There is wisdom in every yogasana. The asana practice is movement into wisdom and lettingthe posture initiate you into that wisdom. Holding the posture should be a period of realization.For most people, realizing something is bringing it down to earth and feeling it through theirsenses and perception. Asana works directly into that mode of realization: asana worksthrough the body. Asana also works indirectly to open the doors to the Self.

For many centuries, yogis have learned the depth of meaning and experience that is in eachposture. We are blessed if we feel this depth early in our practice. The physical challenge oftenobscures the depth of the experience. The realization comes later. However, having just aglimpse of the truth of this practice at an early time will keep you “hooked” on yoga even whenit is frustrating. It will help you to see beyond the physical.

This text will teach the less experienced students some yoga philosophy through asana practice.I hope that this process will give students something to focus on while holding the postures andserve as starting point for deeper philosophical experience.

Each asana practice is a journey into the philosophy of advaita vedanta, the essence of thephilosophy of non-duality. According to advaita there is only one reality: Brahman, the DivineConsciousness. Everything else is illusion. Our daily lives are illusions. Through the practiceof yoga we learn to discriminate between the real and the unreal. How many lives are youliving right now? Most people will differentiate between their home life and their work life,their inner life and their outer, their life as a mate, a child, a parent. Keeping all these livesgoing and in balance is very difficult psychologically. The stress is tremendous.

However, the good news is that all those lives are illusions. Nevertheless, as embodied humanbeings we must live in those illusions. That is true to some extent, but not totally. If we canrealize who we really are, our true Self then illusion falls into a different perspective. You can’tjust say suddenly that that problem is an illusion and walk away from it. But with knowledge ofthe Self, you can do all your duties in the world illusion with a new calm perspective.

Consider a yoga practice as learning a new way at looking at life. In the traditional yoga textswe are taught to not be deceived into thinking that all the “names and forms” are real. We mustlearn to discriminate between the Real and the unreal. The method outlined above is a practicalmethod of viveka, discrimation. The postures can bring us to Wisdom, the essence of tantra.

In the following pages, I share with you some of the discoveries I have made from the some ofthe postures. I hope that these will put you in the frame of mind to find the wisdom of thepostures as you hold them. The postures have a great variety of names forms. As you holdthem never lose track of the fundamental truth: what ever form your body takes you alwaysreturn to whom you really are, the Infinite Self.

Yogendra

Asana Guide to Yoga PhilosophyThe seedbecomesaware of itselfas Siva, but isonly inconsciousness–it has nopower.

Powerbecomesaware of itselfas Shakti. TheGoddess of Poweris here representedby utkatasana, thefierce posture.Usually called thechair posture, itreally is aboutspringing up withgreat energy.

Siva and Shakti becomeOne and their energy, thebasic energy of ouruniverse, is manifest in thesound of Om and thecosmic dance of Siva-Shakti(natarajasana). Siva and Shakti areinseparable, but in the dance they areshows as a male figure. The reality isquite different as stated playfully bySri Jnanadeva in his Amritanubhava;Ambrosial Experience I, 30: “Thehusband [Siva] has no form . . . [so]she [Shakti] made for him anornamental dress of forms and namesin the form of the universe.”

Before ouruniverse, therewas a seed of thepreviousuniverse:

Betweenuniverses, theseed is outside ofspace and time.

In the yoga practice,garbhasana (the wombposture) is thought of as arest posture. While it is abit about repose, it is alsoabout potential and birth.Here it is about the end ofthe old and a newbeginning.

This awareness is represented byvirasana, the heroic posture. Byslowing down the breathing, this isa very relaxing and contemplativeposture for self-awareness.

Invertebrates like thescorpion (vrishchikasana):

From the sound of Omarose all manner ofnames and forms:

Trees (vrkasana):

Trees are very dear to yogis. The connect us to nature through allfive of the traditional elements. Rooted in earth, they drawwater right from the source. Their lives are directly dependenton the fire of the sun. Fire around them is there greatest threat,but often grow back more vigorously after being burned by ablaze. Our lives are dependent on the oxygen they put into theair. Their magnificent size defines the space in our landscape.

The tree posture is also very dear to yogis. It is deeply satisfyingto practice it outdoors among the trees. The arm position opensthe chest for powerful breathing. The core hold makes our backslike the trunk of a palm, firm and supple. From the tips of thefingers to the soles of the feet we feel the upward alignment of thebody like reaching for heaven.

Like vrkasana, padmasana is one of the signature postures ofyoga. Some have said that all other yoga postures are merelypreparation for sitting in long periods of meditation in the lotusposture. The lotus posture is a symbol of the process of ourenlightenment. Our crossed legs, the roots of the lotus, resting inthe mud of the unconscious mind. The trunk, neck, and armsresting in and on the water of the pond represent the consciousmind. The flower bud stands in the open air of the superconsciousmind. The opening of the bud represents the process of ourenlightenment.

Who does not fear the sting of thescorpion? However, yogis have toconfront their fears.Vrishchikasana is a difficult andpotentially dangerous posture. Youcan only confront it when you areexperienced in yoga. So armedwith skill, strength, and flexibilityyou call on your breath and yourfocus to use this posture as yourlaboratory for learning toovercome fear.

Flowering plantslike the lotus(padmasana)

The locust posture imitates the upward tilt of the abdomen of thenamesake insect. Insects are characterized by their flexibilityand strength, especially in relation to size. For many of us,attempting salabhasana can be very humbling.. It is very goodfor inflated human egos to feel how inflexible our bodies havebecome. We should look at insects with wonder and awe.

Locust (salabhasana):

Fish (matsyasana):

The yogis knew that they were kin to theplants, animals, and the earth itself.Matsyendra, the Lord of the Fishes, was ayogi, but he was a fish, not a human Onceagain here in ardha matsyendrasana the legstake on the shape of a fish tail. We feel thecentral flexibility of the fish which turns sogracefully in the water–especially a yogicfish..

Ardha matsyendrasana:

Matsayasana does indeed make the yogi resemblea fish. In the extnded leg version, the body is longand sleek. With the legs in lotus and the fish“body” shortened, the yogi resembles a fantailgoldfish. But the fish posture is about much morethan looks, it is a transformational posture. Forsome of us who are deeply connected with water, itcan be almost a shamanic experience. The tilt ofthe head gives the feeling of looking upward to thefloor, as though looking up to the surface of the water. The arm-position, especially when held beneaththe body in the the extended-leg position gives a sense of armless like a fish. That position makes uswonder what it might feel like to have fins. The legs are rendered useless and we think of them as a tailfin. The breathing is very deep and powerful in this posture, felt from the rib cage down into thegroins. Imagine a plump goldfish when you breathe in this posture. The power of the breathingcompletes the transformational feeling.

Frog (manduka mudra):

Because of its big chest openingmanduka mudra makes you feellike you are breathing like a frog.Frogs seem to breathe with thewhole front of their bodies. Asyou sit on your lily pad, feel thebreathing from the shoulders allthe way down to the groins. Asyour hear opens, feel at one withnature at all of its beings.

Tortoise (kurmasama):

The cobra has a special placein Indian philosophy. AdiShankaracharya (b.788-d.820) wasthe greatest exponent of Advaita(Non-Dual) Vedanta philosophy. Innumerous passages in his manywritings he gives the example ofpeople who become terrifiedbecause they think that they see acoiled cobra in the dark of night. Inthe light of day they see that it ismerely a coiled rope. Life in theworld darkness of maya is filledwith fear and self delusion. In thelight, symbol of enlightenment, all isunderstood.

Patanjali (fl. 150 BCE), the authorof the yoga sutras, appears in templeimages with his upper part humanand his lower a coiled snake. This isperhaps to indicate that he was anincarnation of God Vishnu.

In the Tamil language of SouthIndia, the cobra is called nalapombu–the good snake. If you makehim feel good and respected, maybehe won’t bother you.

The tortoise. Pressed to theground, back rounded, with armsand legs feeling shortened,kurmasana gives us a strong senseof otherness. There is a strongstrain on the back. This reflectsthe burden of Kurmavatara, GodVishnu’s descent to Earth in theformo f a mighty tortoise. TheGods were churning the Ocean ofMilk to regain their nectar ofimmortality. They were usingMount Mandara as their churning staff. When it started to sink,Kurmavatara took the mountain on his back and kept it on thesurface. In our practice, the tortoise posture reminds us to slowdown, conserve our energy, and bear our burdens in life.

When the world is to much with you, like the tortoise withdraw intoyour shell. Bring your legs over your shoulders and link your anklesbehind your head. Reach your arms back and join your hands onyour lower back. You are now in the withdrawn tortoise posture.Notice how your forehead is pressed downward, reducing

Kurmavatara

Cobra (bhujanasana):

The clever crow (kakasana):

The predatory eagle (garudasana):

The peaceful pigeon(kapothasana):Lion (Simhasana):

We see ourselves in other species. Human beings anthropomorphize other animalsfor several reasons. We see admirable qualities in other animals. We tells stories aboutthese animals to instill these qualities in our children. This accounts for the popularity ofAesop’s fables and the Panchatantra. Anthropomorphizing also objectifies andstereotypes the animal. If we think of any being by only a few characteristics–whethergood or bad–that being is more a symbol to us rather than a fellow being. That creates adistance between us that gives us a rationale to hunt them, farm them, and put them atour disposal. As yogis progress in their spiritual practices, they see all beings as thesame: we are all One in the Supreme Brahman. Yogis do not not objectify orstereotype other beings, but rather treat them all with equal temperament.

Crows, with a brain capacity ofhumans, amuse and infuriate us withtheir antics. Unperturbed by ourscarecrows they eat our freshly sownseeds. Having seen children put coinson railroad tracks, they do the samewith stones. The result? Trainderailments. One crow species has atoolmaking culture. Because of theircleverness, many Hindus believe thattheir ancestors are reincarnated ascrows.

Many people identify with the predatory way of the eagle.However, its posture is all about the eagle’s sharp visionand powers of concentration.

The lion is a symbol of strength and power. Its posture invites us to let offsome steam in a posture where we can roar and get ready to pounce.

The dove or pigeon is the symbol of peace.As peaceful beings they have a clever wayof dealing with attack: If some of theirfeathers are held or stepped on they just letthem fall out. This gives them a chance tofly away. What a wonderful example of thepower of surrender! They stay at theirhomes from one generation to the next.They are quite willing to share theirterritory with human beings. Keep a carefulon the doves at your house eye on the dovesaround your house. You will see the sameones for many years. Dove couples arepartners for life. The asana shows the malepigeon puffed up in his mating ritual. For usit gives a great heart opening–so appropriatefor such a peaceful being.

When humans domesticated animals, they saw them as possessions. They became very attached to theirproperty. They emphasized their ownership by thinking “they are just animals, not like us.” In most Hinduphilosophical systems, all beings have the Self as their true essence, but only in a human lifetime does areincarnated soul have a chance at achieving Self-Realization. So, human beings share an essence with all otherbeings, but are also different. The yogi makes the choice to seek the essence, not the differences.

Domestic animals have the opportunity to move faster through their karmic lives by association with humanbeings–especially the more evolved ones. Humans are also helped on their karmic journey by their relationshipwith other animals, especially cows. Traditionally, cows are thought to have very evolved souls. Theseevolved souls are taking a rest life in the body of a cow. Human karma benefits by being around these evolvedbeings and treating them well. People should cause them no pain and should not eat them.

There is an illustrative story from the Siva Purana about a deer at an ashram. This deer was the friend of an oldholy man who fed it every day. The holy man was very evolved and had only one attachment on earth, thedeer. When the old man was just about to die his last thought was about the deer and who would take care of it.

So, in his next life the holy man was born as a deer near the ashram. This deer was very attracted to the holypeople and would sit quietly near them during philosophical discourses, meditation, and chanting. Because shewas a deer she did not try to figure out why she did this. She just felt comfortable with them. When it came hertime to die she was surrounded by the holy ones–they were the last thing she saw before dying.

So, in the next life she was reborn as a human. This boy was now so evolved and his karma so little, that heachieved enlightenment and liberation while he was still a child. He became a great saint and helped many,many people during his long life.

This story is often told to illustrate the danger of attachment. Had he not been so attached to the deer the holyman would would have died and achieved moksha (liberation) from samsara (the cycle of birth and death).Instead, he had to live two more lifetimes. However, his final incarnation was lived as a great saint who didmuch for the liberation of others. Clearly, he needed those two more lives to become ripe for liberation.

Our clean cat:

Our devoted dog (adhomukha svanasana):

Cats have been described as being the soul of a house; elusive and hard to find,but always present. They are lithe and sinuous hunters. The cat posture andmovements are intended to give this suppleness to our spines. Very clean withtheir own bodies, they keep the human house they occupy free of vermin. Hereis an intriguing karmic question: if a yogi who is pledged to non-violence keepsa cat, does the cat’s killing of rodents affect the yogi’s karma negatively?

The mutual devotion between human and canine is one of the greatestongoing love stories of our planet. In the conclusion of Mahabharata, thegreat Indian epic, the last remaining hero, Yuddhisthira, is ready to leaveEarth and enter heaven. For many years he has been accompanied in hiswanderings by a devoted dog. So when the ladder came down from heaven,Yuddhisthira picked up his dog and started climbing. Heaven’s gatekeepertold him that dogs may not enter heaven. Yuddhisthira said that under nocircumstances would he enter heaven without his dog and he descended theladder back to the ground. When he put the dog back on the ground, itinstantly transformed itself into Dharma, the God of right action. Dharmatold Yuddhisthira that he had done the right thing in being loyal to his dogand he could now enter heaven. Downward facing dog imitates a familiardog stretch. Think of it as an illustration of bhakti the supreme devotion ofhuman to God and God to human.

Our munificent cow (gomukhasana):

The cow head posture (gomukhasana) is often disliked by yoga studentsas well as teachers. It is very demanding in the flexibility of bothshoulders and hips. On the other hand, it is very satisfying in its parallelstretches of shoulders and hips simultaneously. We tend to view ourbodies divided into separate units,perhaps influenced by anatomicaldrawings or how we isolate muscles inweight training. One of the goals of yogais to discover the unity of ourselves–spiritually as well as physically. That iswhy yoga is often part of holistic healingregimens. When all of its challengingparts come together, gomukhasana givesinsights into our physical integration.

In many cultures, cattle becameprized possessions because theywere a source of wealth. Althoughthey are owned in India, they livevery freely. They are out out toforage every day. They wanderfreely around cities and thecountryside with very little chanceof theft and and almost no chanceof harm. Indians consider cows tobe very munificent creatures. MostIndians are lactose-tolerant people,so milk, butter, cream, yogurt, and

How to do the posture: Sitting onyour mat, bend your left leg on thefloor in front of you so the that theknee is lined up with the center ofyour chest. Then bend the rightknee and place it right on top of theleft. Rest both forearms on theknees and the let the weight of theupper body press on the knees.Breathe slowly and smoothly andhold the posture for a minute as thehips relax.

Come back up to sitting. Reach yourleft hand behind and up the middleof your back. Reach your right handup, then bend your elbow. Reachyour right hand down to join yourleft. Keep your right elbow up andback, so that your back stays uprightand firm. Fold forward from the hipby keeping the back straight andform. Fold forward and holdgomukhasana for 30-60 seconds.Keep the right shoulder lifted andyour back straight.

Repeat the posture on the oppositeside

For most yogis, the leg position is most challenging. The knees are placed one atop the other. This flexibilitytakes a long time to develop with its demands on many areas of the hips. The shoulder flexibility for the armportion can be helped by using a strap between the hands. By keeping the upper elbow firmly upward, the backis held straight. This way the bend forward into the complete posture deepens the hip opening.

What does this have to do with the head of a cow? That configuration can only be seen from above. The legsand feet form the cow’s ears. The upper elbow and head form the cow’s muzzle and tongue. Bumps on thecow’s head are echoed in the yogi’s sitting bones (ischeal protuberances of the pelvis).

Other than for physical flexibility, why would people want to bend themselves into such a shape? The key totantric yoga such as hatha yoga is that the body leads us to Self-knowledge. The seventeenth-century Dutchphilosopher Benedict de Spinoza had some great insights into this process. In part 5 (Of Human Freedom) ofhis Ethics, he puts forth this proposition: "He, who possesses a body capable of the greatest number ofactivities, possesses a mind whereof the greatest part is eternal."

In his elaboration on this proposition he says: "[H]e, who, as in the case of an infant or a child, has a bodycapable of very few activities, and depending, for the most part, on external causes, has a mind which,considered in itself alone, is scarcely conscious of itself, or of God, or of things; whereas, he, who has a bodycapable of very many activities, has a mind which, considered in itself alone, is highly conscious of itself, ofGod, and of things.” How does asana make our minds more eternal, more divine? Our bodies changepositively. We can see it. We feel it. We become freer.

many people. Aren’t yogis supposed to be nonviolent? Why involve wisdom with war? This life and deathsituation makes Arjuna’s inner crisis extreme and urgent.

In discouse II, verse 50, Krishna tells us “yoga is skill in action,” but what is right action? To know that,you must understand the workings of the universe and who you are. Arjuna was born to be a warrior,trained to be a warrior, but could only become fully comfortable with that dharma (right action) when heunderstood his place in the universe. The warrior postures, like the Gita, call upon us to find out who wetruly are.

With weapons like the bow and arrow, they were ableto hunt more and protect their possessions fiercely.They became very skillful archers and warriors.Focus, concentration, flexibility, and strength arerequired for the practice of the shooting bow andwarrior postures. The chest-opening of warrior 1 and 3give us a bold and exuberant feeling. Together, theseform the bhava, or inner attitude of the warrior and thewarrior postures. Bhava is very powerful: it can be ashamanic transformation. While holding the postureswe can truly find our inner warrior, our inner hero.

As people became more possessive of what they had, they hoarded and protected them. The more theyhad the more they became attached to things. They became caught in an endless cycle of the fulfillmentof desires.

In the 18 discourses of the great yogascripture, Bhagavad-Gita (The Songof God), Lord Krishna convinces thewarrior Arjuna that it is his yoga tofight. Arjuna was just about to enterinto battle, when he became deeplyshaken by the prospect of killing histeachers and members of his family.Lord Krishna, as his charioteer,imparts wisdom to him right on thebattle field. The Gita is perplexing for

Warrior 1(virabhadrasana 1)

Warrior 3(virabhadrasana 3):

In yoga we always try to be in the moment. Warrior 2 does just that. If yourupper body leans forward you are centering on what has not yet happened. Ifyou lean backward you are centering on what already happened. If yourtorso is plumb to the floor you are centered in the now, in the moment. Thisis one of the reasons why this is one of the most beloved postures in yoga.

Warrior 2(virabhadrasana 3)

Shooting bow (akarna dhanurasana): Yoga arose in the era in which the bow was the preeminent weapon forwarfare and hunting. It took life and kept life safe. Philosopherspondered the contradiction. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus (ca. 500BCE) saw the irony in that the letters for the for the words bow (bios)and life (bios) are the same, but the accent is different. “The bow's nameis life, though its work is death,” he wrote. Heraclitus’ method is tomake us think about such conundra. Can we move beyond the pair ofopposites of life and death to a unity that comprises both?

In another place he wrote “As the arrow leaves the string, the hands arepulling opposite ways to each other, and to the different parts of the bow,and the sweet note of the lyre is due to a similar tension and retension:the secret of the universe is the same.” Here the opposites are not ironic,but profound. They are how the bow and harp work, as well as theuniverse itself

In akarna dhanurasana we feel the opposite tensions unifying into a single focus. In the posture pictured here,the left leg is flattened to the floor while the left arm and hand pull back on the left foot. The backward flexionof the left foot helps press the left leg to the floor. With the right arm strongly pulled back, the right hand pullsthe right foot up to the right ear. We accomplish this through a deep surrender in the right hip. These forcesand counterforces lock us into the deep, unified focus of the archer.

This very position of the archer, is often used to illustrate agami karma, future fruit-bearing actions. This is the moment of truth: will you act with self-knowledge orwill you act headlessly for which you will have to face the karmic consequences?The posture represents choices you can make. Once the arrow is shot, it isprarabdha karma: nothing can change it–it will affect your life and the lives ofothers.

Bows are very important in the Indian epics. In Ramayana, when Rama (an avatarof God Vishnu) seeks to marry Sita he must prove his strength to her father, KingJanaka. No one other than God Siva has been strong enough to bend the bow tostring it. Rama not only bends it but breaks it. Even this is not without karmicconsequences.

During their exile later, Sita complains of the constant killing that Rama and hisbrother do. She blames the weapon for the deaths. Having the bows and arrowsleads us to do things we would not do if we did not have them.

Mahabharata has many stories involving bow and arrows. However, one is apowerful cautionary tale about an unscrupulous guru. Ekalavya wanted to becomean excellent archer. He sought to be the student of the great archery guru, Drona.However, Drona who was a member of a high and dominating caste rejectedEkelavya because he was an adivasi, a tribal person, not even in the caste system.

Ekalavya was not deterred. Outside his forest home he made a mud image of Dronaand worshipped him as his guru. Through practice and worship he became aremarkable archer. When Drona heard about Ekalavya’s skills he was afraid that hewould become a threat to his prize student, Arjuna. Drona and Arjuna went to seeEkalavya. Seeing his guru, Ekalavya prostrated before him and asked what heshould do. Drona told him to cut off his right thumb, which he promptly did for hisguru. Traditionally, Ekalavya is extolled as the devoted student, but in the modernworld the moral of the story is “know your guru.” Ignorance can be disastrous.

The warrior way of life is very strange to most yogis. However,they know that different ways of life are part of dharma and thegreat cycle of the universe. Often we must recognize that there islittle we can do to change these cycles. A posture likemarichyasana (right), named for Sage Marichi, teaches us how tosurrender to what we cannot understand or change.

Visvamittrasana (below)is named for an ancient yogi who wasalways in control. Vishvamittra ia an example of the yogi asmagician. He knew how to manipulate the world illusion to getwhat he wanted. His yoga practices were so extreme and powerfulthe Gods gave him anything he wanted. People feared him becausehis curses were deadly. His energetic, athletic posture(Vishvamittrasana) requires skill, strength, and determination.

But some yogis wanted to look at the world in a different way. Insirshasana, we quite literally turn the world upside down. Theyrediscovered their oneness with all beings and advocated a life ofnon-violence to oneself and to all others–human or otherwise. Allyogis should think and speak the truth. Yogis should be satisfied andgrateful for what they have, and not destroy the present moment withdreams or acquiring more and more. They wanted to be at peace withthe world around them and follow its natural cycles.

The Sun Salutations, Surya Namaskara, remind us of the cycle of the day and our relationship to theheavens and Earth. We stand facing the sun with our feet rooted to the Earth. We bring our hands together inanjali mudra and greet the light illuminating us. We open our arms outward to receive the Divine into ourhearts. We reach forward, up, and back in gratitude. We fold deeply filled with bhakti, devotion, to our chosenDeity. Receiving the energy from the Earth we spring back into chaturanga dandasana, the four-limned stickposture. This light balance on our hands and toes reflects our love for the Earth by treading lightly on it.Sliding into cobra, bhujangasana, we experience and express our unity with all other beings. Deep indownward-facing dog, adho mukha svanasana, we bow to our Deity or Nature itself. Filled with energy, wespring forward into a bow of gratitude. We reach out, up, and back to receive once again the energy andillumination of the sun before returning to a reflective tadasana, mountain posture.

Now lift the back and lower the armsand come into tadasana, themountain pose.Inhale and pull the shoulder bladestogether and open the chest.Exhale, relax the shoulder blades, andbring your hands in front of the heartin anjali mudra.Inhale and in a continuous movementreach your arms out, up, back, andspread your arms as you come into abackbend. Release deeper into thisback bend with each repetition of thesurya namaskara (sun saluatations).Center your movement in and out ofthis backbend by the by the contractionand relaxation of the gluteus musclesof the buttocks.Exhale and fold forward into astanding forward bend.Inhale as you bend the knees a bit andslightly relax the arms. Exhale, jumpup, press strongly with your arms, andglide back. As you glide back, think:“Slow down!” This will bring you intoa graceful movement.When your feet touch the ground,inhale as you move into chaturangadandasana (four-limbed stickposture) and exhale into the posture.Inhale into bhujangasana (cobraposture). Remember to grip the floorand pull the chest forward. Relax theshoulders and have the arms touchingthe rib cage.Tuck the toes under. Exhale, presswith the arms, and push the hips upinto down ward-facing dog posture.Inhale, bend the knees slightly andcome up on the toes. Jump up and useyour arm and shoulder strength tojump the feet forward between thehands.Inhale and reach your arms out up andback into a backbend.Exhale and lower your arms to yoursides in tadasana.You have now completed one roundof the surya namaskara.

The moon postures, crescent moon (ardha chandrasana) and full moon (chandrasana) remind us not only ofthe heavens but also of terrestrial changes through the lunar month, such as the tides. The light of the moon inthe darkness traps us in illusion that is even more powerful than during daylight. Even though the moon takesus down false paths, it also helps us see more clearly than during the day what illusion really is. Thus the mooncan take us down a special path of enlightenment. For this reason, it appears as the crescent moon inpersonifications of wisdom. Both Goddess Isis and the Virgin Mary stand on the crescent moon, as though theillusory world is something you must pass through to get to them. God Siva wears the crescent in his hair toindicate that he has gone beyond all illusion.

From the womb posture (garbhasana) to our final rest in the corpse posture (shavasana) we are reminded ofthe great cycle of our lives and the illusion of birth and death

All of this–the universe itself–is nothing more than aplay of energy, an illusion on the screen of universalconsciousness. No yogi has ever expressed this play ofconsciousness more eloquently Sage Vasishtha.Through the many stories that make up the YogaVasishtha which seem like the ancient precursors of thesci-fi fantasy genre, he does for the mind what hathayoga does for the body. He warns us frequently not to bedeluded by what appears to happen. He often uses theexample of a crow alighting in a coconut palm and acoconut falls. Many people would assume that one thingcaused the other. He wants us to think just the oppositeway: don’t contribute to the illusion by elaborating itwith an idea cause and effect. In his elegant posture(Vasishthasana), one hand and one foot are on the earth,while the other hand and foot point to the heavens. Itshows the delicate balance of living in the world illusionknowing that Reality is something else.

This posture is a beautiful expression of the mystery of hatha yoga. It operates in two worlds, the Realworld and the illusory world. That is why in the performance and perfection of asana we can havemoments of deep insight or even mystical revelation.