Bidalasana

{{Short description|A kneeling posture in modern yoga}}

File:Yoga at Your Park - Bitilasana.jpg

File:Yoga at Your Park - Bidalasana.jpg

Bidalasana ({{langx|sa|बिडालासन}}; {{IAST-hi1|biḍālāsana}}) or Marjariasana ({{langx|sa|मार्जरीआसन}}; {{IAST-hi1|mārjārīāsana}}), both meaning Cat Pose in Sanskrit, is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise.{{Cite web |author=Anon |title=Cat Pose - Marjaryasana |date=28 August 2007 |publisher=Yoga Journal |url=http://www.yogajournal.com/pose/cat-pose/}} A variant with one leg held up is Vyaghrasana ({{langx|sa|व्याघ्रासन}}; {{IAST-hi1|vyaghrāsana}}), Tiger Pose; a similar variant with one leg held straight out is Chakravakasana ({{langx|sa|चक्रवाकासन}}; {{IAST-hi1|cakravākāsana}}), Sunbird Pose. A variant with the back lowered is Bitilasana ({{langx|sa|बितिलासन}}; {{IAST-hi1|bitilāsana}}), Cow Pose; this is often used as the counter-posture, and a widely used exercise is to alternate between Cat and Cow Poses repeatedly.

Etymology and origins

The name Bidalasana, {{lang|sa|बिडालासन}}, is from the Sanskrit {{lang|sa|बिडाल}}, {{lang|sa-Latn|biḍāl}}, meaning "cat", and {{lang|sa-Latn|āsana}} meaning "posture" or "seat".{{cite book |last=Holstein |first=Barbara B. |title=Shaping Up for a Healthy Pregnancy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g_QLAQAAMAAJ |year=1988 |publisher=Life Enhancement Publications |isbn=978-0-87322-926-5 |page=76}} The alternative name Marjariasana (also written Marjaryasana), {{lang|sa|मार्जरीआसन}}, is similarly from {{lang|sa|मार्जरी}}, {{lang|sa-Latn|mārjārī}}, also meaning "cat".{{cite journal |title=Cat Pose |journal=Yoga Journal |date=7 January 2019 |orig-year=2007 |url=https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/cat-pose}} A similar pose was described in Niels Bukh's early 20th century Danish text Primary Gymnastics as "prone-kneeling position",{{cite book |last1=Bukh |first1=Niels |author-link=Niels Bukh |title=Primary Gymnastics |date=2010 |orig-year=1924 |publisher=Tufts Press |isbn=978-1446527351 |page=42}} which in turn was derived from a 19th-century Scandinavian tradition of gymnastics.{{cite web |last=Singleton |first=Mark |author-link=Mark Singleton (yoga scholar) |title=The Ancient & Modern Roots of Yoga |url=https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/yoga-s-greater-truth |publisher=Yoga Journal |date=4 February 2011}}

A different asana, Marjarottanasana, meaning upside-down cat stretch pose, is illustrated in the 19th century Sritattvanidhi.{{cite book |last=Sjoman |first=Norman E. |author-link=Norman Sjoman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1BU2WI8wMpcC |title=The Yoga Tradition of the Mysore Palace |publisher=Abhinav Publications |year=1999 |orig-year=1996 |isbn=81-7017-389-2 |pages=81 and plate 14 (pose 82) }}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

A pose named Vyaghrasana or tiger pose is listed but not described in the 17th century Hatha Ratnavali.{{cite book |author=Srinivasa | first1=Narinder | editor1-last=Gharote | editor1-first=M. L. | editor2-last=Devnath |editor2-first=Parimal |editor3-last=Jha | editor3-first=Vijay Kant | title=Hatha Ratnavali Srinivasayogi {{!}} A Treatise On Hathayoga | year=2002 |publisher=The Lonavla Yoga Institute |isbn=81-901176-96 | pages=98–122 asanas listed; Figures of asanas in unnumbered pages between pages 153 and 154; asanas named but not described in text listed on pages 157–159 | edition=1 | url=https://archive.org/details/HathaRatnavaliSrinivasayogiATreatiseOnHathayogaEd.GharoteM.L.DevnathParimalDevNa/page/n191}}

Description

The practitioner kneels on all fours and slowly raises and lowers the back, transitioning in a gentle vinyasa between Cat and Cow Poses, and exercising the core muscles that support the spine.{{cite book |last=Schiffmann |first=Erich |title=Yoga The Spirit And Practice Of Moving Into Stillness |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hiTgrTElpL0C&pg=PA89 |year=2013 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4767-3562-7 |pages=89–94}}

The pose is considered in Sivananda Yoga to be suitable for use during pregnancy.{{cite book | last1=Lidell | first1=Lucy | last2=The Sivananda Yoga Centre | author2-link=Sivananda Yoga | title=The book of yoga | publisher=Ebury | year=1983 | isbn=978-0-85223-297-2 | oclc=12457963 | page=[https://archive.org/details/bookofyoga0000lide/page/166 166] | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/bookofyoga0000lide/page/166 }}

Variations

File:Home yoga workout.jpg

In variations of the pose, one leg is stretched out straight, and the knee of the stretched out leg may then be bent so the foot points straight up; the opposite hand may also be stretched out in Vyaghrasana, Tiger Pose{{cite web |title=Vyaghrasana – Tiger Pose |url=http://pranayoga.co.in/asana/vyaghrasana-tiger-pose/ |publisher=Pranayoga |access-date=4 February 2019 |date=27 July 2014}}{{cite web |title=Vyaghrasana: The Tiger |url=https://www.yogaindailylife.org/system/en/level-3/vyaghrasana |website=Yoga in Daily Life |access-date=29 March 2019}} The similar Chakravakasana, Sunbird Pose, has the leg and arm stretched out straight, horizontally.{{cite web |title=Sunbird Pose |url=https://www.yogapedia.com/definition/10333/sunbird-pose |website=Yogapedia |access-date=4 August 2022}}

Cat Pose is often alternated with Bitilasana, Cow Pose, where the belly and back are lowered and the hips and shoulders remain unmoved.{{cite web |title=Cow Pose |url=https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/cow-pose |publisher=Yoga Journal |date=7 January 2019 |access-date=27 April 2019}}{{-}}

References

{{Reflist}}

{{Asana}}

{{Yoga as exercise}}

Category:Backbend asanas

Category:Core strength asanas