Garbha Pindasana Explained

Garbha Pindasana (Sanskrit: गर्भ पिण्डासन, IAST: Garbha Piṇḍāsana), Embryo in Womb Pose,^[1] sometimes shortened to Garbhasana,^{[2] [3] [4]} is a seated balancing asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise.

The pose is identical to Uttana Kurmasana, the inverted tortoise pose, except that the body is on the back in that pose instead of balancing upright.

Etymology and origins

The name comes from the Sanskrit words garbha meaning "womb"; piṇḍa, meaning "embryo" or "foetus"; and āsana (आसन) meaning "posture" or "seat".^[5]

The pose is described in the 17th century Bahr al-Hayāt.^[6]

The limb positions of Garbha Pindasana are identical to those in Uttana Kurmasana, which is illustrated in the 19th century Sritattvanidhi.

Description

The legs are crossed in Padmasana; practitioners who cannot easily keep the feet in Padmasana may cross the legs in Sukhasana. The arms are threaded through behind the knees, and the hands then reach up to grasp the ears. The body is then balanced on the coccyx (the tailbone).^[7]

In Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, the pose is in the primary series.^[1]

Variations

The arm position may be varied.^[8]

Another form is the reclining Supta Garbhasana with the ankles crossed behind the neck, the same as Yoganidrasana.^[9]

Claims

Twentieth century advocates of some schools of yoga, such as B. K. S. Iyengar, made claims for the effects of yoga on specific organs, without adducing any evidence. Iyengar claimed that this pose makes the blood circulate well around the abdominal organs, which are "contracted completely", keeping them "in trim".

See also

• List of asanas

Sources

• Book: Iyengar, B. K. S. . B. K. S. Iyengar . 1979 . 1966 . Light on Yoga: Yoga Dipika . Light on Yoga . . 978-1855381667 .
• Book: Jain, Andrea . Andrea Jain . Selling Yoga: from Counterculture to Pop Culture . Selling Yoga . . 2015 . 978-0-19-939024-3 . 878953765 .
• Book: Newcombe, Suzanne . Suzanne Newcombe . 2019 . Yoga in Britain: Stretching Spirituality and Educating Yogis . Yoga in Britain: Stretching Spirituality and Educating Yogis . Bristol, England . . 978-1-78179-661-0 .
• Book: Sjoman . Norman E. . Norman Sjoman . The Yoga Tradition of the Mysore Palace . Abhinav Publications . 1999 . 2nd . 1996 . 81-7017-389-2 .

Notes and References

1. Web site: Primary Series of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga: yoga chikitsa (cikitsa) Garbha Pindasana . . 30 January 2019.
2. Book: Aggarwal, Dholan Dass . Yogasana & Sadhana . 1 January 1989 . Pustak Mahal . 978-81-223-0092-5 . 72.
3. Book: Hewitt, James . Complete Yoga Book . 3 January 1990 . . 307. 978-0-8052-0969-3 .
4. Book: Stearn, Jess . Yoga, youth, and reincarnation . 1965 . . 350.
5. Book: Sinha, S. C. . Dictionary of Philosophy . 1 June 1996 . Anmol Publications . 978-81-7041-293-9 . 18.
6. Web site: Mallinson . James . A Response to Mark Singleton's Yoga Body by JamesMallinson . 4 January 2019 . 9 December 2011. revised from American Academy of Religions conference, San Francisco, 19 November 2011.
7. Web site: Keleher . Neil . Ashtanga Yoga Poses, Seated Poses Part 1 . Sensational Yoga Poses . 30 January 2019 . 17 December 2018.
8. Web site: Garbha Pindasana The Embryo . Yoga in Daily Life . 31 January 2019 . 2019.
9. Web site: Supta-Garhbasana . OMGYAN . 6 January 2019.