Pincha Mayurasana
Your Monthly Yoga Pose
We hold each other up because, in union, there is strength.
Pincha means chin or feather, and mayura means peacock. The posture is referring to the feathered dance of the peacock. It is a light feeling, airy and beautiful. Forearm stand is also quite challenging. It is a posture that tests both your balance but also your fears. Inversions are liberating, but they require dealing with a fear of falling or injury.
Fear lives all around us. We are predisposed to worry and fear the unknown. For some, the rush of fear raises their desire to challenge themselves. For others, fear is stifling, and instead of engaging the individual, it stops them from testing what is fearful, in essence becoming stuck. Having a good internal compass allows us to understand the presence of fear and take calculated risks.
Imagine the last time you ordered a new meal or tried a new sport? New experiences come with a degree of uncertainty. Allowing yourself to feel the uncertainty but still pursue the new behavior trains your fear center to reduce its grasp on you. Regardless of the outcome of your new experience, the fact that you tried something new allowed your mind to expand the capacity to feel fear and go with it.
Pincha mayurasana is a posture that always brings me a great deal of fear. As an instructor, I rarely teach it, and as a practitioner, I rarely practice it. Seeing the floor makes me believe I am going to fall on my face. And unfortunately, it is a fear based on my vivid imagination (as most fears are), not actual experience.
This picture was taken with my wonderful friend and owner of Sunlight Yoga, Bree Parrish. She basically talked me off the ledge while another great yogi friend, Laurie Hassell, held my feet. Laurie moved, and I held the posture just long enough for the amazing photographer, Kelly Rodriquez, to snap the shot. Laurie was edited out as she was running away. I wish I had the version with Laurie running to share my truth.
Always consult your medical professional before attempting new athletic challenges, and for this particular posture, please practice alongside a wall.
- Grab a yoga block and a strap and face a wall.
- Place the yoga block between your hands and then tie the strap between your biceps to create tension. Make sure your elbows are inline or even slightly in from your shoulders. The straps will make sure your elbows and forearms aren’t sliding outward or away from your shoulders while the block keeps the focus inward.
- Come into dolphin pose with your hips high. Make sure your gaze is toward the block or even past it toward the wall.
- Lift the right leg, keeping the adductor engaged so the energy and strength of the leg is coming up and inward.
- Come onto your left toes and begin to lift the left leg into pincha mayurasana.
- Continue to send the energy inward and upward using the strength in the back muscles to keep you aligned.
- After the posture, sit in child’s pose for 5-10 breaths.
Make sure to use the wall and try not to force or jump the second leg up. Let it lift up as a result of the oppositional force.
When in doubt, grab a few trusted friends to help you get over your fears. Allow their strength to help you gain yours!
Namaste.
