Ardha Chandrasana and Santosha
Ardha Chandrasana can be a challenging posture that contains within it lots of joy. From a sturdy foundation on your balancing leg, ardha chandrasana presents the opportunity to balance, lengthen, and burst open at the heart.
The month of March in Vermont can also be a challenge: the ups and downs of temperature, the bouts of winter, hints of spring. Evolution calls upon “Santosha”, the yogic principle of contentment this month so that even if the toughest of moments (on and off your mat), there is acceptance, peace and gratitude.
To get into the posture,
• Come into Triangle from Mountain.
• Bring your left hand to your left hip.
• Bend your right leg and plant your right fingertips on the floor or a block about 12-18 inches in front of your right foot, pinkie-toe side.
• Step the left back leg back; all the weight is in the front leg.
• Exhale, straighten the standing leg, lift the back leg out and up parallel to the floor
• Roll the trunk open towards the ceiling. Either stay here or move on to the next stage.
• Reach the left arm up out of the opening chest. Stay here or move on to the next stage.
• Extend the gaze the raised hand.
• Hold the position for several breaths.
• To exit the pose, exhale and step back to Triangle
• Repeat on 2nd Side
Santosha
Santosha is the 2nd niyma, the yogic principle of contentment. Santosha is being content with who you are, where you are (in time and space), what you have and what you don’t have. Santosha is necessary for spiritual fulfillment because it eliminates a sense of longing or lack and requires the practitioner to accept and embrace, leading to inner-peace and gratitude.
March 2nd, 2009 at 6:59 PM
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