Day 24. Krishnamacharya General Practice #17

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

NOTES

In the Upavista Kona Asana (complete) #9/10

Begin in dandasana, spread the legs. On the breath....,  raise the arms, lower to take the toes, raise the arms and turn to the left, lower to take the toes, raise the arms turn to the right, lower to take the toes.

Come back to centre and repeat each of the bending actions three times. 

Svana Asana

A big thank you to my friend Andrea Panzer for sending me this video of Svana Asana.

Notice that her toes remain on the mat unlike in my photo on the sheet.

My friend Andrea Panzer, who took seminars with T. K. Sribhashyam over an eight year period, has just started her own blog on Sribhashyam's teaching. Andrea is outlining guidelines to practice that I will quote on my own guidelines page at the top of the blog.

https://www.ashtanga-yoga-inspiration.com/home/blog/

 

Day 23. Krishnamacharya General Practice #16

 

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

Note

We saw the Viparita Karani as an alternative to Sirsa Asana in general practice session 14 and 15

#6

 ...or Viparita karani - 6 breaths B.K.3s

NOTE

I've added some articles to the top of the blog as stand alone permanent Pages to assist in practice.

A Guidelines for practice page that I'll be tidying up over the Golden Week holiday next week

A review of one of Sribhashyam's Seminar's from my friend Chiara.

Sribhashyam's Pranayama article

The Pearl - an earlier seminar by Sribhashyam

Also, Krishnamacharya's Yogasanagalu from the translation project with Satya Murthy on my old blog (The photos of Krishnamacharya in Emergence of Yoga are some of the same photos that accompanied later editions of Yogasanagalu.).

And finally Questions to Krishnamacharya from his students.

*

There is a lot of bhakti (surrender to god) in Sribhashyam's system

The last article contains perhaps my favourite quote from Krishnamacharya...

Q.46. What does the bhakti mean to a person 

who has no belief in Isvara?

Krishnamacharya: "Love is bhakti for them."

from Questions to Krishnamacharya from his students in 

Yogacarya Krishnamacharya - The Purnacarya. 

Edited by Mala Srivatsan.

Day 22. Krishnamacharya General Practice #15

 

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

Note

We saw the Viparita Karani as an alternative to Sirsa Asana in general practice session 14

#7

 ...orViparita karani - 8 breaths B.K.3s

Sribhashyam offers several alternatives to Sirsa Asana in different sessions, I plan to write more on this on a future post.

For Sarvangasana too, we might choose to practice lying flat on the floor with our legs up against a wall. Also, in Ramaswami's Vinyasa Krama presentation we find supine equivalents or possible alternatives to all the Sarvangasana variations. #8 - #11 in the above practice sheet might be practiced lying on the back and raising up the legs or bringing the knee(s) to the chest.

*

#14

This posture may not be so clear from the photo on the practice sheet.

Purvatana Asana in Upavista Kona - 3 times
Hard to see in the practice sheet photo perhaps

Day 21 Krishnamacharya Pranayama Session #3

 

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

See Sribhashyam's article on Pranayama

P R A N A Y A M A - An Absolute necessity in YOGA

Also, I've just added a page to the blog containing the the Yogasanagalu translation project from my old blog, the translation by Satya Murthy of Krishnamacharya's 1941 Mysore text, Yogasanagalu. It has some interesting sections on pranayama.

Day 20 Krishnamacharya Mudra/Life Saving Session #3

 

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

NOTES

To point or flex the feet in  head and shoulder stand?

When I was diagnosed with glaucoma a year or two back I stopped doing inversions, stopped having my head below my heart altogether in fact, no downward dogs, not even a full fold in Paschimatana Asana. Once the glaucoma was under control with eye drops and given that my eye pressure was being regularly tested I started to reintroduce these aspects of practice. So far so good. I do two things in my head and shoulder stands to try to counteract the increase in eye pressure that is supposed to result from them, I have no idea if these techniques make the slightest bit of difference. One is to point my toes and the other is to press my tongue to the roof of my mouth. I can’t remember where I heard these techniques might help, I’m not sure if there is any science behind it but so far I’ve been able to reintroduce these inversions without my eye doctor frowning at me.

I think I heard Shribhashyam prefers us to flex the feet or perhaps relax them rather than point them. Pointing might I guess be a distraction from the concentration point although I haven’t found it a problem. 

I checked Krishnamacharya’s own photos and if not strongly pointed they aren’t flexed either.

Shribhashyam offers alternatives to these inversions, should my eye pressure increases I could take advantage of these. Also, there seem to be few full forward folds showing up, perhaps we might consider this a glaucoma friendly system.

.

Mudra session today, the Pranayama session tomorrow then back to general practice sessions on Thursday. I’m looking forward to practicing this session today, after another cup of tea, a beautifully sparse practice.

*

Practice sheets based on the sessions in T. K. Sribhashyam's wonderful 'Emergence of Yoga'.

 May be available on Amazon but check the language.

 https://www.yogakshemam.net/product-page/emergence-du-yoga

Also available direct from T. K. Sribhashyam's school.

I heard the website says it doesn't ship to the US but if you contact them direct it might be able to be arranged for a little extra shipping cost.

Day 19. Krishnamacharya General Practice #14

 

Note

#6

 ...orViparita karani - 8 breaths B.K.3s

#13

Purvatana Asana in Upavista Kona - 3 times
Hard to see in the practice sheet photo perhaps

*

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

NOTE

Mudra Session tomorrow Day 20

Pranayama Session Day 21

Day 18. Krishnamacharya General Practice #13

 

Note

#8 Sirsa Asana or Taraka Mudra, 12 breaths, B.K. 5s kantha

Points of concentration: 16 vital points.

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees g

ulpha - point at middle of ankles pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

NOTE

Andrea at https://www.ashtanga-yoga-inspiration.com/home/blog/ mentioned that when Shribhashyam mentions “sitting”, whether with a concentration point for a one or two minutes or more or for pranayama, then we have a choice of four seated postures, five if we include Badha Kona Asana. Anata Asana, Danda Asana, Padma Asana, Vajra Asana ( Buddha’s seat) and Badha Kona Asana. Yesterday we had Sitali in Vajra Asana at the start of the practice, this morning it’s Badha Kona Asana.

As a general rule I’m choosing the Anata Asana photo when sitting is mentioned, but we can choose any of these if no posture is indicated.

I’m surprised Siddha Asana isn’t included, it’s my favorite go to posture for sitting but it’s not in the book.

Counting pranayama in Siddha Asana

I’m assuming Shribhashyam taught other postures, he seems to have chosen postures for the book that he thought most people could do. 

Day 16. Krishnamacharya General Practice #11

 

Points of concentration are introduced for different asana, mudra and/or pranayama from this session on. I will be including the chart below with each post, the concentration post mentioned in the session highlighted in bold.

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles 

pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky 

Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

NOTES

#5 Sirsasa Asana - 12 breaths OR Viparita Karani - 12 breaths

Viparita Karani

Note: Viparita Karni Mudra is a headstand

*

Note the Sitali in #10 Bandha Kona Asana

*

Vinyasas - No lying down between the asana in these vinyasas

See the practice guidelines page at the top of the blog for more on lying down between asana

Vinyasa 1.

Vinyasa 2.

Vinyasa 3.

Day 8. Krishnamacharya General Practice #6

See the Guidelines for Practice page at the top of the blog.

Basically, the breathing is long and  slow, the eyes closed, bandhas engaged, Jalandhara bandha in particular. After each asana, mudra,and pranayama ( unless indicated otherwise, usually by "followed by") we are directed to lie down and rest for one to two minutes to notice the effect. See the guidelines post for more on this most important element of the practice.

Points of concentration are introduced for different asana, mudra and/or pranayama from this session on. I will be including the chart below with each post, the concentration post mentioned in the session highlighted in bold.

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles 

pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky 

Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

Back to General Practice sessions after Day 6 Mudra session and Day 7 Pranayama session.

Viparita Karani ( headstand) appears for the first time. Later, for example in General Session #11, Sirsa asana OR Viparita Karani but there is no indication of any difference between them that I can find in the book other than that Viparita Karani refers to the Mudra form and Sirsa asana the asana. The directions seem to be the same. Elsewhere, in the mudra section Shribhashyam mentions that the exhalation in a mudra tends to be longer than the inhalation ( twice as long is suggested) and generally involving kumbhaka.

Shribhashyam claims to be following a pedagogical progression, in later sessions kumbhaka and a concentration point will be indicated as well an alternative.

I love practicing Sirsasa Asana and Sarvanga Asana, especially with variations, but I find them deeply problematic, dangerous frankly. I’m not convinced of the many benefits claimed for them and the dangers and concerns are rarely raised.

Dangers/risks may include cervical disc injury and falling out of the posture, Osteoporosis is common from our 50s onwards ( 54 million are said to suffer from it in the US alone) bones become weaker. Also eye conditions, Glaucoma is a bit of a Ninja, you can have it before you realize it. I have glaucoma myself, I stopped practicing inversions for an extended period, now practice them again but less often and with shorter stays also I’m tested regularly for any increase in Eye pressure.

At least in Ashtanga Vinyasa a great deal of strength is developed in the arms, neck and shoulders over time that can give some support to the postures but there really doesn’t seem to be much strength developed in this system. I don’t recommend them. An alternative to Sarvangasana might be Supta Pada Angusta asana  ideally with the small of the back and hips flat on the mat if your hamstrings are are more flexible than mine lately),

Day 7. Krishnamacharya Pranayama Practice #1

See the Guidelines for Practice page at the top of the blog.

Basically, the breathing is long and  slow, the eyes closed, bandhas engaged, Jalandhara bandha in particular. After each asana, mudra,and pranayama ( unless indicated otherwise, usually by "followed by") we are directed to lie down and rest for one to two minutes to notice the effect. See the guidelines post for more on this most important element of the practice.

Note: In his book 'Emergence of Yoga', T.K. Sribhashyam indicates five days of General practice sessions followed by a Mudra session on the sixth day and a Pranayama session on the seventh, before starting the following week with general practice sessions once again. 

Here is the first Pranayama session. 

Sribhashyam indicates that he is following a pedagogical approach so the pranayama sessions will be developed in future weeks.

 Points of concentration will be introduced for different asana, mudra and/or pranayama. I will be including the chart below with each post, the concentration post mentioned in the session highlighted in bold.

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles 

pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky 

Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

Note: 

Anata asana is the posture Sribhashyam suggests for practicing these pranayama. We lay down after each pranayama. 

"Lie flat on the back, legs together, feet together, arms along the body, palms of the hands on the floor, chin lowered, eyes closed. Breathe normally through the nose." p65 Emergence of Yoga.

He doesn't seem to mention this in the book, but when I was first introduced to this practice by my friend Andrea Panzer several years ago it was indicated that during the rest, we direct our gaze to the Occipital (from the latin meaning back of the head- the bowl like bone of the skull), this was in her notes from the teacher training course she did with Sribhashyam and in other notes I've seen from other students.

"Divya Chakshush. Point behind the head (occipital) Divya Chakshush means "divine vision": this is one of the most important concentrations to obtain the vision of the soul." 

from "The Pearl" or the influence of Mudra and Pranayama in the spiritual quest

A seminar of Sri TK Sribhashyam in Neuchatel, 29.7. to 01.08.2006

Pranayama notes.

Quotes from...

T. K. Sribhashyam -  P R A N A Y A M A - An Absolute Necessity in YOGA 

(I first posted this article on my old blog 11 December 2012, It was my first introduction to Sribhashyam's practice - Thank you to my friend Madhu for the heads up).

"UJJAYI ANULOMA: Inhalation (PURAKA) through both nostrils in UJJAYI, Exhalation (RECHAKA) through Left Nostril, without ujjayi, Inhalation through both nostrils in Ujjayi, and Exhalation through the Right Nostril, without Ujjayi. These two breaths making one Cycle of Ujjayi Anuloma."

"UJJAYI VILOMA: Inhale through the Left Nostril, without using Ujjayi, Exhale through Ujjayi, with both the nostrils open. Inhale, again through the Right Nostril, without using Ujjayi, and Exhale through Ujjayi, with both the nostrils open. This forms one Cycle."

"NADI SHODHANA: This is a Pranayama where no ujjayi should ever be used. Inhale by the Left Nostril, Exhale by the Right Nostril, Inhale by the Right Nostril, Exhale by the Left Nostril."

*

May be available on Amazon but check the language

Also available direct from T. K. Sribhashyam's school.

https://www.yogakshemam.net/product-page/emergence-du-yoga

I heard the website says it doesn't ship to the US but if you contact them direct it might be able to be arranged for a little extra shipping cost.

Day 6. Krishnamacharya's Mudra/Life Saving practice #1

See the Guidelines for Practice page at the top of the blog.

Basically, the breathing is long and  slow, the eyes closed, bandhas engaged, Jalandhara bandha in particular. After each asana, mudra,and pranayama ( unless indicated otherwise, usually by "followed by") we are directed to lie down and rest for one to two minutes to notice the effect. See the guidelines post for more on this most important element of the practice.

*

Mudra Sessions

"Mudra session: One session every 5th day of practice. See examples of Mudra sessions."

T.K. Sribhashyam - Emergence of yoga

This confused me, where were the Mudra sessions in the book? Sribhashyam did say in an interview that he had hoped to write a follow up book on Mudra, Bandha and Dhyana, perhaps they were there. But of course the Mudra sessions he is referring to are the 'Life Saving' sessions of chapter 8. It's confusing partly because the first Life Saving practice below doesn't seem to include any mudras.  Sribhashyam mentions that the book follows a pedagogical progression, Life Saving session #2 contains 1 mudra, #3 has 2, #6 has 3, several of the asana found in the Mudra/Life Saving sessions also have an equivalent mudra version.

Points of concentration are introduced for different asana, mudra and/or pranayama from this session on. I will be including the chart below with each post, the concentration post mentioned in the session highlighted in bold.

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles 

pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky 

Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

*

IMPORTANT PRACTICE POINT 1.

Lying down between Asana, mudra, and pranayamas

In Sribhashyam's presentation of his father's (Krishnamacharya) practice, you lie down and rest for 1 to 2 minutes after every asana, pranayama and mudra.

"Lie flat on the back, legs together, feet together, arms along the body, palms of the hands on the floor, chin lowered, eyes closed. Breathe normally through the nose." p65 Emergence of Yoga.

He doesn't seem to mention this in the book, but when I was first introduced to this practice by my friend Andrea Panzer several years ago it was indicated that during the rest, we direct our gaze to the Occipital (from the latin meaning back of the head- the bowl like bone of the skull), this was in her notes from the teacher training course she did with Sribhashyam and in other notes I've seen from other students.

"Divya Chakshush. Point behind the head (occipital) Divya Chakshush means "divine vision": this is one of the most important concentrations to obtain the vision of the soul." 

from "The Pearl" or the influence of Mudra and Pranayama in the spiritual quest

A seminar of Sri TK Sribhashyam in Neuchatel, 29.7. to 01.08.2006

from Yogakshemam Newsletter May 2007 http://www.yogakshemam.net/English/homepage.html

This links in with Sribhashyam's introduction to the Life saving Sessions. 

"Practice of these sessions helps awaken and develop the concept of the soul in Westerners".

After every asana, mudra and pranayama in any of Sribhashyam's practice sessions, General, Mudra/Life saving or Pranayama session we are directed to lie down and rest for 1 to 2 minutes after every asana, mudra and pranayama.

As a dear friend who studied with T. K. Sribhashyam so nicely put it...

"After a while, you discover that this is the real challenge, conquer quietness."

VIDEO

A big thank you to my friend Andrea Panzer, who studied with Sribhashyam for eight years, for allowing me to share this speeded up video of the above Mudra/Life Saving practice. It was Andrea who first shared one of Sribhashyam's practice in her old studio in Germany several years ago.

https://www.ashtanga-yoga-inspiration.com/

Notes

While these postures are asana, it's worth noting that there are mudra versions of many of these postures.

Maha bandha (mudra) is in Baddha kona asana.

Bhujamgi mudra is the same final position as Bhujamga asana.

Asvini Mudra is in the same final position as Paschimata asana.

Why then asana rather than mudra in a Life saving session. Possibly for pedagogical reasons, mudra involve involve concentration points and kumbhaka (breath retention) and Sribhashyam is holding off introducing kumbhaka. Kumbhaka isn't introduced in the general practice sessions until #8 and #10 and Life saving session #2 and Pranayama session #2.

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Do we have to employ all these concentration points?

Sribhashyam points out on p38 of Emergence of Yoga, that...

"The only concentration in the original mudras was bhrumadhya, the vital point situated between the eyebrows." p38 Emergence of Yoga.

Bhrumadhya is associated with Shiva, the other points were supposedly introduced to allow other religious convictions.

My own concentration points of choice in the past have tended to be Bhrumadhya - between the eyebrows, hrdaya - middle of the heart and Taraka - the horizon point.

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May be available on Amazon but check the language

Also available direct from T. K. Sribhashyam's school.

https://www.yogakshemam.net/product-page/emergence-du-yoga

I heard the website says it doesn't ship to the US but if you contact them direct it might be able to be arranged for a little extra shipping cost.

Day 5. Krishnamacharya General practice #5

See the Guidelines for Practice page at the top of the blog.

Basically, the breathing is long and  slow, the eyes closed, bandhas engaged, Jalandhara bandha in particular. After each asana, mudra,and pranayama ( unless indicated otherwise, usually by "followed by") we are directed to lie down and rest for one to two minutes to notice the effect. See the guidelines post for more on this most important element of the practice.

In future practice sessions, points of concentration will be introduced for different asana, mudra and/or pranayama. I will be including the chart below with each post, the concentration post mentioned in the session highlighted in bold.

Points of concentration: 16 vital points. (No concentration points in todays practice)

sirsa - the fontanel

murdhna - middle of forehead

bhrumadhya - between eyebrows

nasagra - extremity of the nose

talu mula - back of the palate

lalata - root of the uvula

kantha - throat

kantha kupa - back of the throat

hrdaya - middle of the heart

nabhi - navel

sroni - centre of the pelvis

mula - perineum

jangha- point at top of thighs

janu - point at middle of knees 

gulpha - point at middle of ankles 

pada angusta - point of the big toes.

Also of note...

Murdhna: the point located in front of the nose

Divya Chakshush: Point behind the head (occipital)

Aditya (the sun) is the disk of the sun, black and shiny,

The star: lying on his back to look as far as possible on the sky 

Taraka: the horizon point,

Kumbhaka

A.K. = Antah Kumbhaka (holding of breath after inhalation ) 

B.K = Bhaya Kumbhaka (holding of breath after exhalation )

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Pranayama Note

Sribhashyam's pranayama article

NOTE

Supta Pada Angusta Asana ( A note from my friend Andrea Panzer, a student of Sribhashyam's)

"Supta Pada Angusta Asana is a key posture...Sacrum has to touch the floor...thats super important...why...because first its your check for your "real" capacity for paschimottanasana...its surprising for the most...that not even arms straight would be the real one..because "straight back" is the one of 4 basic principles in KM Yoga...Sir Sribhashyam would often give tbe advice to "keep your belly completely inside" while breathing ...for in- and exhaling...and thats again the most simple approach and test and explanation for your "bandha"...when we keep the belly inside...the energy will move the spine upward while inhaling...kind of automatically."