With the toe bone connected
to the foot bone,
and the foot bone connected
to the ankle bone,
and the ankle bone connected
to the leg bone….
Remember that one? Dandayamana JanuShirasana taught me first hand the meaning of that song.
When I first started practicing, I was pretty visibly terrible at Standing Head to Knee. During the first position my chest rested on my knee and when the instructor said suck in your stomach, I was shocked to realize I didn’t have any control over my own stomach. I didn’t have trouble with the balance, but I clearly had some muscles to get in touch with!
The good news is that in just a few days, my upper spine learned to round down, my arms felt longer and I could easily hold my leg in first position with chest and stomach off of my thigh! I was ready to kick out.
And that’s when the childhood song became relevant. Feeling confident, I kicked out only to find that just because I can touch my toes doesn’t mean that I can engage all those thigh muscles and have flexibility of the lower spine and hips. Whoa, If I cheat, I can make that pain across my bottom stop hurting but then my hip starts burning! What to do? Practice right is the best and only way. Just as it took several days for my body to cooperate during the first position, it took several practices until I could keep the weight in the ball of my standing foot, keep my toes flexed back and stomach sucked in!
Now, I use this asana to check in with my Achilles tendon and the backs of my knees. If there is any tenderness I’m going to know it in this asana, which sets my awareness for the rest of my practice. If I’m not experiencing any pains, then I can concentrate on lengthening my spine which allows yoginis to get in to the more advanced position with forehead to knee.
Dandayamana JanuShirasana is a beautiful asana. I suggest checking out http://www.bikramyoga.com for 3 great photos of this asana. The photos are well hidden in the About page under the tab for Asanas and their Sanskrit names.
Tags: asana, Bikram, dandayamana janushirasana, skeleton, standing head to knee, yoga
