DANDAYAMANA DHANURASANA - STANDING BOW PULLING POSE

*Standing in Tadasana, turn your right hand, palm facing out, thumb toward the back wall and elbow touching the side of your body (palm out, thumb back, elbow in).
*Pick up your right foot by the ankle (as you get more advanced, hold below the ankle so your thumb touches the top of the ankle). 
*Raise your left arm up to the ceiling, fingers together, and palm facing the front. 
*Stand tall with your shoulders and hips square to the mirror. Beginners, extend your right shoulder and arm away from your side. Find a soft part of your foot or leg, squeeze your grip and feel the stretch from within. 
*Lower the body down and reach your arm forward toward the front mirror.
*Kick back as you rotate your right shoulder behind you and keep your right knee behind your body so you can’t see either one in the front mirror.
*Your right hip turns slightly back (the hips are not parallel to the floor!) and your foot should eventually “grow” out of the back of your head. 
*Lower your upper body down far enough so the stomach is parallel to the floor but keep your chest higher than your stomach and your left arm higher than your chest, completing the back bend. 
*This pose is 40% back bending, 40% standing leg stretching and 20% shoulder and hip joint release. The key to the standing bow pose is judging how high to kick initially. If your standing leg is not flexible, you can’t kick too high because of the tension in the hamstrings. So kick back just enough to lower down to parallel. The more flexibility in the standing leg, the higher you kick initially. 
*At the advanced level you must start by kicking high in order to release the back hip. Try to find your starting point within the first five to ten seconds of the posture, leaving you enough strength to kick your leg. Use the first set to focus on balance and alignment and use the second set as more of a kicking set. 
*Hold each side and set for 45 seconds.

Jimmy’s Tips:

Beginners:
This is one of the most advanced postures in the basic class so be patient! The good news is that there is a correct position for all levels. Make sure you’re holding your foot properly; palm out, thumb back, elbow in. As you lower your upper body down kick your leg back. However, don’t kick back too much or you won’t be able to lower down.  Assuming we’re doing the right side, create space between your right arm and the right side of your body. Many beginners seem to “hold onto themselves” pressing the right arm to their side. Instead, extend your right arm and shoulder up and back.  Turn your right shoulder back behind your head, and your right knee behind your body so you won’t be able to see either one in the front mirror. Keep your left arm strong and fully extended toward the front mirror; wrist straight and palm flat. Your chin should be right above your shoulder, but not touching.

Intermediate, Advanced:
In order to reach your full potential in this pose you have to understand what areas of your body you’re using; 40% back bending, 20% hip and   shoulder release and 40% hamstring stretching. The back bending happens automatically, just let it happen naturally. Extend your shoulder and hip up and back behind you. If you have taken any of my “posture clinics” then you would know I have a different approach to teaching this posture. In order to access the stretch in the standing leg, which is 40% of the pose you have to get the upper body down! Remember, the upper foot and the standing foot should be in one line from the side view. Otherwise you’re only utilizing 60% of your body. Understanding the Standing Bow is knowing how high to kick your leg. If you kick too high too soon you won’t be able to lower down, your hamstrings won’t let you. If you don’t kick high enough you’ll lose the “opposite dynamic”; reaching and kicking. The answer lies in the flexibility of your hamstrings. You have to experiment and see how high you can kick and still be able to lower the upper body down! Here’s a misnomer; your hips are NOT square to the floor. The hip of the leg your holding turns back slightly. Take a look at Bikram’s book, page 57, and see that nobody’s  hips are square, (especially the picture of the guy on the bottom right!) The hip has to turn out in order to get the extended height.

Ultra Advanced:
Please read the intermediate, advanced section first.
You, however, need to kick up high right away in order to initially release the back hip. At your level you should have the hamstring flexibility to lower down to where your stomach is parallel to the floor, your chest is a little higher than your stomach and your arm and shoulder are a little higher than your chest, completing the back bend. Get down right away, don’t waste too much energy getting to your starting position, get down and start kicking. Hold onto a soft part of your leg, (your grip should be right below your ankle) like an archer squeezing the arrow from the bow. Look in the front mirror and see that the bottom of your upper foot is in a vertical position, flush to the mirror. If your foot is turning in and out it’s an indication that your hip is not in the right position. Your knee should be directly below your foot. If you’re still not able to straighten the upper leg, at the end of the pose (be careful), take a peek at the side mirror; this will give you a better visual perspective. You’re probably closer than you think! Then just lock it! This is how I was able to straighten my leg the first time.

Good luck!