BY MEGHAN RUIZ | Special to Moonshine Ink
When I speak to my students about the importance of alignment in a pose, of that point where you’ve arrived in a beautifully balanced place of effort and ease, one pose often comes to mind: uttitha trikonasana, or extended triangle pose.
There’s a lot to this pose, although many people think it’s just a matter of achieving one hand to the earth while the other reaches for the sky. For one, it’s a very grounding pose. The feet are planted firmly on the earth, and because of the rootedness of the feet, the upper body becomes light and free.
Begin with your feet spaced three to four feet apart, right foot facing directly forward (second toe aligned with the knee) and the back left foot turned in at about a 45 degree angle, arms parallel to the earth. Inhaling and reaching beyond the right foot to deepen the front hip crease, release the right hand to the shin, the earth, or perhaps a block on the outside of the front foot, left arm extended to the sky. One needs to feel a sense of rootedness from the feet to the earth — after all, it is a standing pose. Next, the tailbone draws in towards the midline, the front thigh spirals outward, the torso lengthens, and the heart begins to open towards the sky. At the same time, the navel and lower floating ribs move softly back in toward the spine. Eventually your gaze turns upward to the extended arm. Your feet press so firmly into the ground that your right hand feels light enough to float up from the shin, up from the earth.
With so much going on and so much to think about, it becomes easier to understand how correct alignment can help expand the pose into a space of ease where you can begin to feel at home. When the awkwardness and perhaps discomfort of the pose subsides, the mind can begin to calm away from questions of “Am I doing this right?” into the spaciousness of just being — in the pose, in your body.
This idea of alignment is not exclusive to yoga; it broadens into practically any sport. Any athlete will tell of the importance of proper alignment for optimal performance. A long distance runner who connects with the breath, ideally breathing in and out through the nose and keeping the mouth closed, and maintains good form, will cultivate and maintain an enduring stride.
When the body and the mind are aligned, a person’s potential is limitless.
Alignment is like hitting a stride, and when it’s correct everything else falls into place. One strikes a balance of effort and ease, such as in uttitha trikonasana, where the grounded feet and lower body create a light and free upper body.
The key to hitting the stride is your breath. When a smooth, even breathing pattern has been achieved, coupled with proper alignment, a whole new level of performance has been unlocked. Balance has been achieved for the moment.
And then what? When a person has truly found that balance on and off the yoga mat, they have found freedom.
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