I grew to love this posture Utpluthih....just when you think it’s all over, there’s that one final posture. Reminding you that you always have the strength to give a little more... When I first started practicing Ashtanga Yoga I never thought I’d be able to lift my body but, after some time and lots of practice, I finally could..... Patthabi jois sometimes referred to the primary series as a ‘garland of postures’. The postures are strung together like flowers, one upon the next. The three final postures, followed by savasana, complete the circle, and bring us back to the root of the practice, the breath and bandhas. The very last one Utpluthih lifts us upwards like a lotus flower floating to the surface of the water.... It does sometimes seem strange that this challenging and dynamic posture is placed here after the mellow stillness of the previous forms of the lotus postures, but actually its as if the entire preceding practice is nothing more than preparation for this last asana. The unseen depths of ashtanga are present here....the bandhas must be fully engaged in order to lift the body from the floor, the muscles are contracting, and the breath is powerful, saturating every cell with vital life force. The preceding practice has cleansed and opened the nervous system, creating an ideal environment to receive this life force from the powerful and extended repetition of the breath....This is the very essence of the final posture, to cleanse and refine our body and senses.... And then when we release Utpluthih we can more easily sink into the deep stillness of savasana with a calm and still mind and breath.....
