath, still can’t get over his jump through. And didn’t you love that bit where Richard was flapping about for a moment in Kapo trying to get his toes. loved him for that.
Liz ‘maybe later today’ , shall look out for the update on this.
05/08/2009 at 10:25 am
Yes, the flapping. I adore it.
05/08/2009 at 12:49 pm
Hamish is of the same school of economical movements. I’ve shed a lot of unnecessary habits off my practice, for example lifting the arm up before reaching over for the big toe in Trikonasana. Not that it matters, really, but I kind of like the “bare bones” practice. Maybe because I’m inherently lazy?
05/08/2009 at 1:52 pm
Lazy? I think not, V.
No matter how much we may call ourselves out on laziness, it’s pretty clear that no one can really be an Ashtangi & lazy. It’s a practice that weeds out slackers, that’s for sure. (Though I guess in the end, any daily practice will weed out slackers.)
05/08/2009 at 4:40 pm
Gonna have to try these Ustrasana heel-cups. I used to come down and sort of sit my hands on top of the heels, like an upside down ice-cream cone, and now I can palm the bottoms of my feet with relative ease, but that doesn’t feel like it’s opening the front of me the way I wish it would.
My vinyasa from a kneeling position tends to be: inhale up to Lolasana, hang out for the inhale; exhale, extend, chaturanga. I’ve been trying to jump well ahead of my hands (sort of a Bakasana looking thing) before re-lowering the knees from a tuck, in the jump through.
And yeah, nice moon day timing; I’ve been straight out with school stuff for 8 hours today.
05/08/2009 at 6:39 pm
Karen- any daily practice definitely weeds out the slackers!
I ran into a woman last night at the grocery store who I used to see in led primary classes at our local McYoga. When I told her that not only was I still practicing (5 years later), but I practiced 6 days a week, her mouth hung open. Of course, she is no longer practicing!
Grimmly, Karen, my cold drop back vid is up. And it’s sad. Very, very sad. Glad I have a private blog!