yoga asana

1. ASPESS
YOGA ASSIGNMENT
NAME: ARVIND MATHUR
ENROLLMENT NO.: A3013816013
SUBJECT: YOGA EDUCATION
SUBMITTED TO: DR. AJIT KUMAR

2. INDEX
• WHAT IS YOGA?
• WHAT IS ASANAS?
• TYPES OF ASANAS
• MATRIX OF ASANAS
• STANDING ASANAS : HASTHPADASANA, ARDHA CHAKRASANA, TRIKON ASANA, TADASANA
• SITTING ASANAS : PASCHIMOTTANASANA, EKA PADA RAJAKAPOTASANA, PARIVRTTA JANU
SIRSASANA, PADANGUSTA ASANA
• LYING ASANAS : HALASANA, BHUJANGASANA, PAWANMUKT ASANA, SALABHASANA
• REFERENCES

4. WHAT IS YOGA ?
 “THE TERM “YOGA” COMES FROM
THE SANSKRIT WORD ”YUG”
WHICH MEANS TO JOIN,TO
YOKE TOGETHER ,
 TO UNIFY ,TO UNITE AS ONE.
SO YOGA ESSENTIALLY MEANS
UNION.”

5. WHAT IS ASANA ?
 “ASANA IS YOGA POSE OR POSTURE OR
POSITION OF THE BODY.
 PATANJALI IN ASHTANGA YOGA
DEFINES ASANAS AS STEADY AND
COMFORTABLE POSE.
 BENEFITS OF ASANAS / YOGA POSES.
 A HEALTHY AND PEACEFUL BODY IS THE
STARTING POINT FOR ADVANCE
PRACTICES.”

6. ASANAS ARE DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS
 ON THE BASIS OF POSITION OF BODY.
1. STANDING POSITION ASANA
2. SITTING POSITION ASANA
3. LYING POSITION ASANA
 ON THE BASIS OF FORMATION OF OUR BODY LOOKS LIKE.
1. CULTURAL ASANA (SANSKRITIK ASANA)
2. MEDITATIVE ASANA( DHYANATMAK ASANA)
3. RELAXATIVE ASANA

7. I. STANDING ASANAS
II. SITTING ASANAS
III. LYING ASANAS
TYPES OF ASANAS

8. MATRIX OF ASANAS
POSITIONS STANDING SITTING LYING
FORWARD BEND HASTHPADASANA PASCHIMOTTANASANA HALASANA
BACKWARD BEND ARDHA CHAKRASANA USHTRASANA
SETU BANDH
SARVANASANA

9. I. STANDING POSITION ASANAS
A. HASTAPADASANA (FORWARD
BENDING)

10. HASTAPADASANA
DESCRIPTION:
• Hastpadasana is one of the twelve basic
asanas. You must master this pose and its
variations before trying the advanced Asanas.
PROCEDURE:
INITIAL POSE:
• Stand straight with feet together and arms
alongside the body.
• Balance your weight equally on both feet.
• Breathing in, extend your arms overhead.
• Breathing out, bend forward and down
towards the feet.
• Stay in the posture for 20-30 seconds and
continue to breath deeply.
STAY:
• Keep the legs and spine erect; hands rest either on
the floor, beside the feet or on the legs.
• On the out breath, move the chest towards the
knees; lift the hips and tailbone higher; press the
heels down ; let the head relax and move it gently
towards the feet.
• Keep breathing deeply.
RETURNING POSE:
Breathing in, stretch your arms forward and up,
Slowly come up to the standing position.
Breathing out, bring the arms to the sides.

11. BENEFITS:
STRETCHES ALL THE MUSCLES OF THE
BACK OF THE BODY.
INVIGORATES THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
BY INCREASING THE -BLOOD SUPPLY.
MAKES THE SPINE SUPPLE.
TONES THE ABDOMINAL ORGANS.
CONTRAINDICATIONS OF
(HASTAPADASANA)
BACK INJURY: PEOPLE SUFFERING
FROM LOWER BACK INJURIES,
SPONDYLITIS, CERVICAL PAIN OR
ANY KIND OF BACK AND SPINAL
PROBLEMS SHOULD NOT DO THIS
POSE.

12. B.ARDHA CHAKRASANA (BACKWARD
BENDING)

13. ARDHA CHAKRASANA
DESCRIPTION:
Ardha chakrasana is an intermediate asana that
can help to prepare the body and mind for
deeper backbends and heart-opening postures
like chakrasana (wheel pose).
The name is derived from the
Sanskrit ardha, meaning “half“, chakra, meaning
“wheel," and asana, meaning “pose.”
PROCEDURE :
INITIAL STAGE:
Stand straight with feet together and arms
alongside the body.
Balance your weight equally on both feet
STAY:
Breathing in, extend your arms overhead,
palms facing each other.
RETURNING STAGE:
• Breathing out, gently bend backwards pushing
the pelvis forward, keeping the arms in line with
the ears, elbows and knees straight, head up,
and lifting your chest towards the ceiling.
• Hold.
• Breathing in, come back up.
• Breathing out, bring the arms down and relax.

14. BENEFITS :
• Stretches the front upper torso.
• Tones the arms and shoulder muscles.
CONTRAINDICATIONS OF
(ARDHA CHAKRASANA)
• Those with serious hip or spinal
problems should avoid this asana as
well as those with high blood pressure
and brain ailments.
• Peptic or duodenal ulcers and hernia
patients should avoid this pose.
• Pregnant woman should avoid this pose.

15. II. SITTING POSITION ASANAS
A. PASHCHIMOTTAN ASANA (FORWARD BENDING)
CREDITS:
NEETU RANA

16. PASCHIMOTTANASAN
DESCRIPTION
The word Paschim literally means west, Uttana means
stretched out and asana is pose. Here the word
paschim (west) doesn’t mean the west siderather it
indicated the back of the body. The back of body is
referred as paschim here. Hence a posture in which
back of the body or spine is stretched out is called
paschimottanasana (forward bend pose).
PROCEDURE :
INITIAL STAGE
Sit up with the legs stretched out straight in front
of you on the floor.
Keep the spine erect and toes flexed towards you.
Bring your respiration to normal.
STAY:
Place your hands on your legs, wherever they reach, without
forcing. If you can, take hold of your toes and pull on them to
help you go forward.
Breathing in, lift your head slightly and lengthen your spine.
Breathing out, gently move the navel towards the knees.
RETURNING POSE:
Stretch the arms out in front of you.
Breathing in, with the strength of your arms, come back up to
the sitting position.
Breathe out and lower the arms.

17. BENEFITS :
• Stretches the whole spine specifically lower back,
hamstring and hips.
• Massages and tones the abdominal and pelvic organs.
• Improves the circulation.
• Stretches and strengthens the calf and thigh muscles.
PRECAUTIONS :
• A person who suffers from slipped disc and sciatica
should not practice this powerful asana.
• Anyone who has asthma can avoid the practice of
this yoga pose.
• If you are pregnant, avoid this yoga pose as it puts
stress on the womb.

18. B.USHTRASANA (BACKWARD BENDING)

19. INTRODUCTION :
Ushtrasana pose known as camel pose. In
Sanskrit ‘ushtra‘ means ‘Camel’. The body looks
like the shape of camel so it is called
as Ushtrasana
PROCEDURE :
INITIAL STAGE
Sit on knees and bend backwards.
RETURNING STAGE
Hold right ankles or heel with right hand and left
ankle or heel with left hand.
Now bend your neck and head backwards as much as
you can and push waist area slightly forward.
Breathing should be normal for 6 to 10 seconds in
this position.
After 6 to 10 seconds return to the first position
by bending forward. Release your hands from heels.
This is your one round of Ushtra Asana. Repeat this
for some more rounds.
USHTRASANA

20. BENEFITS :
Helps to increase chest size and lungs capacity.
Brings flexibility in chest, abdomen and neck.
Stimulates abdomen organs.
Improve the function of the respiratory system.
Beneficial for Asthma patient.
.
http://eyogaguru.com/wp-
content/uploads/2013/09/camelpose-
ushtrasana.jpg
PRECAUTIONS :
Those having problems related to neck, knee and
back injury should not perform this asana.
Lower back pain patients should avoid this asana.
Person suffering from high or low blood pressure
and migraine should avoid this asana

21. III. LYING POSITION ASANAS
A. HALASANA (FORWARD BENDING LYING)
CREDITS: NEETU RANA

22. HALASANA
DESCRIPTION:
This pose prepares the ‘field’ of the body
and mind for deep rejuvenation. Halasana
is pronounced as hah-LAHS-uh-nuh.
Parsva Halasana is an advanced variation
of the Halasana.
PROCEDURE:
INITIAL POSE:
Lie on your back with your arms beside
you, palms downwards.
As you inhale, use your abdominal muscles
to lift your feet off the floor, raising your
legs vertically at a 90-degree angle.
STAY:
Continue to breathe normally and supporting your hips
and back with your hands, lift them off the ground.
Allow your legs to sweep in a 180-degree angle over
your head till your toes touch the floor. Your back
should be perpendicular to the floor. This may be
difficult initially, but make an attempt for a few
seconds.
RETURNING POSE:
Hold this pose and let your body relax more and more
with each steady breath.
After about a minute (a few seconds for beginners) of
resting in this pose, you may gently bring your legs
down on exhalation.

23. BENEFITS:
• Strengthens and opens up the neck, shoulders, abs
and back muscles.
• Calms the nervous system, reduces stress and
fatigue.
• Tones the legs and improves leg flexibility.
• Stimulates the thyroid gland and strengthens the
immune system.
• Helps women during menopause.
CONTRAINDICATIONS:
• Avoid practicing Plow Pose (Halasana) if you have injured your neck or are
suffering from diarrhea and high blood pressure.
• Ladies should avoid practicing Plow Pose

24. B.SETU BANDHA SARVANGASANA (BACKWARD
BENDING LYING)

25. DESCRIPITION:
Setu Bandha Sarvangasana is
an Asana. It is translated as Supported Bridge
Pose from Sanskrit.
The name of this pose comes from "setu"
meaning "bridge", "bandha" meaning "bound",
"sarvanga" meaning "full body", and "asana"
meaning "posture" or "seat“
PROCEDURE:
INITIAL POSE:
Lie on your back with your knees bent
and feet on the floor. Extend your arms along
the floor, palms flat.
Press your feet and arms firmly into
the floor. Exhale as you lift your hips
toward the ceiling.
STAY:
Draw your tailbone toward your pubic
bone, holding your buttocks off the floor. Do not
squeeze your glutes or flex your buttocks. Roll
your shoulders back and underneath your body.
Clasp your hands and extend your arms along the
floor beneath your pelvis. Straighten your arms
as much as possible, pressing your forearms into
the mat. Reach your knuckles toward your heels.
RETURNING POSE:
Keep your thighs and feet parallel — do not
roll to the outer edges of your feet or let your
knees drop together. Press your weight
evenly across all four corners of both feet.
Lengthen your tailbone toward the backs of
your knees.
Hold for up to one minute. To release, unclasp
your hands and place them palms-down
alongside your body. Exhale as you slowly roll
your spine along the floor, vertebra by vertebra.
Allow your knees to drop together.
SETU BANDHA SARVANGASANA

26. BENEFITS:
• Stretching exercise for hips, neck, spine, and chest
strengthens the spinal muscles, hamstrings, buttocks
and back muscles.
• This pose helps in controlling the central nervous
system, and acts as a remedy to depression.
• It enhances digestive system and stimulates abdominal
organs.
• It gives relief to women suffering from menopausal
symptoms.
• The back-bend poses help reduce the headache and
back pain.
• Doing the pose before going to bed, can get you some
sleep at night, even if you have insomnia.
• Like many other poses, it also improves your blood
circulation.
• It may be beneficial in curing hypertension, clog sinus,
asthma and osteoporosis.
• It gives work to quads, hamstrings and calves.
• It provides relief against abdominal cramps.
• This exercise will help in healing the prolapsed uterus,
and it also controls the menstrual flow.
CONTRADICATION:
These exercises should not be performed in
case of neck or knee injury.
Never try this pose during pregnancy.
It is always recommended to perform under
the guidance of a trainer.
Please consult a doctor in-case of injury or
back pain.

27. REFERENCES
 www.google.com
 www.Wikipedia.com
 www.sarvyoga.com
 www.gyanunlimited.com
 www.artofliving.org
 www.naturehomeopathy.com