In this bandha (a lock), you lock prana (breath vital life force) in the upper torso.

The Procedure for Jalandhara Bandha

1. Sit on Padmasana or any comfortable meditation pose.

2. Bend your neck and bring your chin forward to touch the chest. The air inside will not escape.

3. Slowly raise your chin and straighten your neck.

Notes on Jalandhara Bandha

If you have pain at neck, you should not practice this. It strengthens brain and give exercise to neck. It also strengthens thyroid.

This is an exercise to develop, tone and strengthen the waist.

Procedure for Chakrasana

1. Stand erect with feet held close.

2. Make a fist on right hand and move the hand backwards.

3. Grasp the wrist of right hand with left hand while both hands on the back. Keep the hands closer to your body.

4. While inhaling, bend backwards as much as possible. Hold breath for two seconds while at this position.

5. Slowly exhaling, straighten up and bend forward. Touch your knees with your forehead. Don’t bend your legs at knees.

6. Raise your body as you slowly inhale.

7. Repeat the exercise by grasping your left wrist with right hand.

Notes on Chakrasana

Tones waist and straightens the backbone.

In this exercise, the entire abdomen is pulled towards the vertebral column. Nauli or Uddiyanabandham is not so commonly practiced.

The Procedure for Uddiyanabandham

1. Stand while keeping feet at comfortable distance. Cup the knees with corresponding hands. The body will be slightly bending forward.

2. Gaze should be straight at eye level.

3. Inhale deeply through your nose, completely exhale through mouth, and quickly close the mouth.

4. Pull all the lower abdomen towards vertebral column.

5. Relax after two seconds and breathe through nose.

6. Repeat after breathing is normalized.

Notes on Uddiyanabandham

Improves digestion, cures constipation, treats internal parasites and is good for diabetics.

This asana strengthens backbone. Meru dandu means backbone.

The Procedure for Ardha Merudandasana Yoga Pose

1. Lay straight on your back. Keep legs close. Hands close to body, palms down on ground and fingers straight.

2. While inhaling, slowly your right leg to 45 degree without bending at knees.

3. While exhaling, slowly lower your leg to its original position. Don’t allow the leg to fall down, slowly place it on place.

Repeat this exercise with left leg.

Notes on Ardha Merudandasana Yoga Posture

The toes must sharply point straight in front.

This exercise gives strength and flexibility to backbone. It also strengthens and relaxes the muscles on back.

The Procedure for Vrikshasana

1. Assume Tadasana pose

2. Shift your weight to left leg. Take your right leg off ground, fold it at the knee and place the sole of the feet on the left inner thigh.

3. Once you are balanced in this pose, fold your hands to a prayer position or ‘namaste’ position.

4. Keeping hips firmly facing forward and spread your right knee rightwards.

5. Spread your hands to either sides, palms facing each other.

6. While releasing, slowly exhale as you lower your hands and right hand to assume standing posture.

Notes on Vrikshasana

It improves concentration and normalizes the functioning of abdominal internal organs.

The Procedure for Sundalasana Yoga Pose

1. Stand erect and spread legs wide apart.

2. Slowly inhaling, raise both hands on either sides and bring it to a folding pose (as in praying) above the head.

3. Slowly exhaling, bend forward and take the hands through between the legs as far as possible.

4. Slowly inhaling, raise your body to hand fold above head posture.

5. Slowly exhaling, spread your hands to either sides and lower them to close to your body.

Notes on Sundalasana

This is beneficial for men with certain sexual problems. Strengthens backbone and is beneficial for persons with chronic headache.

This is a resting posture. Assume this asana after you have completed an asana on your stomach.

The procedure for Makarasana-2

1. Lay down on your stomach. Legs close together, body straight.

2. Place the knees below your shoulder and support your face with your hands. The palms cover either side of your face.

Notes on Makarasana-2

This is almost similar to savasana (corpse pose, dead man’s pose).

It is beneficial for persons with backache, and pain at waist. Quickly relieves exhaustion.

This is a resting pose practiced immediately after practicing other asana, especially the ones that requires you to lie down on your stomach.

The Procedure for Makarasana-1

1. Lay flat on your stomach, belly and stomach on ground.

2. Spread legs apart and relax the muscles of your legs.

3. Fold hands, bring them together at your face, and place them on the ground.

4. Place a side of your head on the hands. Close eyes and breathe normally.

Notes on Makarasana-1

This gives rest to body and relaxes backbone.

Ushtra means camel. This posture assumes distant similarities to the body of a camel.

The Procedure for Ushtrasana

Sit on Vajrasana

1. Raise your buttocks and balance your feet on your toes. There should be a distance of six inches between the knees and between the feet.

2. Take your hands back words and grab the heels with your hands. Take care not to lose balance.

3. Bend your head backwards as much as possible. Thrust your chest as forward as possible.

4. Stay at this pose for a few seconds. Slowly return to original position.

Notes on Ushtrasana Yoga Pose

This is beneficial in straightening the backbone. This also cures back ache and pain at waist.

This is a simple asana for those who are comfortable with padmasana.

The Procedure for Parvatasana

1. Sit in Padmasana. Concentrate your gaze straight in front at eye level.

2. Raise your hands above head, palms facing each other.

3. Make a fist with left hand. Grasp the fist with the other hand. Stretch your hands upwards. You will experience a stretch at your abdomen.

4. Lower your hands and start it once again.

Notes on Parvatasana

Those who cannot sit on padmasana can practice this while in standing position.

It makes spine flexible and cures backache.
The Second style of Parvatasana – Mountain Pose

Body assumes the shape of a mountain in parvatasana. Parvata in Sanskrit means a mountain.

The procedure for parvatasana

Parvatasana pose is reached from two poses while practicing surya namaskar – Ashwa Sanchalasana and Bhujangasana.

From Ashwa Sanchalasana (4th stage of Surya Namaskar) 

1. Take your left foot backwards to next to right foot.

2. Raise your hips while not bending your elbows or knees and bring face to between your arms. The body assumes the form of a mountain.

3. Exhaling, go to Astanga Namaskara, 6th step of Surya Namaskar.

From Bhujangasana (7th Stage of Surya Namaskar)

1. Raise your hips and bring your heads to between your arms as you exhale.

2. Slowly inhaling, go to Ashwa Sanchalasana, 9th stage of Surya Namaskar.
This is asana strengthens the muscles of your arms and shoulders. It straightens up spine and tones abdomen.