KAAG ASANAA/ BAAKA ASANAA / CROW POSE

In the series of balancing one of the finest is Bakasana or Kaag Asana a known as Crow Pose, where you balance the weight of the body on the arm and wrist. This Asana is contraindicated specially in case of weak wrists, tennis elbow, frozen shoulder or any arm joint deformity and high blood pressure.

Duration 10 seconds to 1 minute

Procedure

• Sit in Utkatasana on the toes with feet apart.
• Keep your hands on the floor in between the legs with fingers wide open and turn your hands a little inside.
• Make sure the elbow touches the crease of the knee, above the knee.
• Keep your eyes fixed at a point ahead of your hands, bringing all the body weight slowly on the arms.
• Keeping balance, lift the legs upon by one pointing the toes back trying to touch the big toe to each other.
• Beginners may keep a cushion in front of the head to avoid the hurt on forehead or face as you topple while balancing.
• Release the hands and do rotate the wrist joint to relax the muscles around It.

Benefits

Body/ Mind/ Pranic

• Strengthens the wrist joint and tones up the arms, shoulder and chest cavity.
• Increases the lung capacity and gives internal massage to abdominal organs increasing their capacity to work more efficiently in coordination with other systems.
• Increases the supply of blood to the torso and head with the pull of gravity thereby increasing the memory, concentration, alertness.
• Increases the flow of prana/ current to Vishuddha, Anahata and Ajna chakra
• Increases the balancing ability of the body by strengthening the skeleton framework of the body.

Contraindications

• High blood pressure, osteoporosis, shoulder stiffness, depression.

Variations

• Keep a cushion in front of the head as you bring the weight on the arms and palms. So that you protect your head as you might get unbalanced as beginners.

Helps in

• Strengthening the wrist joints, sluggish digestion, piles, asthma, and poor concentration and focusing ability, hyperactivity, short temperament.

Key points

• Practice to balance on palms gradually.
• Do not try to seek balance in first attempt.
• Keep your eyes fixed at one point as you slowly raise the feet off the floor.
• Keep the finger wide open.