3 Weeks

of Yoga
Abasictraining courseforbeginners

Acknowledgements
This publication is dedicated to the great Dr. Swami Gitananda
Giri Gurumaharaj of Pondicherry India, whose teachings have
inspired and enlightened so many along the path of yoga.
My eternal gratitude to his dharmapatni, Yogacharini Smt.
Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani, and their son, Yogacharya Dr.
Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani, through whom these wonderful
teachings have reached me, and who continue to light the way for
others with their selfless service to the great science of yoga.

Copyright 2007 by Yogacharya Michael Deslippe. All rights reserved. This material and/or any
accompanying video files may not be duplicated for any profit-driven enterprise.

Copyright Notice:
This document and all of the sunsequent documents of the 3Weeks of Yoga e-course is/are intended for personal, non-commercial
use. Reproduction and/or distribution of any of the contents of the 3 Weeks of Yoga e-course without the written consent of International Yogalayam is prohibited.
For more information, please contact International Yogalayam via their web site, at http://www.discover-yoga-online.com.

Important Notice:
Although the practices outlined within these pages, and within the pages of all of the lessons of
this e-course, are generally deemed safe, without personal guidance International Yogalayam
cannot ensure that the techniques described therein will be performed correctly and thus,
without harm.
By engaging in the practices described within this document and subsequent documents, and/
or demonstrated via any accompanying videos or other educational material, you agree to do
so at your own risk, and therefore personally assume all responsibility.
By proceeding in this lesson, as well as all of the subsequent lessons of this 3 Weeks of Yoga
e-course, you agree to abide by all of the TERMS and CONDITIONS for its use, as outlined by
International Yogalayam on its website.

CLICK HERE to review these TERMS and CONDITIONS now.

Contents
How to Use this Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Course Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1
2
3

Section 1 The Foundations of Yoga

Day 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5
5
10
13
15

Day 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

18
18
19
21
23

Day 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

29
29
31
31
32
33
33

Welcome to Yoga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Warm Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vajra Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Shava Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Yoga Sadhana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preliminaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Learning Yoga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vibhagha Pranayama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Relaxation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Foot and Ankle Kriyas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Eka Janu Vajra Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Pada Vajra Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Deepening of Relaxation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nishpandha Jnana Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Day 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37
Pranayama Part A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Vyaghrah Pranayama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Sukha Pranayama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Day 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

44
44
47
50
53
55

Day 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Yoga In the Modern World: Part B . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Styles of Yoga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Main Branches of the Yoga System . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tala Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Pada Hasta Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

58
58
61
62
65
66

Day 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

69

The History of Yoga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Yoga in the Modern World: Part A . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Transition Postures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Standing Jattis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sama Sthiti Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Classical Ashtanga Yoga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Kaya Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Section 2 Building a Yoga Practice

Day 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

78
Yoga Sadhana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Trikona Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Day 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

88

Day 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

97

Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Asana vs Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Surya Namaskar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Pranayama Part B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Sukha Purvaka Pranayama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Nadi Jnana Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Day 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Awareness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Hathenas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Ushthra Asana Paravritti (Camel pose variation) . . . . . . . .
Sapurna Shasha Asana (Incomplete rabbit pose) . . . . . . . .
Sapurna Matsya Asana (Incomplete fish pose) . . . . . . . . .
Purna Shasha Asana (Complete rabbit pose) . . . . . . . . . .

112
113
114
115

Day 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Karma Part A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Hathenas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Sapurna Maha Mudra (the mighty tidal gesture) . . . . . . . . 122
Nikunja Asana (the flower bower pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Day 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Brahma Danda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Hathenas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Sharabha Asana/Kriya (the griffin pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Vyaghrah Pranayama (the tiger breath) . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Summary The Full Hathena Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Day 14 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
The Pranava AUM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Pranava Pranayama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Mukha Bhastrika . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Section 3 The Yoga Life

Day 15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
The Yoga Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Sitting Postures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Sukha Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Baddha Kona Asana (Kriya) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Sama Pada Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

ii

Day 16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Polarity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Loma-Viloma Polarity Prakriyas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Eka Pada Utthana Asana (the singe-leg lift) . . . . . . . . . . .
Shirsha Utthana Asana (the head lift) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ardha Shalabha Asana (the half-locus pose) . . . . . . . . . .
Unmukha Shirsha Utthana Asana (the head lift) . . . . . . . .
Dridha Eka Pada Utthana Asana (side leg lift) . . . . . . . . . .
Shirsha Utthana Asana (head lift) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stambhan Asana (the pillar pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ardha Dhanur Asana (half bow pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dridha Eka Pada Utthana Asana Paravritti (I) (side leg-lift) . . .

155
156
157
158
159
159
160
161
161

Day 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
The Yogic View of Reality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Pancha Kosha 5 Bodies of Man . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Loma-Viloma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
169
170
171
171
172
Loma-Viloma Kriya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Dwi Pada Utthana Asana (the double leg lift) . . . . . . . . . .
Utthana Asana with Danda Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Shalabha Asana (the locus pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sharpa Asana (the serpent pose) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dakshina Dridha Eka Pada Utthana Asana Paravritti (II) . . . .

Day 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
The Yogic Diet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Pavana Mukta Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Eka Pada Pavana Mukta Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Dwi Pada Pavana Mukta Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Day 19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Yama and Niyama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Paschimottana Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Day 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Svadhyaya Study of the Self . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Bhujanga Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Day 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Yoga Marga The Yogic Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ardha Matsyendra Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Vakra Asana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Some Final Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

200
203
205
207

Appendix 1

General Hatha Yoga Routine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Appendix 2

Hathena Yoga Routine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Appendix 3

Loma-Viloma Yoga Routine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

iii

How to Use this Course

This basic introduction to yoga is divided into 21 lessons, or
days. The enthusiastic student could easily move from one lesson to the next each day, working through this entire course in
a 3-week period. However, this is not required and perhaps not
even realistic to expect for most. But I do recommend that you
work diligently through these lessons and try to develop the habit
of practising consistently. The benefits of yoga only reveal themselves to those who practice with rhythm and regularity. If you
feel that you need to repeat a lesson more than once, then thats
fine and I certainly encourage you to do so.
If you are new to yoga, then this program will provide you
with a step by step introduction into some of the basic practical
techniques of yoga, as well as give you a broad perspective on all
that yoga has to offer. If you are an experienced practitioner, by
the end of these 21 lessons you may also find that you have a better understanding of yoga, along with a good foundation of daily
practices for continued health and wellbeing.
As youll soon discover, yoga is not merely a class that you
go to a few times a week. It is a way of approaching life that
deals with ones health on all levels, the physical, mental, emotional and higher spiritual. Each lesson of this basic introduction
involves a combination of yoga theory, philosophy and practical
techniques, designed to take you in a step by step fashion through
some of the principles and concepts of yoga, as well as to help
you gradually build a good foundation of practice in some essential techniques and exercises.

The Course Content

PDF Files - The lessons are in PDF file format, which can be
read directly on your computer screen or printed for your convenience.

Video - Short video clips

accompany certain practices in each

lesson, to further aid learning.

StudyMethod

Watch

Yoga
Video Clip

You will get the most out of this yoga training course by following
the lessons in their proper order and taking the necessary time to
practice and understand the teachings before moving on to the
next lesson.
Throughout the lessons, youll see a graphic image like
the example shown to the left here, indicationg when there is a
video accompanying the practical instruction. Clicking on this
graphic link will take you to the page on International Yogalayams website where you can view the video.

Please Note:
The videos that accompany the various lessons are not meant to be simply
watched alone, out of context, but rather as additional learning tools to accompany the instructional material of each lesson.
In order to gain the most benefit from all of the practices and techniques that
youll be introduced to in this course, they must be learned at the proper time,
and within the greater context of all the teachings of each particular lesson.
I recommend that you take your time and follow the course and all of the practices in the step-by-step manner in which it is designed.

At the conclusion of each lesson youll find a Practice

Summary, which is a practical schedule for you to follow at
each stage along the way. You are advised to print out these practice summaries so that you can easily reference them while you
are practising.
At the conclusion of this course, you will also find some
Appendices to be printed, which outline various routines for
your continued practice.


Introduction
As we enter well into the 21st century, yoga has exploded in
popularity, growing into a multi-billion dollar industry visible at
nearly every turn in modern society. But along with this explosion has come much confusion and misunderstanding about
yoga. The newcomer to yoga finds him or herself confronted with
a ever-growing number of yoga styles and strange exercises that
often seem meant more for those endowed with youth and vitality rather than for the average person. Modern yoga culture, along
with the common way in which it is taught, and the image of it
that is constantly being portrayed today has done little to paint a
clear picture about this profound science from ancient India, and
even less to spread its many teachings in a comprehensive way.
It is for these reasons that I have developed this basic introductory yoga training program. Yoga is such a profound science
for health and wellbeing, personal growth and transformation,
and global harmony that its further dissemination across the globe
stands to benefit all of humanity in so many ways. Thus, the full
breadth of its teachings should be known, and it is my hope that
here you may begin to gain a better appreciation for all that yoga
has to offer.
You have found your way to this training program, which suggests that for whatever reason, yoga has sparked your interest.
These three weeks provide a mere introduction into the vast and
profound universe of yoga, a universe with limitless potential for
personal growth and transformation.
Welcome, my friend, to the wonderful world of yoga. May
your first steps into it be only the beginning of a lifelong ambition
of continued growth and evolution.
Yours in Yoga,

Yogacharya

Section

The Foundations of Yoga

day

Welcome to Yoga

Day 1

What is Yoga?
Right from the beginning the newcomer to yoga is often beset
with the question, what is yoga, really? Certainly, with all of the
various ways in which the word yoga is being used today, and
all of the different styles and practices attached to it, even the
relatively experienced practitioner can be forgiven for their confusions and uncertainties about yoga.
With the mention of the word yoga, the traditional image of
a sage meditating for decades in a Himalayan cave, or an almost
naked renunciate contorting his body into strange postures and
going into trance may still come to mind. But now-a-days one
is even more likely to envision young, flexible people in a hip
studio in Los Angeles, clad in fashionable stretch-wear, being
guided through a mind-body-soul bending routine of breathing
and centering and stretching exercises. Is there a contradiction
here? Can these two pictures really co-exist under the same word?
Is there a modern misinterpretation of what the original yogis
meant with their system of physical and mental exercises?
Indeed, much confusion surrounds the term yoga today, to
a large extent a result of the fact that its propagation has seen a
veritable explosion around the globe, beginning for the most part
scarcely a century ago. Within the most recent decade, that explosion has reached near atomic proportions, with yoga finding
itself among the fastest growing trends in pop culture today a
multi-billion dollar industry that continues to extend its visage
into every, often seemingly un-yogic facet of modern day culture. But if one were to rely on the marketing images of yoga in
contemporary consumer culture, one would probably have a difficult time getting a valid picture of what yoga really is.
Yoga has been called a form of exercise. It has been termed
a religion. Others profess it as the supreme philosophy or the
definitive psychology. It is my hope that, through this basic introductory course, you will get a much better sense of just what this
ancient science is all about, and even be stimulated to explore it
much further.

day

The Origins of Yoga

Yoga is one of the six schools of spirituality in India. Yoga is not
a religion in the sense that it is not professed as a doctrine to be
adhered to, but rather could be looked at as the unifying principles underlying all religions.
As I.K. Taimni says in his book, The Science of Yoga;
Those who have studied yoga will attest that this Science of sciences
is too comprehensive in its nature and too profound in its

scope of teachings to be fitted into the framework of any particular

philosophy, religion or belief, ancient or modern. It stands in its
own right as a science based on the eternal laws of the higher life. Its
truths are based on the experiences and experiments of an unbroken
line of mystics, occultists, saints and sages who have realized and
borne witness to them throughout the ages.

Though the roots of yoga lie in ancient India and the values of
yoga have been protected for millennia within the structure
of Indian society, yoga itself is not merely an Indian science.
Nowhere in the teachings is it told that yoga is synonymous, for
instance, with Hinduism alone. As the revered Swami Gitananda
pointed out, through the practice of yoga one becomes better at
whatever one is: a better Christian, a better Muslim, a better Buddhist, a better Jew, a better Hindu... a better human being!
The term yoga itself comes from the ancient Sanskrit language. Its root Yuj means to join, to yoke together, to unify
or unite as one. The English word union could be seen to also
derive from this same source. In the simplest sense, it is the union
of body, mind and spirit. Though this unifying concept may
seem rather intangible to the novice, a gradual unfolding occurs
through the dedicated practice and study of yoga, through which
the practitioner ultimately comes to realize and experience the
unity of all creation. This is the union referred to in yoga a
re-union of the lower, worldly self with the Universal, higher
consciousness which the ancient sages call, moksha, samadhi,
kaivalya, jivana mukta. This is the true goal of yoga.
Yet these lofty goals take time to understand. The new practitioner of yoga should be aware of the profound potential of this
ancient science, yet not necessarily be overly consumed with
intellectualization in the beginning. The science of yoga takes
much time and study to fully know and experience, and much is
to be gained on the physical, mental and emotional levels along
the way. It is, however, important that yoga not be approached
in a purely materialistic manner alone, else one will find themselves, as is so often the case today, engaged in what amounts to
a mere system of physical fitness which is not truly deserving of
the word yoga nor representative of all that it has to offer.

day

Yoga The Science of Life

The practice of yoga is designed to lead the practitioner to states
of super consciousness, thereby answering the fundamental
questions of life. The science of yoga (yoga vidya) is none other
than the very science of life itself! It is an all-encompassing
exposition that reveals the breadth and magnitude of all of reality, not the least of which is the complete understanding of our
human selves and our place within this vast universe of existence. It is a science which provides a logical, verifiable, step by
step process for the unfolding of a new understanding of ones
Self and of the universe around us. Many miss this fact simply
because they have dabbled piecemeal with random aspects of
the greater whole of the yogic system.
Yoga presents us with a well-trodden path to explore this
mostly unknown self, providing a comprehensive scope of tools
and approaches for self-fulfillment, knowledge, balance and wellbeing in life. As Dr. Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani writes in his
article, Integral Psychology of Yoga:
Yoga has a lot to offer in terms of an understanding of the human
mind.
This ancient science helps us to understand our mental proc-

esses as well as the cause-effect relations of a multitude of problems

facing modern man. We have become victims of stress and stress
related disorders that threaten to entirely incapacitate us, inhibiting
us from realizing the great potential of our time here on earth. Yoga
offers a way out of this whirlpool of stress. Yogic lifestyle, yogic
diet, yogic attitudes and various yogic practices help us to release
the pent up stress effectively, strengthen us and develop positive
health.

The state of harmony between mind, emotions, body and nature

results from the proper practice of yoga. In short, yoga offers us a
holistic, nurturing and evolutionary way of living. Dr. Ananda
continues:

The regular practice of yoga as a way of life helps us reduce the

levels of physical, mental and emotional stress. This yogic way of
life lays emphasis on right thought, right action, right reaction and
right attitude.
... all of the yogic practices help to foster a greater mind-emotionsbody understanding and bring about the union and harmony of
body, emotions and mind. This righteous union is yoga in its truest
sense
Yoga helps us to take the right attitude towards our problems and
thus tackle them in an effective manner... Through the dedicated
practice of yoga as a way of life, we can become truly balanced humane beings

He goes on to make the following comments comparing the modern man and the yogi:

day

There are some important differences in the way the worldly

man and the realized yogi view the world and life in general. The
worldly man always feels that his problem lies elsewhere and that
he is the innocent victim of circumstances and fate. Yoga teaches us
that most of our problems lie within us and that we have to undergo
conscious change in order to solve them. Yogamaharishi Dr Swami
Gitananda Giri used to often tell his students, You dont have any
problem. YOU are the problem!

Certainly, yoga has much to offer on all levels. Uncovering its full
potential takes a lifetime of dedication, study and practice. But
as with any new endeavour, one must start at the beginning. Yoga
provides a system of techniques and practices for the gradual
improvement of health and the unfoldment of understanding,
along with a well-trodden path to the highest of spiritual goals.
Yet the path of yoga holds many different goals for many different
people. Some may be content to find improvement on the level
of physical health. Others may yearn for greater mental and emotional stability. Some will even strive for the wisdom and understanding garnered through a deeper study of their inner self. And
a relative few will even be driven to the ultimate liberation (moksha) which lies at the pinnacle of this ancient science. Regardless
of your motivations, with effort, dedication, and above all else,
patience, you most certainly will find success through yoga.

Practising Yoga
The study of yoga involves practices for the development of
health and wellbeing on all levels, its system encompassing both
physical techniques as well as deeper intellectual inquiry and
self-analysis. The practice of yoga itself ultimately becomes an
outlook and approach to living that extends into all areas of life.
As part of a graduated system, it is most tangible to begin
with yoga on the physical level, in a systematic and gradual way.
Throughout this 3 weeks of training, a basic foundation will be
laid in both the methodology as well as the philosophical and
theoretical approach to yoga.

The Components of a Yoga Practice

For simplicity sake, Ill refer to our structured physical practice
of yoga as hatha yoga. Any hatha yoga session is comprised of
three parts:
1. The warm-up exercises (known as jattis),
2. The contents or practice (asana, pranayama, kriya, etc),
3. The relaxation.


day

Note: Warm-up and relaxation are essential elements of any

practice and should never be skipped!

Jattis The warm up exercises

The word jatti (pronounced jaa-tee) literally means small unit
of movement for a specific purpose. They are simple movements
used to loosen the body and enable the body to move safely and
effectively into asanas (body positions) and through other physical practices. The benefits of jattis, however, are not limited to
merely warming up the body. The physical, mental and emotional bodies are all interconnected, thus we are able to release
psychic and mental tension via these shaking movements. Jattis
help to cleanse out psychic toxins, promote circulation, stimulates nerves, and release tension on many levels.

The Practice
Hatha is a Sanskrit word that can be translated to mean force
(or forceful). In hatha yoga this refers to the solar prana (ha) and
lunar apana (tha) forces (energies) and the practice of achieving
balance between them. Therefore, hatha yoga is the spiritual science of creating a perfect polarity or harmony (balance), through
proper body positioning and breath control, between the two
mighty energies of the universe, prana and apana as they manifest within the human organism. So then, with the philosophy of
doing a physical practice to achieve spiritual results, hatha yoga
developed primarily as a technology (system of physical practices) to create polarity (balance between opposites).
We will explore the concept of polarity, and speak further of
the various branches of yoga, including hatha yoga, in further lessons. For now it is enough to be aware of some of the components
of hatha yoga, which includes asana (position), pranayama (control of the vital energy, primarily via the breath), mudra (gesture),
bandha (holds), kriya (cleaning), etc.

Relaxation
An often overlooked aspect of yoga is the final relaxation. This
part of the practice is essential to the proper completion of any
yogic technique for the integration and harmonizing of the subtle energies manipulated during the practices. Yogic relaxation
is a conscious effort at relaxation. Though one may tend to fall
quickly into a sleep-like state upon normal relaxation, in yoga it
is very important that the attention be focused in some form of
structured relaxation for a period before allowing oneself to simply drift off.

The Warm Up

day

Sitting Jattis
Watch

Sitting
Jattis
Video Clip

It is very important to begin each practical session, whether it

is intense or mild, with a warm-up. There are many loosening practices which could fall within the category of the jattis. You may already have been instructed on several of these
types of practices before. The important considerations are
that the movements are light, without causing undue stress or
strain, and that they systematically work through all the major
joints and muscle groups of the entire body.
Different jattis may be performed from the seated, laying,
or standing positions. We will begin our practice with a group
of jattis performed in the seated position.

Techniques:
Note: Perform each of these movements from 30 to
60 seconds, in a gentle and rhythmic fashion.

1 Roll the legs inward and outward.

2 With a light bouncing movement, alternately bend

the knees and release them again with a thump upon

the floor to massage the posterior thighs and calves.

3 Draw one knee in toward the chest and

rotate the ankle several times in each
direction. Repeat on the other side.

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4 Lean back upon your arms and slowly roll the head and neck. Perform 3 circles in each direction.

5 With the spine, head and neck straight,

gently shake the head from side to side,

relaxing the jaw muscles and allowing the jaw
to swing loosely.

6 Grasp the instep of your foot and extend your

leg as straight as possible. Try to maintain a

straight and upright spine. Slowly open the leg
out to the side (abduct) and bring it back toward
the mid line again. Repeat several times and
then switch to the other side.

7 Bring the soles of your feet together and draw

them in close to your groin. Wrap your fingers

around the feet and sit tall with your spine, head
and neck straight. Gently bounce your knees in the
butterfly action.

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8 Draw one foot at a time upon the upper part

of the opposite thigh. Gently bounce the bent

knee. Caution: If you have knee pain here, do not
overstretch! Instead, place your foot on the floor
up against the inner thigh of the opposite leg.

9 Extend both legs forward again. Keeping

the knees straight, reach forward with a gentle

rocking, bouncing movement.

11 Chatus Pada Kriya: the 4-footed movement

10 Sit with both feet to one side. With the spine
straight and head up, turn to the opposite side,
performing a gentle spinal twist. Hold for a few
seconds then repeat on the other side.

(Chatus means 4 and Pada means foot). Crawl around

on the floor on your hands and knees. Move slowly
relaxing the spine, shoulders and hip areas.

12 Vyaghrah Pranayama (tiger breath):

In the chatus pada position, inhale while

slowly lowering the abdomen toward the
floor and raising the head, neck and chin
skyward into a nice back bend.
Note: The breath should be deep and
slow (to a 6 second count).
Exhale and slowly lower the head, while
at the same time pushing firmly with the
arms and raising the back into a nice
high arch. Repeat this movement with the
corresponding breath 3 to 6 times.

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Vajra Asana
In Sanskrit, vajra refers to Indras thunderbolt (Indra is known
as the king of the Gods). Therefore vajra asana is called the thunderbolt pose. The term vajra can also be translated as diamond,
and hence this posture is also often referred to as the diamond
pose.

Technique

Begin by kneeling with the body fully upright.

Bring both the knees, as well as the feet and heels together.

Sit down upon the heels so that they are pressing directly
into the buttocks.
Keep the spine straight and vertical and the head and neck
in vertical alignment with the spine.

Some Initial Discomfort

Though vajra asana is not a dangerous position, due to modern
lifestyles many people have a lack of mobility in their knee and
ankle joints as well as a lot of tension throughout the legs, and
thus many may find initial difficulty in assuming this position.
Those who have had surgical repairs or alterations to either of
these joints, however, will want to use caution and move only
within the pain-free range of motion. For the rest, any initial
pain in the knees, feet, ankles or calves (or other muscles) will
vanish with steady practice.
If this posture is uncomfortable in the beginning, try to maintain it for up to 30 seconds, but do not over-push yourself. When

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there is pain or cramping, rise up onto your knees for a few

moments until it subsides, and then resume sitting. If the pain
and/or cramping is persistent, then stretch the legs out in front of
you and perform some of the loosening jattis, such as leg rolling
and thumping.

Effects and Benefits

Vajra asana has been found useful for many problems in the
abdominal organs due to the fact that compressing the leg muscles partially inhibits the blood from flowing through the legs,
thus enhancing the circulation to the abdominal organs. It is recommended for those who suffer from poor digestion, heaviness in
the stomach, flatulence, and general lack of tone in the digestive
tract. It will help the stomach to work with increased strength.
Vajra asana is also recommended for those who have to stand a
lot because of their job. Some other notable benefits include:
1. Relieving sciatica and helps to remedy varicose veins
and any nervous or circulatory dysfunctions of the lower
regions.
2. Eliminating heel and foot aches.
3. Relieving muscle pain in the legs and thighs.
4. Relaxes and regenerated the lumbar area of the back,
benefiting hyperlordosis, scoliosis, spondylitis and all back
problems.
5. Contributes to eliminating certain menstrual dysfunctions,
relieving pain and irregularity.
6. Its regular practice helps to normalize the sleep cycle and
reduce the period of sleeping time necessary.

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Shava Asana
Shava asana (pronounced sha wa asana) means the pose of the
corpse. It is the primary position used in yoga for relaxation, one
in which we attempt to literally mimic the lifeless state by completely letting go of all conscious tension.

Technique

Lie down on your back with the legs and feet together and
the arms straight down along the sides with the palms face
upwards.
Optimally, the head should be directed toward the north, or
if that is not possible, then toward the east.

Beginning the Relaxation

Begin by observing the breath, to which you should become
a passive witness. Focus your attention on the act of breathing
without influencing it. This can be difficult because the mere fact
of becoming aware of the breath causes us to change it unwillingly. So proceed slowly and let yourself breathe as passively as
possible. Simply note where and how the breath moves into the
body and the rhythm with which it happens. Perceive the depth
of the inhalation, the pace, and the area of distension of the body
as it proceeds.
After a few moments of observing, begin to adjust the breath
into a uniform rhythm, allowing the abdomen to rise and lower,
and the chest to expand and contract calmly and regularly. Continue like this until you feel the inner calmness of this pleasant
breath.

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Now you will begin to influence the breath, or rather, the

expelling of air, to make it slower but not deeper. Let the expiration (outgoing breath) flow spontaneously without pushing it
further than it would like to go by itself. Proceed, gradually slowing down the exhalation to approximately double the inhalation
time. This 1:2 ratio is the natural breath of the relaxed state. It can
be observed in the breath of a new born baby, or that of a sleeping
animal such as a cat.

The Structured Relaxation

This slowing of the breath is the first structured relaxation technique that we will experiment with in shava asana. There is much
too be gain in the yogic relaxation, therefore it is very important
to perform this conscious, structured relaxation for at least 5
to 10 minutes at the end of every yoga session (building up to
a minimum of 15 minutes later on, as your practice progresses).
After this period, you may continue on with the structured relaxation process further, or simply let go and allow yourself to drift
off as you may.

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Practice Summary Day 1

We have embarked into our exploration of yoga by laying a basic
structure for daily practice, which includes the 3 basic components of warm up, practice and relaxation.
Todays practice session goes as follows:

Practices
Jattis

Perform each of the jattis for 30 to 60 seconds, and even repeat them all again 2 or 3 times if
desired.

Vajra Asana

Sit in vajra asana for 30 to 60 seconds, or as long as comfortable. If cramping or pain is felt,
straighten your legs and perform a few light jattis to relieve the pain.

Final Relaxation
Shava Asana

Practice slowing the breath as outlined.

Note: In the beginning much tension will be found, especially

for those who are not used to regular exercise or the specific types
of movements introduced. Take your time and perform all exercises only within a comfortable, pain-free range, allowing your
abilities to gradually and steadily increase over time.
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