Upaviṣṭa Koṇāsana


Upaviṣṭa Koṇāsana, also written Upavistha Konasana or "wide-angle seated forward bend" is an asana in modern yoga as exercise, sitting upright with the legs as wide apart as possible, grasping the toes and leaning forward.

Etymology and origins

The name of the pose is from the Sanskrit उपविष्ट meaning "open", कोण meaning "angle", and आस, meaning "seat" or "pose".
The pose is not found in medieval hatha yoga, but is described in the 1966 Light on Yoga. It is independently described under a different name, Hastapadasana in Swami Vishnudevananda's 1960 Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga, suggesting an older origin.

Description

The pose may be entered from dandasana by moving the legs apart as far as possible. The big toes may then be grasped with the hands, or with a belt around each foot. The back is lightly arched by raising the coccyx, and the body is inclined forwards. In the completed pose, the body leans forwards until the chin and nose touch the ground. People who cannot sit on the floor in dandasana can sit on a folded blanket for the pose.
A variation is to lean forward and to place the hands, palms up, on the ground in front of the body.

Claimed benefits

The pose provides a stretch for the hamstrings, and is stated without evidence in Light on Yoga to assist the circulation in the pelvic region and to relieve sciatica. The pose is stated, again without evidence, to be useful for "gynaecological problems", and safe in both menstruation and pregnancy provided no strain is applied. However, the founder of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, K. Pattabhi Jois, states that it should not be performed in pregnancy, though agreeing on its benefit for the sciatic nerve.