Definition of Urdhva Hastasana

Urdhva Hastasana -> Urdhva : raised (or upward) -> Hasta : hand -> Asana : pose 

= Raised Hands Pose

The Upward Hands Pose also known as Urdhva Hastasana is a standing pose that improves posture, strengthens the thighs and opens the shoulders, and consists of starting in Tadasana and stretching the arms above the head.

*Yoga Journal

1.  Stand in Tadasana (aka Mountain Pose).  Turn your arms outward (or laterally) so your palms face away from your torso and thumbs point backward.  With an inhale, sweep your arms out to the sides and up toward the ceiling [making sure to keep the shoulder blades pinned and down the back when arms are vertical].

2.  If you're tighter in the shoulders, stop when your arms are approximately parallel to each other.  But if possible without hunching your shoulder forward, press you palms firmly together by, touching the bases of your palms first, then the palms themselves, and finally the fingers.

3.  Extend your elbows fully and reach up through your pinkies so your thumbs turn slightly down toward the crown of your head [reaching up through the pinkies will help you to firm and round inwards your outer upper arm muscles].  Making sure not to compress the back of your neck, tip your head back slightly and gaze at your thumbs.

4.  Don't let your lower front ribs protrude forward.  Bring your front ribs down (toward your pelvis) and in (toward your spine), and lengthen your tail bone toward the floor.  Then lift your rib cage evenly away from your pelvis to stretch the circumference of your belly.  Hold for a few breaths.

5.  Exhale and, as you sweep your arms out to the sides, tip your torso forward from the hip joints to fold into Uttanasana (aka Standing Forward Bend).

*Note:  with shoulder and neck injuries refrain from raising the arms in this pose.

Definition of Chaturanga Dandasana

Chaturanga Dandasana -> Chatur : four -> anga : limb -> Danda : staff -> Asana : pose = Four-Limbed Staff Pose

Chaturanga Dandasana is pronounced (chaht -tour-ANG-ah  don-DAHS-anna)

Chaturanga Dandasana is one of the poses in the Sun Salutation sequence coming after the Plank pose and being following by either Cobra pose or Upward-Facing Dog pose.  This pose takes the form of a half push-up, Chaturanga Dandasana occurs when the body is in a push-up like position which is then lowered half way to the ground- this is Chaturanga Dandasana.

Yoga Journal

1.  Perform Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog pose), then Plank Pose.  Firm your shoulder blades against your back ribs and press your tailbone toward your pubis.

2.  With an exhalation slowly lower your torso and legs to a few inches above and parallel to the floor (so that your arms are parallel to the floor].  There's a tendency in this pose for the lower back to sway toward the floor and the tailbone to poke up toward the ceiling.  Throughout your stay in this position, keep the tailbone firmly in place and the legs very active and turned slightly inward [concentrating that the front of your thighs are being drawn back inward towards the ceiling].  Draw the pubis toward the navel [this will help to keep your mid-section from sinking towards the floor].

3.  Keep the space between the shoulder blades broad.  Don't let the elbows splay out to the sides; hold them in by the sides of the torso and push them back toward the heels.  Press the bases of the index finger firmly to the floor.  Lift the top of the sternum [pushing it forward] and your head to look forward [your eyes should be gazing forward on the floor].

4.  To release, [with an exhalation lower yourself lightly to the floor] or push strongly back up to Downward-Facing Dog pose, lifting through the top thighs and the tailbone.

Definition of Uttanasana

Uttanasana -> Ut : intense -> Tan : stretch / extend -> Asana : pose 

= Standing Forward Bend

Uttanasana is pronounced (OOT - tan - AHS - ahna)

Uttanasana is a pose consisting of standing with the feet together, then folding forward from the hips letting the head hang, with palms placed flat on the floor near the feet or as closes to.  This pose provides a complete stretch to the entire back of the body, stretching and lengthening the hamstrings.  Uttanasana can be used as a resting pose between standing poses as well as be practiced individually, stay in the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  *Wiki

*Yoga Journal

1.  Stand in Tadasana, hands on hips.  Exhale and bend forward from the hip joints, not from the waist.  As you descend draw the front torso our of the groins and open the space between the pubis and top sternum.  As in all the forward bends, the emphasis is on lengthening the front torso as you move more fully into the position.

2.  If possible, with your knees straight, bring your palms or finger tips to the floor slightly in front of or beside your feet, or bring your palms to the backs of your ankles.  If this isn't possible, cross you forearms and hold your elbows.  Press the heels firmly into the floor and lift the sitting bones toward the ceiling.  Turn the top thighs slightly inward.

3.  With each inhalation in the pose, lift and lengthen the front torso just slightly; with each exhalation release a little more fully into the forward bend.  In this way the torso oscillates almost imperceptibly with the breath.  Let your head hang from the root of the neck, which is deep in the upper back, between the shoulder blades.

4.  Do not roll the spine to come up.  Instead, bring your hands back onto your hips and reaffirm the length of the front torso.  Then press your tailbone down and into the pelvis and come up on an inhalation with a long front torso.

Definition of Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

Urdhva Mukha Svanasana -> Urdhva : upward -> Mukha : face -> Svana : dog -> Asana : pose = Upward-Facing Dog

Urdhva Mukha Svanasana is pronounced (OORD-vah MOO-kah shvon-AHS-anna)

Urdhva Mukha Svanasana is one of the positions in the traditional Sun Salutation sequence, this pose  can also be practiced individually, the pose can be held anywhere from 15 to 30 seconds, breathing easily.  Urdhva Mukha Svanasana strengthens the arms, wrists and abdomen while also increasing the flexibility of the spine. *About.com

*Yoga Journal

1.  Lie prone on the floor [faced down].  Stretch your legs back, with tops of your feet on the floor [pinky toes also touching the floor].  Bend your elbows and spread your palms on the floor beside your waist so that your forearms are relatively perpendicular to the floor.

2.  Inhale and press your inner hands firmly into the floor and slightly back, as if you were trying to push yourself forward along the floor.  The straighten your arms and simultaneously lift your torso up and your legs a few inches off the floor on an inhalation.  Keep the thighs firm and slightly turned inward, the arms firm and turned out so the elbow creases face forward.

3.  Press the tailbone toward the pubis and lift the pubis toward the navel.  Narrow the hip points.  Firm but don't harden the buttocks [keeping your pinky floors on the floor will helps with this].

4.  Firm the shoulder blades against the back and puff the side ribs forward.  Lift through the top of the sternum but avoid pushing the front ribs forward, which only hardens the lower back.  Look straight ahead or tip the head back slightly, but take care not to compress the back of the neck and harden the throat.

5.  Release back to the floor or lift into Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-facing dog) with an exhalation.

Definition of Bhujangasana

Bhujangasana -> bhujang : serpent (or snake) -> asana : pose = Cobra Pose

Bhujangasana is pronounced (boo - jang - GAHS - anna)

Said to strengthen and stretch the spine, chest, shoulders, abdomen, buttocks and relieve stress and fatigue.  Traditional texts say that Bhujangasana increases body heat, destroys disease and awakens kundalini, a corporeal energy.   *Wiki

*Yoga Journal

Cobra Pose

1.  Lie prone on the floor.  Stretch your legs back, tops of the feet on the floor [pinky toes also touching the floor].  Spread your hands on the floor under your shoulders.  Hug the elbows back into your body.

2.  Press tops of the feet, tops and pubis firmly onto the floor.

3.  Inhale and begin to straighten the arms to lift the chest off the floor, going only to the height at which you can  maintain a connection through your pubis to your legs.  Press tailbone toward the pubis and lift the pubis toward the navel.  Narrow the hip points.  Firm but don't harden the buttocks [keeping your pinky toes on the ground as well as your big toes will help you with this].

4.  Firm the shoulder blades against the back, puffing the side ribs forward.  Lift through the top of the sternum but avoid pushing the front ribs forward, which only hardens the lower back.  Distribute the backbend evenly throughout the entire spine.

5.  Hold the pose anywhere from 15 to 30 seconds, breathing easily.  Release back to the floor slowly with an exhalation.


Some common Cobra Pose errors are over-arching the neck and lower back, recommended to keep the gaze directed down at the floor.  *Wiki

Definition of Savasana

Savasana -> Sava : Corpse -> Asana : Pose = Corpse Pose

Savasana is pronounced (sha - VAHS - anna)

In Savasana the body is lying on the back with both arms and legs at about 45 degrees, eyes are closed and the breath deep.  The whole body is relaxed with an awareness of the chest and abdomen rising and falling with each breath.  Any muscular tension is consciously released when found.  Savasana is the last pose of an Asana Practice which allows the body to recover from the anabolic to the catabolic state. *wiki

*Yoga Journal

Corpse Pose : Savasana

1.  In Savasana it's essential that the body be placed in a neutral position.  Sit on the floor with knees bent, feet on the floor, lean back onto your farearms.  Lift your pelvis slightly off the floor and with your hands push the back of the pelvis toward the tailbone, then return the pelvis to floor.  Inhale and slowly extend the right leg and then the left leg, pushing through the heels.  Release both legs, soften the groins and see that the legs are angled evenly relative to the mid-line of the torso, the feet should be turned out equally.  Narrow the front pelvis and soften (but don't flatten) the lower back.

2.  With your hands lift the base of the skull away from the back of neck and release the back of the neck down towards the tailbone.  Broaden the base of the skull too and lift the crease of the neck diagonally into the center of the head.  Make sure your ears are equidistant from your shoulders.

3.  Reach your arms toward the ceiling, perpendicular to the floor.  Rock slightly from side to side and broaden the back ribs and the shoulder blades away from the spine.  Then release the arms to the floor, angled evenly relative to the mid-line of torso.  Turn the arms outward and stretch them away from the space between the shoulder blades.  Rest the back of the hands on the floor as close as you comfortably can to the index finger knuckles.  Make sure the shoulder blades are resting evenly on the floor.  Imagine the lower tips of the shoulder blades are lifting diagonally into your back toward the top of the sternum.  From here, spread the collarbones.

4.  Quieting the physical body in Savasana is important to pacify the sense organs.  Soften the root of the tongue, the wings of the nose, the channels of the inner ears, the skin of the forehead, around the bridge of the nose between the eyebrows.  Let the eyes sink to the back of the head, then turn them downward to gaze at the heart.  Release your brain to the back of the head.

5.  Stay in this pose for 5 minutes for every 30 minutes of practice.  To exit out of Savasana, roll gently with an exhalation onto one side, preferably the right.  Take 2 or 3 breaths, with another exhalation press your hands against the floor and lift your torso, dragging your head slowly after, the head should always come up last.

Definition of Adho Mukha Svanasana

Adho Mukha Svanasana -> Adho : Downward -> Mukha : Face -> Svana : Dog -> Asana : Pose = Downward-Facing Dog

Adho Mukha Svanasana is pronounced (AH-doh MOO-kah shvah-NAHS-anna)

Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog) is a yoga pose in which the hands and feet are on the floor and one's rear end is pointed up so that the body is in an upside-down V.  The Downward-Facing Dog deeply stretches the back, opens the chest, and builds upper body strength. *Dictionary.com

*Yoga Journal

Downward-Facing Dog: Adho Muka Savanasana

1.  Come onto the floor on your hands and knees.  Set knees directly below your hips [your feet should be hip-distance apart] and your hands slightly forward of your shoulders [also hip-distance apart].  Spread your palms, index fingers parallel or slightly turned out [all five fingers of both your hands should be evenly spread wide apart], and turn your toes under.

2.  Exhale while you lift your knees away from the floor keeping the knees slightly bent and the heels lifted away from the floor.  Lengthen your tailbone away from the back of your pelvis and press it slightly toward the pubis.  Against the resistance, lift the sitting bones toward the ceiling [and back], from your inner ankles draw the inner legs up into the groins, [heels may be turned slightly outward so that the outer edge of your feet are parallel.]

3.  Then with an exhalation, push your top thighs back and stretch your heels onto or down toward the floor.  Straighten your knees but be sure not to lock them.  Firm the outer thighs and roll the upper thighs inward slightly.  Narrow the front of the pelvis.  [Adjust so that your sit bones are still stretching up and back.]

4.  Firm the outer arms and press the bases of the index fingers actively into the floor [make sure all five fingers on both your hands are still evenly spread wide].  From your actively pressing index fingers lift along your inner arms from the wrists to the tops of the shoulders [keep the arms straight but do not lock elbows].  Firm you shoulder blades against your back, then widen them and draw them toward the tailbone [keeping the shoulder blades pinned down].  Keep the head between the upper arms, making sure to not let your head hang.

[5.  Now while in Downward-Facing Dog adjust and align yourself, it is very easy to become misaligned while doing these steps, so take your time and align yourself correctly.   Heels hip-distance apart and turned out so that the outer edges of the feet are parallel, legs straight but knees not locked, thighs pressed back and turned in slightly and stretching towards the groin, hips and sit-bone reaching up and back, spine lengthened, back flat, tummy tucked, arms stretched straight but elbows not locked, arm muscles lengthened from fingers to shoulders, shoulder blades tucked, fingers wide and evenly spread, index finger actively pressed down, head between upper arms, neck lengthened.]

6.  The Downward-Facing Dog is one of the poses in the traditional Sun Salutation sequence.  It is also an excellent yoga asana all on its own.  Stay in this pose anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes.  Then bend your knees to the floor with an exhalation and rest in Child's Pose.

Definition of Tadasana

Tadasana ->  Tada : Mountain -> asana : Pose = Mountain Pose

Tadasana is pronounced (tah-DAHS-anna)

Tadasana (aka Mountain Pose) is often a starting position in a yogic routine which consists of standing with arms straight down one's sides for balance and alignment *Dictionary.com.

*Yoga Journal

Mountain: tada (tah-DAHS-anna)

1.  Stand with the bases of your big toes touching, heels slightly apart so that the second to the biggest toes are facing straight ahead of you.  Lift and spread your toes and the balls of your feet, then lay them softly down on the floor.  Your weight should be balanced evenly on the feet, the four corners of the bottom of your feet equally pressed to the ground.

2.  Firm your thigh muscles and lift the knee caps, without hardening your lower belly.  Lift the inner ankles to strengthen the inner arches, then imagine a line of energy all the way up along your inner thighs to your groins, and from there through the core of your torso, neck, and head, and out through the crown of your head.  Turn the upper thighs slightly inward.  Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor and lift the pubis toward the navel.

3.  Press your shoulder blades into your back, then widen them across and release them down your back.  Without pushing your lower front ribs forward, lift the top of your sternum straight toward the ceiling.  Widen through your collarbones.  Hang your arms beside the torso.

4.  Balance the crown of your head directly over the center of your pelvis, with the underside of you chin parallel to the floor, throat soft, and the tongue wide and flat on the floor of your mouth.  Soften your eyes.

5.  Stay in the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute, breathing easily.

Definition of Pashchima Namaskarasana

Pashchima Namaskarasana = Reverse Prayer Pose

*ehow.com

The Reverse Prayer Pose is an intermediate Yoga posture that is aimed towards increasing flexibility and strength in your upper back while at the same time familiarizing your body with the internal rotation of the arms.  As becoming more and more familiar with Pashchima Namaskarasana your will be begin to feel a heightened awareness and a calming of the mind.

*Reverse Prayer Pose / ehow.com

1.  Begin on the mat in Mountain pose (Tadasana).

2.  Relax your knees, bending them slightly as you reach your arms around your back until the palms of both hands come together.

3.  Press your palms lightly together, making sure that the fingers of both hands are pointing to the floor.

4.  Rotate your wrists, turning your hands until your fingers now point to the sky.  As your turn your wrists, keep your knees bent.  This will help the natural tendency for your ribcage to jut out during this hand movement.

5.  Press the outside edges of both hands lightly into your back.  Your fingers should now be both pointing up and running parallel with your spine [as seen in above picture].

6.  Press your feet into the ground as your straighten your legs and hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds.

*Keep in mind the Reverse Prayer Pose should be avoided by those that suffer from a wrist or elbow injury.  

A substitute pose for the Reverse Prayer Pose:

1.  Reach your arms around your back

2.  Grasp your lift wrist with your right hand and your right wrist with your left hand, palms facing each other.

Definition of Balasana

Balasana -> Bala : Child -> Asana : posture = Child's Pose

Balasana is pronouced (bah-LAHS-anna)

Balasana : Child's Pose as a simple relaxation position in yoga which can be substituted for Downward Dog during a sun salutation. *Wikipedia

*Yoga Journal

1.  Kneel on the floor, touch your big toes together and sit on your heels.  Separate your knees about as wide as your hips [so that the sides of your ribs are slightly supported by your inner thighs].

2.  Inhale as you lengthen your spine, exhale and bring your chest between your knees, your torso between your thighs, [the sides of your torso should be lightly supported by your inner thighs and your sit-bones should still be on your heels].  Broaden your sacrem across the back of your pelvis and narrow your hip points toward the navel, so that they nestle down onto the inner thighs.  Lengthen your tailbone away from the back of the pelvis while you lift the base of your skull away from the back of your neck. [These steps will help to lengthen your spine while in Balasana].

3.  Lay your hands on the floor alongside your torso, palms up, and release the fronts of your shoulders towards the floor.  Feel how the weight of the front shoulders pulls the shoulder blades wide across your back. 

Definition of Samadhi

"Samadhi" is defined by Dictionary.com in one manner

Samadhi

1.  The highest stage in meditation, in which a person experiences oneness with the universe.


Samadhi ('putting together', 'union') is further detailed as an intense concentration or absorption of consciousness, in which distinction between subject and object is eliminated; it is the eighth 'limb' of 'eight-limbed' Astanga Yoga.  Samadhi is the consequence of meditation rather than the state of meditation itself.  *Encyclopedia.com

Samadhi is achieved through yoga in which the yogin's consciousness is absorbed in the object of meditation and there is no awareness of the physical or material world.  *Encyclopedia.com

Definition of Pranayama

"Pranayama" is defined by Dictionary.com in one manner

Pranayama

1.  A type of yogic breath awareness and regulation exercise designed to help control one's vital energy.

Pranayama is further described as the fourth of the eight stages intended to lead the student to samadhi, a state of perfect concentration.  The immediate goal of pranayama is to reduce breathing to an effortless, even rhythm, thus helping to free the individual's mind from attention to bodily function *Encyclopedia Britannica.

Definition of Hatha yoga

"Hatha' yoga is defined by Merriam-webster in one manner

Hatha yoga

1.  A system of physical exercises for the control and perfection of the body that constitutes one of the four chief hindu disciplines.

Hatha is further described as a school of Yoga most widely practiced in America that stresses mastery of the body as a way of attaining a state of spiritual perfection in wich the mind is withdrawn from external objects *Encyclopedia Britannica.  Hatha Yoga uses bodily postures, breath techniques and meditation with the goal of bringing about a sound, healthy body and a clear, peaceful mind.  Hatha yoga postures stretch and align the body, promoting balance and flexibility *Encyclopdia.com.

Definition of Asana

"Asana" is defined by *Merriam-Webster in one manner

Asana

1.  Any of various yogic postures

Asana is further described as "sitting posture" in the Yoga system of Indian Philosophy- an immobile bodily posture that a person assumes in an attempt to isolate the mind by freeing it from attention to bodily functions.  It is the third of the eight prescribed stages intended to lead the aspirant [student] to samadhi, the trancelike state of perfect concentration.  As many as 32 or more asanas have been [counted].  *Encyclopedia Britannica

Definition of Yogi

The Merriam-Webster dictionary has three descriptions of Yogi:

Yogi

1.  A person who practices yoga

2.  An adherent of Yoga philosophy

3.  A markedly reflective or mystical persons

On this note, I like to think of my yoga instructors as Yogis while I myself am just a student.  I like to specifically use the term "Yogi" to define a person who has practiced Yoga in depth as more than just an exercise regimen or a hobby.

Definition of Yoga

It only seems right to begin with the definition of Yoga as a way to start off on the correct foot.


Here Yoga is described in three ways *Dictionary.com

1.  A school of Hindu philosophy advocating and prescribing a course of physical and mental disciplines for attaining liberation from the material world and union of the self with the Supreme Being or ultimate principle.

2.  Any of the methods or disciplines prescribed, especially a series of postures (asanas) and breathing exercises practiced to achieve control of the body and mind, tranquility, etc.

3.  Union of the self with the Supreme Being or ultimate principle (this union is called Yoga, thus the goal of Yoga is Yoga)