Yoga is the scientific method of exercising body, mind and soul. The techniques have been researched for thousands of years by sages and practioners, thereby evolving into very advanced methods to achieve the state of bliss. Yoga Asanas exercise the body and to a certain extent the mind. The other practices of Yama, Niyama, etc in Astanga Yoga exercise the Soul and Mind. Soul needs no exercise it just needs to remove the taint. The advanced practice of all yoga asanas may not be necessary for an average human being to lead a normal healthy life. So to achieve a healthy body and mind, and also answering the demanding work-life responsibilities, we could practice the simple asanas.

Some of the important simple asanas are:

1. Siddhasana (Squatting posture):

Instructions:

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend your left leg so that the left foot touches right thigh.
3. Now bend your right leg and place the right foot above left leg touching the left thigh
4. Straighten your torso so that the spine is straight upto head.
5. Place your left hand on the left ankle with palm facing sky, place your right palm on top of left.

• A very good sitting posture even for beginners.
  
• This sitting posture could used in many breathing Asanas.
  
• Flexes and improves the knee joints and waist.
  
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Hold your left foot and place it on the right thigh, so that foot is almost facing sky.
3. Now hold your right foot and place it over the left thigh above the left leg.
4. Straighten your torso so that the spine is straight upto head.
5. Place your left hand on the left ankle with palm facing sky, place your right palm on top of left.

• This is one of the best Asanas for knees and spine.
  
• Padmasana is used for most of the breathing exercices.
  
• Flexes knee joints, waist and the spine
  
  

1. Stand straight and keep the two the legs around "1-and-a-half" foot apart.
2. Raise the right hand towards sky, look at the right palm.
3. Bend at the hip towards left while keeping the right hand touching ears and looking towards palm.
4. Without bending the legs at knees touch the floor with left palm and right hand parallel to ground.
5. Come back to standing position slowly.
6. Repeat the process by raising the left hand and bending towards right side.

• This Asana exercises the Liver, Large intestines and spleen.
  
• The waist muscles are also strengthened.
  
• Flexes the spine.
  
  

1. Stand straight with heels joined together side by side.
2. Raise both hands towards sky and hold them together.
3. While inhaling slowly bend torso at the waist along with raised hands towards left.
4. Come back to the previous posture of raised hand while exhaling slowly.
5. Repeat the same procedure by beding towards right.

• This Asana stretches on both sides of the body.
  
• Improves the flexibility of body.
  
• Liver, Stomach and intestines are also strengthened.
  
• This Asana is also a remedy for sciatica.
  
  

1. Lie down on your back.
2. Stretch both of your hands back with palms facing the sky.
3. While inhaling stretch your hands and feet towards ground.
4. You could also hold both the hands together while doing this.
5. Relax and bring you hand next to your body.

• It counteracts the effect of wrong walking styles.
  
• When practiced at younger age improves height.
  
• The spine is relaxed and improves blood circulation.
  
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Spread the legs apart as much as you could comfortably do.
3. Now stretch your arms to reach to both the feet with respective hands, breath out while you do this.
4. Hold the toe or ankle and bend your torso forward and try to touch forehead to ground.
5. Stay in this position for 20 to 30 seconds.
6. Come back to sitting posture slowly while you breath in.
7. The next step is to reach out to feet/ankle with opposite hands.
8. Try to hold your right ankle with left hand while you breath out.
9. Similarly try left ankle with right hand while you breath out.
10. While returning to starting position breath in.

• It helps in reducing obesity at abdomen.
  
• Improves digestive system and seminal glands.
  
• Lower spine is exercised.
  
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend your left leg so that feet touches right thigh and heel touches anus.
3. While inhaling raise both your hands.
4. Slowly exhaling bend your torso forward with raised hand and catch the right heel with both hands.
5. Try to touch the right knee with nose and the ankle should touch ground.
6. Stay in this position for 15 to 20 seconds and exale.
7. You could stay in this position for further 30 to 40 seconds by breathing slowly.
8. Repeat the process with left leg stretched.

• It improves concentration.
  
• Tones up knee joints, ankles and thighs.
  
• Improves seminal system.
  
• Brings in elasticity and agility to the body.
  
  

1. Sit on the floor bend your leg with hands kept back for support, palms on the floor.
2. Now lift your hip up and move the feet away so that leg from feet to hip from 45deg to ground.
3. Put your head back and try to see behind while keeping the hands straight.
4. Straighten your torso so that the spine is straight upto head.
5. Stay in this position for 15 seconds and slowly sit down.

• It improves the shoulders and removes stiffness of body.
  
• This Asana exercises spine and the nervous system.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Get to the Padmasana as described earlier.
3. Move both hands back and catch the left hand wrist with right hand.
4. Close the left fist and sit straight, Inhale.
5. While exhaling slowly bend your body forward, without bending head.
6. Try to touch forehead to ground and raise your hands towards sky.
7. Try to stay in this position for 30 to 40 seconds breathing in and out.
8. Return to the sitting position and slowly come out of padmasana.

• Solves constipation problem.
  
• Improves the leg and joints by strengthening them.
  
• Strengthens the waist muscles and spine.
  
• Improves the digestive system: Stomach, Liver, Spleen.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend both of your legs and join feet together.
3. Keep the joined heels beetween anus and genitals.
4. Grip the feet with both of your hands.
5. Keeping the back straight try to touch the ground with knees.
6. You could make up and down movements of the folded legs to try touching the ground.
7. Get back to starting position.

• Seminal glands are toned up.
  
• Cures the genital and unrinary ailments.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend both of your legs and join feet together.
3. Sit on the joined heels (This is little different from Baddha konasana).
4. Straighten your torso so that the spine is straight upto head.
5. Get back to the normal sitting position.

• Seminal glands are toned up.
  
• Cures the genital and urinary ailments.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Fold and place your left foot heel under hip.
3. Fold and put the right leg above the left thigh.
4. Lift your right hand and bend backwards to touch your back over the shoulder.
5. Put your left hand behind from below and catch the right hand at back.
6. Initially touching the fingers of right and left hand would be good.
7. Later you could catch and interlock right and left hand at back.
8. Stay in the hand interlocked posture for 30 to 40 seconds and slowly release the hands.
9. Repeat the process with left hand raised above and catching by right hand from below.
10. Return to starting position slowly.

• This Asana strengthens the knees, feet and shins.
  
• Its beneficial for Lungs, Heart and the nervous system.
  
• It prevents enlargement of testicles.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend the right leg and keep the right heel between genitals.
3. Lift the left leg above the right knee and place in on ground on the outer side of right thigh.
4. You will be partially sitting on the left heel and ground held by right foot on the other side.
5. Place your right arm over the left thigh and reach out to catch the right foot, while doing this you will be pressing the left knee with the back of right hand.
6. Keep the back straight, while inhaling put your left hand around from back trying to reach your right thigh.
7. At this posture you will be pressing the left thigh with lower abdominal organs such as pancreas, Large intestine and liver.
8. Repeat the same process on the other side.
9. Slowly return to the starting pose and relax.

• This is not a very simple Asana. It strengthens and stimulates abdominal organs.
  
• It exercises spine and tones up the nervous system.
  
• This helps stimulating the endocrine glands such as pancreas which helps in controlling diabetes.
  
• Pancreas, Liver and even lungs and heart are strengthened.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Fold the left leg and place the left foot on right thigh just as the starting step of padmasana.
3. Lift the right foot and bring it over the left thigh and place after the left knee.
4. Hold the right toe by right hand.
5. Put your left hand around to the back. Try to touch the chin to the left shoulder.
6. Stay in this pose for around 20 to 25 seconds.

• This Asana is very helpful in curing stomach ailments.
  
• Its very good for prevention of diabetes and keeping it in control.
  
• It cures the enlargement of spleen.
  
• Tones up Pancreas and Liver.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Bend both of your legs and sit on the heels forming V shape, with toes joined together.
3. Sit straight in this position.

• This is a very simple Asana which could be practiced any time.
  
• The more time you sit the better.
  
• This Asana is good for the digestive system.
  
• Helps toning up of knees.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Get to the Vajrasana described previously.
3. Place your hands on your feet, and start bending backwards.
4. Keep bending backwards rest the elbows on ground for support as you bend back.
5. Try to lie down on your back and stay in this position for 10 to 15 seconds.
6. Now stretch your hands back and hold them together, rest your head on the hands held together.
7. Get back to the starting position by using elbows for support, in exact reverse order.
8. Remove hands from supporting head, place elbows on ground and lift up the body to sitting position.

• Knees, thighs, waist and abdomen are strengthened.
  
• Ankles, spine and neck are toned up.
  
• This Asana helps relieve mental tension by improving blood circulation.
  

1. Get to the Vajra Asana pose.
2. While inhaling raise both hands towards sky.
3. Bend forward while exhaling slowly with raised hand and touch the ground with hand.
4. The forehead also should touch ground in front of the knees.
5. Stay in the position for around a minute.
6. Come back to Vajra Asana slowly.

• This is the counter Asana for Supta Vajra asana, so its better to perform this after Supta vajra asana.
  
• It helps in relaxation by improving blood circulation to brain.
  

1. Sit on the mat with legs stretched in front of you.
2. Place your palms together on ground with fingers point towards knees.
3. Lift your hip and bend forward and place your stomach on the elbow.
4. Now lean further forward and try to lift the entire body over the elbows.
5. Stretch the legs so that your body is parallel to the ground placed on elbows and arms as pillars.
6. Stay in this posture for around a minute.
7. Be careful not to fall on your face, bend the legs at knee and place on ground.
8. Come back to sitting position and relax.

• It improves the functionality of Kidneys and digestive system.
  
• Removes the phlegm disorders.
  
• Helps fight obesity.
  
• Tones up Liver and also improves blood circulation.
  

1. Sit in the Vajra asana.
2. Stand on your knees and spread your knees around one foot apart.
3. Place the hands on your waist and start bending backwards.
4. Bend further slowly, now place your hands on the foot for support.
5. Your body should have take the shape of a square with hands as one side, torso and thighs forming the two other sides and legs upto knees as the side on ground.

• This Asana tones up the glands in the neck region.
  
• The obesity near stomach and waist are removed.
  
• Improves the elasticity of body.
  
• Tones up the digestive system.
  

1. Lie down on the mat on your stomach, rest your face on the right cheek.
2. Bend your left hand and place it near your face.
3. Bend the left leg so that left foot comes near the right knee.
4. The belly and chest should touch the ground for complete relaxation.
5. Keep the entire body loose.
6. Repeat the process turing to the left side.

• This Asana relaxes the entire body.
  
• Relieves all tension in body and relaxes mind.
  

1. Lie on your stomach, with legs joined together and forehead on ground.
2. Place your hands near to the shoulders and palms on the ground.
3. Lift up your upper body by moving chin forward and above bending backwards.
4. While inhaling raise the head and upper part of the body, use the hands to push the ground as you go up and back.
5. Stay in this position for around 15 to 20 seconds.
6. Return back to the starting position and relax in Shithila Asana.

• This Asana tones up the kidneys.
  
• It strengthens the neck, shoulders and spine.
  
• The endocrine glands in the neck gets stimulated.
  
• Blood circulation to backbone and heart improves.
  

1. Lie on your stomach, join the feet together.
2. Take both the hands back and hold them together.
3. Breath in and lift your head, neck, legs, knees.
4. Roll on the stomach left and right.

• This Asana helps reduce obesity.
  
• Improves appetite and body balance.
  
• Reduces constipation.
  

1. Lie on your Stomach and join the feet together.
2. Join the hands together in front above head.
3. While inhaling raise feet, hands and head.
4. Move front and back on the stomach.

• This tones up digestive system.
  
• Reduces obesity.
  

1. Lie down on your stomach and join the heels together.
2. Rest your chin on ground and place your hands under the thighs.
3. Raise the legs and the abdomen so that toe points to sky.
4. Keep the legs straight, not to be bent at knees.
5. Stay in this position for 40 to 60 seconds.
6. Come back to starting position and relax.

• This Asana exercises the abdomen.
  
• The Heart, lungs and spine are strengthened.
  
• Its a good asana for prevention of heart ailments.
  

1. Lie down on your stomach and join the heels together.
2. Bend the legs and raise your feet above.
3. Now lift your head and neck above the ground and reach out with your hands to the legs.
4. Hold the ankles of legs with respective hands.
5. Pull the legs by holding the ankle at the same time pull the legs, this will be kind of a tug between hands and legs.
6. Continue the tug till only belly is on the floor and rest of the body is not touching ground.
7. Stay in this position for around 10 to 15 seconds.
8. Come back to starting position and relax.

• This Asana exercises the spine and improves its elasticity.
  
• Tones up the kidneys and the digestive system.
  
• It exercises the lungs, neck and ribs.
  
• Its good for curing and preventing uterus ailments.
  

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