My favorite Yoga pose is Anandasana.
It’s one that I made up, so let me explain.
Ananda, in Sanskrit, means bliss. Asana, of course, is a pose. Put together, we have “Bliss Pose.”
It’s very easy to do, and it’s a pose you can do all through the day anywhere and everywhere.
Anandasana is simply the act of smiling.
Go ahead, smile right now.
See what it feels like inside of you.
Smile during a challenging Yoga pose and see how much easier it becomes.
Smile when life presents you with challenges and see how much easier they become.
Smile just because it feels good.
Smile.
Love this pose! It’s got no small scientific research behind the power of it:
“When we smile, fake or real, the contractions of the facial muscles slightly distorts the shape of the thin facial bones. This slight distortion in their shape leads to an increase in blood flow into the frontal lobes of the brain and increases in the release of dopamine (Iwase et al., 2002, Neuroimage 17:758). As a result, walking around all day with a smile on your face will bias your mood to be happier. Not only will you be happier but your smile might spontaneously induce the release of dopamine in someone else’s brain—now that truly demonstrates the power of a smile.” — Psychology Today
Reblogged this on My Blog.