Simha Krama: Lion Sequence.

Today, "experiment day" in the practice week, I did the Lion Sequence from MS's book.

I will spare details (because you should buy your own copy) but it is very backbendy and very sacrum-centered. MS said that he sometimes calls it "the sacrum sequence" and he told me, specifically, during the Minnesota workshop, that one student referred to it as "the Kapotasana sequence."

It develops, in Ashtanga-terms, probably both Kapo and Eka Pada Sirsasana.

The opening Chandra Namaskara is TOTALLY DELICIOUS. The various lunge sequences are powerful and fun. There is a whole shoulder flexibility sequence, in about eight different parts. I used a garden hose as a strap (what, you don't practice outside when it's 84 and beauty itself out there?) and it worked fantastically.

There are Ustrasana variations you absolutely WILL NOT BELIEVE. I pulled them all and some of them gave me SERIOUS "nadi shodana" hangover, a few breaths being necessary to really INTEGRATE the pose.

For the record: Half-lotus Krounchasana (heron pose) is freakin' HARD to do.

There were many new things, which I could do, and which I enjoyed. There were some new things I cannot CLOSE to do, and those were also fun. Great energy, great practice; giant, powerful vinyasa. Lunges, lotus variations, backbends, a fingertip Kapo come-up exercise (which both Karen and I received from MS).

I left out the inversions and closing twists, and the leg-behind-head developers (well, I tried one, but that wasn't what I was after) and MS says that one should pick and choose the sequences.

After the final backbending sequence, where I did pull myself up from fingertip Kapo dropback (yay!), I did three wheels and two half-bends, and also two wall dropbacks (wallbacks), and then two heels-up dropbacks on the mat, and I hit them BOTH, arms straight, head nowhere near the mat.

Raising the heels: in a wheel, this reduces the strain in the hip flexors and makes it easier (i.e., cheating) to press up. In dropping back, this again, eases the stretch on the hip flexors and allows the yogin to drop back without the threat of table-topping and thus landing on the head. It is, technically, a cheat, but right now, it works. MS had said to me, "I don't know that you can teach yourself this, but try this out" on the final Mysore day. I can; I have, taught myself this.

Standing up from a backbend is a mess; it has not come. The tendency, once I tip-toe a dropback, is to REMAIN tip-toed, and that simply DOES NOT WORK for standing up. Must master the foot-flat, foot-heavy, hips FORWARD motion. No matter.

I dropped back twice, and did not die. This is essential learning. Not dying must come first; control and neatness and ease come later.

Then I did a standard closing. My partner noted that, as I came into the house, I was rather unable to repress a grin. Good sequence?

As I've put in blog comments elsewhere: yes. The Simha Krama RULES.