The Evolution of Asana: The Story of Warrior I.

Via Rebecca Lammersen

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Welcome to my column, The Evolution of Asana. My mission is to help the practice of yoga asana become accessible to every body. Each week, we will focus on a new posture—What does it mean? What are the benefits? What are the modifications? How do you do it? I look forward to guiding you. ~ Rebecca

Our yoga pose this week is Virabhadrasana I, Warrior I.

What is it and what does it mean? 

Vira—Hero
Bhadra—Friend
Asana—Pose

Warrior I is a showcase of the spiritual strength and devotion within each of us. In Warrior I, the back foot is rooted, the front leg is lunged forward and the arms are stretching toward the ceiling.

The warrior series tells a story of love, tragedy, sorrow and the resilient power of compassion—a physical representation of the battle between the spirit and the ego, fighting over the heart.

Lord Shiva is the supreme leader, the soul of the universe, the destroyer, the creator, the master of yoga and meditation. He is the god who goes against the grain with his dreadlocks and omniscient perspective on life.

Lord Shiva falls in love with Sati (the good girl, the lover, the heart). They marry. Her father, King Daksha (the ruler of ego) of Yagna disapproves of their union, spreading rumors and slander about Shiva. He banishes Sati and Shiva from the kingdom. Sati, broken hearted by King Daksha’s rejection, travels back to the kingdom to talk with her father, to attempt to reconcile, but is met with a cold shoulder and a cruel reception from the citizens of Yagna.

Sati, enraged over her father’s neglect decides to kill herself by sitting in deep meditation (desiring to no longer be in body form), and bursts into flames.

When Lord Shiva hears the news of his wife’s brutal death, in a rage, he rips one of his dreadlocks from his head, throws it to the earth, creating his incarnation, Virabhadra. He orders Virabhadra to go to Yagna to behead King Daksha and drink his blood.

Warrior I represents Virabhadra making his journey to Yagna, charging through earth with his sword over his head, ready to serve his mission and kill King Daksha.

When Lord Shiva arrives at the kingdom to view the aftermath, he is overcome with deep sorrow and decides to give King Daksha a new head, bringing him back to life. 

Although the bones of this story are violent, the pose itself represents our ability to use our higher mind to find compassion even in the worst of circumstances, so that we may think and act with spirit (Shiva) instead of ego (Daksha), to honor the love that resides in the heart (Sati).

We acknowledge the battle we face daily between our ego—-which is characterized by emotions like anger and reactivity—and our ability to interact with our lives and others from a place of love.

Warrior I gives us an opportunity to reflect and connect with our own warrior friend, Virabhadra.

Benefits 

Warrior I strengthens the ankles, legs, hips, groin, shoulders and arms. Practicing this pose regularly increases mobility and range of motion in the ankle and hips joints, while stretching the chest muscles. Warrior I promotes balance through engagement of the core muscles. Warrior I is a heart opener, a pose of courage—it builds emotional and mental confidence.

The pose is an effective proprioceptive tool for teaching body awareness: the subtle placement and alignment of the bones leads to a deep sense of comfort and stability within the body.

Contraindications

Individuals with severe knee, ankle or hip pain (or recent surgery to the joint) are advised to use the modifications or avoid the posture completely if discomfort or pain arises. Individuals with equilibrium issues or blood pressure imbalances, please use the wall, block or chair modifications.

Individuals with shoulder impingement please keep your arms and hands at waist level. Those with neck pain or cervical pathologies, avoid tilting your head back. Instead, look straight forward or down to the floor (if you are doing the block variation).

Prep Poses

It is important to stretch and stabilize the hip, ankle joints and outer thighs before attempting this pose. Preparatory poses for Warrior I include supine twisting, child’s pose, runner’s lunge, downward facing dog and fierce pose (to promote quad (thigh) strength).

Modifications

Chair and Wall Modification

You may either use the wall or the back of a chair for support. Begin by holding on (lightly) to the back of the chair, or place your hands slightly lower than shoulder height on the wall.

Position your feet hip distance apart with toes facing forward. Lift your inner arches by evenly pressing the inner ball, heel and outer ridges of the feet into the mat.

Inhale.

Exhale. Bend your right knee and step your left foot (three to four feet) behind your left hip. Externally rotate your left hip to plant your left foot at an angle (a little less than 45 degrees), pressing your left heel into the mat.

Straighten your front leg for a moment and slide your hips to the left. Bend back into your right knee (ensure your right knee is slightly behind your right ankle, for joint safety).

If you feel uncomfortable in your hips, step the left foot to the left slightly pressing through the back heel until you feel a stretch in your left hip flexor and quadriceps muscle, and engagement in your right quadriceps muscle.

Hold and breathe.

Lift your belly up and in.

Slide your shoulder blades down your rib cage.

Rest your elbows near your waistline with a gentle grip of the chair or press into the wall.

Complete five full breath cycles.
When you’re ready to exit the posture, inhale and slide your left foot to meet your right foot.
Switch sides.

Modification with blocks (entering from front of mat)

Place blocks on the inside front corners of your mat (raise the height of the blocks dependent on your hip flexion comfort).

Stand at the front of your mat.

Inhale and lengthen your spine.

Bend your knees, tilt your tailbone back and begin to fold your chest toward your thighs.

Place your hands on the blocks.

Step your right foot in line with the inside of the right block.

Exhale.

Bend your right knee and step your left foot back three to four feet behind your left hip.

Face the toes of the left foot to the left front corner of the mat.

Press through the outer ridge and heel point of the back foot, creating a little cave in your inner arch (this will promote stability to your knee and hip joint).

Push your right knee to the inside of your right bicep to bring support and extra stretch to your right inner thigh. Pull your right thigh back, right hip forward.

Check in. Are you comfortable?

If you are not, adjust your stance by shortening and/or widening your gait.

As you press the left heel into the mat, lift your belly in and draw your sternum forward. Look slightly forward of your feet maintaining a length in the back of the neck.

Breathe!

If you feel stable enough, inhale and take one hand to your thigh, then the other hand to your thigh. Lift your chest in line with your waistline, hands on hips and breathe here.

When you’re ready to exit the posture, inhale lifting the crown of your head toward the ceiling.

Exhale. Lower one hand at a time to the blocks.

Inhale. Roll onto the ball of the back foot.

Exhale. Step forward and switch sides.

Instructions

Entering Warrior I from Downward Facing Dog:

Slide your left heel in line with your right toes. Spin the left foot (left toes point to the front left corner of your mat (a little less than 45 degree angle)). Press through the outer ridge of the left heel.

Inhale.

As you exhale, slide the right foot up to the right hand.

Pause.

Lift onto your fingertips (right hand outside the right foot, left hand under the left shoulder).

Pull your chest forward, hips back.

Anchor the back left heel to the mat.

Take your hands to your waistline and hover your chest parallel to the right thigh.

Observe the sensations in the feet and hips.

Do you feel secure? Are the feet planted firmly, legs strong?

Inhale and lift the chest in line with your hips.

***If there is limited range in the shoulder, and full extension is not an option, cactus your arms out to the sides, fingers point up to the ceiling.

If you’re fully extending your arms overhead, draw your biceps slightly forward of the ears, shoulder blades sliding down the back, shoulders relaxed. Reach through your fingertips. Remember, your arms and hands represent the sword, sharp and focused on the target.

Soften your jaw. Are you breathing? Release your front toes (they tend to claw the mat as the quads engage). Spiral your left thigh inward, as you extend back through your left heel.

Gaze forward or up to the ceiling while maintaining length through the back of the neck.

Pull your belly in and spread your collarbones. Press your right knee to the right without moving the foot, accentuating the stretch to the inner thigh.

Breathe.

After five to ten breath cycles, exhale and lower your hands to the mat. Press back to downward facing dog and switch sides.

Embrace the integrity of this posture—this is the externalization of the warrior spirit.

Namaste!

Author: Rebecca Lammersen