Yoga as Therapeutic Exercise: A Practical Guide for Manual Therapists

Selected aSelected asanas̄̄sanas Selected aSelected āsanas̄sanas

9. Stay for 5–10 breaths or longer, if comfortable.


10. To come down lower your legs, bring your arms
    on the floor opposite your head, and come
    down as from Halāsana.


11. Viparta Kara (Figure 7.108)

Meaning of the āsana and its name

Viparīta Kara ī means inverted lake. This gentle

inversion is particularly beneficial for the transport

of fluids in the body. It is a helpful substitute, if

stronger inversions are not possible.

Getting into the posture

1. Place a bolster one hand width away from the
   wall.
   2. Lie on your right side with the trunk at right
   angles to the wall, your right hip on the right
   third of the bolster, the buttocks and the
   feet on the wall, the knees bent towards the
   chest.
   3. Turn on your back; if necessary, shift yourself to
   the center of the bolster so that the pelvis and
   the lumbar area are in the center of the bolster,
   and the upper back, shoulders, and head are
   on the floor; also having the floating ribs on the
   bolster can be very relaxing.
   4. Straighten your legs upwards, knees and feet
   together, the buttocks and the backs of the legs
   on the wall; if it is not possible to straighten
   the legs, practice the posture with the bolster
   further away from the wall.
   5. If the buttocks and backs of the legs are not
   against the wall, slightly bend your knees, lift
   your pelvis off the bolster, and walk on your
   shoulders closer towards the wall until your
   buttocks and backs of the legs are touching
   the wall.
   6. Rest your arms sideways in line with
   your shoulder girdle or relaxed around your
   head.

Being in the posture: basic work

1. Keep your legs together and straight, with the
   center of the heels touching the wall.


2. Rest your pelvis on the bolster so that the
   buttocks are slightly dropping towards the floor
   between the bolster and the wall.


3. Adjust your arms so that the front of your chest
   is long and wide.


4. Adjust your head so that your neck and throat
   are relaxed.


5. Close your eyes and breathe naturally.

Being in the posture: refined work

1. Keep your legs completely straight.


2. Drop your groin between the lower abdomen
   Figure 7.108 and the thighs.