Explore the pose in detail
Membership gives you the large image, the full explanation, and available variants and videos.
See what is included →Practising with care
If you have an injury or a medical condition, take medication, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or have another circumstance that may affect your practice, consult a qualified healthcare professional about suitable activities and necessary adaptations.
Learn new and demanding poses with a qualified yoga teacher. Adapt the range to your body and stop if you feel pain or dizziness. A short video illustrates movement; its length does not prescribe how long to hold a pose.
Headstands, shoulder stands and lotus are not starting poses for beginners. Injuries, balance problems or glaucoma are examples of reasons to assess suitability individually. Do not force a bind or use the body as leverage against the knee.
The pose in context
Haṭhayogapradīpikā 1.44–45 describes Padmasana with the feet on the opposite thighs and more than one arrangement of the hands. The older text gives context to the lotus name and leg position. The hand gesture in the image and the pose’s place in the Ashtanga finishing sequence are more specific than this textual evidence. Yogasāra-saṃgraha in Jha’s 1894 translation also describes Padma with both feet placed on the thighs. It discusses a limited selection of seats for Rajayoga, without an Ashtanga finishing sequence or its hand gestures.
Sources for this page
- Svātmārāma: Haṭhayogapradīpikā, with the Jyotsnā and Manobhilāṣiṇī commentaries (1895)1.44–45, pp. 25–26 · Wellcome Collection
- Vijñānabhikṣu: Yogasāra-saṃgraha — translation by Gangānātha Jha (1894)p. 55 · Wellcome Collection
Yoga forms and variations
These links compare teaching contexts and related shapes. Read the named form, supports and limits on this page before using a position.