Matsya Kreedasan (Swimming Fish Pose)

Procedure 

• Lie flat on your stomach, legs together and palms touching the sides of your thighs with your chin on the floor, i.e. Simple Prone Posture.
• Now interlocking your fingers of the hands, place them precisely under the head.
• Slowly flex your left leg, drawing the left knee closer to the chest.
• Shifting the face and arms to the left, touch the left knee with the left elbow without any strain.
• Now, place the right side of the head on the right lower arm.
• In the final position, take slow and deep breaths, and then completely relax the whole body.
• Mentally chanting (Radhey) while inhaling and (Krishna) while exhaling, attempt to be in this position for a minute.
• Lastly, come back to the starting position; repeat the asan on the other side.

Awareness

• On feeling relaxation of the whole body
• On the natural breathing along with mental chanting of “Radhey Krishna” with every breath

Benefits

• The bebefits of Matsya Kreedasan are the same as that of Balasan (See page 207).  
• It relaxes both—the body and the mind.
• People with backache may practice this pose as a counter pose after doing backward bending poses.
• Also, in the later stage of pregnancy, lying on the back may burden different veins and disturb the blood circulation. In such cases, this pose is perfect for relaxing, sleeping, or practising Subtle Body Relaxation.