Kundalini Yoga Glossary
Asana
The third of the Eight Limbs of Yoga: a posture that is firm and relaxed.
Meaning
What Asana Means
In Patanjali's Yoga Sutra II.46, Asana is described in a single line: the posture is firm and relaxed. In the West, this sutra is usually associated with the range of yoga postures, but in Sanskrit the word refers more specifically to the sitting posture, or the sequence of postures that gradually lead into it.
The verbal root of Asana, as, means to be present in the body: occupying it, existing in it, living in it.
In Practice
How It’s Used
Firmness and relaxation are the two qualities this limb asks for. Firmness is physical stability, and also attention, a presence and a state of peace that eventually reaches the mind. Relaxation is the complement: adapting the position to the body's actual limits, without excess force or will.
Physical stability counters the anxiety the body often carries, while the relaxed attitude allows the natural flow of things, Sukh, rather than suffering, Dukh. Together, firmness and relaxation bring the physical and mental toward balance, Sattva, and prepare the ground for pranayama and meditation.
