Enter
- Start in Dvi Pāda Viparīta Daṇḍāsana with your legs straight.
- Interlace your fingers behind your head; ground your crown and forearms.
- Lift your chest and shoulders before walking.
Steps
Support
Crown and forearms stay grounded; feet alternate support while walking.
Hold
- Walk your feet around your head, clockwise first.
- Keep your head stationary and your forearms grounded.
- At each side, lift your opposite shoulder and turn your torso.
- Complete the circle; pause, breathe, and repeat counterclockwise.
Exit
- Return to the initial backbend; walk your feet closer, bend knees.
- Unlace your fingers; place your palms beside your head.
- Press your palms, lift your head, and lower your torso.
- Breathing
- Pause between directions and take several deep breaths.
- Duration
- Dynamic: one circle each way, with a pause between directions.
Adapt
Adaptations
- Base without circlingPractice the initial backbend without walking around your head.
- Wall for the basePlace your feet against a wall; practice only the initial backbend.
- Bent kneesKeep your knees bent in the initial backbend.
Variations
- From Śīrṣāsana: lower your feet into the backbend before circling.
Signals of effort
- Head below your pelvis.
- Weight on your crown and forearms.
- Deep spinal extension.
- One foot supports you during changes of orientation.