"Movement is the song of the body.....
This song, if you care to listen to it, is beauty.
We could say that it is part of nature.
We sing when we are happy and the body
goes with it like waves in the sea."
- Vanda Scaravelli, “Awakening the Spine”

What makes a back bend more difficult than another is not so much the degree of arching in the lumbar region but how the gravity pull is felt on the pelvis and on the spine.   A great deal depends on where our foundation is, how many points of contact we have on the floor, whether we are working with gravity or against it, whether we are doing an active or a passive back bend.  Thus coming out of the wheel is a great deal more challenging than going into it.  Coming out of cobra pose is quite easy compared to holding the pose.  Some postures like the full Natarajasana (cosmic dancer) require the mastery of so many other aspects before becoming  feasible…No wonder it appears as the very last posture in Iyengar’s Light on Yoga….

Cautions

• We need to consider what we bring to our mats each time before doing a backbend.  - We need to be sensitive and respect our body before, during and after the back bend, constantly listening and trying to understand its feedback, for this is the way to healing and to avoid injury.
• We should never work through pain.   We may become aware of new sensations (in our back mostly) but intensity does not mean pain.  Pain is a signal from our body that something is wrong and that we are overloading it.  Intensity is different.  We are awakening parts of ourselves we are unaware of.  So let’s be gentle, especially at the beginning.  Let’s use our breath to work through the resistance of our body at whatever level it may be.  Whatever we do, we must not push past resistance as this will create another form of resistance.   We must learn to work with our body, patiently and compassionately.   By listening to the cues of our own body, we will know when to back off and when to go deeper into the posture.
• We must be aware of the different degrees of flexibility of the main parts of the spine so as to be safe and maintain its integrity.   In back bends we are reminded to practice the yama of ahimsa or non-violence.
• We need to warm up properly before attempting even the simplest back bend with particular focus on shoulder and hip opening postures.   Backward bends should always be done towards the end of the practice, never at the beginning.
• We should always include a counter-pose after a back bend such as a twist, a forward bend or downward dog to bring the body back to a neutral mode.
• We should always remember that the focus in back bends is on the release of tension and extension of the front of the body so that we may feel an increased movement of the breath and energy in those parts.   We should only be concerned with creating an even and harmonious arch in the back whilst respecting the integrity of the spine and the internal structures.
• We should maintain a strong and stable foundation.
• We must remember that we are not just working with the external (physical) body but also with the internal body.    In other words, there is no point in forcing a posture on the inner structures in an insensitive manner as it can be potentially very dangerous.  If a posture does not feel right from the inside, it probably is not right, even if it looks good from the outside.  We must learn to involve all the internal parts and initiate the posture from the inner as opposed to impose it from the outer.  It is essential not to crunch and compress the internal structures insensitively but to create as much space as possible in the inner body, opening the joints and creating space between the vertebrae, developing an intuitive awareness at a cellular level, involving the breath.
• We need to be patient.  Years of poor posture cannot be dropped overnight.  It takes courage to let go of what so far we have considered to be the norm.  Resistance to change is normal and part of the process.   It takes time to undo the conditioning process of our minds and our bodies.    Inviting transformation into life can bring up insecurity, and we tend to cling on to what we have even though we know that it may be hurtful to us.

Bhujangasana – Cobra
Bhuja means serpent in Sanskrit.  It comes from the root bhuj which means to bend or curve.
Bhujangasana is a beautiful pose and is taught as one of the twelve basic postures in the Sivananda system.   Like all the other back bends, it is a fantastic heart opening pose.    It is often done as an easier alternative for Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (upward dog).   It is called cobra because the raised head and torso look like the raised hood of a cobra.

Not all back bends work all parts of the spine.  Cobra is for the upper back whilst locust (Salabhasana) for instance works the lower back; bow (Dhanurasana) is a combination of Bhujangasana and Salabhasana.   Bhujangasana is known as one of the “baby back bends”.   It appears much easier to lift into and release from Bhujangasana than from many other postures.   However, practitioners with a stiff upper back must avoid at all costs putting undue pressure on the lower back, crunching the neck in this posture, leading with the chin and dropping the breastbone.  The abdominal muscles support the spine and if they are not working properly, the lower back muscles are forced to contract.  In reality, Bhujangasana is a more advanced back bend than others which look more challenging visually.
We need to cultivate an awareness of the posture so as to remain safe and do it correctly.  If we feel the lower back working in this posture, we are doing it wrong.   By initiating the lift necessary to back bend in the upper spine, we create space in the lower back and do not feel any compression.  However, this can be quite challenging for people with tight chest muscles.  The shoulder blades (scapulae) tend to come up to the ears, the shoulders round forward and make it difficult to lift and elongate the upper spine.

We should begin by taking a few deep breaths and relax briefly before attempting any back bend.  A relaxed state dissipates tension, heightens awareness and encourages more presence within.