Have you ever wondered what your yoga teacher was saying when she/he spouted those strange sounding words? Have you ever wondered what those pose names mean?
Here are some of the more common Sanskrit words translated. Do the poses make a little more sense now? Knowing a few root words make it much easier to understand your yoga practice.
Adho-mukha — Face downward
Ardha — Half
Asana — Posture – third stage of yoga
Astavakra — Broken boy
Aum — All, conveys concepts of “omniscience”, “omnipresence”, & “omnipotence”
Baddha — Bound, caught, restrained, firm
Baka — Crane
Bandha — Bondage or fetter, a posture where certain organs or parts of the body are contracted and controlled
Bheka — Frog
Bhuja — Arm or shoulder
Bhuja-pida — Pressure on the arm or shoulder
Bhujanga — Serpent or snake
Chandra — Moon
Chataur — 4
Danda — Staff
Dhanu — Bow
Dharana — Concentration or complete attention, sixth stage of Yoga mentioned by Patanjali
Dhyana — Meditation, seventh stage of Yoga mentioned by Patanjali
Dwi — 2, both
Dwi-hasta — 2 hands
Dwi-pada — 2 feet or legs
Eka — 1, single, alone, only
Eka-pada –1 leg
Garbha-pinda — Embryo in the womb
Garuda — Eagle
Go — Cow
Gomukha — Face resembling a cow
Hala — Plough
Hasta — Hand
Janu –Knee
Karma — Action
Karna — Ear
Karna-pida — Pressure around the ear
Kona — Eagle
Krauncha — Bird like a heron
Kriya — Cleaning process
Kukkuta — Cock
Kundalini — Divine cosmic energy
Kurma — Tortoise
Mala — Garland, wreath
Manduka — Frog
Mantra — Sacred thought or prayer
Marichi — Name of one of the sons of Brahma
Matsya — Fish
Mayura — Peacock
Mudra — Seal, sealing posture
Mukha — Face
Mukta — Liberated
Mula — Root, base
Nauli — Process in which the abdominal muscles and organs are made to move vertically and laterally in a surging motion
Nava — Boat
Pada — Foot or leg
Padangustha — Big toe
Padma — Lotus
Parivartana — Turning around, revolved
Parivrtta — Turned around, revolved
Parivrttaika-pada — With one leg turned around
Parsva — Side, flank, lateral
Parsvaika-pada — With one leg turned sideways
Paschima — West, the back side of the body
Paschimottana — Intense stretch of the back side of the body from the nape to the heels
Patanjali — Propounder of Yoga philosophy, author of the Yoga Sturas
Pida — Pain, suffering, pressure
Pincha — Chin, feather
Pinda — Fetus or embryo, the body
Prana — Breath, respiration, life, vitality, wind, energy, strength, also connotes the soul
Prasarita — Spread out, stretched out
Pratyahara — Withdrawl and emancipation of the mind from the domination of the senses and sensual objects, fifth stage of yoga
Purva — East, front of the body
Purvottana — Intense stretch of the front side of the body
Raja — King, ruler
Raja-kapota — King pigeon
Salabha — Locust
Salamba — With support
Sama — Same, equal, even, upright
Sama-sthiti — Standing still and straight
Sarva — All, whole
Sarvanga — Whole body
Sava — Corpse, dead body
Setu — Bridge
Setu-bandha — Construction of a bridge
Sirsa — Head
Supta — Sleeping
Surya — Sun
Sva — One’s own, innate, vial force, soul, self
Svana — Dog
Tada — Mountain
Tap — Burn, blaze, shine, suffer pain, be consumed by heat
Tapas — Burning effort which involves purification, self-discipline and austerity
Tittibha — Firefly
Tola — Balance
Tri — 3
Trianga — 3 limbs
Trikona – Triangle
Uddiyana — Fetter or bondage, diaphragm is lifted high up the thorax and the abdominal organs are pulled back towards the spine
Ujjayi — Type of pranayama in which the lungs are fully expanded and the chest is puffed out
Upavistha — Seated
Urdhva — Raised, elevated, tending upwards
Urdhva-mukha — Face upwards
Ustra — Camel
Utkata — Powerful, fierce
Uttana — Intense stretch
Utthita — Raised up, extended, stretched
Vakra — Crooked
Viparita — Inverted, reversed
Vira — Hero, brave
Virabhadra — Powerful hero
Vrksa — Tree
Vrschika — Scorpion
Yoga — Union, communion, union of our will to the will of the Supreme Spirit