DWI PADA VIPARITA DANDASANA

DWI PADA VIPARITA DANDASANA

Dwi Pada means both feet. Viparita means reverse or inverted. Danda means staff orrod, a symbol, authority or punishment as well as the bodyand its prostration. The Hindu devotee prostrates before the Lord lying flat upon thefloor, face downawards with hands outstretched. The Yogi on the other hand prostrates himsel in the graceful inverted arch described below.

Technique

1. Lie flat on theback .

2. Extend the arms over the head, bend the elbows and place the palms underneath the shoulders, fingers pionting the feet. Also bend and raise the knees, bring the feet near the hips and rest them on the floor.

3. Exhale and at the same time lift up the head and trunk and rest the crown of the head on the floor. Take a few breaths.

4. Exhale, extend the legs, straighten them one by one bearing the weight on the hands, head and neck.

5. Take the left hand off the floor and place it behind the head, resting the elbow on the floor. Take two breths.

6. Now remove the right hand from and place the elbow on the floor, move the hand behind the head, interlock the fingers and rest the cupped hands against the back of the head. This is the final postion. In it the head and the hands will be in the same position as in Salamba Sirsasana.

7. The diaphragm being contracted, breathing will be faast and short. Take a few breaths, exhale and raise the shoulders as high as you can a above the floor, as also the chest, trunk, hips, thighs and calves.Stretch the legs straight from the pelvis to the ankles. Dig the heels into the floor and stay in this position to your capacity from one to two minutes.

8. Move the feet towards the head, bend the knees, release the fingerlock, raise the head from the floor, lower the trunk and relax.

9. Tth neck, chest and shoulders should be fully extended and the pelvic region raised as high as possible above the floor. To start with the neck will not stay perpendicular th the floor as it should and there will e a tendency for lthe head ndforearms toslip away. So rest the feet against a wall and ask a friend to press down the elbows until the distance between the feet and the head on the floor is propertly adjusted while the spine and legs are fully extended.

EFFECTS: In this asana, the abdominal muscles are exercised and the sp[ine is toned. As the bending is more strenuous, the effect is correspondingly greater.