King Pigeon · Raja Kapotasana
Raja Kapotasana · 라자 카포타사나 · 왕 비둘기 자세
Advanced Series · Sthira Bhaga (Strength & Grace) — From Advanced B (Fourth Series)
Breath: 5 · Drishti (gaze): third eye
Seated in pigeon legs, bend the back knee and draw both hands overhead to the foot until foot and crown meet. Hip, spine, and shoulder close into one great circle — the summit of the backbends, reached only after long preparation.
Alignment
- Hands — reaching overhead, both hands catching the back foot
- Feet — the back toes drawing toward the crown
- Knees — the front leg folded on the floor; the back knee within hip width
- Gaze — the third eye; open the chest first, the head last
Entering the pose
- Settle into pigeon legs
- Bend the back knee, hook it with the elbow
- Both hands overhead to the foot
Common mistakes
- A twisted pelvis bending only the lumbar
- Cranking the arms back with stiff shoulders
Modifications & props
- A strap to the rear foot, caught overhead, is the standard learning tool — the years shorten the hand-to-foot distance.
- A bolster under the front hip levels the pelvis — a backbend over a tilted base stacks into one side of the waist.
- Before the overhead catch, the mermaid variation — rear foot hooked in the elbow — teaches the shoulders their direction.
Benefits
- Completes the great circle of hip, spine, shoulder
- Thigh front and chest open to their fullest
- The emblem of long, patient preparation
Role in the sequence
First of the Advanced B (fourth series) selections — Intermediate's Kapotasana elevated to the king of pigeons. Arching back over a seated-pigeon base to catch the rear foot overhead, it adds an asymmetric base and overhead shoulder flexion to the backbend, a branch of difficulty distinct from Kapotasana's. A representative excerpt of the fourth series' backbend vocabulary.
Practice notes
Raja means king and kapota means pigeon. Where the Intermediate Kapotasana was a kneeling backbend, the king pigeon folds one leg forward, stretches the other back, and catches that back foot behind the head. It is the emblematic backbend of Ashtanga's Advanced Series.
What it asks for is more than a backbend: external rotation of the front hip, length in the psoas and quadriceps of the back leg, extension of the thoracic spine, and flexion of the shoulders. All four have to open together for the foot to reach the head, and if any one is blocked, the body folds its weakest link — the lumbar spine — to make up the difference.
The preparation therefore divides clearly. Pigeon preparations for the front hip, lunges and Bhekasana for the back leg, Kapotasana for the shoulders, each built over months. Looping a strap around the back foot and walking the hands down it keeps the progression controlled.
Two checks: is the pelvis square and level to the front (it likes to tip toward the folded leg), and does the opening feel like the chest rather than the lower back? After the five breaths, fold forward in a neutral shape to let the back settle.
Long, separate preparation of hips and backbend comes first.
Written by Choi Seongjin — 20 years of Ashtanga practice, currently teaching three classes a week. Last updated: .
This guide is for general information and is not medical advice. If you are pregnant, injured, or have a medical condition, consult a qualified teacher or physician before practising. Disclaimer & Legal Notice
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