ASHTANGA VINYASA YOGA
FRASCATI (RM)
CRISTINA DE MARCHIS
The ashtanga vinyasa yoga is a philosophy of life very old, it is a dynamic yoga where the breath is synchronized with the movement of the body that performs a specific sequence of postures (asana).
During practice you should use three points of actions (Tristana):
1) with constant practice you will approach a comfortable and stable posture (asana) (sthira sukham asanam. Sadhana pada 46)
2) breath with sound (not ujjayi breath because it is a pranayama breath which I'll discuss apart) and with it Mula and Uddiyana bandha which are locks that help to hold energy (prana) created by the breath and direct it to the channels (nadi) that we have in our body, to remove toxins giving health benefits, especially with constant practice. So without the breath with sound and without bandha, cannot talk about yoga.
3) View (Dristi) that purifies and stabilizes the mind.
Vinyasa is the breath coordinated with movement. In fact, each Asana is connected to another by vinyasa; that means it's arised by control of alignment during the practice so that we can "enter" in the position, "remaing" in the position and return to the position with the same extension and breathing space.
Ujjayi Pranayama is a pranayama, breathing powerful and victorious that should only be used during pranayama. This aspect is very underlined by Sharat Jois because, as written in 'Hatha Yoga Pradipika, any breathing pranayama is only in the presence of Kumbaka, a suspension of the breath. During the practice breath should not be discontinued, that why we cannot talk about ujjayi but "breathi with sound."