By Sarah-Jane Murphy; Naturo retreat practitioner; the most beautiful and dreamy writer of yoga there ever was…
SIRSASANA asana: headstand
Of all the tools in the Yogabox, it reigns supreme in its capacity to transform. As like all Kings, this shape holds the power to change everything utterly and radically.This gives it incredible value in our lives today.
In the interest of simplicity, Here is the Holy Tripod of reasons to incorporate headstand into your life.
Pillar of Strength and Ease:
Contrary to initial reaction, Sirsasana is classified as moderate exercise, and truly accessible to most of us. A balancing posture, the practitioner supports the body with the forearms and rests the crown of the head on the Earth.
Physically, once one has spent some time mastering the posture under the guidance of an experienced teacher. it is simple, easy and portable practice. ideal for the average space and time challenged modern western creature.
The effects are generous:
It slows the heart rate and blood pressure, and activates our parasympathetic nervous system, which in turn affects each of our precious and delicate systems in our bodies. This Soothes our digestive organ (often dumping ground for our surplus stress).
It reverses the blood flow from the legs to the brain, soaking our tired cells in blood and nutrition. Here it acts as a mechanism for mental clarity.
With repeated practice, we grow strong too. Our core becomes the fluid mobile mechanism it truly is built to be, as we hold commitment to the shape, our shape.
Perspective change:
Oh we can often feel disempowerment or imprisoned in the story of our own lives, by the consequences of our past choices or the choices of others.
By reversing our whole body we reverse our whole self. Our spine is set the task of recognising new possibilities and combinations of lightness, heaviness slack and tension, what is efficient and what is unnecessary and extraneous.
Like a King we may transform. We may reassess our issues. We recognise a new perspective on an old situation, a skill we have become accustomed to forgetting in favour of mechanistic, task based linear obedience (feeling STUCK, to put it simply).
Of course, this is possible in our conventional upright posture, but often our minds habits allow us to become blind to our own tension patterns.
It is a challenge. And all challenges change perspective in the alchemical process of finding ones edge. When we challenge ourselves we can find the edges of our limits, and more options open for us.
Energy:
In our oft sedentary lifestyle, the sediments of our creativity, our sensuality and spice sink to the bottom and fizzing thoughtscapes fly frantic and wild to the top of us, leaving a barron wasteland at our centre. A disconnection.
Conventional intellectual programming and the sometime suppression of sexual expression, can produce this split, as our apparent range of choices seem limited.
Headstand is a mechanism in itself to encourage the unification of these opposites, in a refracted world of confusion and conflicting commitments.. It facilitates the magic of opposing forces within us existing at the same time and gives us full conscious access to this interplay.
It may allow us float, in spite of the cannonball of mind and choice and desire we are enthrust to carry around and use. It may allow us to become the clear and strong creative channel we really are.
As our sky becomes our ground and our ground becomes ground. In order to support ourselves we must engage.
It is then we find the opportunity to emanate our energy and our light.
We become, perhaps, whole schools of fish moving as one, as opposed to the piece of driftwood..cellular celebrating, full cellular collaboration.
In conclusion Sirsasana…for sheer magnificence (or at least a little more balance).
