Apr 7 - The Cat that Liked Ham

Next, we launched into the fifth Chakra - Vishuddha - or the throat chakra.  It is associated with purification and the respiratory system.  The animal is the cat and the sound is "ham," which Grace said we could remember because her friend had a cat that liked to eat ham.  I was barely even listening, but somehow the visual totally stuck with me.

The asanas for this chakra are really varied - some very obviously open the throat - like simhasana (lion pose) which is done with your tongue sticking out (!) while some were less obvious to me - like vasisthasana (one arm balance) and some put pressure on the throat like halasana (plow) and sarvangasana (shoulder stand).

I really like inversions so I was excited to get to practice some with this chakra.  (An inversion is any pose where your head is below your heart.)  I like the idea that opposite blood flow can help purify and relax you.  But we learned that people with high blood pressure should not practice inversions.Some inversions are energizing - like headstand, handstand, while others, like shoulder stand, can help if you have trouble sleeping, which I have had issues with for most of my life.  Who knew that I could pass on the melatonin and just hang out upside down instead?!  For quick read on the benefits of inversions, check out this post on Yoganonymous: http://www.yoganonymous.com/10-benefits-of-yoga-inversions/

One of my favorite poses of all is pincha mayurasana (feathered peacock - see pic).  I still need the wall to help me get into it but am getting really close to getting into it by myself.  It helps that I can't find a good wall to practice on at home!



This is the image for the Visuddha Chakra: