Physical, Symbolic and Traditional  aspects

of

Yogic Torsion and Twist

 

Origin, Concept, Principle and Application

of

Twist (Vakra) in Yoga

 

— Dr. Parimal Devnath,

Research Associate,

The Lonavla Yoga Institute (India),

Lonavla, India.

 

 

Introduction—

Torsion or Twist of the body is suggested in Hathayoga practice of Asanas for physical wellbeing.  When seriously studied, one may come across deeper meaning to Yoga practices of Asanas and particularly of Torsion.  It is true that human physical frame is an abode of the Absolute.  Experience of Absolute can be had through this mortal body alone.  Therefore, body as a medium assumes great significance.  To develop such understanding, one needs to go to the depth of certain issues relating to Hathayogic practices.  In the following paragraphs, a humble effort is made in the direction of unraveling a few of the significant points which might offer finer insight helping broadening of ones awareness.  

 

Human being as an Organism and its Components—

In biology an organism (from Greek ‘organismos’) is an individual living system (such as animal, plant, fungus or micro-organism). In at least some form, all organisms are capable of acting or reacting to stimuli. An organism may be unicellular or made up, like humans, of many billions of cells divided into specialized tissues and organs.  The phrase  complex organism describes any organism with more than one cell.

The word “organism” may broadly be defined as an assembly of molecules that influence each other in such a way that they function as a more or less stable.

Chambers Online Reference provides a much broader definition: “any living structure, such as a plant, animal, fungus or bacterium, capable of growth and reproduction”. The definition emphasizes life; it allows for any life form, organic or otherwise, to be considered an organism.

The word “organism” usually describes an independent collection of systems (for example circulatory, digestive, or reproductive) themselves collections of organs; these are, in turn, collections of tissues, which are themselves made of cells.

Organisms are complex chemical systems, organized in ways that promote reproduction and some measure of sustainability or survival. The molecular phenomena of chemistry are fundamental in understanding organisms. It is generally the phenomena of entire organisms that determine their fitness to an environment and therefore the survivability.

Structure—

All organisms consist of cells; some contain a single cell (unicellular) and others contain many units (multi-cellular). Multi-cellular organisms as specilised cells are to perform specific functions; a group of such cells is tissue basic types of which are nervous tissue, muscle tissue and connective tissue. Several types of tissue work together in the form of an organ to produce a particular function (such as the pumping of the blood by the heart, or as a barrier to the environment as the skin). This pattern continues to a higher level with several organs functioning as an organ system to allow for movement, reproduction, digestion, &c. Many multi-celled organisms comprise of several organ systems which coordinate to allow for life process.

Mechanics—

Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behaviour of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements.

This discipline has its roots in several ancient civilizations: ancient Greece, where Aristotle studied the way bodies behaved when they were thrown through the air (e.g. a stone); ancient China, with figures such as Zhang Heng, Shen Kuo, and Su Song; and ancient India, with thinkers such as Kanada, Aryabhata, and Brahmagupta.

Patanjali and other Hathayogic sages keenly studied the movement of human body in greater details in relation to movements and postures of other animals.  They explored all possible options of physical and physiological (and even spiritual) repercussion of movement and posture for achieving overall wellbeing of body, mind and soul.  As a result of their endevour, the largest number of Asanas have been developed by the Hathayogic sages, which is actually a story of immense possibility of body movements.

 During the Middle Ages, significant contributions to mechanics were made by Muslim scientists, such as Muhammad ibn Musa, Alhacen, Avicenna, Avempace, al-Baghdadi, and al-Khazini. During the early modern period, scientists such as Galileo, Kepler, and especially Newton, laid the foundation for what is now known as Classical mechanics.

Mechanics also encompasses the movement of all matter in the universe under the some fundamental interactions (or forces): gravity, the strong and weak interactions, and the electromagnetic interaction.  This will be clear in the following lines.

Control points of movement— 

Motion of living body takes place due to force of gravitation.  This movement has particular characteristic features and modes which are as follows--

When one part of an animal is moved, another is at rest. This is done by joints. Animals use joints like a centre. A limb becomes both straight and bent, changing potentially and actually by reason of joint.  When one limb is bending and being moved at one of the points in the joint, another is at rest. But still the origin of movement always remains at rest when the lower part of a limb is moved. Take the example of elbow joint. When the forearm is moved, very probably shoulder and elbow are at rest. Knee is at rest when tibia is moved. Hip is at rest when the whole leg is moved.

It is plain that each animal as a whole must have within itself a point at rest. When  the origin of that body part which is moved, and supporting itself upon which it will be moved both as a complete whole and in its part.

A joint is the beginning of one part of a limb, the end of another. Nature employs it sometimes as one, sometimes as two. When movement arises from a joint, one of the extreme points must remain at rest. In the case of the elbow-joint, the last point of the forearm is moved, while, in the flexion, one point of the elbow, which lies in the whole forearm that is being moved, is moved.  But there must also be a point which remains unmoved.

Left and right sides of the body are symmetrical. These opposites are moved alternately and also simultaneously. So it cannot be that the left is moved by the right remaining stationary, nor vice versa. Therefore, the original seat of the movement must be in that which lies in the middle, for of both extremes the middle is the limiting point. This is similarly related to the movements from above and below,  that is from the head, and to the bones which spring from the spinal column.

Kinesiology is the scientific study of the anatomy, physiology, and mechanics of body movement, especially in humans. The word kinesiology is derived the Greek “kinesis” (motion) +  -logy from the Greek “logos” or “logia”(meaning a field of study).

Kinesiology encompasses human anatomy, physiology, biomechanics, exercise physiology, exercise psychology and sociology, history, and philosophy of sport.

Cause of movement—  It is interesting to learn why at all living beings move all through the life.  There is not a single moment when one does not make a movement, voluntarily or involuntarily.  Only plants are an exception to this.  Plants, though are living organisms, do not move from one place to the other.  It is so because they don’t have desire even to live just as all other living beings have.  All other living creatures move being propelled by desire to live and fulfill various needs of life.  Therefore, it is observed that the more desires one possesses, the more one expresses movements.  Contrariwise, less the desire, less the movements. 

This is a significant lesson to be learnt through Yoga practices – to become aware of voluntary and involuntary movements and also to consequently reduce them having a congenial effect on desires, hankerings and etc.

 

Movement vis-à-vis motionlessness—

Patanjali and Hathayogis on movement and stability—

While defining Asanas, Patanjali says –  sthira-sukham-asanam,

tato dvandvanavaghatah— 

—‘Asana is that very state which is adopted and maintained with (reasonable amount of) ease and comfort.  This overcomes fluctuations of life’.

Hathapradipika says— 

Cale vate calam cittam nishacle nischalam bhavet—

--‘Mind moves since breath moves.  Therefore, if breath can be stabilized, mind can also be stabilized and consequently body can also be made stable’.

 

In normal state, human body is naturally agile and restive, since life continuously throbs in the body. ‘Life’ is very much dynamic in nature. (Dynamic nature of ‘life’ pervades all things and beings.  Even non-living objects like wind, water, light,  planets, stars etc. demonstrate continuous movement, though it is different from the movement of living beings).  ‘Life’ offers movement to body inclusive of all its limbs and organs, breath and mind.  However, dynamism cannot stand without stability as the fulcrum. Stability will have no stand without mobility.  Therefore, one state feeds the other.  Understanding one helps understanding the other quite well.  A man can have better mobility and agility if he is very stable.  One can (and needs) higher state of stability if one is very mobile.  

It is necessary to have mobility of the body to conduct activities.  However, stability leading to motionlessness is equally necessary to attain with heightened awareness for achieving higher purposes of (spiritual) growth.  Hardly we are aware of the need and importance of stability on three levels of body, mind and breath.  This is very well realized by the Hathayogika savants when they said— ‘breath causes mind to sway and vice versa’ and therefore they have suggested that  at first bodily stability should be gradually attained which will reflect on breath and mind consequently.

However, mobility is of great importance.  Yogic mobility is not the one made without the flow of intelligence.  There should flow awareness with all the movements under the scheme of Yoga such as Asana, Pranayama etc.

 

Advantage of movement—  All movements done under Yoga practices such as Asana, some of the Kriyas such as Uddiyana etc., are having the objective of achieving higher awareness as well as streamlining the functional ability of the bodily limbs and organs.   Hathayogic practices are supposed to provide overall massage to the body.

Advantages of massage— better blood circulation, reflex action gets better, removal of waste, better flow of oxygen in the cells, nervous function is augmented,  joints are lubricated, muscles becomes flexible and supple at the same time relaxed. This also relaxes the mind,

Human body can be moved only in certain ways.  There are biological limitations to move the body.  Human body cannot be moved in any and all directions and a manner as one may like to.  Also such a need may not arise very often. Human body can well be moved especially at the joints.

 

For example,

(a)  Hands can only be bent forwardly at the elbow and not backwardly. Hands can also be moved suitably at the shoulder joints.  Wrists can be moved in various ways. 

(b)  Legs can be bent only backwardly at the knees and never forwardly. Ankles like wrists can also be moved in various ways.  Legs can also be moved at the hip joints.

(c)  Torso can be bent forwardly (extension), backwardly (flexion) sidewards (laterally) and also twisted to left and right in semicircular way.

(d) Head can be tilted, forwardly and backwardly bent and also rotated all around the shoulders at the neck.

 

In the practice of Hathayogika Asanas, these basic four movements have been made use as forward-backward, sideward, lateral and twist of the body particularly during practice of Asanas.

 

Probable ways human body can be basically moved are represented graphically below—

Motions

Below is a table of the motions available at different joints of the body

 

region	flexion/extension	abduction/adduction	internal/external rotation	circumduction	other
Shoulder	yes	Serratus anterior, Rhomboid major and minor	Serratus anterior, Pectoralis minor,	yes	elevation, depression
Elbow	Biceps, Triceps	no	no	no	pronation, supination
Wrist	Flexor, Extensor	yes	no	yes	no
Hip	Quadriceps, Hamstring	abductor	Lateral rotator group	no	no
Knee	Hamstring, Quadriceps	no	no	no	no
Ankle	flexion, anterior	no	no	no	inversion, eversion, anterior
Torso	abdominal recti muscles Erector spine	no	no	no	no

 

 

Possible origin of the concept of Torsion or Twist—

Cakra (wheel)— Concept of Cakra is a very ancient one which may be considered as the source of twist.  First reference to Cakra can be traced in the Rigveda which is as below—

i)  ‘Tribandhurena trivrita rathena tricakrena sauvrita yatamarvak’ – Rigveda—1.118.2

—‘There are several mentions of Cakra in the Rigveda which proves the fact that to the Vaidika Rishis and Aryans, concept, design, application and variations of wheel was very much known’.

 

ii)  ‘Dvadasaram na  hi  tajjaraya,

varvarti cakram pari dyamritaya’ – Rigveda-1.164.11—

— ‘The wheel having twelve spokes continuously rotates in the Dyuloka— in this Mantra, the Rishi is referring to Kalacakra, wheel of time, which signifies that it is actually beginningless and endless’.

 

Cakra symbolically stands for Karma, action on which all the activities of the universe are based.

Apart from mobility, dynamism, eternality and stability, Cakra also stands for upward and downward movements of life—

‘Nicair-gacchati-upari ca dasha cakranemi-kramena’—  Uttaramegha-49.

— ‘Creation is essentially moving as a wheel. Just as seasons, revolution of earth, tide of sea water, day and night, events too occur cyclically.  Life goes on eternally.  This eternality is conveyed best by the use of cycle (Cakra)’.

 

            Moreover, Karma may be compared to Cakra of a potter which keeps on moving even after the potter has stopped revolving it.  Similarly, due to the momentum of one’s own Karma, the Jiva (embodied soul) keeps on moving in the world till the effects of Samskaras of the past are spent up fully.

 

            Trisikhabrahmanopanishad refers to Cakra in a compound word as Dvadasaracakra.  It is imagined as wheel-like structure which has twelve spokes and is situated in the Nabhi (navel).  Twelve spokes represent twelve gods such as Vishnu etc.  This Cakra is compared to a cobweb spanned by a spider and Jiva is destined to wonder through these spokes which begins with Nadis.

 

Tantrika cakra-

In the Tantra Shastra, Shricakra is worshiped, which symbolizes Adishakti which is the perpetual creative process.

 

In Hathayoga, it is said that the human body has certain number of Cakras along the spine, lower five of which represent five basic elements, and life or Pranashakti (life force) moves periodically in all these Cakras or inert elements to infuse life in them.

 

Vakra- twist—

Vakrata or twist should be understood as an imitation of Cakra but sometimes halfway, whereas a Cakra rotates full circle.

 

Vakratunda, Ganapati, symbolize this eternal rotation and is worshipped in the ‘form’ of a god.  A feeling of adoration is expressed through chanting of the Mantra –‘Vakratundaya hum’— which is  the Shadakshara Mantra of six letters.

 

(Vakrokti, vakra (twisted) + ukti (vocal expression) =  A special and unusual style of placing a concept or content as used in literary works.  This style of expression is considered to be a clever and even cunning one.  This style is adopted by poets and writers because it is supposed to be a string method for conveying an expected meaning).

 

Asanas--  

i.  Hathayoga suggests Asanas a few of which are as listed below wherein twist of the torso is required-

Twist-- Cakrasana,  Vakrasana, Ardha-matsyendrasana, Matsyendrasana etc.

(Vakrasana is a simplified version of Ardha-matsyendrasana which is again a simpler adoption of Purna-matsyendrasana).

 

ii.  In the following Asanas forward (extension)  and/or backward (flexion) are required--

Extension-- Pashcimatana, Janushirasana, Mahamudra etc.

Flexion--  Sarpasana, Bhujangasana, Cakrasana  etc.

 

Pranayamas—

iii.  Just as Asanas, all Pranayama practices are practised in cyclical and/or repeated manner.

 

Kundalini is said to be residing in a coiled (twist) position in the human body.  It resides in the body by making three-and-a-half coils.  These coils are again symbolically presented.  Kundalini has no anatomical structure in the body just as body organs have.  Three coils represent three Gunas of Samkhya-Yoga, while half coil represents Pure Consciousness (Caitanya).  In this context of Kundalini, twists in it mean interwoven complexity of the life process as bondage, wherefrom to find a relief is pretty difficult and rare. 

 

Same is the case of Cakras located in the body.  Cakras convey the meaning of dynamic nature of life.  Cakras stand for five Tatvas.  Cakras also mean unending cyclical nature of life, to find an escape from this cyclical nature of life is again a big challenge. 

Yogic Asana-Pranayama etc. are practised for physical as well as mental wellbeing.  These have gained ground all over the world in recent times.  This can only be appreciated very much.  However, what may be lacking in the scheme of Yoga education is ‘awareness’ regarding the higher and subtler aspects as offered by these practices.  These issues may be summed up in the following points—

 

i)  Change is eternal a process,

ii)  Perhaps, change is as eternal as stability is,

iii)  Change and stability are two eternal aspects of the creation,

iv)  There can exist no change without stability and vice versa, there can exist no stability without change,

v)  Only by understanding change, stability can be understood very well,

vi)  Change always signifies transformation towards a better plane of being,

vii)  Absolute and final change is in fact ‘changelessness’.

 

When one becomes aware about these higher aspects of life through practice of Asana and Pranayama, one is lifted to superior levels of ‘Being’.  Adoptability to True and higher Self becomes a reality.

 

Conclusion— 

Twist or Torsion of the body as suggested in Yoga has profound significance if studied from various fundamental angles.  It does not remain only a physical practice, but indeed assumes higher meaning.  It is also learnt that body is only a medium to reach the transcendental state of consciousness which is of the nature of  Bliss uninterrupted.

Perhaps this small study will stoke ones sensibility to this least explored area and thus help developing into a changed attitude towards the practices of Yoga, especially Asanas.