Embody Rest: Savasana for Everyone with Anna Ashby

Current times demand extra care in navigating the complexity, speed and uncertainty of 21st century change. This means it’s important to choose ways of practising yoga that calm, ground and settle the nervous system.

In this context what kind of practice best supports the creativity and clarity needed to respond to the seemingly intractable challenges humanity is facing both individually and collectively? 

Present times call for an ‘ecology of practices’ of which Restorative Yoga plays a key part. This style of practice supports nervous system down regulation and promotes an expansive view that can arise from the tangible experience of balance and space.

It may seem at first counterintuitive that embodying rest could be an answer to the woes of our world. But, perhaps, in a time that feels so very out of balance, this could be a fundamental place to start – with ourselves.

Take a moment right now to feel into the state of your nervous system. Is there ease, a quality of fullness to sensation, a sense of wide perception that enables sensing new pathways forward? Is the breath free and easeful? Is there an even tone to the feel of the nervous system? Perhaps just simply ask yourself, “What do I feel?” Whatever arises, simply embrace it as a starting place for effecting change.

This Restorative sequence expounds upon the beauty of Savasana, commonly known as corpse pose, arguably the most significant posture in the hatha yoga pantheon of poses. Not only given pride of place in the Hatha Pradipika (a medieval text that first systematised the practice in 1450) as the pose that ‘calms and removes fatigue’, Savasana still graces the end of most modern postural practices almost a thousand years later. It continues to offer the solace of deep rest, renewed perception and release. 

This practice is suitable for all levels. Please consult your GP and/or local yoga teacher on how to adapt the sequence to meet your specific needs. Always take your time transitioning out of the poses to preserve the evenness of the nervous system and allow for the shift to a more alert state.

Savasana with legs elevated

Place a blanket on your mat for warmth and comfort underneath the body. Set two foam blocks end to end as a lift for a bolster or pillow for the feet. Tilt the other bolster up with a brick underneath the slant of the thigh. Secure a strap around mid-thigh to support the release of the legs. Thinly fold a fleece blanket and place it underneath your pelvis; scrunch the edges in to form a pelvic cradle. Place a blanket underneath your head and fold in the edges to support the skull. Optional: Place eye pillows on the forehead/over the eyes.

Rest in the pose for 10-20 mins. Sense the body and how it rests into the ground. Are there patterns of holding? What is the texture and tone of tension? Make contact with the flow of your breath, and with the help of the exhale, focus on softening.

Side Savasana to the right

Smooth out the pelvic blanket. Place a bolster in between the thighs. Lay sideways with the ribs resting over a widthways rectangular bolster. Stack two foams with the head blanket on top. Hug a small bolster or pillow. Rest the back of the grounded hand up on a foam block. Optional: eye pillow on the side of the head and in the palm of your hand.

Rest here for 7-10 mins. Focus on breathing into the side ribs. Use each breath to sense how the ribs move in relation to breathing. Again take the support of the exhale to soften. Notice how the exhale amplifies the inhale especially through gentleness.

Downward Savasana

Shift the leg bolster to widthways and place it at the bottom of your mat for your feet. Fold the pelvic blanket in half and place it under your knees. Turn the rectangular bolster lengthways and rest the torso on it. Position the bolster at the base of the sternum to avoid the chest. Accordion fold the head blanket and snuggle the forehead into its folds. Rest the arms over the outer edges of the accordion folded blanket to cushion the elbows. Optional: eye pillow for the hands. Sandbag for the tail.

Rest here 7-10 minutes. Focus on back body breathing that follows the shape of the lungs. On every exhale, empty out tension and rest more deeply into the ground.

Side Savasana to the left

Repeat Side Savasana to the left.

Meditation

Come to sitting in a comfortable seated posture with a bolster underneath the pelvis and supporting the knees. Place the accordion folded blanket across the thighs and rest your hands on it. Close the eyes and bring the attention inwards.

Allow the weight of the body to release down into gravity. Use this softening of the structure to ground and release unnecessary tension. Equally, feel the upward rise of the spine through its curves. Find the poise of your spine.

Sense the rhythm of breathing. Where/how do you experience your breath? Relax the root of the nostrils and tongue. Soften your effort around breathing. Follow the natural flow of your breath without trying to manipulate it.

In this way meditate for a short while.

Savasana with torso elevated

Place a bolster at the back of the knees and wrap your feet with a blanket. Loop the strap around the mid thigh. Position the rectangular bolster lengthways along the spine and place foam blocks underneath the elbows. Fold a blanket underneath the head snuggling its edges around the skull. Optional: eye pillows on the forehead/eyes.

Allow the whole body to melt into the sense of support. Continue to stay with the breath using its gentle flow to release tension and settle the mind. Stay in the pose for 10-15 minutes.

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