Well, hello there! Welcome to another day on the salti yoga blog. I’m glad you’re here. We’re about to kick off a new series, featuring salti yoga staff over on our Instagram page(s). We thought, no better way to preview it than to do a post just like it for the blog! So let’s cut to the chase and jump in…

Disclaimer, you’ve seen a post like this before. Many moons ago, in fact the very first salti yoga blog post, was this one all about Savasana. How’s about you give it a quick read, and meet me back here? I’ll wait. 

Welcome back! Let’s get into the pose we’re tackling today. Drum roll please… Tadasana! Tadasana combines two Sanskrit words - tad (mountain), and asana (seat or place).  In some Ashtanga traditions, it's called Samasthiti, combining Sanskrit words sama (equal) and sthiti (standing upright). 

In English, it’s widely known as Mountain Pose. 

You may be thinking this is a strange one to cover, it seems self-explanatory. As always with Yoga, there is more than meets the eye in this pose. There’s a reason your Sun Salutations begin and conclude in Tadasana! It is a grounding posture that roots your practice so that you can move through the rest with a keen sense of the earth beneath. We know that comes in handy, especially during balancing postures. 

Another beautiful aspect of Tadasana is what happens in your upper body. When your legs and feet are grounded, your upper body is free to grow towards the sky above you, creating length and opening up your shoulders. 

Standing or sitting still and upright on your mat also challenges you mentally. It is a simple posture, meaning your brain doesn’t have to do as much work to maintain alignment. If you’re not careful, you’ll start to drift off in thought. Having the body easily positioned gives you the chance to really hone in on your focus, both your gaze (otherwise known as drishti) and your intention. Tadasana forces you to be present and accept and assert yourself as you are in the moment. 

If all of that isn’t sweet enough – Tadasana can also be a moment of respite or reconnection in the midst of your practice. When you’re feeling like you’re losing focus, you can always find Tadasana. Use your breath and Mountain to slow everything down and plug back into your body and heart. 

Doesn’t that sound amazing?!  Maybe not so quick to discount our old friend Tadasana now, hey? 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, head over to our Insta! This past week we started our staff features on the salti yoga instagram(s) that feature our beautiful staff, and some of their favourite postures and why! 

We can’t wait for you to see them and love them just as much as we do!

Until next time, take care, stand tall. 

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Reference: Mountain Pose (Tadasana): All You Need To Know About This Foundational Yoga Pose! - The Yoga Nomads

tadasana...mountain pose

By Kathy Romard