Anjaneyasana

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Anjaneyasana, Crescent Moon pose

Añjaneyāsana (Sanskrit: अञ्जनेयासन, "Son of Anjani pose"), Crescent Moon Pose,[1] or Ashva Sanchalanasana (Equestrian Pose[2]) is a lunging back bending asana in modern yoga as exercise.

It is sometimes included as one of the asanas in the

Surya Namaskar
sequence, though usually with arms down in that case. Variations include Utthana Pristhasana, Lizard Pose.

Etymology and origins

The name Anjaneya is a

Iṣṭa-devatā in devotional worship.[3]

Like many standing asanas, Anjaneyasana was unknown in medieval

Description

Yoga class in Parivritta Anjaneyasana

The asana is entered from a lunge, with the back knee lowered to the ground, the back arched and the arms raised and stretched over the head. The toes of the back foot are pointed back in styles such as Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga and other styles, the top of the foot on the floor, though in other styles such as Sivananda Yoga the toes are tucked under. The front foot remains in standing position, the hips lowered close to the front foot and the front knee fully bent and pointing forwards. In the full asana, the rear foot is lifted and grasped with both hands, the elbows pointing up.[2][1][5]

Variations

Utthana Pristhasana, Lizard pose

Parivritta Anjaneyasana, a preparatory pose for

Parivritta Parsvakonasana (where the rear knee is off the floor),[6] is the rotated form of the pose. This has the opposite elbow to the bent forward knee, and the rear knee on the floor.[7][8]

Utthana Pristhasana, Lizard pose, is a variant with the forearms on the floor.[9]

Moving the front foot on to its side so the knee comes to the ground enables a transition to a related back bend,

Rajakapotasana.[1]

Some teachers use the name Crescent Moon Pose for a lunge with raised knee and raised hands, as in

Virabhadrasana I.[10] Some use the name Parivritta Anjaneyasana for Parivritta Parsvakonasana with elbow to knee.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^
    OCLC 12457963.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  2. ^ .
  3. ^ Gaia Staff (27 September 2016). "Anjaneyasana: The Lunge Pose". Gaia. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  4. Times of India
    . 23 June 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  5. ^ Steiner, Ronald (June 2015). "Anjaneyāsana - Learning devotion from Hanuman". Yoga Aktuell (in German) (92 June/July 2015). Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  6. Yoga: The Iyengar Way. Dorling Kindersley. p. 36.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  7. ^ Kozlowski, Coby (18 June 2015). "The 20-Minute Sequence For Finding Fulfillment: Revolved Low Lunge: Parivrtta Anjaneyasana". Yoga Journal. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  8. ^ "Parivrtta Anjaneyasana: Revolved Lunge Pose". Gaia. 21 September 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  9. ^ Feinberg, Sonima; Feinberg, Dawn (5 May 2016). "A Yoga Sequence for Deep Hip Opening: Lizard Pose". Yoga Journal. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Asanas: Standing Poses". About-Yoga.com. Archived from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  11. ^ "Revolved Crescent Lunge: Parivṛtta Aṅjaneyāsana". Pocket Yoga. Retrieved 16 December 2018.