YOGA ESSENTIALS

ASANA

This asana drawing was contributed by Thor Polukoshko of Penticton, BC Canada.  

Tortoise or Kurmasana

Tortoise or "Kurmasana"
Asana Description submitted by Dariel Vogel, certified Yoga Teacher by the Alberta Yoga Association, and the International Yoga Teachers Assoc.

Kurma means tortoise.  In the first stage the arms outstretch on either side of the body, the legs are over the arms, the chest and shoulders on the floor.  This is the tortoise with his legs out.  In the next stage the hands are brought behind the body, palms facing up. This final stage of the pose resembles a tortoise withdrawn into its shell (supta kurmasana, or sleeping tortoise), where the feet curl together in front of the head, and the hands close over the buttocks.

METHOD:
Sit with your legs apart, knees up and feet flat on the floor. Bend forward and bring your arms and shoulders under you knees, hands pointing back towards the hips, palms facing down.  Slowly stretch your legs out, pulling your torso forward.

VARIATIONS:
1).Exhale and bend forward , walking your hands along the floor until both legs and spine reach their maximun stretch. Never over strain, inhale and exhale breathing normally as you hold.
2) Stretch your legs out and clasp your toes.  Now bend forward, leading with your chest, bring the legs apart, taking the chest to the floor, as in Upavistha Konasana.  Breathe and hold 3 breaths.
3) Sit in Butterfly pose (Bhadrasana) with knees bent out to the sides, soles of the feet together.  Have the feet away from the perineum.  Exhale as you bend forward from the hips taking the head toward the feet. Breathe.

BENEFITS:
The whole spine is stretched forward, lengthening, as the abdominal organs receive an internal massage. Increased circulation to the hip joints.  This is a forward bend allowing the head, neck and shoulders to relax.

VISULIZATION:
This posture emphasizes the need for the slow development of all asanas if they are to be experienced in depth.  It is another reminder that in the practice of our asanas, competition has no place. The slowness as symbolized by the tortoise is objectionable only to the gross perception of the senses.

“You must develop character as the kurma the tortoise.  When once it is in its shell nothing at all can disturb it .  In kurmasana you are unable to see anyone or anything, obliging you to turn your attention inwards’’ B.K.S. Iyengar

"When  like the tortoise, which withdraws on all sides its limbs, he (the aspirant) withdraws his senses from the sense-objects.  Then wisdom becomes steady.  The  tortoise symbolizes looking inward, and controlling very carefully what is put out. "  Bhagavad Gita

Remember: Always work within your own capacity. Never move into pain. Enjoy the pose, and listen to your body. This is your greatest protection for preventing injury.