Venus Rising

Yoga for LivingIssue: Pisces 08

The Practice of Being

It is hard to ignore longer days and the imminent arrival of spring. Yes. It’s still cold and there are plenty of storms to come, but the light is returning. This change reminds me of what yoga teacher Yoganand Micheal Carrol told a group of us at my very first yoga teacher training. “If you stay with anything long enough, it will change.” Nature demonstrates this through the ever-changing yet reliable cycle of the seasons. This is helpful to remember in our lives as well, where we move through days of feeling energized or tired, excited or nervous, sad or happy. This constancy of change has its own reliability. We know that whatever we are feeling now, will also change. If we can let it move through us, we will be more open to the newness of each moment.

In honor of letting change happen without resistance and opening to the newness ever-present in the moment, savasana is a fabulous pose to practice. The ultimate in surrender, savasana translates as corpse or dead-body pose. Usually practiced as the very last pose of a yoga session, savasana marks the death of our practice and the transition into the rest of our life, allowing the birth of a new and fresh experience.

Savasana (Corpse Pose)

To practice savasana find a quiet space where you will not be disturbed. Lie on your back with your arms out to the sides and your legs straight on the floor, hip width apart. Tuck your chin in toward your chest slightly to lengthen the back of your neck and extend your tail bone toward your heels to lengthen your lower spine. Roll your shoulders under your chest. Then relax and let go. Relax each body part from your feet all the way up to your head. Imagine your bones sinking heavy into the earth. Relax your tongue in your mouth and soften your skin across your body. Let go of any control in the breath and simply be. Stay for 7-10 minutes. To come out, first roll to one side and then press into your hands and lift up to sit.