![]() Many years ago I was in a workshop with Rodney Yee, and one of the students asked, "Rodney, can you tell me the right way to do trikonasana? It seems that in every class I take the teacher says something different, and I'm no longer sure of the correct way to practice." I was expecting him to lead us into an exploration of the most skillful way to practice, but instead he asked her to show him one way to practice trikonasana and then to tell him the benefits of practicing it that way. And then he asked for another example, and again asked about the benefits of practicing that way. The point he was making was that there isn't a right or wrong way to practice trikonasana or any other pose for that matter... but different choices within each posture would have pros and cons. This was eye opening for me at the time, because I, like most new yoga students, assumed that yoga postures were handed down from the Yoga Gods and that there was a right way to practice them in order to derive the most benefit on a physical and energetic level. However, what he said made total sense and I loved learning a point of view on the subject that seemed so non-dogmatic. In this post, we'll look at the Iyengar and Satchidananda versions of trikonasana and explore the benefits, challenges and considerations of each. ![]() BKS IYENGAR Let's first look at BKS Iyengar' expression of trikonasana, as presented in Light on Yoga. Of course, the way that this posture is currently practiced in the Iyengar tradition might vary somewhat, but in the image of Mr. Iyengar to the right we can make some observations and discuss the benefits and challenges of the alignment choices as they are being expressed. General Observations
The Back Leg & Foot
The Front Leg & Foot
The Axial Body
The Upper Body
Benefits Based on the all of the above joint actions, I would say that the main musculoskeletal and energetic benefits of this variation of trikonasana include:
Challenges/Considerations With such a long stride, there is a significant amount of plantar flexion required in the front foot, so if the ankle dorsiflexors are tight then it will be difficult to press the ball of the foot down. In addition, because adductor magnus and the medial hamstrings of the front leg are significantly more lengthened it could be difficult for some students to laterally tilt the pelvis over the front leg. And if the pelvis cannot laterally tilt over the front leg, there will be considerably more stretch on the adductors of the back inner thigh... which could pull the inner thigh/knee toward the floor and stress the medial collateral ligament. With a longer stride, balance will also be more of a challenge for less experienced students. ![]() SWAMI SATCHIDANANDA Swami Satchidananda is the founder of The Integral Yoga Institute (the IYI), where I first began my study and practice of yoga back in the early 90s. The image of him on the right is from the book that I received in the Hatha I teacher training, entitled Integral Yoga Hatha. Trikonasana is practiced very differently today at the IYI, with a longer stride, the foot pointing forward, and generally with more "Iyengar-like" alignment cues. But this variation is probably still out there being practiced by old-school yogis within the Integral and Sivananda styles, where students might be cued to "square the hips toward the side wall" in order to emphasize the stretch along the side body. General Observations
The Back Leg & Foot
The Front Leg & Foot
The Axial Body
The Upper Body
Benefits Based on the all of the above joint actions, I would say that the main musculoskeletal and energetic benefits are:
Challenges/Considerations When I first learned this variation at the IYI, I think I got caught in a transition between the way Satchidananda is shown practicing this posture and the evolution of the posture to be more "Iyengar-like." We were still taught a shorter stride and there was an emphasis on "squaring the pelvis to the side," however, we also received the cue to point the front foot straight forward. This is problematic, because if you attempt to square the pelvis to the side while at the same time pointing the foot straight forward, you will either create compression in the front hip between the neck of the femur and the posterior aspect of the acetabular labrum, or you'll create excessive torque in the front knee. Try this and see for yourself, but make sure that you don't work it too hard! By allowing the front foot to turn inward slightly, as Satchidananda does, you avoid these biomechanical stressors and can more safely work to square the hips to the side... which lends to a greater stretch along the outer hip and side waist. There Is No Right Way I only chose to illustrate two different ways of practicing trikonasana... but of course there are countless others! Just looking at variations within the Iyengar version of trikonasana, you could:
When all is said and done, I think that there is a lot of value in practicing several different variations of trikonasana in order to diversify the practice and receive more benefit from the posture. I also think it's good to know what benefits that you're going for when you practice, so that you can tweak the posture in a way that allows you to more fully attain those benefits. As a final note, while the Iyengar variation is my go to, if you've never practiced a Satchidananda trikonasana (as pictured above), it feels fantastic and I highly recommend that you practice and teach it from time to time ;-) As usual, your comments, observations and contributions to the conversation are welcome. And if you enjoyed this post please consider sharing using the social links below.
10 Comments
Catherine
9/25/2015 09:00:35 am
I really appreciate this exploration!! It's interesting how when a pose feels more contained there are more subltle discoveries you can make within the body. Thank you!
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Sue
11/9/2015 08:45:17 am
very interesting, thank you. I have been exploring triangle pose a lot lately and found so many different ways to approach it, I could almost do a whole class on it. Great to lead onto half moon too. It's a tricky one but a goodun.
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sue
11/9/2015 08:46:11 am
Triangle. forgot to tick notification box on earlier post
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Paula McKenzie
11/14/2015 11:03:24 pm
This is perfect! I remember Jason telling this story about Yee in ASFYT (and also in our IYI Teacher Training as Anatomy Teacher). Yee's response to the "What is right...?" question could be our guide any time a right vs.wrong scenario arises in life.This blog entry is also perfect for me because I am just starting to teach trikonasana in my IYI classes where it's considered an "optional pose" in the Hatha Level I classes. I'd been afraid to include it because of all the complexity and uncertainty of alignment, instruction, etc. I have basically gone with Satchdananda's variation and simply cue Not to try to square the hips and to lift the upper hip as you hinge sideways from the hips trying to keep the torso long on both sides. The pose could be an entire anatomy course in itself, as Jason's deconstruction of the two versions shows. I look forward to fine tuning my instruction of the pose as I continue to teach.
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Hey Paula! Congratulations on writing your first comment on a blog post! Happy that you found the discussion of Trikonasana so helpful. I think during your ASFYT class I was thinking about requiring all of the students to comment on a blog post, as I felt like the blog posts really compliment what we discuss in the ASFYT classes, but I never followed through on that requirement or held anyone accountable to it. But I'm happy that you read the blog and commented none-the-less! Hope that you're doing well, and that the seeds planted during your time in the ASFYT Series are continuing to grow.
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5/16/2016 06:27:13 am
Your blog is very nice and I like it your blog keep sharing with your new article....
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