Seated Yoga Poses

Sukhasana

A simple cross-legged seat for breathing, meditation, and the start or end of practice. "Easy" refers to the shape, not the sitting — most adults need a lift under the hips to stay comfortable.

Dandasana

The seated equivalent of Mountain Pose: legs straight out, spine tall, whole body quietly active. Staff Pose is the reference point every other seated pose starts from.

Paschimottanasana

A full fold over straight legs that stretches the entire back of the body, from heels to neck. The work is in folding from the hips and being patient — not in grabbing your feet.

Janu Sirsasana

A one-leg-at-a-time forward fold: one leg straight, the other bent with the foot at the inner thigh. Folding over a single leg makes it gentler and more adjustable than the full seated fold.

Baddha Konasana

Soles of the feet together, knees wide — the classic hip and inner-thigh opener. Where your knees hover is up to your hips, not your effort, so let props do the holding.

Virasana

Kneel and sit between your heels with the spine tall. Hero is a wonderfully grounded meditation seat and a quiet stretch for the thighs and ankles — with a block under the hips it works for almost everyone.

Vajrasana

A simple kneeling seat with the hips resting on the heels. Thunderbolt is the everyday sitting posture of much of the world and the traditional seat for several breathing practices.

Malasana

A deep squat with the feet flat, heels down if they'll go, and palms together at the chest. Garland restores a resting position most adults have lost — a blanket under the heels brings it back within reach.

Mrigasana

One leg folded in front, the other folded behind, both knees bent at roughly right angles. A gentle Yin staple that reaches both internal and external hip rotation without asking much of the knees.

Ardha Kurmasana

Kneeling with hips on heels, arms stretched long overhead, palms together, forehead to the floor. A Bikram-series resting pose that stretches the shoulders and spine while the body settles.

Vajrasana (toes tucked)

Kneel, tuck all ten toes under, and sit back on your heels. Simple to describe and famously intense to hold — a Yin staple that wakes up the soles of the feet and toes like nothing else.

Simhasana

Kneel, inhale deeply, then exhale with a roar: mouth wide, tongue stretched out, eyes lifted. Lion is deliberately undignified — it releases the face, jaw, and throat, and it's very hard to take yourself too seriously while doing it.

Nadi Shodhana

Breathe in through one nostril, out through the other, alternating in a slow, even rhythm guided by your fingers. One of the most reliably settling breath practices — good before meditation, sleep, or anything that needs a steady head.

Ujjayi Pranayama

A slow nasal breath with the throat slightly narrowed, producing a soft ocean-like sound. Ujjayi is the soundtrack of Vinyasa and Ashtanga practice — audible enough to follow, never forced enough to strain.

Trianga Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasana

A forward fold with one leg straight and the other folded back beside the hip, as in Hero Pose. The asymmetry challenges your balance and asks a lot of the folded knee, so props are your friend here.

Marichyasana

A seated fold with one knee bent upright, foot planted, and the arms wrapped around the shin to bind behind the back. The bind looks like the point, but the fold over the straight leg is where the pose lives.

Paripurna Navasana

Balance on your sitting bones with legs and chest lifted into a V. Boat is honest, hard core work — a bent-knee version with a lifted chest beats straight legs with a collapsed back every time.

Upavistha Konasana

Legs wide, torso folding forward between them. Range here varies enormously between bodies — an upright spine with legs wide is already the pose; the floor is optional.

Ardha Padmasana

One foot on the opposite thigh, the other tucked below — the honest middle step between Easy Pose and full Lotus. A stable, sustainable meditation seat in its own right.

Gomukhasana

Knees stacked one over the other, one arm reaching over the shoulder and the other up the back to clasp. It stretches hips and shoulders at once, and almost nobody's hands meet on both sides — that's what straps are for.

Agnistambhasana

Shins stacked parallel like two logs, one ankle over the opposite knee. One of the most direct outer-hip stretches in yoga — intense for most people, so build the shape with props rather than force.

Sasangasana

A kneeling forward curl: crown toward the floor near the knees, hands holding the heels, spine rounded into a full arc. Rabbit is the counterpose to deep backbends like Camel — the pull on the heels does the work, not pressure on the head.

Ubhaya Padangusthasana

Balance on your sitting bones holding both big toes, legs straight and chest lifted into a V. It's Boat Pose with a grip — the balance point behind the sitting bones matters more than how straight the legs are.

Kapalabhati

Rapid, sharp exhales driven by the belly, with passive inhales in between. Kapalabhati is an energizing, warming breath practice — learn it slowly and on an empty stomach, and let the exhale do all the work.

Agni Pran

A rapid, rhythmic breath with equal, active inhales and exhales pumped from the navel — the signature breath of Kundalini yoga. It's related to Kapalabhati but continuous and balanced, and it deserves the same cautions.

Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana

A forward fold with one leg in half lotus and the same-side arm wrapped behind the back to bind the foot. This is an advanced Ashtanga pose that demands genuinely open hips — build it in stages and never crank the knee.

Padmasana

Each foot rests on the opposite thigh in the classic meditation seat. Lotus requires unusually open hips — for many bodies it is a years-long project or simply not the right shape, and no meditation benefit depends on it.

Baddha Padmasana

Full Lotus with each arm wrapped behind the back to hold the opposite foot. This asks for open hips and open shoulders at once — an advanced shape with no shortcut, traditionally paired with a forward bow.

Kurmasana

A deep forward fold with the arms threaded beneath the knees, torso lowering toward the floor. Tortoise demands very open hamstrings, hips, and back — approach it as a slow, multi-year fold rather than a shape to force.

Garbha Pindasana

From full Lotus, the arms thread through the gaps behind the knees and the hands rise to the face, folding the body into a compact ball. An advanced Ashtanga pose that entirely depends on a comfortable, pain-free Lotus.

Parivrtta Surya Yantrasana

One leg extends up and behind the shoulder while the opposite arm arcs overhead to hold the foot, the chest spiraling open. Compass needs open hamstrings, hips, and side body all at once — the strap version is the real pose for most practitioners.

Krounchasana

Seated with one leg folded back and the other held straight up toward the face. Heron is a concentrated hamstring stretch stacked on a Hero-style knee fold — a strap and an upright spine beat a rounded grab at the foot.

Hanumanasana

One leg forward, one leg back, pelvis lowering toward the floor. The full split is a long-term project in hamstring and hip-flexor length — the blocks-and-bolster version delivers the same stretch at every stage.

Urdhva Mukha Paschimottanasana

A seated forward fold turned skyward: balancing on the sitting bones, legs vertical, torso drawn up against them. It combines the full fold's flexibility with Boat Pose's balance — flexibility first, then the balance.