camel / ustrasana
a kneeling back bending pose promoting energy. ustra:camel asana:pose
how to: being the backbend that it is, one must warm up the spine (cat cow, cobra, upward facing dog), open the chest and shoulders (clasp hands behind your back), and stretch your hip flexors (anjaneyasana, lunges)
starting in a kneeling pose, hands on hips, either toes tucked for modification, or top of feet on the floor
place the palms of your hands on the corresponding sides of your lower back/upper buttock, thumbs on sacrum, pinky on hips
press feet and shins down into the ground and press hips forward, keeping your chin tucked
lower hands one at a time to the heels of your feet
release the back of your neck, and extend chin back
breathe
physical benefits: strengthens legs and back, stretches entire front body
Illustration from, “Yoga Anatomy, Second Edition” by Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews
origin/resonance: not too much origin here - basically the pose reminded yogis of a camel’s hump, and the way camels bend their knees to rest.
The two major reasons this pose called out to me this week include 1. it’s a great heart opener, and 2. I really needed a hip flexor stretch from riding around on Citibike so much. Spring is here!
I associate spring cleaning with heart openers, as they bring up and release repressed emotions. We tend to hunch our shoulders because of daily habitual motions blah blah blah texting, typing, etc., but we also hunch our shoulders inherently in order to protect our heart (think fetal position). In back bends we open our entire front body, exposing what we tend to keep unseen. In ustrasana we are fully exposing our hearts without the supervision of our eyesight. Not only are we exposing our hearts, but if you look at this pose, and consider the chakras and their energies;
crown (top of the head) symbolizing consciousness, is in a backwards and downwards direction, either seeking new ways to be rooted, or taking a break from our known consciousness
third eye (between eyebrows) symbolizing intuition, is directly behind us, this could be interpreted that we are looking in the past, or that we are taking a break from our intuition and trying on a new lens
throat chakra symbolizing communication, is completely exposed and very spacious, it is open and seeking light from above, the communication is without the intuition and consciousness it typically carries
heart chakra symbolizing love and hope, is facing upwards, quite literally you are flipping your lid. there are three chakras above the heart, and three below, the heart acts as the bridge from earthly to aspirational. in this pose, and other heart openers, the heart is freeing itself from the perspectives and flavors of the other chakras, rejuvenating pure love. you’ll feel your heart race after any good backbend ;).
solar plexus (between your heart and belly button) symbolizing your energy and core self, this is the pinnacle of the bend, facing up and out in front of you, it is dividing the lower chakras from the top.
sacral chakra (pelvic area) symbolizing sensuality, is facing forward, unobstructed, hence the practitioners availability to access feelings
root chakra (base of spine) symbolizing grounding and survival, energizing downwards to support the new exploration of the chakras
I was going to make a joke about camels spitting, but technically it’s more than just spit. When camels spit, it’s a mixture of stomach contents, and saliva, projected out, and the purpose is to surprise, distract, or bother whatever the camel feels is threatening it. The solar plexus is associated with stimulating the digestive system, so here is another way this pose can relate to it’s namesake. In this pose we allow ourselves to cleanse and rejuvenate our heart, and explore our lower chakras of energy, sensuality, and feeling, by distracting the armor of our consciousness and intuition.