Asana · Practise on your own
Utthita Parsvakonasana
Extended side angle pose
Extended side angle pose. A deep front-knee bend with one long line from the back foot to the reaching hand.
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
- utthita = extended, parsva = side, kona = angle, asana = seat or posture
- Family
- Standing
- Level
- Beginner
- Gaze
- Upward hand
Take care
Keep the front knee over the ankle, not beyond it. Go easily with knee or shoulder injuries.
How it is done
- 1
Breathe in
Take a wide stance, the right foot turned out and the back foot slightly in.
- 2
Breathe out
Bend the right knee over the ankle. Place the right hand on the floor outside the foot.
- 3
Breathe freely
Reach the left arm over the ear so the body makes one line from heel to fingertips. Stay for five breaths.
- 4
Breathe in
Straighten the leg, come up and repeat on the left.
Holding it
Five breaths on each side.
Making it easier
Rest the forearm on the thigh instead of the hand on the floor.
What the tradition says it does
- Strengthens the legs
- Stretches the side of the body and the groin
Variations
Sources and tradition
- YOG Union App Content Map, 2 November 2026, p. 4
- Ashtanga Primary Series as commonly taught in the Mysore style; sequence order and counts await subject review