There
are few closing yoga poses we do at the end of each Yoga classes. They are all very sweet and delicious yoga
routines to use toward the end. They
have much settling and nourishing effects to the all worked-up nervous system. One of them is “Cow Face Pose (Gomukhasana).”
You will
sit with one bent knee placed over the other, forming the cow’s lip. One arm goes laterally behind the back and
the fingers grasp the fingers of the other arm, which is bent over the
corresponding shoulder (forming cow’s ear).
This asana tones and strengthens the ankles, hips, thighs and shoulders.
The cow is one of the holiest animals. You look at the cow’s face. They are so cool! The way they roam around in the fields, cross the highway super slow and steady, whether you honk or not, they just don’t care a thing in the world! The cow is considered to be the giver of plenty.
In Korea,
the agricultural society originally, cows are considered the most valuable treasures for the farmers. Day and night, they plow, carry and transport while alive and give their meat and skin when die. So the farmers have to guard it with zeal as they are easy targets for burglary in old times. We even have an old saying “fixing the cowshed door after the cow is stolen.” That is, we often regret after already things are happened.
In India, all of the cow’s products are used; its strength helps farmers plow the field; its urine is a strong antiseptic; its dung makes excellent fuel for stoves and its milk yields butter and ghee. So they worships cows like Holy Mothers.
In
China, the cow is the vehicle of Guan Yin, the Merciful Buddha. Thus Chinese Buddhists generally refrain from
eating beefs.
Different
cultures, different reasons, but generally cows are considered with special
regards in all over the world.
The cow
is also the embodiment of different yogic qualities. They are ever so calm,
peaceful and down-to-earth. They are
also generous and motherly and are in fact considered to be one of the
universal mothers. When the mother cow
sees her calf, her milk flows freely and abundantly. The relationship between the cow and her calf
is therefore the perfect symbol for the relationship between the earth and its
inhabitants. Like a calf, we can give
the earth our love while using her gifts in a sustainable and wholesome way.
“Holy Cow!!!”
You often
exclaim like this when you are surprised.
“Holy Simmo!!!”
My
cheeky hubby exclaims like this when he tries to be cheesy.
As for me,
who can’t enjoy any of the cow’s products due to serious lactose allergy or
beefs due to upbringing, I substitute the enjoyments by just doing “
Gomukhasana.”…
