Pashasana: Conquering death through Yamas and Niyamas
Indian Mythology has a lot of ‘Sukshmams’ which means subtleties in the plots. For example the density and interconnection of the plots in Mahabharatha, the longest and one of the greatest epics in the world, is far more that that in any mystery or detective novel.
We saw one symbolism of Pashasana in the presentation titled “Mythology and symbolism behind Asanas-1″ (video audio recording at 27:10).
One practical benefit of doing Pashasana is that by learning to relax in a deep twist like Pashasana and breathing normally, one is able to handle difficult situations like physical pain, being in a MRI machine etc. with a lot more ease than without this training. The symbolism is that when Yama, the lord of death (and also the lord of fairness and Dharma) casts his celestial Lasso called the Pasha to retreive the atma, one is able to let go if the body with a lot more ease.
Read more in the link above for another important symbolism. If you are interested in learning more about the “Mythology and Symbolism behind asanas”, attend this presentation on July 16.
