Dhanurasana is otherwise called Urdva Chakrasana or Bow Pose. This name originally comes from two Sanskrit words such as Dhanura meaning “bow” and Asana meaning “seat” or “posture”. In Dhanurasana you raise the two halves of your body at once, properly combining the two movements of Locust and Cobra, as well as countering the forward bend and plough. Similar to the archer stringing the bow, people can use their arms and hands in order to pull their legs and trunk up together for forming the curve. It tones the back muscles as well as maintains your spine’s elasticity, increasing vitality and improving posture. You can balance the entire weight of your body on abdomen also minimizes your abdominal fat. Along with this, it also keeps your reproductive and digestive system healthy. Dhanurasana not only brings some health benefit, but also provides the internal organs an excellent and powerful massage. In the beginning, you will really find it simple to lift the knees with your legs apart. It is one of the most important and highly preferred yoga posture well known for its advantages and health benefits such as treating asthma, weight loss, increasing supple and flexibility, strengthening your lower back and more.

Description:

• You can lie on the belly by using your hands next to the torso and palms up. You can exhale as well as bend the knees, brining your heels close to the buttocks. After that, you can reach back with the hands and get hold of the ankles. Ensure that the knees are not wider than your hip’s width, and maintain the hip width of your knees for the time of this pose.
• You can inhale as well as lift the heels strongly away from the buttocks and, at a time, lift the thighs away from floor. It will have an effective pulling the upper torso as well as head off your floor. You can burrow your tailbone lower down toward floor, and then keep the back muscles very soft.
• As you persist lifting the thighs and heels higher, press the shoulder blades tightly against the back in order to open heart. You can draw your tops of shoulders away from the ears. Now, you can gaze forward.
• With your belly pressed alongside the floor, the breathing process will be little difficult. You can breathe higher into your torso back and make sure not to stop breathing.
• You can stay in the pose anywhere from twenty to thirty seconds. Finally, you can release as lie quietly and exhale for some breaths. Repeat this pose for more than two times daily.

Breathing activities while doing Dhanurasana

Firstly, you need to exhale properly. Now you can deeply inhale while raising the body up. And during maintaining this pose, you can continue very slow exhaling and inhaling. While, going to the initial position, you have to exhale deeply.

Duration:

You can continue this posture for 15 to 20 seconds for better results. After 15 to 20 seconds, you can release your position and relax.

Benefits:

• Weight loss: It brings better stretch on your abdominal sides and abdomen. Continuous practices of Dhanurasana helps you to shed as well as burn your body fat easily. Along with this, it also bring complete toned shaped to your entire body.
• Effective for lethargy: It is extremely helpful for reducing lethargy. This asana works on your solar plexus directly at navel region. These nerves offer better efficiency and improved working of major organs like reproductive, eliminative and digestive.
• Massage Liver: This yoga pose ensure better functioning of overall abdominal organs. It also massages your liver that aids digestion.
• Blood cleansing: Dhanurasana helps to effectively flush blood to your overall body and various organs.
• Kidney health: If you perform this pose properly, your kidneys function well and effectively.
• Strengthens the spinal column: This asana rejuvenates and refreshes your spinal column.
• Cures asthma: This yoga pose helps people to remove the hunching bent of asthmatics, which aggravates the ill health. Along with this, it also leads to the free air flow through your nasal passage.
• Cures back pain: Dhanurasana is an excellent asana that brings good stretch to your nerve, ligaments and muscles which are beneficial for getting better relief from back pain.

Precautions:

The person who is suffering from headache, abdomen surgery, high blood pressure, back pain, migraine and hernia should not practice this Dhanurasana. Females should not perform this yoga pose during the pregnancy as well as during monthly periods.

Complementing asana:

Dhanurasana includes many preparatory poses such as Bhujangasana, Setu Bandha Sarvangasana, Salabhasana, Supta Virasana, Urdhva Mukha Svanasana and Virasan. Once you do this pose successfully, you can perform some follow up poses, including Matsyasan, Urdhva Dhanurasana, Setu Bandha, Urdhva Mukha Svanasana, Sarvangasana and Ustrasana.