Mayurasana - The Peacock pose

Mayurasana also called the peacock pose is a balancing pose which strengthens the shoulders, arms ans wrists.  The Mayurasana also helps to improve digestion.  The Mayurasana is one of the advanced yoga asana which is the best pose for detoxifying the body.  The final position of this Mayurasana resembles the peacock,  hence this yoga asana is also called as Peacock pose.   This asana has its name derived from the Sanskrit term ‘Mayur’ which means ‘peacock’ and ‘asana’ which means ‘pose’.  Here are the steps to perform Mayurasana.

Steps to practice Mayurasana

The peacock begins in the same way as the crow, by coming to a squatting position on your feet.

• Place your hands on the floor between the knees with the palms down, fingertips pointing back towards the feet. Keep the hands touching together.
• Bring your elbows together and place them on the abdomen. Try to keep the elbows close together throughout the pose.  Try to place your forehead on the mat in front of you.
• Straighten out both legs behind you. The body is now resting on the head, hands and feet.   Now lift your head.
• Keep the head up, gradually shift the weight of your body forward and as you do this lift the feet. The body should be parallel to the floor. In the beginning it is easier to lift each foot one at a time until you get the feeling for shifting the body weight forward and build up strength in the arms.
• In the beginning, hold the posture for 10 seconds, gradually working up to 30 seconds or more.

To come out of the posture exhale and gradually lower the feet back down to the mat.

Benefits of Mayurasana

• Strengthens the shoulders, arms and wrists and improves the balance
• The Mayurasana puts pressure on the abdomen thereby improves digestion.  So you will be relieved of indigestion and constipation.
• The asana stimulates the abdominal organs
• Stretches the muscles of the forearms, wrists and fingers
• Beneficial for repetitive stress injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome, and for people who spend a lot of time on the computer

Energetic (Pranic) Benefits

• Helps arouse the Kundalini Shakti

Mental Benefits

• Improves mental equilibrium and sense of calm
• Improves concentration and determination

Here is a video showing how to practice mayurasana.