Trikonasana is arguably the most iconic posture of Hatha Yoga. At first glance, the posture looks easy and anyone can try it, but it is a very deep posture. In alignment-oriented classes, it is not unusual to spend more than an hour on this posture alone.
If you understand its depth, you are thoughtful and have reached deep enough awareness, so you will improve in other postures as well. If you think this posture is easy, or you are not sure what it is actually for, or even you don’t know what you actually doing, take your time to practise it carefully so that you may realize its depth.
Basics of any standing postures
1. connect the front foot and the back foot to press each other, as you tuck the legs into the hips firmly and keep the hips stable, so it is counterbalanced and the posture should be more stable and more deepened.
2. Try to shift the weight onto the back leg as much as possible.
3. the tail bone, the spine, the neck and the head should be aligned and lengthened.
4. Engage the psoas.
As you follow the basics
1. Separate the feet a leg width apart, Align the front foot with the middle of the back foot. The front foot should be straight forward, the back foot is 90 degrees against the front foot, or the back toe is slightly inward.
2. The front leg thigh is abducted and rotated externally. The back leg thigh is abducted and rotated externally. You can bend the front knee slightly, if the knee tends to overstretched.
3. Open the hips and keep the hips face sideways firmly.
4. Keep the longest spine and keep the chest face sideways firmly.
5. Open the arms wider, as you keep the arms external rotated and abducted.
6. Look at the hand reaching for the ceiling.
6. Make sure if the front leg, the back leg, the hips, the spine, the neck and the head on the line between the front foot and the middle of the back foot.
7. Press the head agaist the tail bone and the back foot. And keep the longest spine and the longest neck and stretch the side of the body which is close to the ceilling.
