Yoga_Journal_USA_Your_6Week_2017

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1 MARICHYASANA III

(POSE DEDICATED TO THE

SAGE MARICHI), VARIATION

Marichyasana is a challenging pose,

even for advanced practitioners. If

you’re coming at it as a beginner, it

helps to tiptoe into the pose. When

you’re first working on the pose, wrap

your left arm around the bent leg, hug-

ging it into the body, and press the

right hand into the right floor just

behind the right hip. Here, you can play

with the central movement of the pose:

rooting the sacrum into the floor on

each exhalation as you rise up on each

inhalation. Try twisting on the inhala-

tion and exhalation; see what is easier

for you. See directly what the breath

does to the sacrum.

2 MARICHYASANA III

(POSE DEDICATED TO THE

SAGE MARICHI), VARIATION

Practice makes perfect, but if you are

still finding yourself slumping in the

pose, try positioning yourself a fore-

arm’s length from a wall. As you get

ready to twist, press your hand into the

wall, and let the support help you

straighten and rise up. Try removing

the arm and holding the pose; when

you slump, push into the wall again.

Consider this a strength-training exer-

cise. Keep working with resistance, and

you will soon build the strength and

stability to tackle Marichyasana on

your own—no help needed.

your inner right foot into the floor is

crucial: This will help release the in-

ner right groin. Lengthen your tail-

bone away from your pelvis and

downward into the floor like the root

of a plant. Simultaneously—just as

you did with the roll under you—

with each inhalation, inch your belly

up along the inner right thigh, keep-

ing the belly soft and slightly hollow.

With each exhalation, twist a tad

more. As in all the poses, you’ll never

reach the “end”; no matter how long

you stay, you’ll always be able to add

something to your twist. Remember

that every pose is dynamic, like a

movie, rather than static, like a still

photo.

Despite your efforts, you may feel

your pelvis (and torso) sink back-

ward, away from the bent-knee leg. If

so, get about a forearm’s length from

a wall, and as you press your free

hand to the wall, lift your torso up

and forward (VHHÀJXUH).

It’s intuitive to turn your head the

same direction as the torso, so that

you look over your right shoulder.

But you can also twist the neck and

head in the op posite direction from

your torso (on this side, to the left) to

gaze out at your left big toe. Neither

way is right or wrong— just different.

Continue to twist for about a min-

ute. Then, on an exhale, straighten

your right leg, square your hips, and

repeat for the same length of time on

the left side.

Marichyasana III is a basic sitting

twist. It will get you ready for its

more challenging cousins (Marich-

yasana I, II, and IV), as well as help

relieve your back after you finish a

vig orous asana practice.

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The Yoga of Breath DQGOriginal Yoga:

Rediscovering Traditional Practices of

Hatha Yoga.

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