(Demonstration by Jola)

At the beginning, you won’t be able to stay for more than a breath or two in the headstand.  But once you can stay in it for one minute or so, perfectly balanced and poised on top of your head, see if you can find the joy that exists at the heart of the pose, see if you can experience the exquisite lightness of the pose.
Imagine as you inhale that you are drawing in deep nourishing and nurturing breaths from the centre of the earth through the crown of your head right through your whole body and imagine as you exhale that the breath is leaving your body through the soles of your feet, taking away with it all the unwanted debris.  Keep your eyes fully closed if you can and give yourself permission to go deep within.  Let the fluctuations of your mind die down until there is not a single ripple left on the surface of your mind-lake.  Repeating affirmations such as “may I be fully in the present moment” or practicing mindful breathing are invaluable ways to not lose your single-pointedness.

When we do postures like headstand, we start to understand why yoga has survived for thousands of years.  It is not simply because of its physical benefits.  The body is but a vehicle for reaching the state of yoga which is oneness.  Our true nature is blissful, only we have forgotten that it is.  Our bodies are the gateways which enable us to reconnect with our true nature.  The practice of yoga asanas raises our consciousness so that we can access and understand our most divine essence.  Headstand helps us feel the divinity at the crown of the head. 

More powerful still in headstand is to lift slightly the head off the mat bringing consciousness to that blissful space between the 7th chakra and the earth.  That space which the masters say should be paper thin represents the place where nothing else exists but the desire of union and then even that desire finally dissolves away.

When you are ready to come out of the pose, come down with the same focus as you came up, keep your attention turned inwards and rest in child’s pose for a few breaths to let everything settle.  Don’t be in a rush to come up.  Stay in your body, aware of the renewed energy flowing along the nadis.  If you stand up too rapidly after headstand, you will feel a surge of blood rushing back down from the head and you may feel very dizzy.

As you become more proficient at headstand, try coming up and coming down with straight legs.  You may also wish to start exploring various leg and arm variations but all in good time.  Safe and happy practice.

About the auther:

Sabine has been practicing yoga regularly for over 15 years and is a qualified teacher in the Iyengar tradition.  Her passion for yoga goes well beyond her strong physical practice and is leading her to explore further and further into the philosophy of yoga.    She is also qualified to practice holistic, sports, Thai and Chinese (Tui-na) massage, reflexology and crystal healing.   As one of Mano’s senior students, she is happy to contribute articles to yoga-life magazine as one way to share with others the joys she finds in her practice.