” Day after day let the yogi practice harmony of soul; in a secret place, in deep solitude, master of his mind, hoping for nothing, desiring nothing.” – Bhagavada Gita
Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend Pose) is a seated foundational pose, wherein, the upper body is folded forward over the legs and the forehead rests on the knees or below by bending the arms and griping the wrists beyond the outstretched feet. The word “Paschimottanasana” literally translates as “the stretching of the west” because in India it is traditional to face east, the land of the rising sun, both to pray and to practice asanas. So the “west” is the whole of the back of the body, from the heels and the Achilles tendons to the crown of the head and the backs of the hands and tips of the fingers. The real purpose of this asana is to facilitate the movement of the breath in the back.