“If I turn my right foot out in Trikonasana, and left foot inward, I see whether the width and length of my right foot is equal to the left or whether to the left is affected to become short. This way I started adjusting my body, dividing the body from the center of the legs to understand clearly. At the early stage it seemed to be a limbering process, but later I found that I am not only digging into the body but my intelligence too. This penetration removed the weeds that were in my body and made my mind fertile to penetrate deeper.” — B.K.S. Iyengar, Yoga Wisdom & Practice
Where To
- Under the supporting hand
- In the lifted hand
- Behind the front calf
- Under the front foot
Why To
- In order to keep a straight spine an Egg under the supporting hand will provide a firm foundation to ground into. This will enable the opposing hand to raise up toward the ceiling in order to fully open the front body.
- The Egg in your lifted hand provides an excellent visual queue to help with alignment. As a practitioner, you can quickly identify the positioning of your arm and gauge your own alignment. As a teacher, so long as you’ve taught everyone to hold the Eggs in the same way, a quick glance around the room will inform you of who might need further assistance.
- To help bring awareness to the action of the front hip an Egg under the front foot can create a 45 Degree angle, encouraging proper alignment of the spine.
- If there is a tendency to hyper-extend the knee of the front leg an Egg behind the front calf will support and maintain an optional micro-bend in the front knee. You may need to rest one Egg on another, Lego Style, to get enough support.
How To
- Stand with your feet approximately 3-4 feet apart.
- Externally rotate your front foot 90 degrees, so it’s pointing toward the front ofyour mat. Begin this rotation from your thigh.
- Internally rotate your back foot 15-45 degrees, keeping your back knee aligned with your back foot.
- Press into the mound of the big toe of your front foot, to shift more weight into the outer edge of your back foot.
- Take an Egg in each hand, and extend your arms to the sides, shoulder height.
- Reach with your front arm over your forward foot as you pull the head of the femur (of the front leg) back into it’s hip socket.
- Placing the Egg in your forward hand on the ground, directly beneath your shoulder, press into the Egg as you reach the other hand toward the ceiling.
- Continue pressing down into the mound of your big toe of your front foot. Draw the femur head of the front leg in and back while externally rotating the thigh.
- Allow your Pelvis to rotate over the front femur head as you maintain a straight spine from your tailbone to the base of your skull.
- Root into the supported hand and extend through your raised arm, allowing your back body to broaden.
- Once you find your stability, turn your gaze upward toward the Egg in your raised hand.
When Not To
- If you have low blood pressure, practice this posture using a wall for support.
- If you experience pain in your neck or have a neck injury, continue the straight spine gazing forward, keeping the back of your neck long.
Eggsperiments
- Place an Egg at an angle under the front foot, such that the toes arepointed up approximately 45 degrees.
- There are several ways to place your hands on the Eggs:
- POSITION A: The Egg outside your leg allows you to gain stability from the outside of your shin. You can put some weight on the Egg without losing your balance and without bending your wrist.
- POSITION B: The Egg in inside your leg and on end for greater rotation, less wrist flexion, and more height
- POSITION C: The inside your leg on the low side gives your more stablilty, greater ratation, and less wrist flexion