Kapotasana (Sanskrit: कपोतासन; IAST: Kapotāsana) or Pigeon Pose is a kneeling back-bending asana in modern yoga as exercise.KapotasanaFromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopediaJumptonavigationJumptosearchAkneelingback-bendingpostureinmodernyogaKapotasana,PigeonPoseThisarticlecontainsIndictext.Withoutproperrenderingsupport,youmayseequestionmarksorboxes,misplacedvowelsormissingconjunctsinsteadofIndictext.Kapotasana(Sanskrit:कपोतासन;IAST:Kapotāsana)orPigeonPose[1]isakneelingback-bendingasanainmodernyogaasexercise.Contents1Etymologyandorigins2Description3Claims4Seealso5References6Sources7ExternallinksEtymologyandorigins[edit]ThenamecomesfromtheSanskritwordskapota(कपोत)meaning"pigeon"[1]andasana(आसन)meaning"posture"or"seat".[2]Adifferent(standing)poseisgiventhenameKapotasanainthe19thcenturySritattvanidhi.[3]Themodernposeisdescribedinthe20thcenturyinLightonYoga.[4]AsanasbasedonKingPigeonposeorRajakapotasana[5]aresometimescalledPigeon;forexample,YogaJournaldescribesareclining(prone)variationofEkaPadaRajakapotasana,One-LeggedKingPigeonpose,asPigeon.[6]Description[edit]AposefromtheAshtangatraditionisanadvancedasanawhichresemblesChakrasana,orWheelPose.Theshinsandforearmsareontheground,thefrontbodystretchedupwardsintheair.Theposeisreachedbygoingintoabackbendwithkneesontheground.Itrequiresflexibilitytobringtheheadbackuntilitreachestheground.Kapotasanaisanasanawhichhelpstoopenupthechestandalsostrengthensthebackandgroin.Itopensandincreasestheflexibilityofthehips,[7]atthesametimestrengtheningtheback,andstretchingthethighsandthegroin.InIyengarYoga,practitionersbeginbylyinginSuptaVirasana,bendingthearmsandplacingthearmsbesidethehead.Theythenpressthehands,exhaleandraisethehipsandtrunk.Thecrownoftheheadcanbeplacedonthefloor,andhandscanbewalkedtowardsthefeetbyraisingthetrunkhigher.[8]Claims[edit]Twentiethcenturyadvocatesofsomeschoolsofyoga,suchasB.K.S.Iyengar,madeclaimsfortheeffectsofyogaonspecificorgans,withoutadducinganyevidence.[9][10]Iyengarclaimedthatthisposetonedup"theentirespinalregion"b