Virabhadrasana – Warrior Pose
Virabhadrasana Pose
Warrior poses are the most iconic of the standing poses. They are strong and reflect the power and ferocity of the warrior.
It may seem strange to name a yoga pose after a warrior; after all, aren’t yogis known for their non-violent ways? But remember that one of the most revered of all the yoga texts, the Bhagavad Gita, is the dialogue between two famous and feared warriors, Krishna and Arjuna, set on a battlefield between two great armies preparing for an epic fight.
Vira means hero and bhadra = friend
What’s really being commemorated in this pose’s name—and held up as an ideal for all practitioners, is the “spiritual warrior,” who bravely does battle with the universal enemy, self-ignorance (avidya), the ultimate source of all our suffering.
Virabhadrasana 1 may be one of the more common yoga poses, yet it is also one of the most challenging. Warrior 1 Pose requires you to push past your perceived physical, mental, and emotional limitations to move into a deeper expression of the asana. It’s an opportunity to focus and practise determination.
Warrior 1 Pose is filled with opposing alignments, but when all the opposing movements work together, the pose offers a full-body experience. There’s almost no body part that doesn’t reap the rewards of holding Virabhadrasana 1.
- In the front leg, this pose strengthens the thigh, calf, and ankle.
- In the back leg, it stretches the back of your thigh (hamstring) and calf muscles.
- It boosts energy, helps fight fatigue, and improves balance
- May help build confidence and empowerment
It’s also a powerful pose for the upper body. Reaching up stretches your torso from your psoas along your chest up to your shoulders. It also stretches and strengthens the area around your shoulders and builds power in your back and arms.
It improves posture and counteracts the effects of prolonged sitting and doing computer work.
We begin doing a posture in a certain way, but we continually deepen our experience of the posture in order to further our practice. When we take our practice off the mat, we become yoga warriors out in the world.
Yoga practice really begins when things get hard in life or on the mat.
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