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Vajrasana (), Thunderbolt Pose, or Diamond Pose, is a kneeling asana in hatha yoga and modern
The name comes from the Sanskrit words ''
The practitioner sits on the heels with the calves beneath the thighs. There is a four finger gap between the kneecaps, and the first toe of both the feet touch each other and sit erect.
Vajrasana (), Thunderbolt Pose, or Diamond Pose, is a kneeling asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise
Yoga as exercise is a physical activity consisting mainly of postures, often connected by flowing sequences, sometimes accompanied by breathing exercises, and frequently ending with relaxation lying down or meditation. Yoga in this form has ...
. Ancient texts describe a variety of poses under this name.
Etymology and origins
The name comes from the Sanskrit words ''vajra
The Vajra () is a legendary and ritual weapon, symbolising the properties of a diamond (indestructibility) and a thunderbolt (irresistible force).
The vajra is a type of club with a ribbed spherical head. The ribs may meet in a ball-shap ...
'', a weapon whose name means "thunderbolt" or "diamond", and ''asana'' (आसन, āsana) meaning "posture" or "seat".
The name Vajrasana denotes a medieval meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...
seat, but its usage varied. The 15th century '' Hatha Yoga Pradipika'' called it a synonym of Siddhasana
Siddhasana ( sa, सिद्धासन; ) or Accomplished Pose, is an ancient seated asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise suitable for meditation. The names Muktasana (Sanskrit: मुक्तासन, Liberated Pose) and Burmese ...
, where one of the heels presses the root of the penis; according to ''Yoga-Mimamsa'' III.2 p. 135, this explains the reference to the vajra weapon.
The 17th century '' Gheranda Samhita'' 2.12 describes what '' Light on Yoga'' calls Virasana
Virasana ( sa, वीरासन; IAST: ''vīrāsana'') or Hero Pose is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise. Medieval hatha yoga texts describe a cross-legged meditation asana under the same name. Supta Virasana is the reclining form ...
, with the feet beside the buttocks, while in other texts Vajrasana appears to mean the modern kneeling-down position, with the buttocks resting on the feet. The yoga scholar Norman Sjoman
Norman E. Sjoman (born July 6, 1944, Mission City) is known as author of the 1996 book ''The Yoga Tradition of the Mysore Palace'', which contains an English translation of the yoga section of ''Sritattvanidhi'', a 19th-century treatise by the ...
notes that ''Light on Yoga'' is unclear here, as its account of Laghuvajrasana has the knees and feet together, but it does not describe the basic Vajrasana.
Description
The practitioner sits on the heels with the calves beneath the thighs. There is a four finger gap between the kneecaps, and the first toe of both the feet touch each other and sit erect.
Variations
The reclining form of the pose, used in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, is Supta Vajrasana. Laghuvajrasana, an advanced pose in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga and Iyengar Yoga, has the thighs raised halfway from the sitting position, the crown of the head on the floor and the hands grasping the ankles.Possible contraindications
Someorthopaedic surgeon
Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
s claim Vajrasana may be harmful to knees.
The pose has been linked to damage to the common fibular nerve
The common fibular nerve (also known as the common peroneal nerve, external popliteal nerve, or lateral popliteal nerve) is a nerve in the lower leg that provides sensation over the posterolateral part of the leg and the knee joint. It divides at ...
resulting in foot drop
Foot drop is a gait abnormality in which the dropping of the forefoot happens due to weakness, irritation or damage to the deep fibular nerve (deep peroneal), including the sciatic nerve, or paralysis of the muscles in the anterior portion of ...
, where dorsiflexion
Motion, the process of movement, is described using specific anatomical terms. Motion includes movement of organs, joints, limbs, and specific sections of the body. The terminology used describes this motion according to its direction relativ ...
of the foot is compromised and the foot drags (the toe points) during walking; and in sensory loss to the surface of the foot and portions of the anterior, lower-lateral leg. In this context, one doctor has called it "yoga foot drop".
See also
*List of asanas
An asana is a body posture, used in both medieval hatha yoga and modern yoga. The term is derived from the Sanskrit word for 'seat'. While many of the oldest mentioned asanas are indeed seated postures for meditation, asanas may be standing, seat ...
* Seiza
): "proper/correct sitting", seiza ( ja, , link=no): "quiet sitting" , Jing zuo
'' Seiza '' ( or , literally "proper sitting") is the formal, traditional way of sitting in Japan.
Form
To sit ''seiza''-style, one must first be kneeling on the ...
– Japanese traditional formal sitting posture
* Virasana
Virasana ( sa, वीरासन; IAST: ''vīrāsana'') or Hero Pose is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise. Medieval hatha yoga texts describe a cross-legged meditation asana under the same name. Supta Virasana is the reclining form ...
– another kneeling asana, the name once also used for a cross-legged meditation asana
References
{{Hatha yoga Sitting asanas Meditation asanas Kneeling asanas Medieval Hatha Yoga asanas ru:Релаксационные асаны#Ваджрасана