Natarajasana, Lord of the Dance Pose.
Nata means “dancer”, raja means “king”, and asana means “posture”. Nataraja was a name given to the Hindu God Shiva, the great destroyer, in his form as the cosmic dancer.

I have always been in love with dance and utilizing different ways of movement to express myself. Breathing in this pose feels so right. Natarajasana stretches the shoulders, chest, thigh, groins, and abdomen. It strengthens the legs and ankles while improving balance.  This pose is an opportunity to cultivate an ability to shift out of the multi-tasking mentality the world seems to demand and move into this essential, centralized energy and space.

Looking to open and balance some of your chakras? This pose is great for encouraging love, personal power, and creativity by activating the heart, solar plexus, and sacral chakras.

Natarajasana is metaphorically dancing through our samsaras. Why is it that we refuse at times to see ourselves as divine beings?

This pose requires and builds full-body strength, flexibility, and coordination. Do not do this pose if you have an ankle, knee or low back injury, are currently experiencing low blood pressure, dizziness, migraines, or insomnia. So how do you get into it?

1. Begin in Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
2. Shift your weight to your left foot
3. Bend right leg to bring right heel toward sit bone
4. Draw the knees together and scoop the tailbone down while hugging the mid-line with both thighs
5. Raise your right arm up overhead while simultaneously kicking the right foot high to the sky connecting the right hand to the inside of your foot. If it’s available raise your left hand to meet your right foot as well, otherwise let it float, palms up in front of you.
6. Pull right ribs and hip forward while drawing in your right shoulder socket – working to square off the torso to the front
7. Lift through your heart, draw your belly in, and continue to hug towards the mid-line
8. Allow your drishti to be at the middle finger of your left hand (about third eye level)
… And now just breath. (Don’t forget to do the other side!)

Modifications:

• Bow a the waist reaching heart forward
• Holding toe of back foot pull elbow up with arm now reaching back over side of head
• Use a strap wrapped around top of foot of lifted leg
• For gentle variation stand with a wall 2 feet in front of you to balance

Utilize this pose to dance through your own samsaras, recognize what kleshas you fall in to and how to move through them. Not sure what a klesha is? Stay tuned … 🙂