What's up with Child's Pose?

Adho Mukha Virasana or Child’s Pose

What’s up with Child’s Pose? What is the purpose of this posture?  I think most Vinyasa instructors regard Child’s Pose as a resting posture.  Something you collapse into when you are tired or can’t hold a posture any longer.  Sometimes it is used as a generic default pose as in; if you can’t do X then just come into Child’s Pose. 

I call this version of Child’s Pose a “pile of laundry” because most people come into this pose as if they have just taken off their clothes and dropped them into a pile on the floor.  There is no action, other than complete surrender.  There is no thought as to how the body is placed.  There is no skill or intelligence in the pose.  Yet, it is a yoga pose and one of the definitions of yoga is that it is “skill in action”. And as a yoga pose, it is an appropriate modification for some poses but not for any pose.

When I teach Child’s Pose, and I teach it, I don’t just say “come into Child’s Pose”.  I teach the posture.  Child’s Pose, or Adho Mukha Virasana (which translates to Downward Facing Hero) is both a warm up posture and a diagnostic pose.  It is a precursor to Downward Facing Dog and to Handstand as well as other postures with the arms overhead such as Warrior I and for back bends such as Wheel. 

Looking at someone in Child’s Pose can tell you a lot about the flexibility of their hips, knees, ankles and shoulders.  Can they stretch the tops of their feet so that the fronts of their ankles touch the ground?  Can they bend their knees enough so that they can sit on their heels?  Can they fold at the hips enough so that their chest can come to the ground? (These are all blog posts for another time.)  Can they extend their arms in a straight line from their hips through their shoulders to their wrists without their elbows winging out to the sides?  Let’s look at this version of Child’s Pose.

In this first photo, I have come into Child’s Pose with my hands on the floor.  As you can see, there is a straight line from my hips to my armpits, but from my armpits to my wrists the angle is different and the back of my head is below my upper back.  This means that the front of my body is shorter than my back body.  One of the main principles of yoga is that every pose has some element of Tadasana in it. In this case it is that the front body and back body are of equal length. 

Child’s Pose as a pile of laundry

Child’s Pose with skillful alignment from hips to hands

In this second photo, I have my hands and forehead on a block.  This helps me to extend my sternum forward and spread my collarbones.  Now I have a straight line from my hips to my hands and the front of my body is as long as the back of my body.  See how the back of my head is on the same level as my upper back. This assures that the front of my body is as long as the back of my body.

The next time you come into Child’s Pose think about this.  Doing Adho Mukha Virasana this way can help you prepare for Downward Facing Dog, Handstand, Warrior I, Tree and Back Bends.  It can also help relieve pain in the neck and shoulders are it helps correct a forward head position. 

Placement of the Strap in Hand to Big Toe Pose

My teacher always taught me to observe what was happening in your yoga poses.  Every little thing we do has repercussions.  Can we train ourselves to observe these differences? For example, what difference does it make where you place the strap on your foot in Hand to Big Toe Pose?

If you place the strap on your heel, the sensations will be transmitted through your heel down into the bones of your leg.  See if you can feel this line of energy.  Remember to keep your leg straight.

If you place the belt on the ball of your foot, the force will be transmitted into the muscles on the back of your leg; into the calf and hamstrings.  This can be intense and if your hamstrings are sore, I would not do this version.

If you place the strap in the arch of your foot, you should feel the stretch balanced in the center of your leg.  Try it here and see if you can feel that sensation of the whole leg working.

Yoga is about the development of consciousness. Can you develop your consciousness to detect the differences in where you place the belt on your foot? Once you start to learn to see and feel these differences, you will be entering into a deeper state of your yoga practice.  As BKS Iyengar said:  “Yoga does not just change the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.

Zoom Classes Online

Join Me On Zoom. Here’s How It Works.

First, I want to apologize to all of you who experienced difficulty signing on to my Zoom classes this past Saturday.  I had warned everybody that I was going to put a password requirement on future meetings because of the New York Times article on “Zoombombing.” 

As I created the meetings for the week of 9th through the 14th, I added the password requirement.  What I didn’t realize is that it converted any meeting I had previously set up to require a password.  I’m still learning this technology, as all of you are, too. 

Going forward, I will use the same ID# 653 503 3880 and the password will be in my newsletter.

If you ever have any difficulty signing in, please text me.  If you don’t have my phone number, email me (now) to get it.  (It is listed in the bottom of all of my e-mails.) While I can usually see and answer a text at the beginning of class, I don’t check emails until later. 

How to Join a Class:

• Download Zoom and create a free account. After you do that, click “Join a Meeting.”  You will need my Meeting ID# and Password to join.  (see above)

• If this is your first time, sign on early to get familiar with the set-up.

• There are three things you have control over:  your microphone, your video feed and how you see your screen.

• Microphone:  You can turn your microphone on or off.  Leave it on in the time before class officially starts to talk to anyone on the screen.  But, please mute yourself once class has started.  If your microphone is on during class, anytime you make a noise, your screen will be the one everyone else sees.  You may unmute yourself at anytime to ask a question.  Alternatively, there is a chat box that you can type into.  I usually do not see the chat box during class.  Chat is better for general comments, questions or feedback.

• Video:  I know some of you would rather not be seen on screen.  Believe me, there are times I would like to turn my video screen off, too!  You may have reasons to turn your feed off, I get it.  However, I do ask that if you are taking my class that you at least turn your camera on in the beginning to say “hi.”  It is a little weird to have someone watching you and you don’t know who they are.  So, please introduce yourself, say hi and then turn your video off.

• Screen:  Gallery View and Speaker View.  In gallery view, you see everyone who is on the call.  It’s fun to see who you know.  But, if you switch to speaker view, you will see me in a large screen and everyone else will be minimized.  This is probably the screen you want to see.

Before class begins:

• Gather your props.  I recommend 2 blocks, a belt and a blanket.  If you do shoulder stand, you will need 3 – 4 blankets.

• Set up your device or computer approximately 6-8′ away from your mat so I can see your entire pose. This means the edge of your mat should be view able.  Ideally your mat should be horizontal with the long edge running right to left. Please set you mat up square to the camera, rather than at an angle.

• I won’t be able to see you very well if the lighting is too low or if you are silhouetted against a window.

• If you want to practice in private without me seeing you, please introduce yourself or say “hi” first and then turn your video off.

During class:

• Remember that this is a different format than an in-person class. I will try to see as much as I can based on your position to the camera.  However, I will not be able to help students like I could if we were physically together.

• Please take care of yourself! If something is not appropriate for you, please opt out of the pose. If I am not offering a modification that works for you, please feel free to improvise.

After Class

• Stay on for a few minutes after class to chat, if you want.

• Please e-mail me with any questions, comments, concerns or feedback you have.

• Let me know if there any poses, or specific body parts you want to work on in future classes.

Payment

• I am asking for those who can to pay at least $5 per class. Some of you may be in tight circumstances and cannot pay. Others have generously paid more in order to keep these online yoga classes going for themselves and for others. I have been operating on the honor system. These classes are important for the normalcy they bring to our lives. I benefit from the contact with you all as much as you benefit from the yoga I can provide.

• I accept payments from Venmo: @Karin-Eisen, or PayPal: PayPal.me/karineisen. Some prefer to send payments through snail mail: Please e-mail me for my address, or respond to this post in the comments below.

Be patient with me, the technology and with yourself.  This is all new and we are all doing the best we can!    I look forward to seeing you in class.

Anything else?