Happy Mother's Day! To all the mothers in this world, and the spirit world, I want to say congratulations on participating in the hardest job that has ever existed.
Mother's Day has been around for centuries but was deemed an official holiday in 1914 under the presidency of Woodrow Wilson. In the signed proclamation Wilson declared, "Mothers are the greatest source of the country's strength and inspiration."
The actual holiday was established by Anna Jarvis as a commemoration of her mother. Anna's mom was a suffragette, a pacifist, and an advocate for reforming unsanitary living conditions. She was a true picture of maternal care, and this holiday was created to celebrate the value of mamas all over the world.
In this post I'm going go over some of the best yoga postures moms can do to keep their mind, body, and soul at peace. I'm also going to list which zodiac sign these postures are best suited for. Each zodiac sign has unique traits that make them special and strong in certain areas of their life. Taking the yoga poses best for your zodiac sign is excellent for taking you to a place of self confidence and self wisdom. If this information is appealing to you, then please shoot on over to the shop page and take a look at my ebook Yoga for Your Zodiac Sign. Each zodiac sign is given 5 yoga postures, 2 meditations, and one suggestion on which type of yoga will serve you best.
Now without further ado, here are some of the best yoga postures for moms. As always, listen to your body and remember to breathe with intention.
1) Eagle Pose: Garudasana
This is a posture that a lot of people have reported looks easier than it feels. It is a balancing posture that requires openness in the hips, upper back and shoulders. You start standing and cross one leg over the other. You then take the opposite arm to the leg on top and cross it over the other arm wrapping the forearms and clasping the hands. The hands can wrap around the shoulders and give a hug if the wrapping of the forearms is unavailable. It is not encouraged to do this posture if you have elbow pain, ankle pain, or varicose veins behind the knee.
Mothers are encouraged to do this pose as it has a positive healing effect on body parts directly affected by childbirth. When the body is preparing to give birth, the entire pelvis widens and changes to prepare for a human body traveling through the birth canal. The backside of the pelvis is united by a triangular bone called the sacrum. As the pelvis changes to prepare for birth so does the sacrum. The sacrum will often become hyper compressed and shift into a distorted position to adjust for the changes in the pelvis. This causes low back pain and limits mobility. Moms performing this posture will feel an amazing stretch in the sacrum which can aid in post pregnant recovery.
The zodiac sign that is assigned to this yoga posture is the Cancer sign. The Cancer represents the primordial femininity. They are the zodiac’s strongest representation of motherhood, womanhood, and nourishment. Cancer mothers are strong healers, and as with every healer they need to take time for themselves and provide self-care in order to provide for others' care. Cancer moms are encouraged to take eagle pose as a way to stretch and strengthen the necessary mom muscles.
2) Garland/Squat Pose: Malasana
Depending on the body, squat pose can be a very easy position or the most challenging posture that exists. Garland pose is named after the garland or mala that hangs around the spiritual aspirant’s neck. This pose requires a lot of flexibility in the hips and feet. This is also a balance pose which can be distracting when you really want to focus on releasing in the hips. To take the balance entity out of this posture you can place a block under the pelvic floor. To come into this pose, begin in a standing semi wide legged position. With the toes turned out, bend at the knees and lower the hips towards the ground. It is not recommended to do this pose if you have chronic knee pain, low back pain, hip issues, or if you have a full stomach from having just ate.
This posture gives mama a gentle compression in the abdomen, a stretch to the groin, and strengthening in the pelvic floor. All these actions encourage Apana Vayu, or downward flow of energy. Apana Vayu is important during the processes of urination, defecation, ejaculation, and giving birth. This posture was very common historically when midwives governed the process of child delivery. The position of the modern mother lying on a bed while give birth is considered to have been normalized for the convenience of the doctor. This pose is still practiced often in prenatal classes and is excellent for keeping energy flowing healthily in the genitals and bowels.
The sun sign that this pose is assigned to is the Scorpio. This pose targets the Scorpio's astrological body parts: the genitals and bowels. These areas of the body are important key areas to keep healthy for a successful pre- and post-natal experience. This pose is also befitting for the Scorpio because it stimulates Scorpio’s strong sexual energy by activating the sacral chakra, the Svadhishthana chakra. The sacral energy center is the seat of human creation and is the representation of life, birth, and even rebirth. The Scorpio sign mirrors the motifs of the sacral chakra representing life, death, and birth. Scorpio people, practice this pose to really uplift your sex appeal and give your astro body parts a healthy investment.
For more on Scorpio click here.
3) Cat & Cow with Hip Circles: Marjanyasana & Bitilanasana Circles
This is a fun variation of the traditional cat/cow flow that is taught in several beginner yoga classes. This variation has different benefits from the original version such as increased vibrant energy and lateral mobility in your side body, waist and hips. You come into this pose by beginning in traditional cat/cow position, on hands and knees. Flex the spine and pelvis just like in the original movement but also get creative and incorporate circles into the hips, shoulders, head, and trunk. A natural progression is to make all these movements while flowing the seat towards the heals and then back to hands and knees. Contraindications for this pose include vertigo or dizziness, and knee pain.
Hip circles cat/cow is an excellent movement to keep hip mobility and strength. During the gestation process the hips go through huge changes. One big change is that they are induced with a natural hormone called relaxin which is designed to relax the hip joints and prepare for baby. After baby is born, the hips can endure a lot of pain too from carrying the load of the baby, and from sitting excessively during breast feeding (or long pumping times). This pose is also recommended for moms because it opens the intercostal muscles in between the rib cage. During pregnancy this space can become smooshed and presses on the diaphragm which makes breathing hard for pregnant women. Try this movement to reclaim your healthy hips and contribute to better breath capacity during the development of baby.
The zodiac moms this movement is designated towards are the Sagittarius moms. Sagittarius people are known for being hot headed and really need to be moving in order to avoid feeling stuck and restless. With hip circles in cat/cow they can indulge in their naturally active nature. Plus, the body parts associated with Sagittarius are the thighs and hips. This movement will enhance the proficiency the Sagittarius's astro body parts and help them release any pent-up energy.
4) Meditation to Experience Infinity: Yoni Kriya
To create this mudra, connect the tips of your thumbs and index fingers, and then fold the other fingers and connect at the knuckles. The thumbs and the index fingers represent the yoni, the female sex organ. This meditation has a strong connection to the baby in the mother's womb which symbolizes the source of creativity and creation. The thumbs represent the male sex organ which is the key necessary to create life. The combination of the two represents the magnificence of creation.
The three fingers and the triangular shape represents the three passages of existence: birth, life, death. It also refers to past, present, and future. This pose is for the moms to relish in the power of three, and to preserve family legacy---as their mother taught them, so shall they teach their children, and so on for several generations onward.
The zodiac sign called to this yoga meditation is the Aquarius sign. The Aquarius is always thinking about the future, and has an amazing memory so is often recalling the past. This meditation is suggested for the Aquarius because it is excellent to practice before going to bed. It has the power to deeply relax the mind while also calming down any excessive energies that impairs their quality of sleep. It's pretty much common knowledge that when baby comes into the picture, your sleep is going to suffer. Try this meditation to help catch some restoring Zzzzz's in the small pockets of time you get as a mom.
I hope these postures help you have an amazing Mother's Day. This is a day to truly appreciate the importance of mothers and all they do for us. So, give mom some flowers, spend some time with her, and why not roll the yoga mat out and share some quality self-care time together. Yoga is the power of unity, so I hope you feel unified through motherhood today.
May peace find you, shanti shanti shanti.
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