The last post discussed how to move into a pose using simple clear language as a guide.  Today I would like to talk about what you say after you have guided your students into a pose.  This is the phase that I think about as carving your way into the pose.  The choice of words is important to elicit the correct response to ease your students into a pose more deeply. This phase has more to do with finding the correct alignment and structure for the pose followed by becoming more aware of what is happening while in the pose. Over the years I have been collecting phrases and various cues to move students into a pose and that helps them become more aware of what is happening energetically and spiritually on the inside as they hold a pose.   Here then are some of the cues I have gathered along the way.

Phrases to use when guiding students more deeply into a pose

• Coil into yourself (especially useful when your students are in sunbird pose and you are directing them to bring their knee to their elbow).
• Draw energy in
• Let your hands melt in front of your heart.
• Lift and lengthen.
• Spread the fingers and press into your index and middle fingers (cue for down dog).
• Coordinate your breath with the movement.
• Ride the breath.
• Round into yourself (tiger stretches).
• Spin open the shoulders (triangle).
• Lower the arms to the heart center then peel the arms away from each other (moving from Warrior I to Warrior II).
• Draw the heart through the hands (sphinx pose).
• Drape the chest over the thighs (standing forward bend ).
• Come up out of the waist or raise the lower ribs away from the waist.
• Expand the ribs like the gills of a fish ( 3 part breathing practice).
• Sweep the arms overhead.
• Expand across the collarbones.
• Ground the back heel.
• Release the shoulders away from the ears.
• Root down.
• Stand on your bones.
• Engage the back muscles (in cobra pose).
• Soften the knees.
• Allow gravity to ease you into the pose.
• Lengthen the left and right waist (Don’t collapse into the waist of the side you are extending towards).
• Press the outer edge of the foot into the mat.

And for the stage where transformation takes place:

In this stage my intention as the teacher is to fade to the background and let the student explore and feel in and around their own experience.  These expressions are used when the student is in a pause mode.  Some of the phrases I may use include:

• Dive inside!
• Let the pose unfold.
• Feel the effects of this pose.
• Can you find ease in this pose and still keep the pose active?
• What do you need to do to find ease in this pose?
• Where is the breath right now?
• What is arising?  Can you stay with the thoughts or feelings?
• Soften any gripping.
• Where is your sense of strength in this pose?
• Stay present for the experience.
• Explore the sensations.
• Follow the sensations
• Soften your breathing.

One of my teachers suggested that the best way to gather language cues is to read poetry.  I think she is on to something there.

Namaste,

Jai Bhagwan