Svastikasana

Svastikasana (Sanskrit: स्वस्तिकासन, IAST svastikāsana) is an ancient meditation asana in hatha yoga, sitting cross-legged.

Svastikasana is the first of 84 asanas described and illustrated in an 1830 manuscript of the Jogapradipika. The yogin is meditating on a tiger skin to attain liberation.

In Sanskrit svastika means auspicious; it is also the name of an ancient Hindu symbol of good fortune.

Etymology and origins

The name comes from the Sanskrit words svastika (स्वस्तिक) meaning "auspicious" and āsana (आसन) meaning "posture" or "seat". The posture is described in the eighth century Pātañjalayogaśāstravivaraṇa and in the tenth century Vimānārcanākalpa, where it is a meditation seat.[1]

Description

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, place the left toe on the right knee fold. Put your right foot on the left knee fold. This asana is always done in the same way for men and women, different from those that have polarity like Padmasana, Siddhasana and others.

Svastikasana is calm sitting with upright (upper) body. Stretch the legs forward. Bend the left leg in the way that you place the foot near the right thigh muscle. Bend, as it were, the right leg and "press" it into the space between the left thigh and calf muscles. So you will now find the two feet placed between thighs and calves of the legs.[2]

Usage

Swastikasana, Sukhasana, Siddhasana and Padmasana are the asanas traditionally used for dhyana (meditation) and pranayama (breath) exercises.[3]

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See also

References
  1. Mallinson, James; Singleton, Mark (2017). Roots of Yoga. Penguin Books. pp. 97–98, 100–101. ISBN 978-0-241-25304-5. OCLC 928480104.
  2. Sivananda, Swami. "Yoga Asanas".
  3. Upadhyaya, Rajnikant; Sharma, Gopal (1 January 2006). Awake Kundalini. Lotus Press. p. 54. ISBN 978-81-8382-039-4.

Further reading
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