From our inner strength and alignment, we feel stable and confident in life. Let’s explore the subtle power of tadasana.
Feet firmly planted on the floor, spine perfectly aligned, and heart shining forward. You stand tall and proud. You feel as strong and unswayable as a mountain in the deceptively simple yoga pose of tadasana.
To outside observers, tadasana, or mountain pose, can look like nothing more than standing up straight and still. Those who have practised yoga for a while, however, know it requires a lot of subtle effort and dynamic focus. When mastered, it can be an emotional experience that invites a newfound sense of confidence, strength, and stability, not to mention a myriad of physical benefits.
This powerful pose is rich in symbolism. The name comes from the Sanskrit words ‘tada’, which means mountain, and ‘asana’, which translates to seat or posture. As Erich Schiffmann says in Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness, the pose “promotes the experience of stillness, strength, relaxed power, and immovable stability associated with mountains”.
STRONG BODY, STRONG MIND
One of the traits attributed to mountains is strength, and mountain pose embodies this both mentally and physically. Scanning the body as you stand tall enhances bodily awareness, which makes it easier to correct imbalances when working on more advanced postures. Headstands and handstands, for example, are similar postures in terms of alignment. Mountain pose can also be returned to between postures to rest, realign, and refocus. Knowing how the body should feel when properly supported may also reduce the risk of injury.
However, the benefits of mountain pose extend beyond the mat into modern day-to-day life. About four billion Australians have back problems, according to data from the most recent National Health Survey. Posture awareness can help to reduce aches and pains, and a review by the International Journal of Yoga suggests that mountain pose in particular can help soothe neck and back tension. Multiple studies have also found that yoga practice can improve balance, essential for preventing falls as we age. We practice the essential qualities for staying stable by grounding through our feet and focusing our attention while standing in this accessible posture.
Although most of us are now more sedentary than ever, we might feel we mentally have a million tabs open. Focusing on the breath, noticing thoughts, and scanning the body while practising the pose can help build mental clarity. When our attention is firmly anchored in the now, anxieties about the future and ruminations on the past can be released. This is the essence of mindfulness, a practice that has been proven to reduce stress, anxiety, and emotional reactivity. Yoga may also positively affect our self-esteem; low self-worth is associated with slumped shoulders and a drooping head, while mountain pose encourages us to stand straight with chin up and head held high.
MASTERING THE MOUNTAIN
Sophie Ng, a yoga, meditation, and Pilates teacher, believes yoga is not about how many shapes you can make on the mat, but the way you move through life. She emphasises that the postures are designed to make your body feel good and your mind clear, extending beyond the asana practice. Let’s practise with Sophie’s top tips for mastering mountain pose:
- Stand at the top of your mat with your feet firmly planted on the ground, as though they are the base of a mountain. Visualise grounding through your feet as your body extends towards the sky.
- Draw energy up from the earth beneath you as you scan every part of your body. Starting from the ground, switch on the muscles of your feet, in the soles and the tops. Switch on your ankles and lower legs. Work your way up your body like this until you get to your shoulders. Relax the shoulders down, away from your ears. Make the sides of your neck as long as possible. Feel the energy drawing up your body all the way to the crown of your head.
- Relax your face, eyes, throat, and soften your gaze. Allow your arms to fall naturally and lightly by the sides of your body, and let the palms face forwards.
- Breathe steady and visualise the strength resonating within your body.
- Test your balance by closing your eyes and turning your attention inwards. Alternatively, shift your weight forward and backwards, balancing on the balls of your feet and then on your heels.
- Experiment with your arms by raising them overhead with palms either facing each other or with fingers interlaced and palms facing upwards.
As with all yoga poses, mountain pose can be modified to suit your individual practice. You might try seated tadasana, sitting tall in a chair, grounding through your sit bones with your spine extended. Ensure knees are directly over ankles and legs are bent at a 90-degree angle. Relax your arms by your sides and scan your body, drawing energy upwards in this modification of mountain pose.
Standing tall and still like a mountain, grounded with the energy of Earth, feel your strength pulsing through your body. From this pose, you can walk off the mat, into your life, with the confidence to move mountains.
“May you stand just like a mountain in a storm along the sea and may you always find the answer, to be free” – James Conleevv
Cover image: fizkes on Shutterstock