Revealed March 29, 2026 07:38AM
Yoga Journal’s archives sequence is a curated assortment of articles initially printed in previous points starting in 1975. This text first about Aspect Bow Pose (Parsva Dhanurasana) appeared within the September-October 1996 situation of Yoga Journal.
Have you ever ever puzzled why there are such a lot of asanas (poses)? Mild on Yoga, for instance, B.Okay.S. Iyengar’s normal tutorial handbook, illustrates and describes 200—greater than sufficient to maintain most of us occupied for a number of lifetimes. However that quantity is dwarfed by the 840,000 counted by conventional hatha yoga, supposedly one for each dwelling creature although luckily solely 84 “are one of the best” and 32 “helpful for mankind on this world.”
Iyengar notes that by executing the various totally different “permutations and mixtures” of the asanas, we stimulate more and more wider areas of the motor and sensory cortex within the mind. We additionally “enhance the vary of motion in every muscle” to advertise “correct alignment of bones and joints and finally good steadiness between the left and proper sides of the physique.”
This bodily steadiness of our two sides—which personify the receptive, witnessing masculine and the energetic, artistic female faces of our genuine self—reduces stress and strengthens our physique, priming us to remain the course, to persevere via the pains of our observe. But it surely is also our first tangible step alongside the street to equanimity (samatva) through which, as Krishna tells Arjuna, the self “stands immobile and nonetheless,” and stays the “similar in pleasure as in ache.” Such unshakable composure is regarded, says Georg Feuerstein, because the “best religious course of and set up the ultimate aim of our advantage” and a “precondition for fulfillment in yoga.”
By the various asanas, we be a part of within the perpetual play (lila) of the world and all its dwelling creatures. Do not forget that these postures usually are not arbitrary positions; moderately, they’re fashions or in-body-ments of some in-light-ened expertise that irradiates all of existence with which means and goal. Collectively, the asanas are a trying glass through which we see ourselves mirrored on this planet and the world mirrored in us.
So it’s no coincidence that about 50 asanas (of these cataloged in Mild on Yoga) are named after dwelling issues—mammals, birds, bugs, fish, amphibians and reptiles, and crops—and human-made objects, comparable to a plow or a canine stretching or a tree, and instantly set off an related chain of acquired experiences and expectations in our reminiscence. Like a shifting image, they each inform the particular course of and set up the ultimate aim of our yogic balancing act.
However the names do extra than simply circumscribe the outer contours of the postures; they trace at potentialities for the inside contours as nicely, evoking a playful spirit that encourages imaginative experimentation, reflection, and self-inquiry. The yogis are by no means glad with solely the superficial show of a posture, nevertheless nicely achieved. They need us to stretch our consciousness on the similar time as we stretch our physique in order that each finally conform to the form of, or are completely assimilated to, the unique perception from which the asana emerged. The identify thus serves as a sort of springboard free of charge affiliation that may “lead our pondering into deeper ranges,” in line with Swami Sivananda Radha, a pioneer within the work on the symbolism of the asanas.
One asana that exemplifies this can be a starting backbend, a variation of Bow Pose (Dhanurasana) known as Aspect Bow (Parshva or Parsva Dhanurasana).
The way to Observe Aspect Bow Pose (Parsva Dhanurasana)
In Aspect Bow Pose, we begin from a susceptible place with the 2 “limbs” of the bow, the torso and legs, relaxed. Then we slowly string or “brace” the bow, with the arms between the shoulders and ankles, drawing the higher torso (and head) and thighs off the ground. From right here we roll first to 1 facet, then the opposite, and end again on the stomach.
You may marvel, although—notably in the event you’re a brand new pupil and never but accustomed to all of the bizarre stuff you’re requested to do in a typical yoga class—what does Aspect Bow add to Bow? Why roll? I discovered one doable reply in “Posture Performs,” a booklet of workouts for youngsters by Barbara Clark, a motion educator and therapist. Sideways rolling, she writes (although not particularly about Aspect Bow), develops the “deep muscular tissues of the again, stomach, thighs, and shoulders, and thereby lessens lordosis (sway again), stomach protuberance, uneven hips and shoulders, and poor head carriage.”
Backbends train us to “bend over backward,” each actually and figuratively. They strengthen the muscular tissues of the again and stretch the entrance of the physique—and backbone—and so assist to counteract our unlucky leaning or bent towards ahead hunch. This openness, in flip, improves our posture and the working of the very important organs of the torso, comparable to the center and lungs. Rolling in Aspect Bow intensifies the results of Bow, particularly its contribution to a protracted entrance backbone and erect bearing. These, in flip, are essential for sitting within the companion practices of pranayama (yogic respiration) and meditation.
Many students-especially these with again accidents—typically really feel anxious round again bends. When accomplished correctly, nevertheless, they’ll even have a salubrious impact on most backs. It’s vital to acknowledge, although, what’s correct. What do you consider whenever you hear the phrase bend? A clean curve, just like the C-bend in a bow? Or a pointy angle, just like the L-bend in your elbow or knee? This latter exhibits up ceaselessly with novices practising backbends, normally concentrated most improperly within the decrease backbone or lumbar, whereas the remainder of the column is simply minimally concerned.
When an archer’s bow is drawn, the 2 limbs are positioned beneath monumental stress; within the extra environment friendly bows, this stress is uniformly distributed alongside the limbs. The identical holds true for the backbone in our bow and, really, in all postures. The pressure of the motion needs to be shared equally, with equanimity, amongst all the person members of the backbone.
There are some backs, nevertheless, that simply don’t like backbends, no matter how they’re bowed. Please seek the advice of with an skilled teacher earlier than trying this posture in case you have any nagging issues with the sacrum and its pelvic joints, the muscular tissues of the again torso and neck, or the spongy discs between the vertebrae.
Preliminary Train
Since this text is devoted to Aspect Bow, I received’t go into an excessive amount of element in regards to the many preparations for Bow Pose. In the event you expertise any ache within the knees or decrease again, or in the event you discover it to be too excessive for no matter purpose, then you’ll be able to simply as simply heat up with a easy lunge.
When practising Aspect Bow and Bow, pay shut consideration to the entrance of the hips, the three- or four-inch space between the topmost thighs and the hip factors, which is a crucial junction for the again extension. A lot of the success of backbends is determined by the assimilation of the entrance physique into the posture, which requires size alongside the thighs and entrance hips, within the stomach between the pubis and the underside of the breast bone (sternum), within the muscular tissues between the ribs (intercostals), and within the inside and outer armpits (the pectoralis main and latissimus dorsi). A backbend might simply as precisely be known as a “entrance stretch.”
To get in contact with this vital space and the proper backbending motion of pelvis and thighs, do this easy train.
Kneel on the ground along with your knees hip-width aside, toes turned again, and unfold your arms in your hips with the fingertips on the hip factors.
Inhale and carry the entrance of the pelvis, as in the event you’re pulling the hip factors towards the shoulders, whereas utilizing your thumbs to slip the again of the pelvis towards the ground. Discover that the buttocks agency, the lumbar lengthens via the tailbone (coccyx) towards the ground, and the space between the hip factors and the decrease entrance ribs decreases. Use your thumbs to broaden the again of the pelvis by pulling the highest buttocks away from the midline of the sacrum.
Now exhale and push the hip factors towards the ground: Discover that the buttocks launch, the coccyx lifts up and pokes again, the lumbar squeezes, the stomach spills over the entrance rim of the pelvis, and the decrease entrance ribs jut ahead. Repeat this rocking motion till you’re feeling the distinction between the 2 extremes.
Subsequent, unfold your palms towards the very prime thighs, slightly below the hip factors, along with your fingers pointed down. As you carry the hips this time, slide the arms down the thighs so that they unfold away from the entrance of the pelvis and really feel the stretch alongside the entrance hips. The area right here helps lengthen the lumbar and recruit the whole backbone, all 24 moveable vertebrae, into the again bow. Repeat this train till you’re assured which you can recreate it within the form that follows.
Preparation
This preparation is a modification of Frog Posture (Bhekasana) or Half Frog Posture (Ardha Bhekasana). You may wish to do these workouts on a blanket to pad your decrease ribs, stomach, hip factors, thighs, and knees. Have a rolled blanket inside attain.
Lie in your stomach, legs stretched again on the ground, brow or chin resting on crossed forearms, left arm above the best. Take a couple of regular breaths. Along with your stomach pressed towards the ground, do your inhalations really feel considerably flat or obstructed? In that case, steer your breath extra towards the decrease again; in case you have hassle finding this space, place one hand within the valley of the lumbar. Don’t neglect to breathe!
Now exhale and carry your head and the entrance of your higher torso—the sternum and ribs—away from the ground. In the event you’re tighter within the entrance of the physique or weaker within the again, you may need some problem with this carry, so place the blanket roll beneath your decrease entrance ribs for assist.
Bend the left knee and draw the heel towards the buttock. Then, supporting the load of the higher torso with the best forearm, twist barely to the left, attain again along with your hand, and press the palm towards the highest of the foot (Determine 1). Slowly apply hand stress to the foot, shifting the heel nearer to the buttock. In the event you can comfortably contact the heel to the buttock, then strive bringing the heel somewhat to the facet of the buttock.
Now lengthen your elbow away from the shoulder after which rotate the higher torso to face ahead as soon as once more, stretching throughout the entrance of the chest and shoulder joint. Think about that the elbow and knee are shifting again, towards the wall behind you, and that the highest of the breast bone (sternum) is shifting ahead, towards the wall in entrance. Keep for one to 2 minutes and repeat for a similar time on the best.
Starting: Bow (Dhanurasana)
Now for Bow. In the event you wanted a blanket roll for the earlier train, or if both or each your shoulders or your neck had been sad with their stretch, you may now need a strap (a minimum of 5 ft lengthy).
Lie susceptible once more and attain your arms again, inserting the backs of the arms on the ground alongside you.
Then bend your knees, convey your heels close to your buttocks, carry your higher chest, and attain one hand again to seize the same-side ankle. In the event you can’t comfortably maintain the ankle—and it needs to be the ankle, and never the highest of the foot—as a result of some a part of you someplace is protesting, then you definately’ll want to carry the strap looped across the ankles.
Exhale and, preserving the thighs on the ground, actively carry the heels away from the buttocks and the higher torso away from the ground (Determine 2), “stringing” the arms again so long as they’ll go. Think about a bow: The 2 limbs, beneath rigidity, pull the ends of the string aside, whereas the string is valiantly resisting that pull. When amplifying the stress within the limbs, the bow turns into a reservoir of large potential vitality, primed to be let unfastened. How will you utilize this vitality within the posture?
The fronts of your thighs— not the decrease again—are the “hinge” of the backbend. Your complete backbone, from tail to cranium, ought to share within the motion. Learners are vulnerable to compress the backbone within the decrease again, which, if repeated over time, can result in harm (Determine 3). As you probably did within the kneeling preliminary observe, lengthen the coccyx away from the backbone and carry the entrance of the pelvis towards the decrease ribs, as you string the bow. In case your ribs dig painfully into the ground, if the again of your head jams down towards your higher shoulders, once more with painful outcomes, in case your respiration stops, or virtually stops, as a result of there’s nowhere for it to go and, most of all, in case your again complains loudly about your present method to yoga, particularly after you’ve raised your thighs off the ground, STOP. Return and take a look at the preliminary train a couple of extra occasions, or discover an skilled trainer who can information you into the proper place.
Maintain for a couple of breaths with the thighs on the ground, ensuring that you just’ve initiated all of the actions we’ve labored on to this point. Then exhale and, tugging up on the ankles, carry the thighs a couple of inches away from the ground. If the knees wish to splay wider than the width of the pelvis and the ft end up, Charlie Chaplin-style, agency the inside thighs and transfer them nearer, a minimum of parallel to one another, and pigeon-toe the ft. Keep for 30 seconds to 1 minute and launch on an exhale. Then repeat a pair occasions extra, elevating the torso and thighs collectively.
Observe: Aspect Bow (Parshva Dhanurasana)
Now for some enjoyable. To get from Bow to Aspect Bow, you’ve obtained to roll over onto your facet, and this train will train you a sort of “rolling intelligence” that prepares you for the maneuver.
Lie susceptible once more, as above, however this time bend your knees to a proper angle, in order that the shins are perpendicular to the ground, and maintain your arms on the ground, arms beside the torso. Press the legs collectively and swing the shins and ft backwards and forwards, pivoting them over the knees like an upside-down pendulum or metronome. Begin with a small arc of only some levels, and with every full swing, add a couple of levels extra. Let the cadence of the motion little by little incorporate increasingly more of the legs, the torso and, lastly, the top, till you end up rolling merrily from one facet to the opposite. To help this merriment, bend the elbow of the off-side arm, slide the hand up beside the shoulder, and push it towards the ground. As you roll again to that facet, straighten the arm again alongside the torso (Determine 3).
Coordinate the rhythm of the rolling with the rhythm of the breath: I prefer to inhale on my facet and exhale as I roll throughout my stomach to the opposite facet.
Persevering with Observe: Aspect Bow (Parshva Dhanurasana)
Whenever you’re able to strive the complete posture, brace your self up into Bow first. Then, with an exhale, lever the legs to the best as you probably did above, pull on the left ankle and concurrently increase the left shoulder away from the ground, and roll to the best.
Oops! Caught in your stomach, regardless of all of your huffing and puffing, like a turtle on its again? Don’t despair, it occurs on a regular basis. Come to a modified Bow, along with your thighs on the ground, and whenever you’re able to roll, let go of your left ankle and push your self over along with your free hand. Then both seize the ankle once more or use the hand that will help you flop again onto your stomach. Repeat to the left facet.
In the event you made it over with out unstring-ing a hand, keep for a couple of breaths, then exhale and, pulling once more on the left ankle and urgent the left shoulder towards the ground, roll again onto your stomach. Now repeat the above directions, substituting “proper” for “left,” and keep as lengthy on the left facet as you probably did on the best, earlier than returning to heart (Determine 4). Strive a couple of extra occasions, and progressively decide up your tempo, deftly rolling from one facet to the opposite on every exhale. End up with one final Bow-take a bow-and launch on an exhale.
What half does Bow play within the universe of your consciousness? You may take, as the place to begin in your meditation, these phrases from Swami Radha: “The aim of the arrow is to fly straight and true to the goal. The aim of the bow additionally wants clear definition. One is ineffective with out the opposite. And what’s the goal? Is there a goal, a bigger one, within the distance, with many intermediate ones alongside the best way? Is the principle goal well-defined, clear?”