Grounding Asana Practice

Join me for a strong, fluid, and grounding practice that connects us to the earth below, to our center, and to the sky above. This was recorded along the coast in Australia, with the sounds of the waves rolling in the background. This is a practice of discernment and nourishment.

Transcript

Meeting,

Gathering for a simple practice.

Standing and grounding,

Exploring the power of stability.

So come join me.

As you stand,

Toes spread wide,

Resting into the earth.

Feeling the big mound press down to the ball of the foot.

The pinky side of the last metatarsal pressing down into the ground.

Power of the heel pressing.

And then in the inner arches,

This little draw up through the inner line.

That inner line as if it trace all the way up through the line of the leg into the pelvic floor.

Standing simply,

Samastitihi.

Standing,

Balancing that front and the back of the pelvis.

Neither pushing back or neither pushing forward,

But that space in between.

There's a sensation of the thigh bones pressing out and the shins pressing lightly in.

And a lengthening from this force of the earth,

From this force of the ground.

The power of stability that then reverberates up and through our entire body.

Getting that lift through the back of the neck,

Through the crown of the head.

And then the ease and the muscles,

The softness in the shoulders.

Softness comes through the jaw.

So the tension that we carry so often around the I,

Me and my,

This grip of trying to assert ourselves,

Softens.

Not needing to assert,

Instead feeling that conduit nature of this body from earth to sky.

Taking a moment,

Close your eyes and go inward.

What is it that this body is up to?

The strength of this time in your life.

Becoming clear about the power of your intention.

How you want to express your strength,

Stability.

Beautiful.

Opening the eyes.

From here,

We're going to take our feet wide apart.

In that wide apart,

We spin the heels in and the toes out.

Let the inner line of the legs still draw up.

From that drawing up,

Bend the knees,

Tracking the knees over the middle toe.

As it tracks down,

As you sink down,

We're going to lean the body forward.

As you lean the body forward,

Feel the sensation of a hot air balloon underneath the low belly.

It floats up.

As it floats up,

Taking the hands down,

You can take the fingertips down or the palms down,

Fingertips facing the same direction as the toes.

Either way.

Feel the knees open back.

Feel that hot air balloon underneath the belly.

The heels as if they can push down and spin forward.

Collarbones long.

Start to feel that heat of the inner line of the legs.

You can stay here.

You can take your arms out wide.

Wrists in alignment with the shoulders.

Again,

That hot air balloon underneath the belly.

That's really Uddiyana Bandha,

This connection through our power source.

You're definitely feeling some heat.

You're definitely feeling some heat in the legs.

Feeling that reverberation of grounding.

Push the feet down a little bit deeper.

Take the hands down.

Spin your toes forward.

Hands hook into the opposite elbows.

Fold in here.

Let the weight of the elbows go heavy.

The back of the neck grow long.

Thigh bones,

Again,

Push lightly out.

Shin bones lightly in.

Feet melting into the earth.

I happen to be standing on a bed of complete coral.

The power of the life that this coral has lived.

As if I can receive it.

Remember my bones,

My strength.

Releasing the elbows,

Give a little bend in the knees and round up slowly.

Fingers soft,

Wrists soft.

Releasing effort.

From here,

Bringing the hands out in front.

Palms open up.

We'll pull the palms back.

Wrap the fingertips around.

Take them up and overhead and bring them back around.

We'll come through a few rounds.

Pull it back.

Spin the palms up like you're holding teacups and then draw it back.

And then see if you can change direction.

So now it comes forward,

Up and around.

Palms open out.

Open the elbows out and we'll go a little side to side.

Try to keep the eyes of the hips facing forward.

Opening up the upper back.

Getting the twist through the kidneys.

Kidneys at power transit point of food and nutrients.

Its ability to get rid of our waste and slowing it down.

Spin the toes in lightly as the toes spin in.

Bend the knees.

As you bend the knees,

Take the hands on the low belly.

Close your eyes here.

Knees are bent.

Heels are deep into the earth.

Deep dig in of the shins,

The feet into the earth.

Feel that again,

That inner land of the leg lifting up.

Elbows hang heavy.

Drop the drishti down toward the earth.

So maybe you're standing on wood plank that comes from a tree.

Here again,

I stand on coral that comes from the ocean.

These ways that we get to see this expression of nature,

Of solid,

Of form.

What we stand on,

What we're supported by.

Beautiful.

Stand up,

Heels in,

Toes out once again.

As they open out,

Bend the knees.

As you bend the knees,

Once again,

Lean forward.

Arms can go out wide or fingertips on the earth.

Belly lightly lifting up.

Knees pressing lightly back.

Heels spinning lightly forward.

Back of the neck long.

Collarbones reaching forward.

Last few breaths.

Hands come down.

Spin the heels out.

Toes lightly forward.

This time,

If you can,

Walk the hands between the feet.

Melt the crown of the head down.

Inhale.

We lengthen here.

Walk the hands over the right foot facing the right.

Lengthen.

Collarbones forward.

Spin that right hip back.

Exhale.

Fold in.

We'll come through a few rounds.

Inhale.

Lengthen.

Hug that right heel up toward the right sit bone.

Exhale.

Fold.

Lengthen.

And fold.

One more.

Long.

And fold.

Try to stabilize through the pelvis.

Right hand roots,

If you can,

Outside that right foot or inside.

Right hand on the sacrum.

Pull the right hip back.

Stay here or take the right arm up.

Right hand comes down.

Spin the toes forward and change to the left.

First inhale.

Lengthen.

Left hip back.

Exhale.

Melt in.

Keep going.

Following the breath.

That lengthening and lowering.

Rooting down through that right hand.

Left hand on the sacrum.

Open the left shoulder.

If you want,

Free that left arm up to the sky.

Left hand comes down.

Spin the toes forward.

A little spin out of the toes.

Open the feet a little bit wider.

Bend your right knee.

We'll pull the feet toward each other.

Again,

This is about finding that inner line in the legs.

Pull the feet.

Let that little hot air balloon underneath the belly.

Keep the hands down or float the arms up.

Pulling right heel toward left.

Then we walk more steady through our day.

We find that connection to the surface in which we're standing upon,

Which helps us arrive more fully into the moment.

Pull the feet together.

Change sides.

Change sides.

Pause here.

Hands down or extend out.

This helps pull us out of our busy of our mind,

Chasing into the past or the future.

Straighten out the left leg.

Heel toe the feet in toward each other.

Inhale.

Lengthen.

Inhale.

Lengthen.

And exhale.

Fold.

Few more like that.

Lengthen.

Simply folding over the legs.

Thigh bones out.

Shins lightly in.

Feet melt into the earth.

Arches of the feet.

Draw up.

Open and close.

Step the feet about as wide as the hips.

We'll bend the knees.

We'll come into Malasana.

Take the right hand of the heart.

The left hand of the earth.

Lift up into that right hand.

Five more breaths here.

Imagine you can have the sensation of little marble sliding underneath the knees,

Meaning really push down through the shins,

The ankles,

The feet.

Pulling that earth energy up from that left hand.

Hands to prayer at the heart.

Take a moment.

Thank yourself.

Thank the moment to take this grounding practice.

Thank you for joining me.

May you feel that strength of connectivity of the earth.

Namaste.