Is There Any Order In Which Asanas Must Be Performed In Yoga?

There is always a right way and a wrong way to do things. The same applies to asanas in yoga. If you do not do the same in a perfect order, there are high chances that you will not get the desired benefits. When you enrol for the 200 hour yoga teacher training course, almost always you will be guided through the same in an order. The best teachers at the school of yoga, will let you know, which sequences are to be followed for which concern. If you do not have any concerns as such, then also following a sequence will help you to utilize the practice to the fullest.

Why Should You Use A Yoga Sequence?

As a part of any yoga teacher training course, you ought to find out why you must do the poses, or any other practice whatsoever in an order. We have listed two of the most important reasons for you.

• Safety is the first aspect, which everyone who is practicing yoga must keep in mind. Most well-experienced teachers start with seated asanas, before guiding the students to standing and floating poses. The ultimate aim is to loosen the muscles, bones, tendons, and ligaments. After you are comfortable, you can start with the standing poses.
• Balance – This is the second important reason, why you should use one order, to address various concerns. To explain in an easier manner, if you are doing backbends for some time, in a single class, it makes sense to do forward bends, to balance the body. You must practice the poses, which are both-sided simultaneously, so that one part of the body, does not feel all the stress.

However, there are no stringent rules. Your guru has a huge role to play, in deciding what is best for you.

Best Order For Yoga Asanas

You must remember, that in order to learn all the alphabets in English, you had to start from A, then B, and so on. You always followed a perfect order at preschool. The same applies to yoga, as the right direction will lead to consistency and perfection. Moreover, you will never be able to reach that ultimate goal, if your order is not correct. It is just like cooking. If the order and timing of masalas is not correct, the end result will be devastating.

Correcting the order and sequencing is not just art or knowledge. There is scientific reasoning behind the same. You have to keep in mind, that yoga follows a set of principles. According to some of the biggest proponents of yoga, humans did not devise the system of asana order. It was pre-determined. There are four parts in any human body, the skeletal part, the muscular part, the organ part, and the energy part. The organs inside the human body are not just fixed with clamps and bolts. They are flexible. Sometimes, the movements can disrupt the internal activity, if the environment is not conducive.

When you are practicing Hatha Yoga, the comfort levels of organs are always considered. Energy comfort also assumes a lot of importance. If you activate one component of your energy, without the other, it will not yield the same results as you expected. Energy is sometime not distributed in a proper manner. That is the reason why, few people are never happy. You may have all the riches in the world, but you will still not feel complete. If you activate your body and energy through the correct sequence or order, no matter, what challenges life throws at you, you will be able to handle them perfectly.

You have to keep a few things in mind, while performing asanas.

Things To Keep In Mind While Performing Yoga Asanas

You should keep in mind the tips, mentioned herein, so that you can get all the benefits.

• You must warmup sufficiently before doing asanas in a full-fledged manner. The asanas that you start with, must prepare the body to do the next asana. This also ensures that the practice is safe and sound.
• You should always set a goal for a session. In that case, you will be practicing the same sequence of asanas. You may want the practitioner or yourself to feel something specific. On the other hand, you may want to prepare the mind and body, to do a difficult split. You can also address specific issues like headaches, backaches, and injuries, so you have to plan the order of asanas in that manner.
• You also need to keep in mind, what the ultimate goal of the session is. If you are heading towards energization, the order will be one. On the other hand, if you are heading towards relaxation, the order will change. An energization session generally begins and ends with stimulating poses and breathworks. You have to do the asanas at a much faster pace as well. In the case of relaxation, the poses and breathworks will be mild. You can move into twists, forward bends, and backward bends thereafter.
• You should have a proper understanding of anatomy. That is why, the best yoga school in Rishikesh lays so much stress on anatomy lessons. If you have the knowledge of anatomy, you will understand what suits or does not suit an individual.
• Moreover, you should consider the proportion of the poses. If you are organizing a class of, say, 90 minutes, here is how you should go about it. 20-25 minutes of warm up will be a good option for you. Then 20-25 minutes can be seated asanas, and back bends. Keep 10 minutes to do poses, that cool down the body. Lastly, keep 5-10 minutes for corpse pose or Shavasana.
• You should respect the knowledge that has been passed on in any lineage from one guru to another. If you try to go against it, things will not work. If you maintain a perfect order and sequence, it will be beneficial for your students and if you are doing it for yourself, it will benefit you.

If you are doing Hatha Yoga, you should first try to accomplish the asanas, then do the Pranayama, then mudras and lastly bandhas. You can also add on meditation to the final stage. This order has a certain meaning in the realm of Hatha Yoga. You have to strengthen the physical body first, and activate the ‘Prana’ through asanas. Then you have to navigate to Pranayama, which will help you to purify the nadis or channels. Mudras helps in directing the flow of the Prana as well. Bandhas draw the same upwards, and allows the incumbent to make it meet the crown chakra, from where awakening occurs.

If you are trying to address your concern for back pain, then you can do these five asanas enlisted below.

You can start with the Tadasana, then do the Virabhadrasana, follow it up with the Trikonasana, then do Matsyendrasana and finally the Shalabhasana. You will get relief in back pain, if you follow this particular order. Moreover, give ample time to the body to break from one form and enter the other. You should not be in any kind of hurry. Hari Om Yoga Vidya School is one of the best yoga school in India, from where you can start your yogic journey.