Dear Friends,
Namaste!
Let’s discuss today another very important question related to sleep:
Which postures lead to a better quality of sleep?
Should we sleep standing or sitting or lying down? There is a law in physics. If we distribute the same force over a wider area, it creates less pressure. Similarly, if we distribute our body-weight over as wide an area as possible by touching as much ground as possible, we will exert less pressure on the ground. And by the law of action and reaction (Newton’s third law), the ground will exert less pressure on us.
The less the pressure, more relaxed will be our body. Since the main intent of sleep is to rest and repair our body, it follows from these two laws of physics thatour body is best rested in lying down position rather than while standing or sitting.
The other aspect is the amount of work our heart has to do. One of the reasons why animals almost never have heart attacks is because their entire body is horizontal majority of the time and this reduces the amount of work their heart has to do. Heart is nothing if not a pump and the ‘life’ of this pump would increase if we reduce the work (and hence its wear and tear) by keeping our body horizontal rather than vertical.
Therefore all postures that keep our head, torso and legs in the same horizontal plane are a boon for our heart!
It is quite clear from the above discussion that the best way to provide maximum possible rest to our body is by lying down. This sounds quite intuitive and obvious like most of the other natural, benevolent yet important things. However, if we understand the theory behind why this is so, it will sub-consciously (automatically) and consciously lead to better-quality sleep.
It is indeed hardly surprising, then, that the three postures (“Asana”) for sleeping that Yoga Shastra has prescribed are lying-down Asanas. They are:
a. “Shavasana” (The Corpse Posture)
b. “Makarasana” (The Crocodile Posture) and
c. “Buddhasana” (The Sleeping Buddha Posture)
Before we dive into the specifics of each of these postures, it will be useful to ponder over the commonality. All these postures are classical “Yogasana”. We have seen that the definition of an Asana is “Sthir Sukham Asanam” (Any posture that is Steady and Comfortable qualifies to be called an Asana in Yoga). This applies to all the three Asanas listed above as well.
Hence in addition to making sure that we are lying down while sleeping, it is also necessary to ensure that we are comfortable and steady. It does NOT mean that we cannot shift from one Asana to another throughout the duration of sleep. What it does mean is that we should minimize tossing, turning, shifting, getting up and continuing to be the perennial-jack-in-the-box that we tend to be while awake! Also, our posture must not induce any dis-ease, strain or stress in any body part while we are sleeping
This voluntary drop in physical movement paves the way for slowing down involuntary systems also. Our heart goes in ‘cruise’ mode, breathing becomes even and natural, peristalsis reduces, our mind stops jumping around like a hyper-active monkey our body goes about cleansing itself and recovering from the damage done throughout the day.
Having thus led the foundation for the postures, let’s examine each one in some detail now:
a. “Shavasana” (The Corpse Posture)
In this all-important yet deceptively easy Yogasana, all we have to do is -nothing! We just lie flat on our back, hands and legs spread out comfortably, back of the head touching the ground, palms open and eyes closed. We should let our body ‘melt’ into the ground. We can ‘come out’ of our body, ‘stand’ aside and ‘observe’ it as if it were just a corpse! Here is our chance to do nothing – including no-thinking! (Corpses do not think J). How do we know?
A couple of Zen practitioners were standing by a pond looking at the fish swimming in the clear water. The air was pleasant, sun was shining down and the environment was full of harmony.
One Zen practitioner spontaneously remarked, “Look at the fish. They are swimming so gracefully and peacefully. They look so calm and contented. They are totally enjoying themselves!”
The other practitioner said reproachfully, “How do you know the fish are enjoying? You are not the fish!”
“How do you know I do not know? You are not me!!” came the pat reply.
Bottom-line – corpses don’t think and nor should we while in Shavasana.
It is believed that in Shavasana we should not fall asleep. That’s true if we are doing Shavasana after a work-out. However, we can assume this posture while sleeping too!
Live, laugh, love...
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