Yoga Arm-Balancing Poses - Crow and Crane
Strengthen Body and Mind with Kakasana and Bakasana
Jul 3, 2009
Arm balances look difficult and strenuous to new yoga students, but are actually easier to maintain than standing balancing poses. Alignment, rather than strength, is the key to success. Kakasana (crow pose) and Bakasana (crane pose) are very similar in form, but have subtle energetic differences due to differing alignment and muscle engagement in the two poses.
Kakasana
Approach crow pose from a deep squat, toes turned out at a 45-degree angle with the midline of the body and hands together at the heart in prayer with the elbows on the inside of the knees. Press the thumbs into the sternum and drop your tailbone toward the earth. Feel the spine long and straight and the heart open, shoulders back. Maintain this straight spine and strong core as you move into the pose.
Place the hands on the mat in front of you, shoulder width apart, fingers spread wide. Firmly root the hands into the mat and keep the arms straight and strong. Avoid rounding the shoulders; try to keep the heart open.
Next, lift the tailbone slightly and come up on the balls of the feet. Become aware of the alignment of the spine and keep the heart open and shoulders back. Do not change this alignment as you progress.
Place the knees on the outside of the upper arms, as close to the shoulders as possible. Gently hug the arms with the knees and move the body forward by leading with the heart. As you come forward over the hands, the center of gravity will move forward and the head will come closer to the mat as the feet naturally lift off the ground. The arms act like the fulcrum of a lever; you are simply balancing the weight of the body on either side of this central point.
It is essential to maintain a strong and engaged core and to keep the legs active in this pose. Bring your mental focus to the third eye at the center of the forehead and breathe strongly and fully.
You will feel heat building in the body the longer you stay in this pose. Chakras two and three are activated while the energy of chakra six at the third eye, the chakra of the mind, begins to flow. Though the body is energizing, the mind becomes focused and quiet during this pose, concentrating mental energy into a central point. The result of this pose is a strong and resolute feeling.
Once this pose is mastered, it is a fun challenge to jump into it from downward-facing dog or out of it into plank pose. Remember that it is okay to fall in this pose; you are close to the ground. Be careful to protect the face and neck by falling to the side or back.
Bakasana
The crane pose is approached in the same way as crow pose, but with slight differences. From the squatting position with the hands on the mat, lift the tailbone as high as possible and come high on the balls of the feet. Place the knees on the back of the arms in the underarm area.
As you move the heart and head forward, the feet rise off the mat and the knees rest on the arms. Because there is less engagement in the core and legs, the pose brings a calmer feeling to body and mind. Though it is physically easier, some students find the orientation of this pose more psychologically challenging. When successful, one gains a feeling of self-sufficiency and inner power in crane.
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