What is Baddha Konasana?
Baddha Konasana (बद्धकोणासन) is very similar to Bhadrasana. However, in Bhadrasana, the legs are being done up and down, while in Bound Angle Pose, both knees are seated on the floor. Initially, one experiences a bit of toughness, but it has become easier with time and shows many benefits like easy childbirth, strengthening the knees, being good for the heart, etc. It is also known as the cobbler pose because the cobbler likes to sit in this fashion while doing work. The yoga pose has been described in the 15th Century book Hatha Yoga Pradipika. It shows multiple health benefits if done technically with the proper steps. It is also associated with few precautions and contraindications.
How to do Baddha Konasana step by step
The simple and easy procedure of Bound Angle Pose is given below.
- Sit in Dandasana.
- Keep your lower back straight and stretched.
- Fold both your legs and bring them to the nearby groins
- Now, clasp both soles with your hands and try to bring them as close as the perineum.
- Do inhale and exhale slowly and deeply while maintaining the pose.
- Maintain the pose as long as possible and come to Dandasana slowly.
- This is the one round. Do it in 2-3 games.
10 Benefits of Baddha Konasana
- Easy childbirth: This is one of the effective yoga poses, which, if practised correctly, helps in easy birth. It allows the pregnant mother to childbirth and reduces pain during delivery.
- Stable and long core: It stimulates the back muscles and stabilises your body.
- Helps in running: If you get tired after running or feel pain in your leg muscles, it is best to do this yoga pose just after running as it helps to remove muscular tiredness.
- Good for car driving person: The hips and thighs get distorted for those who like to drive or sit in a car for longer. However, practising the bound angle pose helps to overcome these issues.
- Expands the chest and diaphragm: Its practice helps to elongate the spine and lengthen the torso, thereby ensuring the chest’s expansion. Also Read: Best yoga for lungs
- Improves concentration: If it is practised by keeping breathing in mind, it helps to extend the groins and hips more. It also enhances focus and concentration.
- Boost fertility: Besides being one of the best yoga poses for hip and groin openers, it also plays a vital role in fertility.
- Relieve sciatica: It helps open the hip and lower parts of the body and thus may be beneficial in treating sciatica.
- Relieve menstrual discomfort: Since the yoga pose focuses on the lower region of the body, it helps to soothe the menstrual complexities and enhances the digestive system.
- Good for the prostate gland: It helps stimulate the abdominal organs, especially the organs near the groin region, thus ensuring the health of the prostate gland, ovary, bladder, and kidneys.
Breathing
The advice to bring the navel—rather than the head—to the feet is another way of saying that the breath should remain as unobstructed as possible in this pose. Pushing the head toward the floor will collapse the rib cage and compress the abdomen, reducing the ability for those cavities to change shape—a lengthened spine results in more unrestricted breathing.
Top Facts about Baddha Konasana
- It is a Sanskrit word wherein Baddha means ‘bound’, and Kona indicates ‘angle’.
- It is pronounced as ‘BAH-dah cone-AHS-anna’.
- It has been described in Hatha Yoga Pradipika.
- It is one of the few yoga poses that can be practised even after eating.
- It gives stretching to the knee, thigh and inguinal region.
Precautions
- If somebody has a knee or groin injury, performing it with folded blankets is better.
- It shouldn’t be performed during menstruation.
- If your back is stiff, it is better to sit with your back against the wall.
- If you feel knee pain while performing the pose, keep your soles away from the groin.
- Don’t push your knees downward.
Contraindications
It shouldn’t be performed in the following conditions.
- Groin or knee injury
- Skip in case of High blood pressure
- Cardiac issues
Preparatory pose
- Virasana
- Vrikshasana
- Supta Padangusthasana
Counter pose
- Supta Baddha Konasana
- Paschimottanasana
- Gomukhasana
- Garudasana
Different names of Baddha Konasana
- Bound Angle Pose
- Butterfly Pose
- Cobbler’s Pose
- Bhadrasana
- Throne Pose
Variations of Baddha Konasana
A variant of Baddha Konasana is Supta Baddha Konasana, wherein buttocks and feet rest against a wall, feet together, the knees falling to the sides.
