Asana · Practise on your own
Ustrasana
Camel pose
Camel pose. Kneeling and arching back, the hands reaching for the heels.
Awaiting subject reviewWritten from our source material and not yet checked by a teacher of this practice. Read it as reference, and learn the practice from someone who teaches it.
- Meaning
- ustra = camel, asana = seat or posture
- Family
- Backbend
- Level
- Intermediate
- Gaze
- Nose
Take care
Keep the neck long. Avoid with low back or neck injury.
How it is done
- 1
Breathe freely
Kneel with the knees hip-width apart, hands on the low back.
- 2
Breathe in
Lift the chest and arch back, hips over the knees.
- 3
Breathe freely
Reach the hands to the heels if they come. Stay for several breaths, then come up with the hands on the low back.
Holding it
Several breaths.
Making it easier
Tuck the toes under to raise the heels, or keep the hands on the low back.
What the tradition says it does
- Opens the chest and the front of the body
Sources and tradition
- YOG Union App Content Map, 2 November 2026, p. 4