vrksasana - tree pose

Vrksasana - tree pose is a one leg standing balance. The position of the foot and the arms can be adapted depending on the confidence in the strength and stability of the standing leg. The pose represents the strength and stability of a tree with the arms representing branches.

How do I get into Tree Pose?

Start in Tadasana, find even weight though the soles of both feet and bring your weight so it is even through the front and back of your feet. Settle your joints over each other and notice the strength of your stacked joints. With even weight in both feet, start to soften your right knee and start to send all the weight over to the right hand side of your body, keeping your spine long and the crown of the head reaching towards the ceiling. Take your time to adjust to having the weight on one side and then slowly lift your left foot from the ground. Find your stability here and then choose which variation of vrksasana you would like to start with. A buttressed tree could be with the heel of the left foot resting on the inside ankle of the right foot. You may choose to place the sole of your left foot on the soft calf muscle of your right leg. The full pose would have the sole of your left foot inside the thigh of your right leg with the toes pointing directly down towards the floor. Keeping the spine long, shoulders relaxed and face soft, find your drishti, your point to focus on. You can have your hands by your sides, they could be together at the heart in Anjali Audra, or lifted over head. The higher the hands, the greater the balance challenge.

Whilst in the pose, keep your breath long, feeling the stability as you exhale. To come out of the pose, move slowly, trying to maintain the balance as you place the left foot back on the ground, repeat on the other side.