corpse pose

[Guest guest]

guruji said this a few times also about corpse

pose- that if we really do corpse pose the entire body

would be stiff so that if someone lifted one's feet the

whole body would lift. But then it seemed he said that

it is hard to do and we wouldn't be able to hold the

pose.<br>(Any input from Guy D or others that have heard this

or its opposite is welcomed.) I had thought the

purpose of corpse pose was to relax so the body could

assimilate....everything prior. <br><br>The limited english guruji speaks

prevented us from juxtaposing this or finding out how it is

that we learn it the one way but real corpse pose

would be a different way. Guruji is in Boulder now -

maybe someone skilled in pusuing things with him could

respond. ( or maybe he just meant to compare our pose with

a real corpse) (oh yeah and the ants ate the

corpse)

[Guest guest]

Savasana is an advanced pose - from D section

(6th series). The body does indeed become as stiff as

a corpse so that the practitioner could be picked

up by the foot and remain as stiff as a board. Too,

the heart stops - temporarily, controlled by the

practitioner. Sharat describes seeing a long time advanced

student and dear friend of Giurujis practice this. Of

course, not one of us can practice this before advancing

under our Guru's guidance to this series. The resting

pose we take at the end of our practice is called

sukhasana - happy or easy pose.<br>Calling that resting

pose otherwise probably arises from confusing it with

other systems (we need not mention them here).<br>missy

pinky

[Guest guest]

Missy Pinky, you describe true savasana as an

advanced pose from advanced D (6th) series, yet every day

in 1st series I practice what my teachers call

"stiff corpse" right after backbends and before

shoulderstand. It's right there on my old cheat sheet, too. My

heart doesn't come anywhere near stopping, but every

muscle is tense, etc. Does anyone else do this? Is it

wrong? I'd appreciate any wisdom on the topic.

[Guest guest]

Yes, to take these five breaths after

paschimottanasa and before sarvangasana, with the body held firm

- is indeed correct - but the cheat sheet is

cheatin' you. It is not called corpse pose. It is actually

a mudra - tadaka mudra, to be exact. Savasana is

indeed a D section pose.<br>mp

[Guest guest]

Are you sure about this.....<br>Sukhasana (easy

posture) I always thought was a seated asana where the

feet are placed in front of each other also known as

Burmese Easy Posture and can be great for meditation for

those who find long sitting in lotus a

discomfort,<br><br>What you seem to talk of is "stiff pose" where the

body is tensed in savangasana and can be lifted

without sag.....stopping the heart in asana - well

Krishnamachair did this as an experiment for french doctors in

the 40's whether or not lying down who knows, I

always was of the impression that the high yogis did

this feat while sitting. <br><br>I've always thought

the idea of corpse pose was to be free of bodily

woes, thoughts and let go into deep relaxation so it

can be compared to a corpse as you are not about to

fidget, get up and run somewhere.

[Guest guest]

thanx - i enjoyed your contribution.