Yoga_Journal_-_February_2016_USA_

76

february 2016

yogajournal.com

Find a young buddy—perhaps your kid or

another little loved one—to share your practice with.

Practicing with a child helps keep it light and more

playful, but you can also do this sequence solo.

MOV E

joyfully

1 SUNFLOWER

Begin in Uttanasana (Standing Forward

Bend), with feet hip-distance apart. Bend

knees slightly and take hold of opposite

elbows (A). Moving in a circular motion,

on an inhale, travel upward toward the

left with the right elbow leading, hinging

at the hip (B), until you’re standing up-

right, facing forward, with elbows held

overhead (C). On the exhale, allow the

body to move downward to the right,

with the right elbow still leading and

hinging at the hip (D). Repeat 3–5 times.

Finish in Standing Forward Bend, holding

opposite elbows. Repeat on the other

side 3–5 times, with the left elbow lead-

ing. As you move through this pose,

imagine yourself as big as possible,

stretching your body as far as you can.

This pose is called Sunflower because

it encourages us to be flexible, feel big,

and move toward light and growth

opportunities much like the beloved

yellow flower does.

1

A

B

C

D

serve as the example,” says

Christen Bakken, founder of

Young Warriors, a children’s

yoga program in Denver. “Kids

remind us of who we intrinsi-

cally are and to let go, just be,

and play.” Bakken, who has

been teaching yoga since 2oo6

and teaching children specifi -

cally since 2oo8, says that a play-

ful practice helps us let go of

fear that holds back our practice.

“When we’re having fun, we’re

more willing to take risks, such

as kicking up into Handstand

or moving into a variation of a

pose, such as Parsva Bakasana

(Side Crane Pose), that we didn’t

think we could do or that a more

serious attitude would have

never allowed for,” she says.

Reconnecting with our

natural childhood senses is

essential to realizing the bene-

fi ts of sukha, according to San

Francisco–based Jodi Komitor,

founder of Next Generation

Yoga (nextgenerationyoga.com),

an international children’s yoga

program that began in 1 998.

“Kids are playful, spontaneous,

innocent, and creative beings—

all qualities that we, as adults,

tend to suppress,” Komitor

says. “We learn to stop talking

openly, to cover our mouths

when we laugh, and to aban-

don the connection that we

once had with our inner child.”

In order to cultivate a childlike

practice on the mat, Komitor

encourages both her adult and

child students to embody the

essence of the pose they’re

assuming, which helps adults

in particular loosen the body

and mind and feel younger in

spirit. For instance, in Bhujan-

gasana (Cobra Pose), hiss, stick

out your tongue, and slither

like a snake. In Adho Mukha

Svanasana (Downward-Facing

Dog Pose), you can lift and wag

your tail, ground paws into the

mat, yelp, bark, and maybe

even chase a neighbor around