Viparita Dandasana (Inverted Staff Pose): how to build up to it safely

How to do Inverted Staff Pose step by step

1. Warm up well first: several rounds of bridge, camel and at least two or three full wheel poses. Do not attempt this pose cold.
2. Lie on your back, bend your knees and place your feet flat, hip-width apart, close to your seat. Put your palms beside your ears, fingers pointing toward your shoulders.
3. Press into your hands and feet and lift onto the crown of your head, as you would halfway into wheel pose. Keep most of your weight in your hands, not your neck.
4. Lower one elbow to the floor, then the other, shoulder-width apart. Interlace your fingers and cup the back of your head, as in headstand.
5. Press your forearms firmly down and push your chest back toward your hands so the shoulders open and the weight moves off your head. Keep your knees bent and feet planted, or walk the feet away to straighten the legs if that stays easy.
6. Hold for 3–5 steady breaths (about 15 seconds). Breathe smoothly; if the breath becomes short or your neck feels squashed, come down.
7. To come out, walk your feet back in, tuck your chin slightly, release your hands and lower your shoulders and then your back to the floor. Rest with your knees hugged to your chest.

Where you feel Inverted Staff Pose: what it stretches and strengthens

Press your forearms down and lift your chest through. In the 3D guide, turn on Body guide: areas that stretch glow green and areas that work glow saffron.

Benefits and precautions

Inverted staff pose (Viparita Dandasana) is an advanced backbend in which you rest on your forearms and the crown of your head while your chest arches up and your feet press into the floor. It asks for open shoulders, a flexible upper back and a stable neck all at once. This page explains what the pose is, who is ready for it, a safe step-by-step progression, the supported chair and bench versions, and the cautions you should take seriously.

What is inverted staff pose in yoga?

The Sanskrit name has three parts: viparita means "inverted" or "turned the other way", danda means "staff" or "stick", and asana means "pose". The "staff" refers to the straight, strong body of Dandasana (staff pose), the seated pose where the legs stretch forward like a rod. Holding a staff pose teaches you to keep the legs and spine long; Viparita Dandasana turns that staff over and bends it into an arch.

You will see two main forms. Dwi pada Viparita Dandasana ("two-footed", also written dvi pada) is the classic version with both feet on the floor. In the Sanskrit of dwi pada Viparita Dandasana, dwi means two and pada means foot, so a two legged inverted staff pose in yoga simply has both feet down. Eka pada Viparita Dandasana is the one legged inverted staff pose, with one leg lifted straight up. The 3D figure shows the two-footed form with the knees bent, which is how most people first practise it.

Are you ready for Viparita Dandasana?

Be honest with yourself here. Inverted staff pose yoga is usually taught only after these are comfortable and pain-free:

• A steady wheel pose with straight arms, held for five breaths, two or three times in a row.
• A controlled headstand on the forearms, because you use the same interlaced-hands base.
• Arms that lift overhead next to your ears without the lower ribs flaring or the lower back pinching.
• No neck, shoulder or lower back pain in daily life.

If any of these is missing, stay with the preparation below for a few more months. There is no benefit in forcing the shape early.

Step-by-step progressions

Stage 1: Build the parts

Practise bridge pose and camel pose to open the thighs and chest. Add extended puppy pose for the shoulders and dolphin-style forearm holds for strength. Two or three sessions a week are enough.

Stage 2: Wheel with a pause on the head

From lying on your back, press halfway up and rest lightly on the top of your head for one breath, keeping most of the weight in your hands. Then either press up into wheel or lower down. This teaches you to control the head position.

Stage 3: Forearms down, knees bent

From the head position, bring the elbows down one at a time and clasp the hands. Keep the knees bent and feet close, exactly as the 3D guide shows. Work on pushing the chest back toward the hands; this is the action that lifts weight off the neck.

Stage 4: Straighten the legs

Only when stage 3 is easy, walk the feet away a little at a time until the legs are straight and the body forms a long arch. Keep the heels down and the inner feet pressing into the floor.

Stage 5: Advanced entries

Experienced students drop back into Viparita Dandasana from headstand, or lift one leg for the one-legged version. Learn these with an experienced teacher, never alone.

Supported version: over a chair or a viparita dandasana bench

In the Iyengar tradition the pose is often done lying back over a folding chair. You sit facing the chair back with your legs through it, lie back so the front edge of the seat meets your shoulder blades, hold the chair legs and rest your head on a bolster. A curved viparita dandasana bench does the same job. These supported versions let the chest open without holding your own weight, but they are still strong backbends, not chair yoga poses for back pain. If your back hurts, gentler poses for yoga for back pain are a better place to start — see our yoga for back pain plan.

Not the same thing: people searching for an "inverted back table pose" usually mean an inversion table. An inversion table, an inverted bed or an inverted chair for back pain is exercise equipment that tips you upside down. Viparita Dandasana is a yoga backbend. Neither should be used for back pain without advice from your doctor or physiotherapist.

Viparita Dandasana benefits

The main benefits of Viparita Dandasana are physical: a deep opening of the chest and shoulders, a strong stretch through the front of the hips and thighs, and strength in the arms, buttocks and back. Because the shoulders work in a full overhead position, many teachers use it to improve shoulder range for backbends such as king pigeon pose.

Is it an inversion?

Partly. The head is below the heart, so it shares the cautions of other inverted yoga positions. People often read about inverted pose benefits such as a sense of alertness; any such effect of inverted yoga poses is modest and not a reason to push into a pose you are not ready for.

Muscles worked

Common mistakes and how to fix them

• Weight sinking into the head. Press the forearms down and move the chest toward the hands. If you cannot, go back to stage 2.
• Elbows sliding apart. Keep them shoulder-width; a strap just above the elbows helps.
• Knees and feet turning out. Keep the feet parallel and knees pointing forward to protect the lower back.
• Holding the breath. A backbend this deep needs slow, even breathing. Come down when the breath gets short.

Poses before and after

Warm up with bridge, camel and wheel. Afterwards, release the back with child's pose, a supine twist and knees to chest, then rest in corpse pose. You can build this order in the sequence builder and follow it with the voice guide.

This page is for general education. Check with your doctor before starting yoga if you are pregnant, have a medical condition or an injury. Stop if you feel pain, dizziness or shortness of breath.