Lotus position
Lotus position or Padmasana (Sanskrit: पद्मासन, romanized: padmāsana)[1] is a cross-legged sitting meditation pose from ancient India, in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh.
[2] Shiva, the meditating ascetic God of Hinduism, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, and the Tirthankaras in Jainism have been depicted in the lotus position, especially in statues.
[4][5] In Asian cultures,[6] the sacred lotus is used as a symbol of growth towards perfection and enlightenment as it is rooted in the mud at the bottom of the pond, but rises and blooms above the water.
[16] From sitting cross-legged on the floor (Sukhasana), one foot is placed on top of the opposite thigh with its sole facing upward and heel close to the abdomen.
[2][28] Attempts to force the legs into lotus pose can injure the knees by squeezing and damaging the medial meniscus cartilage; this is painful and takes a long time to heal.
[29] The yoga guru B. K. S. Iyengar notes that people unused to sitting on the floor will initially feel "excruciating" pain in the knees, but that this subsides with practice, until the pose becomes relaxing, both restful and alert and hence ideal for pranayama.
[40] The scholar of religion Thomas Tweed wrote in 2008 that "the prevailing image of Buddhist practice has been the solitary meditator, eyes half closed, sitting in the lotus position.
[43] The BBC journalist Megan Lane commented in 2003 that since yoga as exercise had become mainstream, lotus position (like tree pose) had been used by advertisers to sell "all manner of goods and services.
"[44] She noted that both "healthy living"[44] goods such as vitamins, fitness clubs, water filter and probiotic yogurt, and unrelated items such as cars, airlines, financial services "and even beer"[44] have made use of images of yoga to convey a message of well-being.
The agency responded with a photograph of two young women meditating in lotus pose at dawn under the heading "Start your day with Jogi", the brand name also meaning "yoga" in Polish.
