Hatha Yoga Tip

Corpse Pose: Śavāsana – Complete yogic relaxation

Śavā means ‘dead body’. When one performs this āsana, it gives the appearance of a dead body.

• The body should be straight; make sure that the head is not twisted to one side.
• The back is flat on the ground.
• Legs are straight but not tense.
• Feet are at least 1/2 meter (2ft) apart.
• Toes are relaxed and ‘falling’ out to the sides.
• Arms are at a 45-degree (approximate) angle from the body.
• Hands are relaxed with palms upwards and fingers slightly curled.
• Eyes are closed.
• The entire body is completely relaxed (expending no energy).
• Mind is focused on the breath.
• Don’t allow the mind to dwell on external events.
• Breathing is abdominal. Inhale, abdomen rises. Exhale, abdomen goes down. Breathing is quiet, through the nose. Do not strain or force the breath.
• To ensure that there is no tension in the body, shake out the shoulders. Slowly roll the head from side to side once or twice bringing one ear to the ground and then the other. Bring the head back to center and fix the mind on the breath.

Relaxing between āsanas
When you are performing postures, you can observe how the āsana practice contains its own, in-built rhythmical alternation between effort and relaxation. In some āsanas, your muscles are first stretched and then relaxed; in others, they are contracted and then relaxed. Relaxing between āsanas confirms this pattern of effort and release in your nervous system, so that by the time you reach the final relaxation, your nervous system is so well balanced that you will be able to relax simply by visualising yourself relaxed – in other words, by using autosuggestion.
Take time to relax between one āsana and the next – this allows the body to absorb the effects of the pose and be reinvigorated. Relax for a minimum of eight deep breaths, but for no more than two minutes, so the body stays warm to progress to the next pose.

Final Relaxation
At the end of every yoga session, you should practice a final relaxation lasting 15-20 minutes. This will bring about complete physical, mental, and spiritual relaxation, which is a key experience of yoga.
Your blood pressure and body temperature will drop during final relaxation so, depending on the season, you may like to cover yourself loosely with a blanket before you begin.

1. Physical Relaxation
Duration: 8 – 10 minutes

Auto-suggestion
Take a few slow, rhythmic breaths using your abdomen. Then follow this exercise in autosuggestion for five to ten minutes:
• Have a clear mental picture of your feet, think about the downward pull of gravity, then send a mental command to your feet by silently saying, “I am relaxing my feet, I am relaxing my feet, my feet are relaxed.”
• Move up the body; each time clearly visualise the area you are focusing on, think about the pull of gravity and your rhythmic breathing, then send a command to relax to your ankles, calves, knees and thighs, hips and buttocks, abdomen and chest, lower back, middle back, shoulders and neck, hands and fingers, arms, mouth and eyes, facial muscles and scalp.
• Finally, relax your internal organs. Again, visualise the area, breathe slowly, and send the command to relax to one organ at a time: kidneys, liver, intestines, bladder, pancreas, stomach, heart, lungs, and brain. Your subconscious mind conveys the command.

2. Mental Relaxation
Duration: 1 – 2 minutes
The constant tension put on the mind owing to unnecessary worries and anxieties takes away more energy than physical tension. During mental tension one should breathe slowly and rhythmically for a few minutes and concentrate on breathing.
Slowly the mind will become calm, and one is able to feel a kind of floating sensation, as if one were as light as a feather; one feels peace and joy.

3. Spiritual Relaxation
Duration: 4 – 5 minutes
However one tries to relax the mind, one cannot completely remove all tensions and worries from the mind unless one goes to spiritual relaxation.
As long as man identifies himself with the body and mind there will be worries, sorrows, anxieties, fear, and anger which, in turn, bring tension. Yogis know that unless man can withdraw himself from the body idea and separate himself from the ego consciousness, there is no way of obtaining complete relaxation. So, from the mental relaxation, he withdraws himself and identifies himself with the all-pervading, all-powerful, all-peaceful and joyful self, or pure consciousness within himself, because the source of power, knowledge, peace, and strength is in the soul and not in the body. Man has become prey to all evil emotions of the mind by identifying himself with the body and mind, and the only sure way to free himself from its clutches is by asserting his real nature, that is, “I am that pure consciousness or Self.” This identification with the Self completes the process of relaxation.

Slowly stretch and sit for a minute cross-legged to end your practice by chanting the mantra “Om”.

Dive deep into that Silence. Stop the oscillating mind. Become free from any waves. Look within that Silence and you’ll enjoy that peace, the music of your soul, that echoing Silence, your Self – I am. – Swami Vishnudevananda

Without developing intuition, the intellectual man remains imperfect. – Sri Swami Sivananda