For Beginners: Bhujangasana

Like many backbends, Cobra Pose is a heart opener, subtly releasing held emotions within the rib cage to bring greater joy within the body.

By Shiva Rea

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"Few of us have lost our minds, but many of us have long ago lost our bodies," says transpersonal psychologist Ken Wilber. It is quite common for human beings to live in a disembodied state—for our thoughts to be separate from the experience of our bodies. This loss of the body takes many forms, from not being able to stop the train of thinking mind to catching ourselves hunched over or sick because we haven't paid attention to the many warning signs we were given by our bodies. One of yoga's many benefits is the experience of greater embodiment.

Embodiment is the spreading of one's consciousness throughout the body, from the crown of the head to the toes, the surface to the core. It is learning to listen and understand the language of the body. It is re-membering ourselves by exploring and excavating who we are in our own skin. When you begin to take a yoga class or learn from a book or video, the instructor will invite you to move places in yourself that may have been forgotten or never realized: big toes, kneecaps, thigh bones, sternum, and kidneys, as well as places that you may be very aware of due to tightness or pain, such as the lower back or the sides of the neck. The asana that we will explore, Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose), is fundamental not only for embodying your spine but for learning to move as an integrated whole. Bhujangasana is an essential pose for developing the strength and flexibility of the entire back, while toning the legs and buttocks, increasing circulation, and assisting in kidney function. Like many backbends, it is a "heart opener," subtly releasing held emotions within the rib cage to bring greater joy within the body.

Familiar Landmarks

Before we begin to do the pose, let's trace some of the important landmarks within the body that are key to activating not only Cobra but many of the asanas. Sitting comfortably in a chair, wrap your hand around the nape of your neck and rest the side of your hand along your occipital ridge, where your spine and skull meet. You will feel two bony points with a hollow space between them. Collapse the back of your head into your hand. This crunching of the neck is something to watch out for in Cobra as well as other poses. Try to extend the back of your neck in alignment with your spine (your chin will drop slightly). Now bring the other hand to your lower back and touch your tailbone, the base of your spine. Turn your tailbone up as if to sway your back like a duck. Feel how this jams your sacrum (the triangular bone of which the tailbone is the base). Then, notice how turning your tailbone towards the earth creates space there. Pause and feel the whole line of your spine—from your tailbone up your vertebrae and nape of your neck all the way to the crown of your head.

Now release your hands and bring your awareness to your shoulders, drawing them up by your ears. This is the consummate tension pattern that we might go into at our desks, in traffic, under stress, out of habit. Bring your awareness to your shoulder blades, those wings that slide up and down your back with the movement of your shoulders. Now rotate your shoulders, consciously drawing your shoulder blades (scapulae) down your back. Maintain the downward grounding of your shoulder blades and feel the space between your neck and shoulders. Touch your sternum (the bony plate between and below your collarbones) with one hand. Feel it spreading open as you move your shoulder blades further into the body. Finally, straighten your right leg, lift it slightly off the floor, and put your right hand on the top of your right thigh. Now point your toes, firm your kneecap, and feel how your entire leg comes alive. The ability to work your legs is essential for supporting the spine in backbends. Press your thigh bone back and activate your right leg even more. Remember the sensations of these landmarks in the body to assist you in greater embodiment in Cobra, other asanas, and life in general.

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