Hand Balancing Version of Titibhasana

This is a hand-balancing version of Titibhasana. It is the same basic movement of the legs, pelvic structure and spine as what you are doing in the posture from On Binding in Titibhasana C, except you are balancing on your hands.

I just want to point out a few things I think are important about some of the fundamental aspects of what is happening in this pose in this photo.

The first thing is that this is not the hardest pose in the world but it is also not an easy pose. The second thing is that, although the pose is somewhat difficult and I am working strongly, there is a quality of relaxedness and effortlessness that is present in the work my body is doing. This quality in the postures, is what sthirasukham asanam is alluding to.

This is the quality that the Yoga Sutras says you are looking for in any asana: effortless effort. To achieve that quality, you really have to have good body mechanics and therefore good alignment, and when you are gripping or struggling some part of your body is distorting, some joint is not quite in an appropriate alignment, or you would not have that muscle tension. The tension created by struggling actually is an indication of something, somewhere, not being quite right.

There is a distinction being made here between good strong work and tension that is unnecessary to the work of maintaining the posture; there is nothing wrong with muscles contracting which is what muscles are supposed to do, but you don’t need to overcompensate and overwork: effortlessness in effort, strong and soft.

Peace.

UpSideDownCarl