hasta vinyasa options during a long stay in Baddha Konasana

Krishnamacharya often recommended long stays in certain postures, perhaps he passed this along to Pattabhi Jois, whose son Manju mentions that his father would often stay for a long time in some postures. Baddha Konasan may well have been one of these long stays as Pattabhi Jois recommended staying in the posture for up to fifty breaths.

See also the Ashtanga Rishi Series
'Then, once one has mastered all of the asanas, one can practice "the rishi series", the most advanced practice. One does the 10 postures that one intuits will be the most beneficial and appropriate for that day, holding each posture for up to 50 comfortable breaths'. David Williams loosely quoting Pattabhi Jois.

I tend to rotate postures in my practice that I stay in for an extended period, given the time I'd stay ten minutes or more in Baddha Konasana every practice. I often bring it into my later Pranayama prep. practice which tends to consist of  a sun salutation, maha mudra, baddha konasana, padmasana, sidhasana kapalabhati, japa nadisodhana pranayama and a sit.

This vinyasa is good for the kidneys supposedly Simon talks about coming into the posture (ideally almost any posture) hands free and only as far as is comfortable. spend some time there and allow the posture to come along in it's own time which could take years. Your knees may never touch the floor, which is perfectly fine, they don't have to for the posture to count as the asana. Richard Freeman would suggest you're one of the lucky ones in that you get to feel the effects of the posture at an earlier point.

Here I'm following Simon Borg-Olivier's tips, suggestions and recommendations ( I'm currently following his YogaSynergy Fundamentals online course), entering the posture as hands free as possible. I find nutating the tailbone in helps as well as thinking move the sit bones towards the feet and bring the belly button forward. These are all tips from Simon that I've been exploring in this posture.

We still have Krishnamacharya count to and from the posture but once there we hit the pause button, explore the vinyasas, the longer stay, here Krishnamacharya's later hand and arm variations (hasta vinyasas that Ramaswami introduced me to on his TT) as well as the kumbhaka's t(he breath retentions after inhalationa and/or exhalation and udiyana kriya that Krishnamacharya writes of in his early Mysore text Yoga Makaranda). In the later text formally known as Salutations to the teacher, the eternal one, that AG Mohan has rearranged and referred to as Yoga Makaranda Part II Krishnamacharya mentions padmasana as being a pratkriya, a counter posture, to baddha konasana.

Details.

should I go on.....

If the yogi's managed without tantra for a thousand years or so (at least) then so, I suspect, can I (don't worry yogi makes it on the list later)

hatha texts in general come to think of it 

fascinating but can do without them

teacher(s), yep more than one,

respect for teacher(s), 

....enough to engage with and question anything/all they may teach but respectfully

and also....

We can quite happily get on with our practice day in day out and let it take care of itself, work itself out without straitjacketing it with such terminology.

Motto of the week

Keep out of the way of your practice

Bumper sticker

let it take care of itself.

Terminology is mostly there for those who make a living out of using it, for us who practice I suspect it just gets in the way.

Nope.....

is on the list as well, as is...

oh and ....

as a concept, as terminology rather than a place name.

and for heaven sake, put 

and 

on the list as well

See too this earlier post on Alex's back in the Ring Drug addiction project http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/search/label/Alex%20Medin

As mentioned before HERE, I'm currently registered on Simon Borg Olivier and Bianca Machliss' Yoga Synergy Fundamentals course. The first week, was kind of an introduction, History and Philosophy of Yoga but also the purpose of yoga postures.

This week is the main anatomy section on the nine bandhas ( nine joint complexes)
see these earlier posts

  http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/2011/11/nine-bandhas-yes-nine-in-applied.html

 http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/2014/10/employing-simon-borg-olivers-ha-and-tha.html
Wildyogi magazines interview with Simon Borg-Olivier give us a bit of an insight into Simon's view of the purpose of yoga postures and I thought it would be nice to share, it(s a better write up than my course notes.


"The traditional yoga postures were not designed to stretch or to tense muscles. They were designed more to achieve some sort of union in the body, and that union would be done primarily by increasing the movement of prana and chitta to the body. In more scientific words - moving of energy and information in the body along the different energy channels. Those channels include blood vessels, nerves, lymphatic vessels, meridians. And the energy that flows in the body includes, for example, the heat in the blood, or electrical impulses that move through the nerves". 


He's the above paragraph in the context of the interview.







Wild Yogi: Describe your method please in more details.

Simon Borg-Olivier: The traditional yoga postures were not designed to stretch or to tense muscles. They were designed more to achieve some sort of union in the body, and that union would be done primarily by increasing the movement of prana and chitta to the body. In more scientific words - moving of energy and information in the body along the different energy channels. Those channels include blood vessels, nerves, lymphatic vessels, meridians. And the energy that flows in the body includes, for example, the heat in the blood, or electrical impulses that move through the nerves. So we than made our practice to enhance the flow of these things.

What I was feeling during yoga practice - that I was in yoga. It didn’t feel like I was stretching, tensing, breathing or thinking. Yet what we observe with most people’s yoga practice in the modern world, that they are trying to tense, stretch, breath too much and think too much or not to think at all.
So we’ve redesigned the sequences in such a way that people without thinking too much would make their bodies do what automatically normal indian traditional body would do. For example, what a modern person would do to get into a lotus position. He would take one leg, grab it and pul it on the opposite thigh, the same with the other leg. When you do this you cause the muscles between a knee and a hip to stretch as a result of a stretch reflex. But if you do this posture in the way that traditional Indian body would do - they do it the same way we cross our arms - they put leg on the opposite thigh without using their arms. You must do it in the same way while you are in the head or hands stand, for you can’t do it with your hands. So legs are moving due to the action of the muscles. It is a simple nerve reflex - in order to bend your knee you have to switch on one muscle and switch off the opposite muscle. So by moving actively into a position, using forces of the internal body, it automatically gives you strength on one side of the joint, relaxation and length on the other side of the joint. It looks like you’re having a stretch, but it doesn’t feel like you’re stretching. And because one side of the joint was tensed and compressed, while the opposite is relaxed and lengthened, this causes change in the blood flow - from high pressure to low pressure. And this improves circulation. Working in such a way you feel warm very quickly. I can practice in a freezing cool room or walk outside in the winter and my body in a couple of minutes becomes very warm. Or if I practice in a very hot conditions I would not feel overheated because of good circulation process in my body.
So the most important aspect of the practice I teach is - can you move energy and information through the body in a way when you don’t feel like stretching and tensing. But as a natural byproduct of the practice you end up very flexible and very strong, and fit, while feeling like you were meditating and your mind is at peace.

Wild Yogi: Is this what makes your method unique?

Simon Borg-Olivier: Well, if our method is unique, it is only in the world of modern yoga. Because this is exactly what traditional yogis do. And that’s why they achieve the results they do. That’s what my teachers taught me, I had very good Indian, western and Chinese, Tibetan teachers.

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Warm Greetings.  I am still looking at doing a 200 hr TT program in India and possibly Europe. I will be doing a 100 hr Advaned Vinyasakrama TT program in New Delhi and Chennai. There has been some response from Europe too—from Spain, Germany and London. I have to investigate the kind of effort needed to get work permit etc.

In Los Angeles teaching the 200 Hr Teacher Training Program in Vinyasakrama Yoga.

Another three weeks to go. Just completed 20 hrsPranayama and Yoga Sutra courses. The participants took me for lunch on Guru Poornima Day, very nice of them. Most of them did 80 Viloma Ujjayi pranayama for five days in a row and also did pranayama with them, good for the old man. See picture above picture

Yogis have a fascination for the spine. It is said that one of the main goals of the yogi is to maintain the health of the backbone. The spine is not straight but the yogis aspire to keep the back straight. One reason would be to keep the subtle sushumna nadi straight which is said to run through the center of the spine in order that the prana would move upward through the sushumna as per the goal of the Hatayogis. The Kundalini yogi would also like the spine to be straight to enable the kundalini sakti to traverse through the sushumna and reach and unite Siva in sahasrara. The age of yogi is as the condition of the spine. Most yogis train to keep their spine straight. See the stature of my guru in the picture below shot in 1968 when he was 80 years old. (Please ignore me in the picture above).

Indra's weapon “Vajrayudha” is said to be made from the backbone of a great Yogi/sage Dadhichi who did meditation in the famous Vajrasana. The spine should be strong,supple and straight as an arrow like that of Dadichi Mahsrshi. Here is a picture of my Guru with a straight back facilitated by the three bandhas

The one spine has different sections. So even as we speak of one spine each section requires a somewhat different treatment.

Srivatsa Ramaswami http://vinyasakrama.com/Main_Page

Thank you to my dear friend Natasha Symeonidou  (http://www.ashtangayogathessaloniki.com/) for the fb Share this morning (my time) that charmed me.

The video seems to be the Primary series element from Lino's new DVD.

I thought I would reproduce my old review of Lino's DVD from sept 2009, what's that, six years ago.

Thank you to my dear friend Natasha Symeonidou  (http://www.ashtangayogathessaloniki.com/) for the fb Share this morning (my time) that charmed me.

In 2010 I had the privilege a of attending Srivatsa Ramaswami's 5 week teacher training (Ramaswami had studied with Krishnamacharya for over thirty years), as part of the course we worked through Krishnamacharya's Yogarahasya and Yoga Makaranda (1934) line by line, asana by asana. Around the same period I was sent a copy of Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu (1941), this was in the kanada dialect but a  translation  of the text was serialised on this blog by Satya Murthy. This post and my practice is based on an ongoing exploration of these texts.

With the recent change of blog title to Krishnamacharya's Early Mysore practice... at Home, to better reflect my current approach to practice, I wanted a blog post to outline what I considered  Krishnamacharya's Early Mysore practice consisted of, how I am currently approaching my practice. The post below is from May 2012.



A couple of things I'd like to add to this three year old post.

Three elements seem to characterise the break between Krishnamacharya's practice and that of his Student Pattabhi Jois ( now referred to as Ashtanga Vinyasa or just Ashtanga).

1. Sequences/Series. Krishnamacharya never seemed to advocate fixed sequencing. In the 1941 Yogasanagalu table, the asana are listed as 'groups' of asana although the layout of the list closely resembles the future sequence of asana that Patabbhi Jois would later employ as Primary and Intermediates series. It seems likely that there may have been a general practice in Krishnamacharya's Mysore Palace school of practicing asana in the perhaps intuitive order we find them in the list, however as students progressed it seems likely that Krishnamacharya would instruct the student to practice a more advanced variation of the primary asana on top of or in place of the primary asana. This is a practice Krishnamacharya would continue and that we find represented in the work of his student Srivatsa Ramaswami (Vinyasa Krama).

I was recently asked how best to learn Krishnamacharya/Ramaswami's Vinyasa Krama sequences. the sequences Ramaswami presents are really only groups of subroutines of related postures. The 'sequences' are artificial and only there for pedagogic purposes, to learn the relationship between asana, how one progresses from or is related to another. Once this relationship is explored and understood ( and it's not expected that one be able to practice all or even most of the asana) one would construct ones practice employing asana and mudra that are felt to be most appropriate that day.

Pattabhi Jois apparently settled on the four series, Primary, Intermediate, Advanced A and Advanced B in response to a particular need, I.E the request for a four year College syllabus at the Sanskrit College. These series are based on Krishnamacharya's three groups of asana, Primary, Middle and Proficient. At one point Pattabhi Jois appears to have told David Williams that there were only three series, Primary, Intermediate and Advanced. While it made sense perhaps to turn the large Proficient group of asana into two shorter series Advanced Asana, the later development of a 5th and 6th series based on Advanced A and B seems highly questionable.

2. Kumbhaka. 
One element of practice that distinguishes Krishnamacharys's early Mysore practice from that of his student Pattabhi Jois (along with the Pattabhi Jois' move to fixed sequence from more flexible groups of asana) is Kumbhaka. In Krishnamacharya's book Yoga Makaranda (1934) he mentions Kumbhaka for most of the postures he presents instruction for (see below). In Yogasanagalu (1941) Kumbhaka is mentioned in the asana table but mostly in relation to Advanced asana however Krishnamacharya includes 19 of the Primary asana instructions lifted from his earlier Yoga Makaranda and these instructions still include Kumbhaka. Krishnamacharya continued to teach kumbhaka in asana throughout his teaching career. In the later Yoga Makaranda (Part II) he gives instruction for introducing kumbhaka gradually in asana, generally by taking the automatic kumbhaka or pause between the stages of the breath ( inhalation and exhalation, exhalation and inhalation) that show up naturally when we breathe long and slow and increasing it by approximately a second each week, from 2 seconds up to perhaps five. In more proficient practice the kumbhaka might be increased even further to ten seconds and perhaps in certain stable seated asana/mudras to twenty seconds EG. Maha Mudra
3.  Extended Stay ( in certain asana) see Appendix below.

4. Drishti. See this post

DRISHTI: Overview of Drishtis indicated for the Surynamaskaras by the different authors resp. Instructors ALSO Krishnamacharya's Gaze.
http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/2014/03/drishti-overview-of-drishtis-indicated.html

and perhaps this one

Krishnamacharya and Burmese Buddhist meditation: focal points linked to breath and brought into asana.
http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/2015/05/krishnamacharya-and-burmese-buddhist.html


Currently, in my own practice I tend to  continue with the general outline/framework of asana that I learned in Pattabhi Jois' Ashtanga Vinyasa which corresponds to the rough placement of asana in Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu table. Breathing more slowly than perhaps in current Ashtanga practice and again, in line with Krishnamacharya's Mysore guidelines, I tend to practice less asana than we find in the Ashtanga series,more in keeping with Krishnamacharya's use of groups of asana rather than sequence and series. I will occasionally include longer stays in certain asana and tend to practice kumbhaka throughout my practice, i may add on more proficient variations of primary asana but mainly my focus is to try to develop a more proficient approach to primary asana through exploration of the breath ( lengthening, Kumbhaka, longer stays, dhyana focal points). I will often remove the vinyasa between sides in certain asana as well as between groups but will generally include a full vinyasa between these groups of asana. After my asana practice I include pranayama, pratyahara and Japa mantra meditation as well as a less formal sit. 

I'm not suggesting that this is any more correct an approach  to yoga (or asana practice) than anything else, however we have Krishnamacharya's early writing and I find it rewarding to explore that writing in practice.

For some time I've also been exploring  Krishnamacharya Early Mysore Yoga in relation to the Applied Anatomy and Physiology of Yoga research of Simon Borg-Olivier and Bianca Machliss, their work on breath in particular.

As it happens, I still tend to think of my practice as 'Ashtanga'.




This post from my 'Krishnamacharya's original Ashtanga project blog in May 2012 but with a slightly different title.

krishnamacharya Yoga Makaranda

See Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu ongoing translation project for background.

One of the challenges we have with practicing Krishnamacharya's Early Mysore Yoga or  'original' Ashtanga is time ( this was the same conundrum Pattabhi Jois faced).

The 'original' Ashtanga practice included (and continued to include in Krishnamacharya's later teaching)

1. Full Vinyasas : Krishnamacharya seems to be advocating full vinyasa between postures, half vinyasa between sides and possible variations of the key posture. (this appears to have been reduced to between  subroutines in Krishnamacharya's later teaching)

2. Breathing : Long slow inhalations and exhalations, from 10- 15 seconds

3. Long stays in postures. 10 breaths seems to be standard, more in certain postures

4. Kumbhaka (breath retention) In many postures kumbhaka is an option, often strongly recommended to attain the full benefit of an asana, many of the forward bends for instance

5. Variations. Krishnamacharya doesn't seem to be advocating a fixed series, variations to certain postures might be added, perhaps preparatory postures but also extensions (from proficient group).

6. Pranayama. Krishnamacharya recommended a minimum of fifteen minutes pranayama after practiced followed by at least a minute in savasana

If we take Janusirsasana as an example

60 second lead in  and out (say, 5 seconds for each stage of the vinyasa )
10 breaths in the posture at 10 seconds each per inhalation and exhalation,  about six and a half minutes
Ashtanga already has three variations of this postures (4 if we include Viranchyasana B from advanced series), so around twenty minutes
Don't forget the half vinyasas between sides and between variations twenty seconds each so another minute and a half.

So in an ideal practice, around twenty-three minutes just for janusirsasana

If we compare the Primary group of postures in Krishnamacharya's list in Yogasanagalu with the Ashtanga primary we notice there aren't as many postures, this is just a framework of course but still, less postures seems to be the way to go.

Pattabhi Jois comes to the same conclusion, for those of us strapped for time. He outlines the problem in the first quote below and in the second quote offers a possible solution. He suggests that if your busy with work and don't have time for a full practice you might practice up to navasana only and then move to finishing, he even suggests doing your headstand at work. On the next day you begin with navasana after your Sury's ( he suggests only doing half the amount of those).

And of course if your a beginner you will often stop your practice at marichiyasana C anyway and move on to finishing, or in 2nd series you might stop at Kapo or Karandavasana.

Practicing half a series then isn't that new or radical and doesn't have to be just because your a beginner or have a busy lifestyle.

So should we decide to explore Krishnamacharya's approach we could take the Primary and 2nd series we're familiar with and divide them in half and practice the longer slower breathing, longer stays and breath retention allowing for deeper bandha engagement.

1st Day
Primary to navasana + pranayama

2nd Day
Primary to end of series + pranayama

3rd Day 
2nd series Bakasana + pranayama

4th Day
Bhaadvajrasana to end of series + pranayama

5th Day
Full regular Primary

6th Day
Full regular 2nd series.

We often tend to think of an advanced practice in terms of the shapes of advanced postures and yet we might also think of an advanced or proficient practice as being reflected in the approach we take to the asana rather than the asana itself.

It appears Krishnamacharya's proficient group of postures wasn't intended to be practiced as one of more series but more likely as extensions to the asana found in the Primary and Middle group. One might reflect on whether turning them into fixed series in the 70's and 80's was, in retrospect, beneficial. I'd be interested to hear arguments for and against fixed advanced series.

My own argument for (off the top of my head) is that by practising Advanced series we practice the most challenging postures everyday and this leads to increased proficiency rather than attempting an advanced posture once in a while which might lead to strain.

However my argument against the above is that in Vinyasa Krama I've practiced advanced postures as  extensions of similar asana of the same family. In Asymmetric series for example one moves from janu sirsasana and half lotus postures (primary), arcana dhanurasana A and B (advanced B)and on into eka pada sirsasana (2nd series) and then into skandasana and durvasana (Advanced A). I often add omkrasana, parsva dandasana kapilasana, buddhasana and marichyasana H (Advanced B) which while not in Ramaswami's book seem to be appropriate further extensions and because of the preparation any strain is avoided. This is something one might explore on the 5th and 6th Days




And yet do any of the postures above really appear more advanced than Krishnamacharya's janusirsasana at the top of the page. Janusirsasana appears simple, we find it in the current Ashtanga Primary series and Krishnamacharya's Primary group yet it's basically a forward bending version of mahamudra. It's a highly stable, grounded posture that cries out for breath and bandha work. We can stay here a long long time, a very long time, engage mula, uddiyana and jalandhara bandha fully, it allows for variations, the deep forward bend of janusirsasana and yet also twist to both sides by changing the hold on the foot. It's all in the approach we take to it, five breaths only in such a pose seems a bit of a crime.

If nothing else we can, of course, milk our paschimottanasana (after backbends), badha konasana, badha padmasana and longer stays in the finishing postures for all they're worth.

Here are the quotes mentioned above.

Answer: Yes correct. Take one asana, finish it. After full vinyasa you do, standing position you come. Again next. Your strength how is you use (depending on your strength you should do half or full vinyasa). Without strength chat (sixth vinyasa) stop (If you are not strong stop at the sixth vinyasa eg do half vinyasa). Increasing your strength, you full vinyasa you take. Now there is no time (too many students).

That is why I am telling. One asana, for example paschimottanasana (has) 16 vinyasas, Purvottanasana - 15, Ardha baddha padma paschimottanasana, tiriang mukeka pada paschimottanasana, janu sirsasana A, B, C, marichyasana A, B, all 22 vinyasas. Full vinyasa .

You doing full vinyasa all - that is the best. Secondary you with sixth vinyasa all the asanas is coming. That you changing, this time (when) your strength is more, you changing that time. Sixth, seventh (vinyasa) paschimottanasana you do. After 8 – 9 then jump again. “sat” (six) position you go. I every day I teaching now. Same method you do. Both is no problem

Method is good no problem. Work is there. He is going work. (for a working man half vinyasa method is good) Your yoga practice, you take one hour. One hour or two hours your expanding your time. That time all the asanas taken one day full vinyasa you do at least five hours also you want you can understand (if you take full vinyasa, you need 5 hours to complete practice). One primary asanas doing, 5 hours also you want. That is why. You (are a) working (man). You not spending all the time on the yoga practice.

You can understand. Full time you take, full vinyasa you doing. Only for (completing) primary asanas takes 5 hours. 5 hours primary postures (with) full vinyasa. 50 asanas is there completely primary postures. That 50 asanas you doing taken 5 hours, with full vinyasa. You working. Another place is working. Yes you take money, you eating food, all you want. That only for your spending (free) time only for yoga, very rare (little time), very difficult also yourself. That is why you short cut you take. That is one or two hours. Two hours spent your yoga practice. That is good. That is also is good. Yes OK. That I tell you.

Sri K Pattabhi Jois Public Talks on Ashtanga Yoga - France 1991

Question: If one has only half an hour for practice, what should he do?

Answer: Now, no time. Many work is there. That time, no time. But you including half an hour time (if you have half an hour) you spend this way: You take practice.Anyone (always) start (with) Suryanamaskar half posture (half of the postures) you do, no problem. Halfposture means: primary half to Marichyasana D. (next day) Navasana you do aftertake Suryanamaskar (after you have finished surya namaskar you go on straight to navasana and the rest of the postures). Sirsasana and you do your work. No problem (do head stand at work?). 
Sri K Pattabhi Jois Public Talks on Ashtanga Yoga - France 1991

Given the highly practical nature of Krishnamacharya's Yogasangalu, practice manual, no doubt more suggestions and recommendations for practice will be on the way as the translation continues.

How to practice Krishnamacharya's early, 'original' Ashtanga Part 1
http://grimmly2007.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/practicing-original-ashtanga-sequences.html





Examples of usage of Kumbhaka (Breath retention) in asana in Krishnamacharya's Yoga Makaranda

"When practising asana, the breath that is inhaled into the body and the breath that is exhaled out must be kept equal. Moreover, practise the asana with their vinyasas by breathing only through the nose". p27

"Brahmana kriya means to take in the outside air through the nose, pull it inside, and hold it in firmly. This is called puraka kumbhaka.
Langhana kriya means to exhale the air that is inside the body out through he nose and to hold the breath firmly without allowing any air from outside into the body. This is called recaka kumbhaka".
p27-28

"In each section for each particular asana, we have included a description and an enumeration of its vinyasas. The vinyasas in which the head is raised are to be done with puraka kumbhaka and the ones in which the head is lowered must be done with recaka kumbhaka. Uthpluthi (raising the body from the floor with only the support of both hands on the floor is called uthpluthi) should be done on recaka kumbhaka for a fat person and on puraka kumbhaka for a thin person...." p28

ASANA ( Instructions ).

1 Uttanasana
"Following the rules for tadasana (yogasana samasthiti krama) (Figure 4.1, 4.2), stand erect. Afterwards, while exhaling the breath out slowly, bend the upper part of the body (that is, the part above the hip) little by little and place the palms down by the legs. The knees must not be even slightly bent. Raise the head upwards and fix the gaze on the tip of the nose. While doing this, draw in clean air through the nostril, hold the breath firmly and maintain this position. This is called sahitha kumbhaka...." p51

2 Parsvottanasana
"...Standing in tadasana krama, draw in clean air through the nose and practise kumbhaka...." p59

3 Prasarita Padottanasana
"...Stand in tadasana krama. Jump the legs apart, placing the feet 3 mozhams apart on the ground. Practise jumping and placing the feet at the correct distance all in one jump. While jumping, either puraka kumbhaka or recaka kumbhaka can be done...." p61

4 Ardhabaddha Padmottanasana
"From tadasana, do puraka kumbhaka. After this, choose either leg and place its foot on top of the opposite thigh. Slowly, little by little, move the foot up until the back of the heel is pressed against the lower abdomen. Whichever leg is raised, move the same hand behind the back and clasp the big toe of that foot (from behind the back). Keep the other hand in tadasana sthiti and do puraka kumbhaka. After this, slowly exhale through the nose and bend the upper part of the body forward down to the floor. Place the palm down by the foot and keep it firmly pressed against the floor. Release the breath out completely, and without inhaling, practise kumbhaka and lower the head, placing it on top of the kneecap of the extended leg...."p61

6 Urdhvamukhasvanasana
"This has 4 vinyasas. Vinyasas 1, 2, and 3 are exactly as for uttanasana. The 4th vinyasa is to be done following the same method as for caturanga dandasana. But in caturanga dandasana, there are 4 angulas of space between the body and the floor everywhere. In this asana, the palms and toes are as in caturanga dandasana. However even while keeping the lower part of the body from the toes to the thighs just as in caturanga dandasana, raise the upper part of the body. Make sure that the navel rests between the hands and do puraka kumbhaka...." p65

8 Pascimattanasana or Pascimottanasana
"...This asana has many kramas. Of these the first form has 16 vinyasas. Just doing the asana sthiti by sitting in the same spot without doing these vinyasas will not yield the complete benefits mentioned in the yoga sastras. This rule applies to all asanas.
The first three vinyasas are exactly as for uttanasana. The 4th vinyasa is caturanga dandasana, the 5th vinyasa is urdhvamukhasvanasana, the 6th vinyasa is adhomukhasvanasana. Practise these following the earlier instructions. In the 6th vinyasa, doing puraka kumbhaka, jump and arrive at the 7th vinyasa. That is, from adhomukhasvanasana sthiti, jump forward and move both legs between the arms without allowing the legs to touch the floor. Extend the legs out forward and sit down. Practise sitting like this with the rear part of the body either between the two hands or 4 angulas in front of the hands. It is better to learn the abhyasa krama from a guru. In this sthiti, push the chest forward, do puraka kumbhaka and gaze steadily at the tip of the nose...." p69

11 Janusirsasana
"...This form follows the hatha yoga principles. Another form follows the raja yoga method. The practitioner should learn the difference. First, take either leg and extend it straight out in front. Keep the heel pressed firmly on the floor with the toes pointing upward. That is, the leg should not lean to either side. The base (back) of the knee should be pressed against the ground. Fold the other leg and place the heel against the genitals, with the area above the knee (the thigh) placed straight against the hip. That is, arrange the straight leg which has been extended in front and the folded leg so that together they form an “L”. Up to this point, there is no difference between the practice of the hatha yogi and the raja yogi.
For the hatha yoga practitioner, the heel of the bent leg should be pressed firmly between the rectum and the scrotum. Tightly clasp the extended foot with both hands, raise the head and do puraka kumbhaka. Remain in this position for some time and then, doing recaka, lower the head and place the face onto the knee of the outstretched leg. While doing this, do not pull the breath in. It may be exhaled. After this, raise the head and do puraka. Repeat this on the other side following the rules mentioned above.
The raja yogi should place the back of the sole of the folded leg between the scrotum and the genitals. Now practise following the other rules described above for the hatha yogis. There are 22 vinyasas for janusirsasana. Please note carefully that all parts of the outstretched leg and the folded leg should touch the floor. While holding the feet with the hands, pull and clasp the feet tightly. Keep the head or face or nose on top of the kneecap and remain in this sthiti from 5 minutes up to half an hour. If it is not possible to stay in recaka for that long, raise the head in between, do puraka kumbhaka and then, doing recaka, place the head back down on the knee. While keeping the head lowered onto the knee, puraka kumbhaka should not be done..." p79-80

12 Upavistakonasana
"This has 15 vinyasas. Recaka kumbhaka is its primary principle...." p83

13 Baddhakonasana
"This has 15 vinyasas. The 8th vinyasa is the asana sthiti. The 1st to the 6th vinyasas are like the 1st till the 6th vinyasas for pascimottanasana. In the 7th vinyasa, just like the 7th vinyasa for pascimottanasana, keep the hands down and bring the legs forward in uthpluthi. But instead of straightening them, fold the legs and place them down on the ground. Folding them means that the heel of the right foot is pasted against the base of the right thigh and the heel of the left foot is pasted against the base of the left thigh. When the legs are folded in this manner, the soles of the feet will be facing each other. Hold the sole of the left foot firmly with the left hand and hold the right sole firmly with the right hand. Clasping the soles together firmly, do recaka kumbhaka, lower the head and place it on the floor in front of the feet..."
 p85-86

14 Supta Padangushtasana
"...The first krama for this has 21 vinyasas. Through the 6th vinyasa, it is exactly as for pascimottanasana. In the 7th vinyasa, lie down facing upwards instead of extending the legs and sitting as in pascimottanasana. While lying down, the entire body must be pressed against the ground. The toes must point upwards and the back of the heels must be stuck to the ground. This is also called savasana by other schools. This is the 7th vinyasa for supta padangushthasana. In the 8th vinyasa, slowly raise the right leg straight up. Hold the big toe of the right foot with the fingers of the right hand, do recaka kumbhaka and remain in this position for as long as possible. .."p86

17 Utthitahasta Padangushtasana
"...First, push the chest forward and stand erect with equal balance. While standing this way, make sure that the head, neck, back, hips, arms and legs are aligned properly and gaze at the tip of the nose. The feet must be kept together. Now, raise one leg up slowly and maintain this position with the extended leg kept straight out in front at the height of the navel. The knee should not bend and the leg must be kept straight for the entire time that it is being raised. After the leg has been raised about 3/4 of the way without any assistance, take the first three fingers of the corresponding hand (the same as whichever leg was raised) and tightly clasp the big toe of the raised foot. Remain in this position for some time. Keep the other hand on the hip. Inhalation and exhalation of the breath must be slow and of equal duration. One says the sthiti is correct if there is the same measure of distance between the standing leg and the raised leg. In this there are many other forms.
After staying in this sthiti for some time, take either the face or the nose towards the knee of the raised leg and place it there. Recaka kumbhaka must be done in this sthiti. That is, expel the breath completely from the body, maintain this position and then without allowing any breath into the body, bend the upper body. Now carefully pull in the stomach as much as one’s strength allows and hold it in. Stay in this sthiti for at least one minute..." p99

18 Baddhapadmasana
"...Place the right foot on top of the left thigh and the left foot on top of the right thigh. Take the hands behind the back and tightly clasp the big toe of the right foot with the first three fingers of the right hand and tightly clasp the big toe of the left foot with the first three fingers of the left hand.
Press the chin firmly against the chest. Keep the gaze fixed on the midbrow. Sit down, keeping the rest of the body straight. This has the name baddhapad- masana. This asana must be repeated on the other side (that is, first place the left foot on top of the right thigh and then the right foot on top of the left thigh) in order to exercise both sides of the body.
This has 16 vinyasas. The 8th and 9th vinyasas are the asana sthiti. The other vinyasas are like pascimottanasana. Study the pictures (Figures 4.52, 4.53) and learn how to keep the gaze. In this asana, one must do puraka kumbhaka..." p103

25 Marichasana
"This has 22 vinyasas. This needs to be done on both the left and the right sides. Study the sannaha sthiti (the preparatory state) of marichasana in the picture. This sthiti is the 7th vinyasa.
The right-side marichasana paristhiti is shown in the second picture. Maricha Maharishi was known for bringing this asana to public knowledge and hence it is named for him.
Stay in the 7th vinyasa for some time doing puraka kumbhaka. After this, do recaka and come to the 8th vinyasa. Stay in this position for as long as possible. In case your head starts reeling (you get dizzy), come back to the 7th vinyasa, do puraka kumbhaka, close the eyes and remain here for some time. The dizziness will stop.
The 9th vinyasa is like the 7th vinyasa. The 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th vinyasas are like the 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th vinyasas of janusirsasana.
The 14th vinyasa is marichasana sannaha sthiti on the left side. This is demonstrated in the 3rd picture. The 15th vinyasa is the left-side marichasana paristhiti. This is demonstrated in the 4th picture. In the 14th vinyasa do puraka kumbhaka and in the 15th vinyasa do only recaka..." p115

26 Niralamba Sarvangasana
"This has 14 vinyasas. The 8th vinyasa is the asana sthiti. The form depicted in the picture is the 8th vinyasa. This is niralamba sarvangasana paristhiti. In order to get to this sthiti, slowly raise the arms and legs either together or one-by- one in the 7th vinyasa . Do only recaka at this time. Never do puraka kumbhaka..." p115

27 Ekapada Sirsasana
"This has two forms: dakshina ekapada sirsasana and vama ekapada sirsasana. Both these forms together have 18 vinyasas. The first picture depicts dakshina ekapada sirsasana and the second picture vama ekapada sirsasana. The 7th and 12th vinyasas are the asana sthitis of these different forms. For this asana, you need to do sama svasauchvasam (same ratio breathing). In the 7th vinyasa, the left leg, and in the 12th vinyasa the right leg, should be extended and kept straight from the thigh to the heel. No part should be bent.
Keep the hands as shown in the picture. In this sthiti one needs to do equal ra- tio breathing. When the hands are joined together in ekapada sirsasana paristhiti, one must do puraka kumbhaka. One must never do recaka..." p120

29 Yoga Nidrasana
"This has 12 vinyasas. The 7th vinyasa is yoga nidrasana sthiti. The first 6 vinyasas for kurmasana are the first 6 vinyasas for this. In the 7th vinyasa, sit like you did in dvipada sirsasana and instead of keeping the two legs on the back of the neck, first lie back facing upwards. Then lift the legs up and place them on the back of the neck.
In dvipada sirsasana, we joined the hands together in prayer and placed them next to the muladhara cakra. In this asana, following the krama, take the shoul- ders (that is, the arms) on both the left and right sides over the top of the two thighs, and hold the right wrist tightly with the fingers of the left hand beneath the spine. Study the picture.
In the 7th vinyasa, after doing only recaka, arrive at the asana sthiti. Then, one should do puraka kumbhaka and lie down...." p123

32 Bhairavasana
"This has 20 vinyasas. The 8th and the 14th vinyasas are the right and left side asana sthitis.
From the 1st until the 7th vinyasa, follow the method for ekapada sirsasana. In the 8th vinyasa, instead of keeping the hands at the muladhara cakra (as in ekapada sirsasana), hug both arms together tightly as seen in the picture and lie down looking upwards. While remaining here, do puraka kumbhaka, raise the neck upwards and gaze at the midbrow...". p129

33 Cakorasana
"This has 20 vinyasas. This is from the Kapila Matham.
After observing that this follows the form of flight of the cakora bird, this came to be called cakorasana. In the Dhyana Bindu Upanishad, Parameshwara advises Parvati that “There are as many asanas as there are living beings in the world”. We readers must always remember this. The 8th and 14th vinyasas are this asana’s sthitis. The 7th and the 13th vinyasas are like the 7th and the 13th vinyasas of ekapada sirsasana. In the 8th and the 14th vinyasas, press the palms of the hand firmly into the ground, do puraka kumbhaka, raise the body 6 angulas off the ground and hold it there. Carefully study the picture where this is demonstrated. Keep the gaze fixed on the midbrow. The other vinyasas are like those of bhairavasana..." p131-132

37 Trivikramasana
"This has 7 vinyasas. From the 1st to the 5th vinyasas and then the 7th vinyasa, practise following those for utthita hasta padangushtasana. Practise the 2nd and 7th vinyasas as shown in the picture (study it carefully) and remain in these positions. The 2nd vinyasa is the right-side trivikramasana sthiti. The 6th vinyasa as shown is the left-side trivikramasana sthiti. The picture shown here only demonstrates the left-side trivikramasana. It is important that equal recaka and puraka kumbhaka must be carefully observed while practising this asana. Keep the gaze fixed on the midbrow. Both legs must be held straight and must not lean or bend to any side...".
p136

38 Gandabherundasana
"This has 10 vinyasas. The 6th and 7th vinyasas show the asana sthiti. The first picture shows the 6th vinyasa and the second picture shows the 7th. In the 4th vinyasa, come to caturanga dandasana sthiti and in the 5th vinyasa proceed to viparita salabasana sthiti. In the 6th vinyasa, spread the arms out wide, keeping them straight like a stick (like a wire) as shown in the picture. Take the soles of both feet and place them next to the ears such that the heels touch the arms and keep them there.
Next, do the 7th vinyasa as shown in the second picture. This is called supta ganda bherundasana. In this asana sthiti and in the preliminary positions, do equal recaka puraka kumbhaka. Keep the gaze fixed on the midbrow. This must not be forgotten". p142

Like many I've often wondered why the Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois approach to asana are so different given that they both studied with the same teacher T. Krishnamacharya and at the same period. We do have the video of Iyengar practicing Ashtanga, jumping from one posture to the next in a demonstration for the camera in 1938 but why the parting of ways?

My understanding is that when Iyengar went to Pune and was asked to write a 'manual' he wasn't able to explain, in words rather than through demonstration,  how to perform an asana. It was in the act of writing out instructions for each asana that he began to focus so closely on the alignment to be explored in each posture. On giving attention to each and every aspect of an individual asana the length of stay in an asana would become longer to allow for exploring these different aspects.

Ramaswami has mentioned that Krishnamacharya did talk about how certain asana required longer stays for the benefits to be experienced, paschimottanasana comes to mind, sarvangasana (shoulder stand), sirsasana (headstand), maha mudra in the mudras, most full body mudras would tend to involve longer stays to maximise the .

But we find it also in Krishnamacharya's early writing, way back in 1934 in Mysore when Pattabhi Jois was his student we find in Krishnamacharya's first book, Yoga Makaranda, instruction and recommendation for extended stays.

Pattabhi Jois too (see below), in Interview talks about extended stays in certain asana.

"You long time you sitting, kurmasana is long time, 3 hours is possible. One asana is perfect, taken 3 hours."

Below then are some of the extended stays that I tend to explore in my own classes and workshops, you will  be relieved to know that we tend to only stay five breaths in Chaturanga rather than fifteen minutes, likewise with trikonasana, we usually stay ten breaths each side and in downward facing dog just ten breaths, enough to get the point of exploring longer stays in the privacy of ones own home practice.


What constitutes an extended stay?

It can be confusing, when considering an extended stay in an asana should we count just one expression of the asana or several. Krishnamacharya presents several examples of paschimottanasana (see below), different hand positions and different head positions, the forehead on the knee, face on the knee and chin on the knee.

In Pattabhi Jois' Ashtanga, going by the 1973 Syllabus given to Nancy and David, we find Paschimottanasana A, B, C, D, E.... at 5 breaths each, with 5 seconds for inhalation and the same for exhalation, that gives us approx. 5 minutes in paschimottanasana. If we were to take the old count of eight breaths and go by Pattabhi Jois' mention in Interviews of 10 (even 15) seconds for inhalation and the same for exhalation as the ideal, then we have just under fourteen minutes.

Maha Mudra is another posture where an extended stay may be expected. Janu Sirsasana is a vinyasa of Mahamudra and we still have three versions of this in the Ashtanga Primary series.

Sharat I seem to remember in past conference notes mentioned very long stays in sirsasana as being beneficial ".. but at home, not in the shala, too busy".

Here's Krishnamacharya's extended stays from Yoga Makaranda (1934 Mysore).




ALSO

Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois on extended stays in asana

Question: Yassin is asking if he should stay longer in kurmasana or in back bendings. You give some timing like 10 breaths for kurmasana. You give 3 times five breaths for urdhva dhanurasana. Yassin is asking if he should stay longer. He wants to stay longer sometimes.

Answer: "I telling: all the asanas you take practice how long your strength is so there, you take. Long time he is doing, 100 asanas you do - 1 asana is perfect. Long time sitting all the asanas he is doing time, you 1 take 10 breath or 15 breathing. You count it. Practice, that is all. You long time you sitting, kurmasana is long time, 3 hours is possible. One asana is perfect, taken 3 hours. Now practice how much your strength is there, you take. That is no problem. Your strength is 10 breathing is doing possible, you do 10 breathing, 15 breathing you possible, you do 15 breathing. One hundred possible, 100 you do. 5 you do, 5 is possible, 5 you do. Take practice, that is all. I am telling only for practice. Fix completely perfect. Asana, one asana siddhi, you do hundred asanas, one asana is coming, one asana perfectly is coming. That is real".

And finally we have the Rishi series that supposedly comes after Advanced A and B that I posted on again only yesterday, where we stay in ten postures for fifty breaths. 
See THIS post


BKS Iyengar

In his later years, in his regular personal practice BKS Iyengar would tend to stay for three to five minutes for most postures, longer for certain seated postures,  7-15 minutes perhaps (example baddha konasana 15 minutes) and an extended period for shoulder stand and headstand 15-30 minutes. I also have him, in a regular practice staying 20 minutes in Vajrasana and the same in Raja kapotsasana and even 10 minutes in Hanumanasana.

3-5 minutes minimum in an asana seems perfectly reasonable to me.... except perhaps navasana where I'm happy to go with a minute and a half.


See also the idea of the 'Rishi' series

'Originally there were five series: Primary, Intermediate, Advanced A, Advanced B, and the fifth was the “rishi” series'.
Nancy Gilgoff 'Yoga as it was'

Ashtanga Rishi Approach
'...Doing a practice of 10 postures for up to 50 breaths is a method of preparing for "advanced series" after one has learned 1st and 2nd. It can be done once or twice a week. One does the "salutations" and then starts going thru the series, holding each posture for as long as comfortably possible. Notice which postures could be held for 50 breaths. The next time you practice this way, the postures which you could hold for 50 are omitted and new ones are added at the end. One gradually works thru the series, dropping and adding asanas, still doing 10 asanas per session. I have gone all the way thru 1st and 2nd this way several times over the years and have found it beneficial'.

Ashtanga Rishi Series
'Then, once one has mastered all of the asanas, one can practice "the rishi series", the most advanced practice. One does the 10 postures that one intuits will be the most beneficial and appropriate for that day, holding each posture for up to 50 comfortable breaths'.

http://grimmly2007.blogspot.co.uk/p/ashtanga-rishi-seriesapproach.html



And in case your reaction, like my own, is that three hours in mayurasana is impossible.... perhaps not, here's plank held for four hours and 26 minutes ( his wifes birthday is 26th April i.e. 4:26), notice how composed he is at the end unlike the previous record holder shown at the end of the clip.

Miley Cyrus Marichiyasana D from YogaDork Good, honest, asana.

Now that I shamelessly have your attention perhaps, here's a curious thing about Marichiyasana D, Krishnamacharya had it in his middle group of asana NOT his Primary group.

Which, if you've been held back until binding said Mari D, might be uncomfortable reading. Manju doesn't agree with being held back here but believes you should carry on with the series while continuing to work on binding. These days, I personally tend to feel that pausing at any point of our practice is rarely a bad thing, until one can stay in utkatasana for five minutes say with long slow steady breathing or ten minutes in paschimottanasana or five minutes a side of the sublime janu sirsasana.....

BTW I love that Ms Cyrus posted this solid, workmanlike, meat n potatoes posture rather than some flighty arm balance currently in Vogue

Madonna in..... actually I have no idea what that is.

However, by way of an apology, I do love Madonna's Eka pada Sirsasana, all serene like

Below is Krishnamacharya's  Yogasanagalu (Mysore, 1941) middle group table in full, it will be familiar to Ashtangi's who practice intermediate series, feel free to play 'spot the differences' in comments. The full table is here

Complete asana table from Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu, Primary, Middle and Proficient asana groups

Krishnamacharya , unlike his student Pattabhi Jois, seems to have favoured more flexible groups of asana over fixed sequences. Rather than learning one whole series of asana before moving onto the next, it appears that once one became proficient with a posture Krishnamacharya would give you a more challenging variation (Note the intermediate/middle group has Marichiyasana D, E, F and G - see blow for G and also H), this was an approach he continued with in his later teaching, see Ramaswami's Vinyasa Krama based on 30+ years of Krishnamacharya's later teaching in Chennai.

LINK: Complete asana table from Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu, Primary, Middle and Proficient asana groups

Which is better fixed series or  more flexible groups?

I have to admit that he fixed series Ashtanga approach suited me in the beginning (see the first three years of this blog), I'm not sure I would have developed the discipline, the tapas of practice had I started with Vinyasa Krama,...after a while though, the more flexible approach made more sense to me.... personally and continues to do so, I practice a Krishnamacharya Ashtanga primary/Intermediate series/group framework but with a lot of Vinyasa Krama variation.

I suspect that Krishnamacharya started his young students off with a pretty much fixed practice of Primary group asana. At some point however he would bring out more and more variations and extensions, 'a mountain of Asana ' I believe Pattabhi Jois described it, who jumped at the first chance of bringing order (when asked to produce a four year college syllabus) to what he seems to have seen as chaos (and then even more order with series 3, 4, 5 and 6 thus tidying up the whole week).

There was always order of course 'though the young Pattabhi Jois perhaps failed to notice it (until perhaps he started writing out that syllabus and had little to reorder until Advanced asana), we can see it now in Ramaswami's books, pedagogic sequences made up of subroutine after subroutine designed to learn the relationship between asana, how one asana leads into another. Krishnamacharya asked or suggested that Ramaswami order them this way. Once that relationship is seen or understood however one would only practice the asana as sequences occasionally, choosing instead appropriate asana for that days practice.

Asymmetric sequence of asana subroutines from my Vinyasa Krama Practice Book

and from January 2011, getting into Marichiyasna H  because I've forgotten how it's done.

to my original post

They've also produced a free booklet

LINK TO 35 page PDF

LINK TO 35 page PDF

See my previous post focussing on the protocol

http://grimmly2007.blogspot.jp/2015/06/the-govt-of-indias-35-min-common-yoga.html

 to Photos of the event from around the world

Below, Ramaswami's Namarupa article on his studies with Krishnamacharya

LINK free pdf download

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Newsletter/Articles : Srivatsa Ramaswami 2009-2012 (updated monthly)

Four downloadable (and searchable) pdf volumes


Ramaswami's Newsletters Vol 1 2009 Collection

January 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami-Triguna

February 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami

March 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami -A “Creative” Hypothesis

April 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami -Vajrasana Story

Sanskrit Chants April 2009

May 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami - Yoga for the heart

June 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami -Vedic Convocation

June 2009 1. SRI PATTABHI JOIS--- 2. Between Death and Birth

July 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami -A Tale of two Bhakti Yogis

August 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami - Head and Shoulders above......

September 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami - Vinyasakrama Practice

October 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami-Svadhyaya and Story of Tirumular

November 2009 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami - Meditating on Meditation

December 2009 from Srivatsa Ramaswami - One legged poses and story of Bhagirata



Ramaswami's Newsletters Vol II 2010

January 2010 Newsletter-One Verse Exposition of Adi Sankara

February 2010 Newsletter From S. Ramaswami--Yoga Nerves

March 2010 Newsletter--T.T Program--Yoga vs Ach..choo

April 2010 Newsletter--Subhashita(Good Saying)

May 2010 Newsletter --Yoga and Bronchial Asthma

June 2010 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami--Chitta Vritti

July 2010 Newsletter From Srivatsa Ramaswami--Story Time

August 2010 Newsletter--2010 VK-TT Program Feedback

September 2010 Newsletter --Yoga Gymnastique

Mid-September 2010 Newsletter--Mr Mark Singleton's Letter

October 2010 Newsletter--Pancha Kosa Vidya

November 2010 Newsletter From S.Ramaswami--Yajnyavalkya

December 2010 Newsletter from Srivatsa Raaswami--Durvasa


Ramaswami's Newsletters 2011 Vol III

January 2011 Newsletter S. Ramaswami - Iswarapranidhana

February 2011 Newsletter-Thus Spake Sri T Krishnamacharya

March 2011 Newsletter from S. Ramaswami—Breath of Yoga

April 2011 Newsletter from S. Ramaswami—Mantra Cover

May 2011 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami-Advaita

June 2011 Newsletter - Statics and Dynamics of Asana

July 2011 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami—Trivikrama

August 2011 Newsletter —Yoga TT Program, What I Learnt.

September 2011 Newsletter—Spinal Exercise, the bottom of It.

October 2011 Newsletter from S. Ramaswami--AVVAIYAR

November 2011 Newsletter from S. Ramaswami—Yoga Joint

December 2011 Newsletter from Srivatsa Ramaswami-Chants