Laghu Vajrasana in Ashtanga — Intermediate Series

Where it sits

Laghu Vajrasana, little thunderbolt, is a kneeling backbend in the first part of the Ashtanga Intermediate Series, Nadi Shodhana. It comes immediately after Ustrasana, camel pose. The next pose is Kapotasana, a deeper kneeling backbend. The prone backbends before this pair, and the poses that follow them, are listed on the Intermediate Series page. In Mysore-style practice this drop is added only when Ustrasana is steady, and only when practice and the body are ready.

What the shape involves

You are kneeling, holding the heels, with the thighs upright over the knees. The entry into the backbend is an exhale. You lower until the crown of the head meets the floor, or only as far as you can return from. In the standard count the shape is held for five breaths. The exit from the shape is an inhale that brings you upright. The legs do the lifting. The head comes up on that breath. It does not snap, and it does not push the body off the floor.

The pose is usually repeated in the Intermediate count, so the next exhale lowers you again and the next inhale brings you up. When the rounds are finished, you are upright before the vinyasa that follows: an exhale back to a low plank, an inhale into upward-facing dog, and an exhale into downward-facing dog, on the way to Kapotasana.

Common preparation

Ustrasana is the preparation. Camel is held for five breaths, with the hands reaching the heels and the thighs staying over the knees. If the hands do not yet reach the heels there, this drop is not the next step. A smaller lean, with the crown still well above the floor, is the usual way in. Only go down as far as the next inhale can bring you back. Hands on the lower back, the gentler version of camel, stay available until the heels are easy to hold.

Typical difficulties

Coming down is easier than coming up, so momentum is the usual mistake. People drop the head back and then try to recover by pulling with the neck. The knees also tend to slide apart. If the thighs do not stay upright, the weight falls toward the head. Needing only part of the range is ordinary. Touching the crown is not the place to begin.

Neck and the lower back

This is general practice guidance, not a medical instruction. The neck and the lower back feel this shape most. The crown may rest on the floor, but it is not a place to drop the body's weight. Keep the weight in the legs. If the neck or the lower back feels strained, stop the rounds and stay with Ustrasana, or with a smaller lean. Strain is a reason to simplify the shape.

Why a teacher helps

Laghu Vajrasana is usually learned with a teacher's help, because the way down hides how hard the way up will be. In a Mysore-style room the teacher decides when this drop belongs in the practice, and can stop a round if the legs are not bringing you back. For one-to-one attention, private sessions are taught in Dubai or online.

Next in the sequence: Kapotasana.