YOGA POSTURES: Natarajasana, Lord Nataraja Pose

www.sridevinrithyalaya.org, 
CC BY 2.5 IN, via
Wikimedia Commons

Meaning of the word 'Nataraj' is 'The Lord of Dancing'. Lord Shiva is believed to be the Nataraj. In fact, the Natarajanasan is believed to be of the difficult type of Yoga Postures. But it can be done properly after doing initial practice

                                              The Dance Pose

The Nataraj Dance is done before the statues of the deities. The dancers, in individually or in the group, dance before Lord Shiva or other God or Goddess.

In many south Indian Temples, such dances are a regular feature. Tourists from all over the world, especially from European countries and the USA come to see the dance performance before the deities. If you come to India, do not forget to visit a south Indian temple. It may happen that you will be able to see the dance of the Indian dancers.

Meaning of the word 'Nataraj' is 'The Lord of Dancing'. Lord Shiva is believed to be the Nataraj. In fact, the Natarajanasan is believed to be of the difficult type of Yoga Postures. But it can be done properly after doing initial practice.

Yoga is one of the most useful and widely practised sets of physical exercises. These postures provide extreme stretches to the human body. It has been originated in India. Doing yoga postures is famous for its spiritual touch. It is one of the six schools of Hindu philosophy, but now a day it is practised all over the world. Some use it as exercises for remaining physically healthy. Some of them practice the postures for spiritual reasons.

How to Do Dance Pose

• At the start of many postures, it is advisable to stand straight. That posture is called Tadasana. Doing Dance Pose, do stand straight in beginning.

• Take hold of your right foot with your right hand from the backside. Ensure that the weight of the whole body is transferred on the left foot and the left leg is in a straight position.

• After taking right foot in your right paw firmly, you should try it stretching upward until it reaches the level of your head.

• Finally, stretch your left-hand straight parallel to the floor. Here the Dance pose is complete.

  • However, these poses are done with certain alterations in the pose, too. One can take the hold of the right foot with both the hands and drag it above the level of the head.

This pose can be repeated by raising another foot to the level of the head. Bottom of the foot would be touching head in this case, as the head would be tilted backwards. 

Theme: Learn Doing Yoga Exercises, How to do the different postures of Yoga, Doing Various Yoga Asanas.

Forward Bending Posture.

The very purpose of doing Yoga Posture is to create energy in our body. After creating new energy, there comes the question of balancing that energy. 

The regular practitioner of Yogasana would think that in what sequence these postures are to be done.

Here the important concept is how to maintain the balance of the energy created. 

In every asana or posture, there is a visible process in which our spine and the body moves either in one or another direction, either in forwarding or backward direction. 

If one part twists right, eventually one needs to twist left. 

Again, a process of maintaining balanced energy and space throughout is vital. There are some asanas, which contains countering effects, balancing the flow of energy.

Marcocarvalho, 
CC BY 3.0, via
Wikimedia Commons

Look at the following example: Shoulder Stand Pose, the Raj Sarvangasana, is followed by Fish Pose, the Matyasana. 

It counterbalances the effects of the first posture. 

We can see many examples of asanas, which are to be followed by other counterbalancing asanas. 

For the detail, we have to ask the trainer.

There are some defined set of postures. 

These sets are like a garland of a flower, coming one after another. 

There were several ancients schools, too, who had devised these Yoga Postures in their counterbalancing sequence. 

Some postures are targeted to benefit certain parts of our body, like the muscles, the joints, and the deposited fat. 

So all the postures in that series would be providing more and more exercises to a particular limb for a period. 

And thereafter there would come the counterbalancing postures.

It is advisable to ask the trainer or an experienced person to know about the sequence of the postures. 

It depends, and varies too, on the type of asanas a person practices.

Benefits of Doing Dance Pose

• As it is a posture balancing the whole body on one foot, it generates a feel of balance in the mind of the person doing it. This makes a difference in the life and thinking of the person who practices it regularly.

• It stretches all the muscles of Shoulders, thighs and calves.

• The knees, ankles and hips get adequate exercise. So it would be beneficial in curing the pain in hip joints, too.

• The area of the chest and abdomen is fully stretched along with the spine. In all the Dance Pose provide adequate exercise to the whole body.

Physical Benefits of Doing Yoga Postures

Yoga poses help in building up and maintaining general fitness of your body. It channelizes our existing energy in the most natural way; it sets in motion the energy that is lying idle. Regular practising of yoga poses would dramatically improve the flexibility of your muscles. Each asana is devised to generate a certain level of stretch to a specific muscle or limb. Yoga poses would make your body looking shapely and fit. People would start noticing positive change in your shape and physical fitness.

Mental Benefits of Doing Yoga Postures

Yoga postures help to remove toxins from our body. In turn, it helps reducing mental stress and calming down the level of anxiety. These processes ultimately increase our capability to concentrate and focus on our routine works.

Remedial Benefits of Doing Yoga Postures

These postures are formulated to keep our body in the general status of health. However it helps in curing certain irregularities caused in functioning of our body of restoring the natural balance. Thus it has curative value, too.

The most important restorative benefit we would get from yoga posture is the reduction of the level of fat in our body. In present era where people do less physical work, most of us face the problem of obesity. Yoga exercises help us burning the extra fat we pile up on our belly, thighs and buttocks.

While we do any asana, the flow of blood in our body increases giving a work out to our cardiovascular system. It tones up every limb, especially the parts that hardly get proper exercise during our routine life. Many yoga postures are devised to help to increase the flow of blood in the head. This helps in improving our memory power.

Spiritual Aspect of Doing Yoga Postures

Yoga is not only a set of rules describing only physical exercises and mental peace. Asana is one of the eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga, which is a system to make us spiritually enlightened. If we practice yoga therapies, along with other activities attached to Ashtanga Yoga, it would make us feel the bliss. Bliss is the state of our mind that we all are entitled to enjoy. Yoga system helps us being capable to experience the bliss, the ultimate pleasure a human being can go through.