Links to Related Resources & Longer Articles:

• Finding your starting point within Āsana to set a direction and route towards a goal…
• Nāma, Rūpa, Lakṣana – The Name, Form and Characteristics of Āsana

Collated Related Short Posts & Quotes:

“Actively contract the abdomen when exhaling to emphasise Apāna Sthāna.
Actively constrict the abdomen when inhaling to emphasise Prāṇa Sthāna.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“When bending towards the lower limbs during forward bend Āsana,
move firstly by as if rounding from the lower back,
before ultimately rounding from the upper back.
In terms of a Bhāvana during the movement,
the focus is on exhaling from Apāna Sthāna towards Prāṇa Sthāna.
Thus breathing as if from the lower abdomen towards the upper chest.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“When moving away from the lower limbs during forward bend Āsana,
move firstly by as if arching from the arms and upper back,
before ultimately arching from the lower back.
In terms of a Bhāvana during the movement,
the focus is on inhaling from Prāṇa Sthāna towards Apāna Sthāna.
Thus breathing as if from the upper chest towards the lower abdomen.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“Keep the arms up as you go down
Thus moving down from
Apāna Sthāna to Prāṇa Sthāna.
Lift the arms first as you come up.
Thus moving up from
Prāṇa Sthāna to Apāna Sthāna.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“Backbends disturb the length and quality of the exhale,
in that they impact the Apāna and push the Mūla downwards.
Thus we need to consider an appropriate Pratikriyā Āsana
to compensate for this disturbance to the Apāna Sthāna.
Hence Pratikriyā such as Apānāsana to restore the Apāna.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“With regard to Dvi Pāda Pīṭham, a key Bhāvana is on how we use the arms.
In the beginning try exploring leaving out raising the arms as you come up,
as shoulder movement means that people can start to move about on the mat.
Here we need to focus on lifting the body upwards as many people slide backwards.
Also many people will push up too much from the buttocks and distend the belly,
which in turn will increase the abdominal pressure and disturb the Apāna Sthāna.
So initially when learning this posture the Bhāvana of lifting from the feet is enough.
Then adding the engagement of a Bhāvana on the arms, by making the arms active.
Thus whilst lifting engage pushing the full length of the arms down firmly on the floor.
Once the legs are active and the arms are active, the neck can lengthen more naturally.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

– Bhāvana on the relationship between the Viśuddhi Sthāna and Jālandhara Bandha…
“A common escape when using Dvi Pāda Pīṭham is the neck arching rather than lengthening, resulting in the lifting of the head as if to compensate for the increased sense of the neck compressing.
Hence a key Bhāvana here is the deepening of the Jālandhara Bandha whilst working with the potential dissipation that can arise through the simultaneous lifting of the arms.
This escape is something that is also further exaggerated when raising the arms at the same time as lifting the hips, due to the increasingly upward force from the hips pushing down onto the shoulders, also increasingly unstable due to the lifting of the arms.
We can explore this escape by holding a Bhāvana on the relationship between the Viśuddhi Sthāna and Jālandhara Bandha through choosing an alternative Vinyāsa Krama in Dvi Pāda Pīṭham. One suggestion here is to investigate the interaction between the arms and trunk via the breath as shown in the illustration above.
The intention here is to maintain a gradual lengthening in the neck whilst resisting the tendency for the shoulders to as if skateboard on the scapula and increase the distance between the head and the feet. Here also an active role for the arms and shoulders is suggested at all points especially when they are not being lifted.
Perhaps experiment with repeating this alternate suggestion for a  Vinyāsa Krama in Dvi Pāda Pīṭham some 6 times whilst maintaining a breath pattern of around 4 breaths per minute. The entire sequence taking some six minutes to explore.”
– 108 Postural Practice Pointers

“The more you can work the inhale in the Prāṇa Sthāna,
the more you can experience the work in the upper spine.
The more you can experience the work in the upper spine,
the more you can work the inhale in the Prāṇa Sthāna.”
– 108 Yoga Practice Pointers

– Bhāvana on Directional Breathing within Śikṣaṇa Practice
“When inhaling, start the movement in the
Prāṇa Sthāna from the Viśuddhi Sthāna
and move the inhale as if towards the
diaphragm without distending the belly.
When exhaling, start the movement in the
Apāna Sthāna from the Svādhiṣṭhāna Sthāna
and move the exhale as if towards the
diaphragm without collapsing the chest.”
– 108 Yoga Practice Pointers

“Bṛṃhaṇa Kriyā
has a Lakṣaṇa of
feeling brighter in
the Prāṇa Sthāna.
Laṅghana Kriyā
has a Lakṣaṇa of
feeling lighter in
the Apāna Sthāna.”
– 108 Yoga Practice Pointers

“Krishnamacharya’s approach
to teaching children Āsana,
was more about cultivating
strength in Prāṇa Sthāna and
movement in Apāna Sthāna.
Whereas for teaching adults
Āsana, the approach was
now more about cultivating
movement in Prāṇa Sthāna
and strength in Apāna Sthāna.”
– 108 Yoga Teaching Path Pointers

“Although the inhale is the
exploratory means to learn
more about the Prāṇa Sthāna,
it is initially the exhale that will
teach us about the Apāna Sthāna,
and here is a primary means in the
application of Āsana as a therapy.”
– 108 Yoga Teaching Path Pointers

– Prāṇāyāma only Planning Questions
“Design a Prāṇāyāma practice for yourself
– to influence Prāṇa Sthāna,
choosing either Samavṛtti or Viṣamavṛtti ratios.”
To Download or View this Question as a PDF Study Sheet
– Yoga Practice Planning and Theory Questions – Collected & Collated

– Prāṇāyāma Theory Questions:
“Compare and discuss the effects of
Samavṛtti and Viṣamavṛtti breathing ratios
on Prāṇa Sthāna and Apāna Sthāna.
To Download or View this Question as a PDF Study Sheet
– Yoga Practice Planning and Theory Questions – Collected & Collated