It’s my understanding that the headstand and shoulderstand are regarded as the “King and Queen of the asanas.”
Yet we have paid very little attention to the King and Queen in any classes I’ve gone to. They are done only on rare occassions.
I must admit that I neglect the shoulderstand and am partial to the headstand, but either way, most of the homage I pay to the King and Queen is at home on my living room floor, and not in yoga class.
Do you do/teach these inversions regularly in class?
It is worthy of note that some expressions of Yoga do not incorporate inversions into their asana practice. I have no idea the rationale behind such things for it is the inversion practice which (partially) makes yoga unique.
For me, those two poses are often part of my daily asana practice. The fundamentals of the pose (or “Preps”) are taught in level one classes until students have the opening and actions required to go up. Then they go up under careful supervision. In level two and three classes students go up often without the preps mentioned above as they already have the actions and alignments necessary for going up, staying up, and doing so safely.
In the classical Iyengar system the first week of the month is for standing poses, then in subsequent weeks, inversions, twists, and backbends. When there is a fifth week that is typically used for restoratives, pranayama, or nidra.
Since I train and study within that lineage BUT am not an Iyengar teach I don’t militantly adhere to that curriculum. Others may.
gordon
My Astanga practice uses inversions and their counter-postures as an integral part of the closing sequence. I also practice inversions daily, usually in the evenings.
Thomas,
It depends on where you are in my classes. If you are beginner with only a few weeks or months of practice behind you, you will not do it very much in my classes. Certain fundamentals need to be established until such time arrive that I deem it safe and appropriate to move you into those asanas.
Once you are established and have build enough confidence and muscle memory of all the prepatory asanas, then you will see it happening a lot more.
This is how it happens in my classes, each teacher of course follow his/her own methods of teaching. I know teachers in my town who do not teach headstands at all for example. Again it is a personal choice of those teachers and if a student feel safe and confident with such a teacher then they can remain there. If however they feel something lacking, then the onus is on the student to move away from such a teacher and look for an alternative that will suit his/her temperament and needs.