I want to turn our attention to a pose in yoga that I reckon is taken for granted and often done without noticing what it feels like or thinking about its importance in the asana catalogue. Quite frankly observing how this pose feels is pivotal to pretty much any yoga pose in your practice. It’s an asana that is so easy, its nuance can be neglected and its importance as a core pose in yoga ignored. As we know, yoga is about connection and this pose helps us connect to our breath and body in a really profound way. Mountain Pose (Tadasana in Sanskrit) is what my yoga teacher’s teacher’s teacher calls the ‘underpants’ of poses because it’s the base of and is central to most poses.
A handstand is a Mountain Pose upside down. Plank is a horizontal Mountain Pose. Downward Facing Dog is Mountain Pose with a 45 degrees bend in the middle, Savasana is Mountain Pose lying on the ground….
Mountains can be seen as a metaphor for challenges, obstacles, stability and personal growth. It looks like you’re just standing still but there is so much more to this than meets the eye. It represents how you hold yourself in the world.
How to get into the pose
Stand with your feet about hip distance apart but no wider than hips. Some teachers might cue for you to have your feet together but that cue is based on the fact that yoga was developed for pre-adolescent boys and doesn’t accommodate hips! Hip width distance improves stability and we want to feel strong and invincible in this pose because of where it might lead us next.
Move your feet around until your weight is evenly distributed with a tad more weight on your heel. Lift and spread your toes then lower them. This is really grounding and serves as your stable base - needed in so many other poses.
Arrange your head, shoulders, hips and ankles in a straight line. Your shoulders rolled back away from your ears (no hunching or scrunching!).
Create space in the front of your torso and back by lifting from the base of your spine and engaging your core. Imagine a piece of string coming out of your head and someone is pulling you up by it towards the ceiling.
Strong arms down by your side with palms facing forwards. If you hold tension in your fists, release your fingers!
Soften your focus on something straight ahead and breathe….
Soften the skin around your forehead, eyes and cheeks and notice if there is any tension in your jaw. Part your teeth slightly to relax your jaw especially if you know you're a jaw clencher!
Breathe slow, smooth, breaths and enjoy the stillness before you flow.
Your body is working harder than it might feel and this pose gives us a chance to centre ourselves especially in transitions from one pose to another; a time for contemplation, to find your breathing and focus before moving on.
Off your mat, in life, this pose can boost your confidence and make you feel strong. It can be a life saver in tricky situations and it’s one I use at work a lot to help me regulate or face a challenge that is daunting or destabilising me.
Relish the stillness and calm it promotes: Come back to stillness, re-centre, breathe and be strong.
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