Sarvangasana is called the mother, or the Queen, of all asanas. Said to be like a mother, this pose nurtures the body, mind and spirit in every way; it enhances mental fortitude and emotional strength. One who masters this asana is said ot be shielded from all ailments and they eternally experience the joys of a sound body, a stable mind and an enlightened consciousness.
In the previous chapters we have been building up to this classical asana. In the book BKS Iyengar demonstrates the pose without any props. While it certainly is possible to do this pose without the use of blankets, I wouldn’t recommend it if you have any neck or shoulder issues.
If you’d like to read about why you might need blankets for Shoulderstand, you can read my blog post here.
Observe the shape of his body in the pose. He is on the top of his shoulders and his torso is vertical from his shoulders to his ankles. There is no bend at his hips and his back is straight. The bottom tips of his shoulder blades are moving into his back ribs and lifting up.
I would like you to read the chapter and the section of coming into and out of the pose. I made a copy of it for you here.
He says: “Lifting into Sarvangasana is not a rough action of physically hauling the body into the pose. Rather, it is a subtle and refined movement wherein the body climbs an imagined median line in the manner that a vine ascends a tree or pole. It is important to involve the mind in the process of bringing lightness to the physical body; otherwise the body collapses like a dead weight onto the shoulders.”
At the end of the chapter, he gives these finer points; things to look out for:
- Work on stability
- Never turn your head while you are in the pose.
- Keeping the shoulders even, keeps equal pressure on the eardrums
- Pay attention to the placement of the hands. The job of the hands is to move the dorsal spine in and lift it up away from the floor. The hands are the alamba or support for the asana.
- If the breathing becomes heavy or disturbed or the ears become blocked it is because the hands have lost their grip on the back.
- Direct your gaze to the spot between the chest and the navel.