By John Friend
?Richard Wyatt, Bridport, Vermont
John Friend's reply:
Bhujapidasana is a wonderful balancing pose that can be really fun to practice if you know some alignment tricks. Here are some key alignment points for Bhujapidasana that will help you perform the pose with ease, lightness, and power:
In Bhujapidasana, you balance on the hands with the legs wrapped around your upper arms and the feet crossed in front of your torso. First, you must fully stretch your hamstrings, so that you can bend deeply forward between your legs in a bent-legged Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend) . (The closer you can get your legs to your shoulders?which requires a good amount of hamstring flexibility?the easier Bhujapidasana is to perform.)
To most effectively and safely stretch the hamstrings, keep your leg muscles engaged and toned while you stretch. If necessary, isometrically draw the feet backward in order to help you engage the hamstrings. Some basic poses that will help you work on the hamstrings in this way include Uttanasana, Adho Mukha Svanasana , Utthita Trikonasana , Parsvottanasana, and Supta Padangusthasana .
Also, to be able to bend deeply forward in preparation for Bhujapidasana, you must open up the hips. Most yoga students think of hip-openers as poses that help stretch the inner thighs and externally rotate the legs.
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