the uncomfortable posture
lobster
Crusty Veteran
Advanced combined child and dog pose ...
As we know from hagiography the Buddha in his final incarnation spent his early life in ignorance pursuing worldliness (tsk, tsk) then starved and abused his body as was the spiritual fashion at the time until:
- ay caramba. Awakening.
- quick chat with local gods and bingo. Buddhism.
Now we have the opportunity of a more mature posture.
Entering a yoga pose can give us an understanding and training in discomfort/dukkha and its arising/relaxing/accepting ... It works for me at the moment and has health benefits too ...
Do you ever meditate in an asana/posture? Well apart from the usual seated, lying and standing postures?
This morning I found myself looking for repose in a very gentle shoulder stand and finding it ...
Next I may adopt the child pose ...
I did try and find a nice video or something on Tibetan 5 rites practice but nothing appropriate so far ...
Comments
Sadly sans a pet currently, I often practise the First stance of "Standing like a Tree". I merely have to adopt this pose but for a moment or five, and I physically literally feel the stiffness and 'negative' energy draining down through my body, and out of my feet.
For about a half hour, the pose is restful, meditative and energising.... then, the body begins to quietly,imperceptibly but then increasingly 'protest'.... until at around the hour mark, the limbs all begin to shake...I endure the sensation of physical protest, while 'on esquisse un sourire a l'intérieur'...(as I used to instruct my French classes...) and then, I relax. Cleansed and at peace, I go about my day.
I find it ironic it’s dogs standing on them in the ‘dog pose’.
If they're thinking of standing like a tree, they're barking up the wrong one.
I wouldn't practise such a pose near a dog anyway.... they're too prone to cocking a hind leg....
Incidentally, Master Lam Kam Chuen was my Qi Gong Master while I studied Shiatsu.
He is adorable.
I think I've mentioned this before, but we pupils arrived for our class one morning, (just before 9.00am) to see him standing in the main hall, in the Second Tree Position; the perspiration was dripping off his fingertips, and he was wet with sweat. But he was solid still, and looked extremely serene. The Door watchman had let him in at 6am. He told us that he had been stood like that pretty much for all that time.
Blimey.
Many thanks guys
I am very pleased to be attending to the body of knowledge that resides in this very being. Stiffness, yang power comes naturally to many of us. Too much letting go yin-ary might require a hardening but for me relaxing is key ...
Even though alternating days of yoga and then chi-kung, at the moment it is Buddha as Yogi that floats my boat (also available as a pose)
Earlier ...
http://newbuddhist.com/discussion/16608/yoga
Banana!
Asana!
Banana! We haz banana!
On good days, I love to do a combination of Bikram, Yin and Kundalini yoga asanas.
On days when I find no time to pull a long session, I love to practise the Five Tibetan Rites.
I find them most invigorating and energizing.
Nothing beats a good yoga session performing deep breathing.
Deep breathing helps deepen elongation and flexibility.
And we should definitely manage to stay concentrated all the time to prevent injuries.
Try not to frighten any horses, llamas or Shiva when chanting ... and start gently if overweight, ill, elderly or a wer-lobster or otherwise crusty ...
5 Tibetans with bonus tracks ... (goat and Buddha cave not required)
OM HA HUM
I am working up to Salabâsana (Lobster pose)
More on the Dog pose ...
http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/downward-dog-nait-puppy-yoga-class-fundraiser-photo-gallery
Just about to do my yoga practice.
Getting back into it has been fascinating. At the moment a running injury has surfaced into awareness and will gently be repaired in time. I don't do much and err on the side of extreme caution. I combine it with chi kung.
Interestingly I find ... enough ... time to stretch the shell ...
Great thread - yoga rocks! Now I'm older the more bendy postures are beyond me but that doesn't stop it making me feel great
Indeed @kando
Yoga is very effective and noticeable. It is interesting the different approaches to calming/relaxing I have encountered.
The most extreme is relaxation through exhaustion.
The corpse pose is naturally relaxing/recuperating because of vigorous movement sequences that uses the whole body and encourages deep breathing by their physical demands. Ay Caramba ...
Meditation in a still asana, is at the other end of calm mind in a calm body. The body is teaching us many lessons for Eg.
Here is one for those dead unfit ...
https://www.artofliving.org/us-en/corpse-pose-Savasana
The corpse position is a great one for anyone learning to breathe properly and relax, impossible to do if tense - starting and finishing with it helps avoid pulling muscles
Elderly Chinese farmer yoga
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/24/business/china-yoga-elderly-village.html