Dhanurasana

 This pose is so called because it looks like an archer's bow, the torso and legs representing the body of the bow, and the arms the string. The spinal cord is the most important and most subtle part of the body. Most asanas involve the spinal column. The asanas are designed to cultivate the root of our tree of life, the spinal column. This asana helps to develop the spine.This asana is also called the Bow pose. In this asana, the focal point of concentration is the spinal column. Just relax in this posture. With full awareness and concentration, feel the pull exerted in the spine and back muscles. Know your flexibility, and do not strain beyond a point. Thoughts must be gently brought back to focus, if they tend to drift away. The mind must be fixed on the bodily movements and should be relaxed. 

Steps to perform:-


Lie on your belly with your hands alongside your torso, palms up. (You can lie on a folded blanket to pad the front of your torso and legs.) Exhale and bend your knees, bringing your heels as close as you can to your buttocks. Reach back with your hands and take hold of your ankles (but not the tops of the feet). Make sure your knees aren't wider than the width of your hips, and keep your knees hip width for the duration of the pose.

Inhale and strongly lift your heels away from your buttocks and, at the same time, lift your thighs away from the floor. This will have the effect of pulling your upper torso and head off the floor. Burrow the tailbone down toward the floor, and keep your back muscles soft. As you continue lifting the heels and thighs higher, press your shoulder blades firmly against your back to open your heart. Draw the tops of the shoulders away from your ears. Gaze forward.

With the belly pressed against the floor, breathing will be difficult. Breathe more into the back of your torso, and be sure not to stop breathing.

Stay in this pose anywhere from 20 to 30 seconds. Release as you exhale, and lie quietly for a few breaths. You can repeat the pose once or twice more.

Benefits:-

This asana has numerous benefits. It is a combination of two asanas (Bhujangasana - the cobra pose, in which only the front of the torso is raised, and the Shalabhasana or the grasshopper asana, in which the legs are raised).

Strengthens the back and abdominal muscles

Stimulates the reproductive organs 

Opens up the chest, neck and shoulders

Tones the leg and arm muscles

Adds greater flexibility to the back

Good stress and fatigue buster

Relieves menstrual discomfort and constipation

Helps people with renal (kidney) disorders

In addition, it is also found to be extremely beneficial for diabetics and those with constipation problem.

Precautions:-

Do not practice Bow Pose (Dhanurasana) if you have high or low blood pressure, hernia, neck injury, pain in the lower back, headache, migraine or a recent abdominal surgery.

Ladies should avoid practicing this yoga pose during pregnancy

BHUNJASAN

      

The Cobra Pose or Bhujangasana, also known as the snake pose, belongs to the category of backbends. It is one of the simpler of these poses and is in fact a basic backbends that needs to be learnt and practiced by any practitioner before moving on to advanced backbends. No matter how simplistic some postures may appear, their relevance and benefits can not be questioned as they are the product of millennia of practice and perfection. All of the poses in yoga have an important role to play and none of them are meant to be practiced as individual exercises. They are instead practiced in flowing sequences, with the practitioner moving from one posture to the next.No matter how simple or trivial a pose may seem do not discard it as being unimportant or of no relevance. The Cobra Pose yoga is of particular relevance to beginners, but it is also useful to more advanced students, because it does offer a number of health benefits and also prepares your body for the more advanced back bends. Practice of the Cobra Pose or bhujangasana yoga will help to prepare you for the leg work and pelvic movements required in back bends. It in fact works on the pelvis, legs and belly. When executed perfectly your spine will extend gracefully, with the support of your legs, while the pelvis and belly work in unison to decompress and provide support to the lower back.
Apart from the relevance of the Cobra Pose in your growth and development as a practitioner of yoga, there are also many health benefits to be derived.

Permorming the Asana:-

Bent both the elbows and location the palms on the floor by the side of the last rib bone.

Slowly lift the head and then lift the chest/ Feel the weight of the body at the lumber area.

fetch the chest and head down, touching the floor with the chin.

Release the hands and place them above the head area on the floor that is. come back to the main point.Breathe out at whatever time you bend downwards and breathe in air while coming up. normal breathing in the final position.

Benefits of Bhunjasan:-

The Cobra Pose helps to reduce both back and neck aches, and it also helps to keep your spine supple and healthy. The arching motion of the spine helps to improve circulation and blood flow in the region. The nerves along the spine are also toned, and this improves communication between your brain and the rest of your body.
The Cobra Pose also exercises some pressure on the abdominal region, and this acts in a stimulation manner, particularly for the digestive organs. It therefore helps to normalize your appetite, and relieve flatulence or constipation.
It helps improve both liver and kidney functions.
It strengthens the adrenal glands and thereby improves the balance of hormone secretions. It also enhances the functioning of the thyroid glands.
It improves breathing as it expands and stretches the chest. This very same moment also helps correct posture.
It is also therapeutic and in certain cases is part of the routine for a slipped disc and sciatica.