How You May Benefit From Doing the Shoulder-Stand

Well, I don't know about you, but anyone whonot limited to, the ones of the digestive, circulatory,
basically had time to just be a kid and explore one'sexcretory and respiratory systems, receive a natural
own body must have executed this pose albeitmassage that in turn helps them work better.
unconsciously at some point in their lives.3. The proper execution of the shoulder-stand
That pose is the Shoulder-stand.alleviates constipation and it is said to be helpful in
Suffice it to say that the Shoulder-stand (known incombating the enlargement of the liver and spleen
Sanskrit as Savangasana) is my recommendedorgans.
favorite of the inverted poses, one that I emphasize4. In Sanskrit, 'Sarvanga' means 'all the body parts' so
even more so than the Headstand you might beas the name 'Savangasana' ('all the body parts-pose')
familiar with as they share almost if not all the samesuggests, it benefits the entire human body when
benefits without the fear of standing on your head!used, especially with its counter-poses, which are the
But, I'll be quick to add that after you may havebridge and fish poses.
learned and are actually doing the headstand, you willIt is noteworthy of mention that the great Swami
see why old yoga gurus call the headstand the KINGSivananda, one of the great Yoga Masters of the
and the Shoulder-stand, the QUEEN!20th Century, has said "The Practitioner of
Nonetheless, here are some benefits of theSavangasana (the shoulder-stand) is very nimble, agile
shoulder-stand:and full of energy.
1. This pose improves health, helps with alleviatingWith all the benefits listed thus far and considering
stress and anxiety and also increases mental powerhow easy it is to actually do the pose, it's easy to
and self-confidence.see how Sivananda's quote could be true.
2. While in this pose, the visceral organs including, but