The beauty of yoga is international

An overview of all other people depicted at the Yoga Online Exhibition, their organizations or websites.

An international selection of beautiful yoga asana

The page achisoch.com is a kind of wellness website in Hindi language. Under the heading Yoga (योग) there is a post about the Fish pose, matsyāsana. The post explains how to do the exercise, what are the health benefits and what precautions should be taken. Apart from that, the site also features sections on health, nutrition, school and studies, nice sayings in Hindi, etc.

On December 11, 2014, the UN officially declared 21st June to be the International Day of Yoga. The Yoga Day Celebration website provides information about this event. Since 2015 therefore the beginning of the summer has been for lots of people around the world a day dedicated to yoga. The visitor of this website can find posts on the practice of yoga, the types of yoga, the history of yoga, etc. I have taken the beautiful picture of Ushtrasana  of the description of the Camel Pose.

Il giornale dello yoga is the name of a website in Italian language, which informs in detail about yoga. Posts on Yoga-āsana alternate with topics on spirituality, yoga types, interesting esoteric phenomena, special techniques, etc. Also known as the Reclining Hand-to-Big-Toe Pose, Supta Padangushthasana is presented on this page as: “a polar lying position which increases muscle flexibility in the buttocks and thighs and which reduces back pain.”

The picture of Gomukhasana, also known as Cow Face Pose, comes from a South African website Yoga Awakening Africa. Responsible for the site is the yoga teacher Nina Saacks. The yoga studio offers a variety of group and individual lessons, organizes workshops and reatreats. Nina also offers videos with instructions for yoga beginners. In my opinion, the chosen picture nicely expresses the centering character of Gomukhasana. Arms and legs are positioned close to the body and the demonstrated āsana irradiates with a peaceful, carefree character on the viewer.

The association founded by Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda in order to spread Yoga in Daily Life operates mainly in Austria and neighboring countries. The system of today 72-year-old Swamiji is built in eight successive stages. All in all, the difficulty of the āsana increases from level to level.

In regarding to the exercises of the eighth level, most of which are performed with legs crossed in the Lotus Pose. So they are well practicable for those who master the Lotus. Whoever can not perform the Lotus because of his/her “Western” constitution of the hip joints may have to skip this whole stage. Backward-bending exercises, however, only occur in relatively simple forms and only in small number in the system of Swami Maheshwarananda. The reason for this could possibly be his cooperation with different physical education institutions. In general, backbending is rather discouraged in sports. In the context of a holistic yoga practice, which also takes into account the mental and consciousness part, especially the backward bending can convey very enriching experiences.

Image sources (19-03-20): Featured image is of Yuri_B on pixabay, thumbnails are from the Yoga Online Exhibition (see the link above)