YanvaYoga > Yoga Poses > Bird Of Paradise Pose

Bird Of Paradise Pose - Svarga Dvijasana

Contents

Bird Of Paradise Pose or Svarga Dvijasana in Sanskrit (Svarga means ‘heaven’, Dvij means ‘twice born’, and asana means ‘pose’.) gets its name because it is compared to the Bird of Paradise flower, which grows horizontally and has a long stem. Here, our body resembles this flower in a pose: the petals are represented with an extended leg, and the stem with a balancing leg. Once in this pose the body is compared to the beauty of this flower.

Bird Of Paradise Pose is a standing posture that opens your hips, strengthens your core and back, and lengthens your hamstrings. This pose challenges your flexibility, balance, and focus alike, and can be a great hip opener if you spend a lot of time sitting.

Pose Detail

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1
Begin in a forward fold with your feet a bit wider than your hips.
Step 2
Come onto the ball of one foot, placing your shoulder toward your inner knee.
Step 3
Take your same side hand behind your calf and press your knee forward to tuck your shoulder behind your knee.
Step 4
From here, wrap your hands behind your back and bind your hands together.
Step 5
Bend your standing leg and begin to stand up balancing on that standing leg. Once you come to that standing position, find a focal point out in front of you.
Step 6
Straighten your standing leg and open your shoulders. Point the toes of your lifted leg and try to straighten your lifted leg to complete this pose.

Benefits and Contraindications

Benefits

Improves hip, groin and hamstring flexibility

Opens the chest and shoulders

Strengthens the legs and core

Improves balance and stability

Contraindications

Headaches

Shoulder injury and hamstring injury

Neck injury

High or low blood pressure

Insomnia

Modifications, Props and Tips

  • If you are in the initial stages of this pose, you do not need to stretch your leg completely upwards. Come halfway and try balancing this pose while keeping your stretched leg parallel to the ground in a way that your legs make an inverted ‘L’ shape.
  • Rather than binding your arms at the thighs, hold your shin with one arm and keep the other arm parallel to the balancing leg.
  • You can also increase the stretch in your arms and hold the toes of the upward stretched leg.
  • Use a yoga strap to make the bind in case of any discomfort in your shoulders.
  • Beginners can practice this pose by sitting on the chair for extra support.

Frequently Asked Questions

Variations

  • Reclining Hand-To-Big-Toe Pose
  • Bound Side Angle Pose
  • Standing Hand To Big Toe Pose
  • Sage Visvamitra's pose

Top Preparatory Pose

Top Follow-Up Pose

Iana Varshavska
Iana Varshavska
Website administrator

A digital marketer in love with yoga and everything that goes along with it. In 2021, her huge passion for yoga led her to yoga teacher trainings. After successfully completing her studies, Iana received her Yoga Alliance U.S. certification, left the corporate IT world and devoted herself to the development of Yanva. To be able to create the best online yoga space for yoga enthusiasts like her, Iana is constantly learning and improving her skills in various aspects of yoga philosophy, anatomy and biomechanics. Since 2021, she has continued to attend various types of teacher training, including yoga therapy, gives online and offline classes, and conducts local workshops for people who want to learn more about yoga. At the moment, Iana continues to work on her personal practice, improving her hand balancing skills, as well as developing her own training programs.