Salabhasana

Western Physiology 

Salabhasana has a therapeutic effect on mental and physical health.

• Salabhasana improves mental health:
  • It helps relieve anxiety and depression symptoms (Nyer et al., 2019).

• Salabhasana stretches and strengthens the muscles:
  • This pose strengthens the muscles of the buttocks, spine and back of the legs and arms.
  • It helps stretch the chest, shoulders, belly and thigh muscles.

• Other therapeutic effects of Salabhasana include but are not limited to:
  • This pose finds therapeutic application in cases of indigestion, lower back pain, constipation, flatulence and fatigue. It helps in relieving gastric troubles.
  • It also helps maintain the prostate gland and urinary bladder’s health (Huang et al., 2019).
  • This pose, in tandem with others, improves the flexibility and mobility of the spine (Grabara & Szopa, 2015).
  • This pose improves the posture.
  • This pose helps stimulate the abdominal organs.

Yogic Physiology

Salabhasana, or the locust pose, is a great posture for stimulating and energising the marma points in the body. In this posture, the Lohitaksha and Vitapa marmas are opened and vitalised by the stretching and placing pressure down on the groin area. The tension in the buttocks and the lumbar muscles stimulates all the marmas of the pelvis and lower back. This posture puts pressure on some of the main key marma points of the torso, such as the Basti or Bladder marma and Nabhi or Navel Marma, affecting both of these regions with pressure. It’s a great strengthening effect on the prana – Vyana vayu – improving the flow of prana to limbs if the arms are outstretched and active.

Chinese Medicine

The posture affects the two main meridians: the Ren (Conception) and the Du (Governing), which run down the centre of the body. It also affects the spleen and stomach meridian lines, which run along the front of the body.

Contradictions and Cautions

• Individuals suffering from headaches and serious back injuries should avoid this pose.
• Individuals who suffer from neck injury should look down at the ground to keep their heads in a neutral position. They can also use a thickly folded blanket to support their forehead.

Preparatory Asanas

• Bhujangasana
• Gomukhasana
• Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
• Supta Virasana
• Urdhva Mukha Svanasana
• Virabhadrasana I
• Virasana

Follow up Asanas

Shalabhasana is an ideal asana to prepare for all the “baby” backbends, including Dhanurasana and Ustrasana. Other possible follow-up poses include:

• Bharadvajasana
• Salamba Sarvangasana
• Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

Tips for Beginners

For beginners, it can sometimes be challenging to maintain the lift of the trunk and legs in this pose. Start the asana with your hands on the floor, slightly away from your shoulders, closer to your waist. Then inhale and gently press your hands into the floor to help lift your upper trunk. Try keeping your hands in place while doing the pose, or after a few inhales and exhales, once you have established a chest rise, return them to the position described above in step 3. As for the legs, you can do the pose with the legs lifted alternately off the floor. For instance, in case you want to hold the pose for a total of 1 minute, you should begin with lifting your right leg off the floor for 30 seconds, then lift your left leg for 30 seconds (Locust pose, Yogajournal, 2022)

Variations

Makarasana (translated as “crocodile” or “dolphin,” but literally meaning “sea monster”) is a more challenging variation of this asana. The legs in this pose are raised exactly as in Shalabhasana, but the fingers are clasped, and then the palms are pressed to the back of the head, and the index fingers are clasped under the base of the skull. Lifting your upper body, spread your arms out to the sides (Locust pose, Yogajournal, 2022).

Modifications and Props

Sometimes it is difficult for beginners to hold this pose. To help keep the upper torso elevated, they may use a rolled-up blanket, which will support the area around the lower sternum (Locust pose, Yogajournal, 2022).

Deepen the Asana

Advanced practitioners can make the asana more challenging by doing a variation of Salabhasana. The latter requires bending the knees and placing the shins perpendicular to the ground instead of extending the legs straight back from the pelvis. After that, as you lift your upper trunk, head, and arms, raise your knees as far off the floor as you can (Locust pose, Yogajournal, 2022).

You may also choose to lay your torso on a long bolster and balance your weight on the bolster, which will strengthen the abdominal muscles and challenge balance, improving the size and function of the brain’s cerebellum.