The Asanas - The Workhorses Of Yoga

The literal meaning of the word asana is "seat". In contemporary Yoga however, asana is defined as posture.

While many people believe Yoga is just an oriental form of stretching, there are many more benefits to doing the asanas - apart from the obvious function of stretching muscles, they also open the energy channels of the body (also known as "chakras). In fact, most Yoga postures where originally designed as stable postures for prolonged meditation, so it should come as no surprise that they can not only strengthen the body, but also be used to focus the mind.

Beginners often stand in awe in front of the great number of positions performed in Yoga. Almost all of these poses and movements have in common that they are very effective in increasing the vigour of the back and firming the muscles in the stomach, as well as greatly improving the practitioners endurance and stamina.

There are several ways to categorize the various asanas, such as seated, standing, supine, prone, balance and twisting postures.

In Yoga, one’s mind must be coordinated with the body’s movement. In this manner, the body experiences a harmonious activity that results to a forcible and healthy life. They specific poses all have rather interesting names such as "Sleeping raised foot thunderbolt posture" or the "corpse pose", the latter being an exercise of relaxation. The goal of all asanas is to achieve alignment and balance as well as improve strength both in the body and of the mind.

The poses are also easy to adapt to the abilities of individual practitioners - no one is going to demand that you bend over backwards and tie yourself in a knot at the your first lesson!

Recommended Reading If you are interested in the various postures of Ashtanga Yoga, check out David Swensson's excellent book on the subject.

Many benefits

By doing the various yoga asanas or positions, one can establish and experience an amazing improvement in the flexibility of some parts of the joints, tendons, and ligaments.

But the benefits are much greater than that. In fact, researchers have found that learning and regularly doing the asanas of Yoga creates harmony and balance in the entire body, including the internal organs. Among some of the noted benefits are:

• Improved general health and sense of well-being 
• Improved blood circulation
• Balancing of the the activities in the nervous system
• Reduced stress
• Vastly improved and effective respiration
• Muscles that not only look strong but actually are both strong and tough

While the exact explanation to why there are so many positive effects of practising Yoga aren't fully explained by western medicine, the theory is that the exercise with the many various postures and deep breathing greatly improves the body's natural detoxification process. Thus promoting a general sence of well-being while lessening pain and providing relief from certain disorders.

No one will deny that Yoga is a very effective form of physical conditioning. And, as it requires intense concentration and attention to detail, that it helps you center your mind as well.

However, by putting the numerous other positive effects into the equation, we can draw the conclusion that doing the asanas of Yoga (although being rather taxing physical exercise) actually provide the practitioner with and extra amount of energy. Furthermore, the positive impact on the body's regenerative functions even helps to slow down the natural ageing process.

Many postures of Yoga may look incredible, but as you see, the results are even more incredible.