Dear Yogibear and Chin,
I’ll let you in on two yoga secrets: (1) Almost any question on yoga has been answered by sage Patanjali, and (2) if you don’t “get” an answer, go back to the beginning of the sutra or to a previous sutra.
You have good questions, and Patanjali has good answers :). I would like to refer you to sutra II-46, that states that a yoga pose should be stable and comfortable. And you could page back a little bit to sutra II-30 that gives the first precept of yoga, and this is non-harming. If you apply these sutras to your question, note that comfortable and non-harming means that you should not feel pain in an asana. When you encounter pain, please modify the asana, use props, or avoid the asana altogether.
More specifically, for Yogibear. It’s great that you are using a cushion! Stick with it and maybe gradually use a lower cushion as you develop your flexibility over time. I mean a long time, like months, but it depends on how much you practice.
For Chin this means that child pose should be avoided, unless sitting on a cushion would keep you out of pain. A rolled-up towel under the ankles may also do the job. You may want to pursue your injury with your doctor. Otherwise, please allow more time for healing, like a few more weeks. Don’t be scared, everything is transient and the bodymind has remarkable skills in self-healing.
Both of you may benefit from the joint freeing series (pavanmuktanasana). The relevant movements have been published by the Bihar School of Yoga (Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha book p 27-28 ) as Goolf naman, Goolf chakra and Goolf Ghoornan. You could also use movements JFS-1,2,3 from Mukunda Stiles [COLOR=purple][FONT=Verdana]joint freeing series[/FONT][/COLOR]. Move gently, slowly and coordinate the movements with your breath. [U]Always stay within the range of motion that does not cause discomfort, let alone pain[/U]. These movements are safe. You will see that over time your range of motion will increase and your pain will go down. Something like 6 – 8 weeks of consistent practice (at least 4 times per week) is required. Don’t strive for results, just let the practice evolve. It is best to do the complete series.
(And then finally, for those critics who will insist that Patanjali has nothing to do with yogasana: Check out the Hathayogapradipika that keeps on repeating that hatha yoga is there for the attainment of raja yoga. See HYP sutras I-1,2,69.)
Best wishes for your health.
