Deep Seated Postures, Part 1

Welcome to Deepening the Seated Series, Part 1. Having become familiar, even conversant with the Standing Series, we'll now start to take deeper and deeper looks into the very insightful beginning of the Seated Series of the Ashtanga practice. So let's start in Standing, Samastitihi. Always beginning our practice with Sun Salutations. Exhale completely.

Inhale, feel the chest rise float the arms up, see thumbs. Exhale, fold forward, dropping the head, the drishti on the nose. Trini, inhale, head up, lengthening the spine, look forward. Chaturwadi, exhale, step, jump and lower down to any Chaturanga variation. Punjabi, inhale, flattening the tops of the feet on the mat.

Chest forward, up dog. Shot, exhale, downward facing dog. Letting the head dangle and hang. One, and refining your awareness on your breath. So no matter what we're doing, we're letting the breath guide the way, two. Three, the drishti settling comfortably on the nose, the navel or the knee.

Four, spreading the fingers, spreading the toes. Five, sapta, inhale, step or jump the feet forward, look forward with the head rising. Ashta, exhale, fold forward, drop the head. See the nose, nava, inhale, rising all the way up. See your thumbs meet together.

Exhale, Samastitihi. Ekam, inhale, chest opening, arms float up together. Dway, exhale, fold forward, see your nose. Trini, inhale, head up, long spine. Chaturanga dandasana of your choice.

Punjabi, inhale, upward facing dog, still with strong legs, a strong belly. Shot, exhale, downward facing dog. The spine in line with the arms. One, and as you repeat these postures and these practices, these sun salutations, two, again and again you become so familiar with them. Three, that everything kind of settles into place naturally as it should be.

Four, there's not so much straining and no stress. Five, sapta, inhale, step or jump the feet forward, look forward, head up. Ashta, exhale and fold forward, see your nose. Nava, inhale, rising up, see your thumbs. Exhale, Samastitihi.

Your pelvis in a neutral position, tailbone lowering. Ekam, inhale, arms up. Dway, exhale, fold forward. Trini, inhale, head up. Chatwari, exhale, jump back.

Pancha, inhale, upward facing dog. Shot, exhale, downward facing dog. One, two, settling into your breath, settling into the posture. Three, so the familiar poses welcome you back. Four, then awareness, always diving internal.

Five, sapta, inhale, step or jump feet forward, head up. Ashta, exhale and fold, drop the head. Nava, inhale, rising all the way up, see your thumbs. Exhale, Samastitihi. Surinamaskar B, Ekam, inhale, bend your knees, squeezing together, then lift the arms, see your thumbs.

Dway, exhale, fold forward, drop the head, see your nose. Trini, inhale, head up, look forward. Chatwari, exhale, step or jump and lower down to any chaturanga. Pancha, inhale, upward facing dog. Shot, exhale, downward facing dog.

Sapta, inhale, your right foot forward, arms up, see your thumbs meeting. And ashta, exhale, the hands down, the right foot back to chaturanga. Nava, inhale, upward facing. Dasha, exhale, downward facing dog. Ekarasha, inhale, left foot forward, arms up, see your thumbs.

Dwad, sha, exhale, chaturanga, dandasana. Trayog, sha, inhale, upward facing. Chaturg, sha, exhale, downward facing dog. One, spreading the fingers and toes. Two, keeping the inner thighs lifting to mula bandha, lifting the pelvic floor.

Three, lifting udiyana bandha as well, the space between the hips rises to the spine. Four, hearing the sound of your breath. Five, panjara sha, inhale, step or jump forward, head up. Shodhasha, exhale, and fold forward. Saptarasha, inhale, bending the knees, drawing the arms upwards.

Exhale, samastitihi. Last one, ekam, inhale, bend your knees, rise your arms up, see thumbs meet. Dway, exhale, folding forward. Trini, inhale, head up. Chaturadi, exhale, jump back, chaturanga.

Pancha, inhale, upward facing dog. Shodh, exhale, downward facing dog. Sapta, inhale, right foot forward, really take a long step and bend the right knee deeply, raise the arms up, see thumbs. Arshta, exhale, hands down, chaturanga, nava, inhale, upward facing. Dharsha, exhale, downward facing dog.

Ekarasha, inhale, left foot forward, knee bent deeply, arms up, see the thumbs. Dharsha, exhale, chaturanga dandasana, pausing there as you finish your exhalation. Trayogdasha, inhale, drawing you to upward facing. Chaturgdasha, exhale, downward facing dog. Long, fully breathing with sound.

Feeling the spine lengthening, the breath lengthening. Two. Three. Every exhalation, a great opportunity to refine and remind Mula and Uddiyana Bandha. Four.

Staying inside your breath. Five. Exhale completely. Pancharasha, inhale and draw yourself forward, feet together, head up. Shursha, exhale, fold forward, drop the head, see the nose.

Saptarasha, inhale, bend your knees, knees squeezing together, arms up, see thumbs. Exhale, samastitihi. Into the standing postures. Inhale and step or jump your feet just the hips distance apart. Exhaling, fold forward, grab your big toes if you're able.

Padangusthasana, you can grab your heels or shins otherwise. Ekam, inhale, head up, long spine, look forward. Dway, exhale, fold forward, keeping the legs strong, the kneecaps pulling up towards the pelvis as you drop the head. One, keeping the spine nice and long, two, avoiding any temptation to round or crunch or crouch the spine. Three, instead try to feel like the back top of the head is lengthening downwards towards the space in between the feet.

Four, and the shoulders still roll away from the ears. Five, trini, inhale, scooping the belly, lift the chest, look forward, exhale here. Place the hands beneath the feet. Padangusthasana, with the toes stepping all the way to the wrists, Ekam, inhale, head up. And Dway, exhale, fold forward.

You may need to bend the knees to relieve pressure on the hamstrings or lumbar spine, that's fine. One, if you can straighten the legs, you might be experimenting with leaning weight forward. Three, so the heels become lighter. Four, and still the shoulders wrap away from the ears. Five, trini, inhale, chest forward, shoulders roll back, collarbones broad, legs strong.

Exhale here. Inhale, come up, you might bend the knees to roll the spine upwards. And exhale, samastitihi. Utthita Trigonasana, Ekam, inhale, take your right foot and step it towards the back of the mat. And then pivot on your right heel to face towards the back.

And Dway, exhale, reach out over your right thigh, keeping the left hip back and open. Maybe you take the right big toe or simply let the right hand dangle and hang, gazing up towards the left thumb. One, avoid putting too much of a back bend into this position. Two, so keep your tailbone tucking towards your left heel. Three, still the legs stay strong, kneecaps lifted.

Four, five, trini, inhale, come up. Pivot on the heels to change the side. And Chaturthi, exhale, go over the left side, making sure that the tailbone wants to point back towards your right heel. So that should help you to keep Udi and Abunda. One, the front low belly really strong.

Two, so that as you take every inhale, you still find the collarbones broadening. Four, and breath lifting to the top of the chest. Five, punch, inhale, come up. Pivot on the heels, change the side. B, with the hips squared to the back of the room, Dway, exhale, folding forward, reaching the left hand forward, then downward, perhaps outside the right foot, shoulder stack, and the right thumb above the right shoulder.

One, the top of the head still moving forward. Two, so you keep lengthening the spine, especially important in twists. Three, four, five, trini, inhale, come up. Pivot upon the heels, change the side. Pivot on the hips square, and Chaturwadi, exhaling, reaching the right arm forward and reaching downward.

Plant the hand and twist. You can use a block or maybe the hand doesn't make it all the way to the floor. One, in which case you're keeping a little pressure through the arm, through the leg. Two, or if you can get the hand all the way down in the ground, pressing deeply down. Three, to create even more twist.

Four, with the top of the head moving away from the pelvis so the spine is long. Five, punch it, inhale, come up. Feet parallel, arms out, exhaling, samasthiti. Utthita, parshva konasana, Ekam, inhale, take a long step, your right foot going towards the back of the mat, and then pivot so that your right foot faces straight towards the back. Dway exhaling, banding the right knee deeply, the knee comes all the way above the ankle, either modifying with a forearm on the right thigh, or the right hand down outside the right foot.

The left arm arching over and forward, one. The drishti, the gazing point, settled right into the palm, two. And the eyebrows and eyes relaxed, a soft gaze, three. Still feeling the element of hip opening, four, by having the right knee connect into the right shoulder. Five, trini, inhale, come up, pivot on the feet, and change the side.

Chaturthi, exhaling, bending the left knee deeply, placing the left palm down on the mat, and right palm reaching upwards and forwards, one. If you need to modify with the left forearm on the knee for any reason, that's fine, two. If you can draw the right thigh open, externally rolling through the right thigh, and at the same time keeping the left knee into the left shoulder, four, finding the elements of hip opening in the posture. Five, punch it, inhale, come up, pivot on the feet, change the side, and B, exhale, bending the right knee deeply, bringing the left elbow all the way to the left shoulder over the right knee, deeply bent as you can. It may be the palms together as you gently move through anjali mudra, opening the chest to the side or to the top of the room, or if you can keep the shoulder planted over the knee with no gapping, dropping the left hand down, raising the right arm to the top corner of the room, four, five, three, knee, inhale, come up, pivot on the feet, change the side, chaturthi, exhale, go down, either simply in anjali mudra, creating twists through the spine or dropping the hand if it's available to you, two, three, keep the left knee bending, keep the right leg straight, four, five, punch it, inhale, come up, feet parallel, arms out, exhale, samastitihi, back together at the top of the mat.

Prasadita parottanasana, hey, I came inhale, take your right foot, step to the side, feet are parallel, hands in the waist, do an exhaling, fold forward, put your hands down in between your feet, again inhale, head up, long spine, look forward, entree knee, exhale, drop the top of the head and breathe. One, keeping the kneecaps lifted and strong legs, two, you may be able to lean a little weight forward towards the front of the feet, three, of course if you need to bend the knees to relieve pressure at the four lumbar spine or hamstrings, feel free, five, three, inhale, head up, long straight arms, straight spine, look forward, exhale here, then punch it, inhale, come all the way up, exhaling, B, I came, inhale, the arms out to the side, collarbones broad, do an exhale, again grab your waist, again inhale, the top of the chest reaches up through the shoulders, roll back and down, and with the tailbone down, three knee exhale, fold forward and drop the head. One, two, the fingertips can dive into the lower abdomen and feel, Uddiyana Bandha, three, creating that central place of stability, four, it stays with you through your dynamic practice, five, Chaturwadi, inhaling, come all the way up, and exhale here, C, Yakum, inhale, arms to the side, do an exhale, interlace the fingers back behind the sacrum, again inhale really broad collarbones as you reach the arms straight behind you, three knee exhale, fold forward and let the hands drop and arc up and over, away from the sacrum, one, as you lean forward through the fronts of the feet, two, the hands may come down towards the mat, three, four, five, Chaturwadi, inhaling all the way back up, and exhale, hands take the waist, D, Yakum, inhale, tailbone down, chin down, chest up, do an exhale, fold forward, grab your big toes, yogic toe lock, again inhale, head up, long spine scooping the belly, three knee exhale, keep the length as you drop the head and breathe, one, two, three, you may be able to lean weight forward, four, if your head is touching you can lift the hips back up towards the sky, five, inhaling head up, long spine forward, exhale here, then pancha, inhale, come all the way up, exhale, samastitihi, stepping feet together at the top of the mat, parsvottanasana, Ekam, inhale, take your right foot in a little step towards the back of the mat, place your palms together, rising up the spine or modify as needed, taking the elbows or forearms, and with the hips square to the back of the mat, exhale, folding forward as long as you can with length through the spine, gazing on the right big toe, breathing one, keep the shoulders rolled back and down, keep that critical space at the front top of the shoulder joint too, and keep the spine really lengthening, doing what you can to keep the thoracic spine long and that crouching, four, five, trini, inhale, come up, pivot on the heels, change the side, the hips square to the back of the room, and chaturthi, exhaling, letting the chest lead the way, the shoulders lag behind, and you gaze onto the left big toe, breathing here, one, still the toes spread apart from one another, two, and still the spine and breath lengthen, three, there can be more extreme forward bending, but at no point, four, does the upper back crouch or crumple, five, punch, inhale, come up, release the arms, exhale, samastitihi, and exhale, raise the arms up, exhale, we'll take a vinyasa as we go through to begin the seated series, trini, inhale, and chaturthi, exhale, jump back, chaturanga, punch, inhale, upward facing, shut, exhale, downward facing dog, sapta, inhale, and jump into dandasana, your neutral pose of seated, breathing here, the collarbones roll back and down, the chest is lifted, and the breath is long. Just like samastitihi, still drawing the knees towards the pelvis, so you keep the thighs strong, and this posture is a lot like samastitihi, just with a 90 degree bend at the pelvis, so your dandasana, the seated stick pose, is your neutral pose of the seated series. If you've been practicing our strangle a while, you've realized that we've done the fundamental asanas, and we've cut the second half of the standing series out in order to be able to workshop and deconstruct and explore some of these postures beginning of seated, which is what we'll do now, back into the traditional vinyasa.

After five breaths in dandasana, ashta, inhaling, reaching forward, grabbing the big toes, just as you began the standing series with, but here feet together, lengthening the spine so that the top of the chest comes through the shoulders, roll back and down, and nava, exhaling the center of the chest forward, towards the big toes, again letting the shoulders lag behind so they're not bunched up by the ears, as best you're able, and gazing forward towards the big toes, breathing here, too. Avoid the temptation to crumple and go into downward bending, instead keep the intention to bring the center of the chest forward, for approaching, always doing forward bending for the sequence. Five dasya, inhale, straight arms, the head up with a straightish spine, exhale here. Be the second one, reach the hands around the feet, or take the sides or tops of the feet, again, if you need to modify or use a strap, you're welcome to, again inhale, a long spine, and then nava, exhale, folding forward, towards the big toes, the spine and torso lengthening over the thighs as you gaze towards the big toe, too. The eyebrows relax, the jaw relaxes.

Three, you keep moving the center of the chest forward, four, five dasya, inhale, straight arms, straight spine, come up, exhale here, and moving yasa, so cross the legs, plant the hands, again exhaling to really find udiyana bandha and the core engaging, ekadasa, inhale, get some lift off the mat, and dvadasa, exhale, step, or jump the feet back, lowering down to chaturanga, triyugdasa, inhale, upward facing dog, the center of the chest going forward through the shoulders, chaturagdasa, exhale, downward facing dog, and purvatanasana, the next posture, sapta, inhaling, and you can jump the hips up high as you cross the legs, trying to slow the descent of the buttocks as the legs squirt through and then straighten in dandasana, however you get there, it's great as long as you wind up back in the neutral pose of the seated sequence. So we'll look at purvatanasana, an important part of this is how far your hands are going to be away from your pelvis. If they're too close and you try to come up, your shoulders will go too far back and you won't be able to really lift the hips up high. So let's look at a way to make sure that our hands are back far enough that when we lift up, our shoulders will be more or less right above our wrists. Take your thumb and put it somewhere into your sacrum, lean onto your elbow, and mark that spot.

Okay, where my elbow was, I'll put the root knuckle, the index mound of my hand on that side, the other hand about the same side, about the same length back, exhale completely, and with the inhale, you can bend the knees a little, feet together, pointing the toes, maybe it helps to bend the knees to try to get the big toe mound down on the ground. If you're not able to go any further in this pose, you can stay here or keep straightening the legs, lifting the hips forward and letting the head rock back and breathe. One more full deep breath and exhale, come down, crossing the legs, planting the hands, dasha, inhale, lifting up, getting your feet off the mat as best you can. Ekadasha, jump back to any Chaturanga. Dvarsha, inhale, upward-facing dog.

Trayogdasha, exhale, downward-facing dog. Arda bada padma, parshimata dasana, sapta, inhale, step or jump through and find yourself in dandasana, straight legs, sitting at the front of your mat. So here we'll take on a half lotus posture, as always with the half lotus or full lotus postures, we're going to be very careful and cautious, wise and judicious with the knee. So exhaling will bend the right foot, still keep breathing while we deconstruct this a little. And I like to grab under my right shin so that as I draw the heel closer to the abdomen, I'm opening the inside, the medial side of the knee and not pinching.

If you can plant the heel up close to the abdomen, the foot on the thigh, great, with just the toes hanging off, that's ideal. If that starts to feel like there's pressure in the knee, it may be that your foot needs to come just above your left knee or even your right foot onto your left shin. To further protect the knee, regardless of which position you're in, dorsiflex the foot and make sure that you're spreading the toes. If you're comfortable with the heel up high by the abdomen and just the toes hanging off, then you might look towards binding. You could keep your left hand on your right foot and spin your right shoulder back behind you looking over the right shoulder, see if you can take the hand back and grab your left arm.

If that's available to you, you might be able to walk the right hand down to the left hand and take the right foot, taking all four fingers and the thumb wrapped around so you've got the entire foot with the entire hand and a good strong bind. If that's available, you're inhaling, reaching the left arm forward. If you weren't able to bind or if the foot's in a different position, no problem, just inhale and reach forward with both hands. And then from this position, ashta, exhaling, go forward, the chest moving through the shoulders. If you've bound up, make sure that your right shoulder doesn't stay lagged behind, that your right shoulder tries to catch up and go forward with the left.

To do that, keep the right shoulder moving towards the left foot, spinning it inwards. Keep your right kidney spinning towards your left thigh so that your shoulders wind up level in space and breathe. If you're able to grab the left foot, try to grab the center of the foot, drishti towards the left big toe, and nava, inhale, come up, still holding the feet with one hand or with both hands, a long spine, exhale here, and then let go. Lengthen and straighten the right leg in space on your way to the vinyasa, crossing the legs, darsha, inhale, lift up, ekadasha, exhale, jump back to chaturanga. Dwarsha, inhale upward-facing dog, triyubdisha, exhale downward-facing dog, chaturgdasa, second side, inhale, jump through, straight leg, sit down.

Exhaling, repeat the process with the left foot grabbing under, maybe the toes hanging off, maybe the modification of putting the foot in a different place, perhaps binding by drawing the right hand onto the foot and the left arm creeping down, or just bringing both hands forward towards the right foot, inhaling, catching what you can, and then panchadasha, exhaling, folding forward, keeping awareness through the left foot, one, and the drishti towards the right toe, two, three, checking in with the left shoulder, making sure that it's not lifted higher than the right, four, as you keep the left kidney spinning towards the right thigh, five, shodhisha, inhale, head up only, long arms, exhale here, and let go. Lengthening the leg in space, saptarhisha, inhale, get some lift, ashtarhisha, exhale, jump back, chaturanga. Ekuna vimhushatihi, inhale upward-facing dog, vimhushatihi, exhale downward-facing dog, sapta, inhale, and jump through and sit down. So here in triyankmukha ekapara pashimatanasana, we'll bend the right foot back first, but to show you so that you have a great view, I'm going to take this leg back first, you take your right leg back, draw the toes to face straight back behind you, leave a little separation, hips distance between the knees, and if you feel like you're really truly lifted off the mat with the right sitting bone lifting up, you could place yourself onto a block to try to get some lift. As best you can from here, think about both thighs rolling over to your right side.

So there's an external rotation on your right thigh, an internal rotation on your left thigh, so that that right sitting bone, your right sitting bone, wants to be moving down towards the mat. Maybe you can even keep it touching the mat, lengthening the lumbar spine downwards towards the mat, aware of where the pelvis is in space, even as you inhale and lengthen the thoracic spine forward, upwards, and then ashita, exhale and fold forwards, keeping track of the pelvis in space. Avoid letting that right sitting bone fly up, instead keep the pelvis grounding back behind you to even as you go into a deep forward fold, lengthening the spine in both directions. Four, five, nava, inhale, straight arm, straight spine, head up, exhale here, and let go. From here, if you'd need to, if you'd like to, you can unfold the leg and vinyasa like that, or you may be able to plant the hands here and vinyasa by leaning weight forward, lifting up, dasa, inhale, coming up off the mat, and akarasha, exhale, stepping or jumping and finding your way to chaturanga dandasana, dvarsa, inhale, upward facing dog, trayogdasa, exhale, downward facing dog, chaturgdasa, inhale, jumping through, sitting down in dandasana, and then exhaling, drawing your left knee bent so your left toes are all on the mat, maybe you can even get your pinky toe down on the mat, inhale, reaching forward and internally rolling your right thigh so that your toes stay pointing straight up, panjarasha, exhale, folding forward, keeping track of the pelvis in space.

One, using each and every breath to draw awareness back through the hips. Two, even as you lengthen the spine. Three, making sure that the lumbar spine reaches back towards the mat. Four, five, shodhasha, inhale, straight arm, straight spine, head up, exhale here, and then saptarasha, you can inhale, lift off the mat, cross the legs, if you like, step it back or hop back as you like. Ekuna vimshatihi, inhale, upward facing dog, vimshatihi, exhale, downward facing dog, janu shirshasana A, sapta, inhale, jump through, find your dandasana position, and exhale, draw the right foot in like tree, the sole of the foot on the left thigh and the left leg staying straight, inhale, reaching forward, it's a less eccentric posture so we can be more efficient with the vinyasa, keeping the shoulders level in space, keeping track of the hips behind you, ashta, exhale and fold forward, looking towards the left big toe.

One, so the last two postures, arabhara-padma-pashimattanasana and triyamukha ekabhara-pashimattanasana Two, have taught you to keep track of the tops of the shoulders, keeping them back and down, three, and also keep track of the back of the hips, back and down into the mat, four, lengthening the spine in both directions and you can apply those techniques here in janu shirshasana A, five, nava, inhale, straight arm, straight spine, head up, exhale here, and let go. Dasa, inhale, get the lift, ekadasa, exhale, jump or step back to any chaturanga variation, dvarsa, inhale, upward facing dog, triyogdasa, exhale, downward facing dog, chaturdasa, inhale, jumping or stepping through, whatever suits you, whatever works for you to find your way to dandasana. Exhale, the left foot back, heel towards the perineum and foot on the sole of the thigh, inhale, reaching forward, aware of the shoulders level in space, panchadasa, exhale, rolling the shoulders back and down, the center of the chest moving forward, one, as the jishti gazes onto the right big toe, two, of course if you're not reaching so far forward, the same techniques apply no matter, three, four, as best you can, keeping that right thigh straight and strong, the kneecap lifted towards the pelvis, five, shouldershine heel, straight arm, straight spine, head up, exhale here, and then let go. Saptarasa, inhale, lift up, ashtarasa, exhale, jump back, akuna, vimÅ?atihi, inhale, upward facing, vimÅ?atihi, exhale, downward facing dog. From here, sapta, inhale, jump through, straight legs, sit down.

For today, we'll move into backbends and the finishing postures. So with straight legs, exhale, lie down on your back. Find yourself laying down with straight legs and breathe deeply, recovering a nice, even steady flow to the breath. And ashta, prepare for back bending, bending the knees, putting the feet down, the heels a little wider than the sitting bones and the feet exactly straight forward. Exhaling completely, takuriyana bandha in, lift the hips ever so slightly, and nava, inhale, lift the lumbar spine, lift the thoracic spine, perhaps you can roll the shoulders under more deeply, and breathe here.

Reaffirm the feet grounding to the mat, two, and feel the openness between the shoulder blades, three. As you find the closure at the front side of the abdomen, udhyana, mula bandha engaged. Five, dasa, exhale, and come down. We'll do two more. You can do the same style with the hands down by the sides, or if you're comfortable in full uvudana rasana, you're welcome to bring the hands behind the shoulders. Exhale completely, and nava, inhale, come up.

One, even from the halfway lift position, two, you might find the hands behind the shoulders if you're comfortable. Three, inhaling to lengthen the arms and lift the pelvis up. Four, five, exhale, and come down, and take a breath there. Last one, nava, inhale, lift up, and breathe. One, this great series of forward bends is incredibly useful for purifying the digestive system.

It's also wonderful that we have an opportunity to counter pose all the forward bends with back bends here. Three, beginning to stimulate and purify the nervous system each day with regular practice. Four, five, dasa, exhale, and come down. To counter pose the back bends, then you could take a vinyasa, you could take chakrasana, you could draw your knees into your chest and do a little rolling to roll yourself up to take that vinyasa from a seated position. Dasa, inhale, lift up, a kadasa, jump back.

Dva, dasa, inhale, upward facing dog, triyogdasa. Exhale, downward facing dog, bhasimatanasana, sapta, inhale, jump through straight legs, sitting down in dandasana. Exhale here, and ashta, inhale, reach forward just as you've done in so many forward bends before. Nava, exhale, folding forward, lengthening the spine in both directions. One, keeping some aspect of the forward bend with you.

Two, so the length of the rasic spine lengthens the chest forward towards the toes. All the while keeping sitting bones grounded, strong bandhas. Six, seven. If at any point you feel pain or pulling in the lumbar spine, you can always bend the knees or take a less extreme position. Nine, ten.

Dasa, inhale, head up only, exhale here. And the kadasa, release, plant the hands, inhale and lift up. Dva, dasa, exhale, jump back, triyogdasa, inhale, upward facing. Chaturgdasa, exhale, downward facing dog. Salambasarvangasana sequence, sapte, inhale, jump through straight legs, sit down.

And with straight legs, exhale, once more, lie down upon your back. We'll do a shortened finishing sequence here. And from the lying down position, we'll do some inversion postures to close the practice. Arshta, inhale, you could simply draw the feet above the hips in Viparita Karani, or continue to a shoulder stand, try and get the hips above the shoulders and the hands and the lower back to stabilize. Raising the toes straight up towards the sky as best you're able, breathe here.

The drishti can go down the tip of the nose. Or if that's a little bit too difficult for you, you can just look towards your navel. Still with Uriyana, drawing the contents of the abdomen ideally up behind the lower ribs. You could stay in Viparita Karani or your shoulder stand or go to Halasana, exhaling, trying to keep the legs straight as you draw the toes pointing away from the head with the feet back behind you. If that feels like too much and the feet are still floating, simply support the lumbar spine with the hands.

You can bend the knees a little if you need to. If you're able to get the feet down comfortably, then you can interlace your fingers, drawing the hands away from the shoulders and rolling the shoulders under more deeply. And breathe. Dharanapadasana, exhaling, bend the knees. Either the knees can rest upon the forehead.

They might even be able to squeeze the ears, hearing the sound of your own deep, full breath. Returning the hands to lower back. Inhale, draw the legs up straight to shoulder stand. And for today, exhale, lower down. And we'll take a modified Matsyasana fish position, crossing the legs, keeping the pelvis grounded, lift the chest up off the mat, and then rock the head back.

If it doesn't touch easily, bring the elbows forward so the top of the head can comfortably touch the mat. And breathe here. Every exhalation, refining and reminding hudyanabhanda. Exhaling, release the entire body down onto the mat. You could do chakrasana if you're familiar with the backward somersault roll, or simply hug the knees and roll up to take a normal vinyasa from the front of your mat, crossing the legs, planting the hands.

Inhale to lift and exhale to jump back, chaturanga. Inhale, upward facing. Exhale, downward facing dog. And our final seated finishing asanas. Sapta, inhale, jump through, straight legs, sit down in dandasana.

Exhaling, cross the legs to any comfortable cross-legged position. It can be half lotus or full lotus as you like, or simple cross legs is fine. If you're in full lotus, you can grab the tops of the feet in badapatmasana, wonderful. If you can not do that, simply just grab the elbows or the forearms and with your next inhale, lift the chest, lengthen the breath, and let the gaze rise up. And then now the exhale folding into yoga mudra with the gaze still lifted, fold forward and breathe.

Dasha, inhale, lifting back up, releasing the hands so that the index finger and thumb lightly touch the other three fingers, extend. Breathing here, gazing down the tip of the nose. Hearing the sound of your own breath. Allowing the spine to lengthen in both directions so the lumbar spine moves down towards the mat, sitting on your sitting bones, keeping the belly strong. And during the inhalation you may find the thoracic spine lifting the back top of the head, keeping the chin drawn to the neck, and the drishti down the tip of the nose, lengthening the spine, lengthening the breath, and lengthening all the spaces between.

Exhaling completely, we'll go towards utpluti, planting the hands down, inhale, and lift your hips up off the mat, lift your knees up off the mat. If you're in crossed legs, do your best to lift your feet up off the mat. If you're in padmasana, lotus position, you'll find it quite easy to lift up, long, smooth, fully breathing with sound. And exhale, come down. Take one last vinyasa from the top of the mat, releasing the legs, inhale to lift, exhale to jump back, chaturanga, inhale, upward facing, exhale, downward facing dog, and now inhale, jump through, lie down, and take rest.

Let your palms open to the sky, let the feet roll out to the side, and completely let go. Having looked deeply into the forward bends as well as a comprehensive practice, remember to include the important relaxation posture. Countering the entire practice, here use a silent breath, and release all the muscles. Relaxing the muscles on the thighs, through the arms, all the surface muscles, through the glutes. As well as relaxing muscles more subtle, more internal, deeper muscles also release.

Even releasing the physical engagement of udiyana bandha, so that the belly is free to bounce with breath. The eyes close, and there's no drishti, no physical bandha, no sound of breath, as you completely let go and take rest. Still with that relaxed feeling, gently begin to move the fingers and toes, moving the limbs however you like, rolling the neck and head and gently you can roll yourself over to one side or the other, and make your way up to a seated posture, sitting in any comfortable cross-legged posture. If this deep look into the seated series has been useful to you, I highly encourage you to repeat this practice again on another day, with repeated practice you'll begin to notice more and more subtle details, and with continued repeated practice you'll be able to integrate those details into your daily ashtanga practice, practiced at the pace of your very own breath. I hope that your journey continues to provide you great insight and great wonderful benefits, many blessings on your path.