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| Where is my gaze supposed to be during this - looking down btwn my hands or in front of me? |
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| Drishti toward where your teacher advises--should be slightly ahead toward the floor. But, I experiment--glancing up toward the mirror checking my alignment, maybe higher still depending where my neck and shoulders are at the moment. |
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| I'm very confused with chaturanga. One of my teacher shows us first to bring our knees down to the mat to create a nice bend in the back, the other one does chaturanga without knees down, which is a bit more athletic but doesn't look right in terms of alignment. What's the right way?
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| Stefan, according to my Ashtanga teacher--both are right...with the knees to the floor being a modification (the knees to the floor being for we overweight, overaged guys). However, you commented on the normally assumed correct posture not looking right? I'm not seeing it look funky--what am I missing? |
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| chatuH = chatur (when joined to next) is 4
anga = limbs, in this case, palms and feet.
balances on palms and feet (toes) equally is chaturanga.
Now, to get full benefit, there should be a strainght line from the middle of the neck to the inner ankles.
Gazing can be anything, but the neck should NOT strained. You shall find gazing to the ground is beneficia in terms of all of the above points.
Neel Kulkarni
www.authenticyoga.org |
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| Neel, what you're desribing sounds like the plank to me. I always thought the sense of chaturanga is to have forehead and breast on the mat while the back is curved to make the butt sticking out into the air 
Bruce, I loved your explanation. Seems from now on I have to do it with knees up, in order to proof that I'm neither overweight nor overaged 
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| I understand it to be plank, but I mainly practice Ashtanga. I'm looking down at my hands, making sure they are placed shoulder width apart.
Edited by Divine 2005-01-13 8:32 PM
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| The difference between plank and chaturanga is that in plank there is an incline from the ankles upward through the neck. It's still a straight line, but the line is not parallel to the mat. Your arms are fully extended in plank, so your upper body would have to be further off the mat than your lower body. In chaturanga you are indeed balancing on hands and feet, with a perfectly straight line running, as was mentioned, from ankles through the top of the head. Your chest should never touch the floor, but should balance just inches above it as your body now runs parallel to the mat with your arms bent at the elbow. That is, at least in my understanding, the greatest challenge of the asana, to form that straight line as close to the mat without touching it and hold it there. I generally lower myself into chaturanga from plank, though I have seen it done by simply rising up from the mat. Yes, it is very difficult to form that straight line in this pose. I usually find it helpful to look for length and more or less stretch myself into a line. Keeping your knees on the ground would be a modification in so much as it would not be nearly as difficult. As for keeping your chest on the mat, I'm not sure exactly what the benefit of the asana would be. That's not to doubt your instructor at all. I'm certain it's simply something that I do not understand.
Edited by Tsaklis 2005-01-13 8:39 PM
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
    
| You've got it right Steven. Stefan - you are describing a common variation of chataranga. The front page of this site has a fabulous version of chataranga with the lovely model in white tights. Gaze is best a little forward on the floor. Do NOT look sideways in a mirror to check alignment. Been there and spent $$ to have people realign my poor neck  |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State | The front page keeps rotating its photos, but I do remember the chaturanga
there as being essentially correct.
As Brother Neel said, straight back with weight on palms and toes. The arms
should be bent 90 degrees at the elbows, with upper arms parallel to the torso.
This is not easy, by the way. In this position, your palms are more or less below
the lower ribs, not under the shoulders, and your chest will be maybe 8 inches off
the floor, not grazing it or only a couple inches above. The challenge is to hold the
arm position and not to let your hips sag or go up into something like dog pose.
I had a class in which we spent quite a bit of time on this one, and I've never thought
of it the same way. I had always tended to place the palms under the shoulders, with
a tight angle at the elbows before my teacher straightened me out. |
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| Yes, I forgot to mention the straightline is supposed to be horizontal. If interested see
http://www.authenticyoga.org/photos/ayphoto.jsp?pi=21 |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State |
Nice web page, Neel!  |
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| (the knees to the floor being for we overweight, overaged guys)<<
Ahem! Or for we ladies w/ foot probs due to high heels, worn to attract you overweight overaged guys in your underweight close enough days 
David Williams does it w/ his knees on the floor, too b/c it hurts to roll over his toes. |
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| Well, I was never attracted by high heels, it looks ugly to me. But, if you have to touch something other than the bigtoes, and palms, you may consider a bolster (round pillow, firm) and keep it under thights, then decrease this height as the hands get stronger.
neel kulkarni
www.authenticyoga.org |
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| I just remembered that we never did the chaturanga as a single pose in class. Only as a part of sun salutation and then maybe I got a wrong impression cause it flows. Okay, now I know what I have to do. I guess, my next sun salutations will be very slow again 
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| Stefan--you just GOTTA come to Texas--Effie will tailor her class to your needs--you'll be a chaturangan sonofagun when youre done--I bet Brother Neel would devote a whole hour to you as well. |
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| Dear Afroyogi:
If you SS goes slow, that is good. The slowest SS gives the most benefit. Try it for a few months and you shall find. Also, slowest SS is most difficult. To make it more explicity, without any doubt, the slower the Yoga Pose and more it is held, it gives more benefit. Thus, the static pose gives maximum benefit.
Neel Kulkarni
www.authenticyoga.org |
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| Gruvemom - 2005-01-14 6:01 AM
(the knees to the floor being for we overweight, overaged guys )<<
Ahem! Or for we ladies w/ foot probs due to high heels, worn to attract you overweight overaged guys in your underweight close enough days
David Williams does it w/ his knees on the floor, too b/c it hurts to roll over his toes.
Well put, Gruvemomma!
BTW, I didn't know David Williams puts his knees on the floor. It's nice to know that even the most accomplished yogis are human too and aren't afraid to modify.
Edited by itchytummy 2005-01-14 5:32 PM
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| And again I have learned something. Thank you Neel. I have always thought that SS is done faster once you know what to do and become a little more advanced. Also in class we start slowly a become faster with every round. Obviously, due to my misunderstanding of chaturanga, I didn't know what I do. Now I will definately try to do the SS very slowly in my next practice.
BTW: I just tried out the "real" chaturanga and it went quite well. No problem doing it with knees up and keeping a straight line. Also no problem during the transitions. I'm looking forward to next class.
Edited by afroyogi 2005-01-14 8:01 PM
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
| >>I have always thought that SS is done faster once you know what to do<<
One fo the first questions I asked in class was a "do we always..." question and my teacher paused and replied "never 'always'" which I have found to be very helpful in learning about yoga. |
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| once i was able to actually hold it for 30 seconds, my teacher taught me to slide forward and back - does anyone else do this? |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State |
You can hop forward and backward in Chaturanga Dandasana --- that's
called Nakrasana. |
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| nakrasana is where your hands and feet leave the mat...my hands and feet stay on the mat, but my body glides forward and back. any ideas? |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State |
I'm not sure what the pose you describe is called. |
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| Bay Guy - 2005-01-19 6:15 PM
I'm not sure what the pose you describe is called.
OHHHHH MY GOD... This is what she is talking about ? How do you do this??? Is this real ?
http://ashtangayoga.info/41_AsanaVinyasa/E_Intermediate_Series/22__Nakrasana.html
like Matrix...
Edited by Thushara 2005-01-18 7:35 AM
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Chaturanga ?
