As an update to Friday’s “Karnapidasana” post, we dug a little deeper and, mysteriously, could not find much more info relating “karnapid” to “spider,” – well besides the source we posted, the titular Karnapidasana.com (part of GreatYoga.com). Alas, there goes our attempt at a Halloween joke (hrmph). However, we can confirm the pose sure does resemble a spider, kinda! Not really! But, if anyone out there did try it we’re sure you reaped the benefits (it is actually a real pose).
From B.K.S. Iyengar’s Light on Yoga:
“Karna-pida pressure around the ear”
“Karna means the ear. Pida means pain, discomfort or pressure.”
So there you have it.. karnapidasana just a pain in the ear! Actually, it feels quite lovely when done correctly.
Of course, if any of you sanskrit scholars would like to assist in clearing this up all comments are welcome!
