One of the extraordinary aspects of the postural practice documented in the eighteenth-century Haṭhābhyāsapaddhati is that it includes dynamic, moving āsanas. Many of these āsanas are unique in the haṭhayoga corpus.
An example of a dynamic standing āsana is ‘Jumping over the threshold’ (dehalyullaṅghanāsana).
DEHAYULLAṄGHANĀSANA
Jumping over the threshold [pose]
Clasping both hands together, [the yogi] should jump both feet inside [the hands], outside, and inside [again]. [This] is the “jumping over the threshold [pose].”
hastadvayaṃ baddhvā tanmadhye caraṇadvayam uḍḍānena bahir ānīya antaḥ nayet dehalyullaṅghanaṃ bhavati | 86 |
(Translation Birch 2020.)
This āsana is quite challenging. The idea is to jump through your hands, and back again, while keeping them interlaced. Above you can see an illustration of 'Jumping over the threshold pose' from a manuscript of the Haṭhābhyāsapaddhati. Below is a reconstruction of this āsana on the cover of Journal of Yoga Studies (volume 2), which was very skilfully performed by Ruth Westoby.
HAṬHĀBHYĀSAPADDHATI
A Precursor to Modern Yoga
A 12-hour online course with Dr. Jason Birch and Jacqueline Hargreaves.
4 weeks • September 8 – October 1, 2020
Enrolment closing soon!