Vrksasana (Tree Pose)

Vrksasana (Tree Pose)
Originally uploaded by Amanda's Weekly Zen

Change can be stressful no matter how small or large. This last couple of weeks we all (me, Norwood and Maverick) underwent a major lifestyle change… well at least it felt major. We all gave up our “land yacht” for a sailboat and took to the water. So many things were involved with moving into our new home. The normal stuff of deciding what “junk” we would keep and then realizing that it was entirely too much and having to decide what junk of the junk we would keep. Then there was the reality that out of the three of us none had ever really spent time on a boat before. My husband was worried how I would adapt and I was worried how Maverick would adapt. Turns out we all did pretty good.

So after getting all our stuff on the boat we just lived on the boat. We literally had not stepped onto land for a few days then finally we had to step off and venture out into the world. What we discovered was that the once stable land was now swaying. It is strange thing to feel your body try to adjust from the constant movement of the water to the immovable land. At first I did not think much about it until I ventured into a local yoga studio for a little Vinyasa. My practice was completely different than it had been in the previous five months. Balances that were normally pretty easy were extremely hard and my head was swimming during final relaxation. I made it through my first land class then practiced the same routine on the boat… strangely enough the rocking of the sailboat on the water helped my balance and those I could not do on land I was having no problems with on the water. Today I went back to land for another class not expecting much from the practice because truthfully my body still feels like it sways when I am not on the water. Warrior I and II, swaying, modified triangle… swaying. Heck even in Full Lotus I felt a gentle rock. Then we came to Vrksasana (Tree Pose). I was sure that I would fall out of it over and over again but no. I was able to have a sturdy tree with full branches both on land and on the sailboat. I have never felt so rooted in one place before while doing tree until we started to live on the sailboat. I have always had a fondness for Tree Pose but now it means so much more to me. It is sort of like a lifeline on a sailboat, you want it to be sturdy because it is what keeps you in your place… on the boat. Vrksasana is what will help me feel grounded within myself while my body adjusts from the movement of water to land. Vrksasana is the stability in my ebbing and flowing life.

How to do Vrksasana (Tree Pose):
1.Stand in Tadasana. Depending on which leg you want to start on you will shift your weight into your anchor leg and slowly bend the other one. Reach down and grab the bent leg by the ankle.

2.Draw your foot up and place the sole against the inner thigh close to your groin area (or wherever your foot feels most comfortable.

3.At this point you have several choices as to what to do with your arms. You can keep them in Anjali Mudra or extend them straight up into branches. Once you have your balance and you feel strong in your anchor leg, experiment with your arms.

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