I spent seven evenings in the “corpse pose”. It was surprising what happened to the body

Corpse position? Sounds ghastly – that’s the first thing I thought when I heard about her. But I was so wrong. Today I know that she has great power. I tested the «dead body» position for a week, before going to sleep. I admit that what was happening in my body and mind really surprised me.

1. The “corpse pose” (or savasana) is one of the yoga asanas and a way to relax
2. It is said to be one of the most difficult asanas. My experiences prove it (I don’t practice yoga)
3. In savasana, we imitate the deceased. We just lie still. And that’s the hardest part – at the level of the mind that still analyzes
4. When you manage to control your thoughts (and really let go), amazing things happen
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

What does the “corpse pose” look like?

Sleep problems are the scourge of our time. It finally caught up with me. Relaxing baths, calming music – nothing helped. Finally, I read somewhere that “dead body position” can help with insomnia. I knew this concept from pilates classes, although I remember that the first association was rather gloomy. Meanwhile, practicing it is a way to relax (in the deepest sense of the word).

The proper name for the “corpse position” is savasana. The term comes from the ancient Indian words shava, which means to delay, and asana, or pose. In fact, in savasana, we imitate a dead man. We just lie still. You will probably say that it is a cliché and that there is nothing difficult about it, but it is exactly the opposite. After a week of testing, I know that the “dead body position” can be a lot of trouble at first. Before you know why, let me explain what this item looks like more or less.

Lie down on your back, let your shoulders fall freely, your hands are lying loosely on both sides of your torso (slightly moved away from it), and place your palms upside down. The legs are straight, hip-width apart, and the feet are loose. Slightly pull the chin up to the chest to extend the neck. We close our eyes, breathe freely. We usually stay in this position for 10 to 20 minutes.

The first days of practicing the “dead body position”. A little disaster

Getting down to savasana is easy, the stairs begin afterwards. Today I know why it is said to be the most difficult position in yoga. Thanks to it, the body, and thus the “head”, can completely relax. Unfortunately, the mind interferes with this, and it is very effective. And so it was with me. As soon as I lay down, I was already overwhelmed with thoughts: am I doing it right, what do I have to do tomorrow, or if I closed the door, and in general I am hungry. And so on all the time. Instead of calm, I gained even more anxiety and irritation.

It was even worse when I tried not to think at all. Controlling it is counterproductive. Thoughts are even more intrusive and even more appear. Man becomes more and more distracted. Staying still also becomes annoying. After all, there is no longer any relaxation. These were the first days with the “dead body position”. But I told myself that this is an exercise, a process, and besides, living in a world as loud as ours, it is difficult to leave it all at your command. You have to try.

To dare to let go is the key to success

So I tried. Finally, the moment has come when I understood the most important thing: you have to dare to let go. Yes, dare. I have the impression that we are so attached to the noise in our heads that we do not feel complete without it. How did I let go? Simply put, I let these thoughts be (maybe I was already so tired that I didn’t want to control them). Interestingly, the thoughts remained, but they flowed freely, no longer occupying my attention.

And then I started experiencing completely new things. I heard my own breath (it was a great pleasure to focus on it), I felt the tense places in my body release (shoulders, jaws), and I feel lighter. The same thing happened at the level of the mind. There was peace, greater distance and a kind of acceptance of what is. In a word: relief and better well-being.

And although this is just the beginning of my learning to let go and the benefits of the “dead body position”, it has helped me a lot in falling asleep. And I believe it will get even better. Those who practice savasana have long agreed that it calms the nervous system, lowers high blood pressure, and relieves headaches and fatigue. Of course, experienced yoga practitioners may comment on what I have written and may wish to add something. However, these are my experiences. I encourage you to acquire your own in the “dead body position” exercise. Believe me, it’s worth it.