Fun Pose Friday: Lion Pose

Happy "Fun Pose Friday!" OK, here’s a funny (and scary?) looking one: lion pose or Simhasana.

sim-HAHS-anna)
simha = lion

Step by Step via Yoga Journal:

•  Kneel on the floor and cross the front of the right ankle over the back of the left. The feet will point out to the sides. Sit back so the perineum snuggles down onto the on the top (right) heel.

• Press your palms firmly against your knees. Fan the palms and splay your fingers like the sharpened claws of a large feline.

• Take a deep inhalation through the nose. Then simultaneously open your mouth wide and stretch your tongue out, curling its tip down toward the chin, open your eyes wide, contract the muscles on the front of your throat, and exhale the breath slowly out through your mouth with a distinct “ha” sound. The breath should pass over the back of the throat.

• Some texts instruct us to set our gaze (drishti) at the spot between the eyebrows. This is called “mid-brow gazing” (bhru-madhya-drishti; bhru = the brow; madhya = middle).Other texts direct the eyes to the tip of the nose (nasa-agra-drishti; nasa = nose; agra = foremost point or part, i.e., tip).

•  You can roar two or three times. Then change the cross of the legs and repeat for the same number of times.

Benefits of lion pose:

• Relieves tension in the face and chest
• Improves circulation of blood to the face
• Keeps your eyes healthy by stimulating the nerves
• Helps prevent sore throat, asthma, and other respiratory ailments
• May help treat bad breath

Now RARRRRR like a lion my yogi friends!