Virabhadrasana (Sanskrit वीरभद्रासन) II, or warrior 2 pose, is named after the legendary warrior Virabhadra. It is the second asana named after Virabhadra and it depicts him pointing his sword forward.
To attain the posture stand on the top of the mat with your feet together, then make a big step with your left foot back towards the end of the mat (a distance of 3 to 4 feet) aligning your left heel on an imagined line that forms the axis of your right foot . Ground your left foot firmly on the floor pointing your toes to the left and pressing the heel and the outer edge of your left foot to floor. By now your left knee and your pelvis should already be facing to the left. Bend the right knee bringing your right thigh nearly parallel to the floor and to the sides of the mat (feel the opening in your groins). The right knee should be projected directly over the heel. Stretch your arms to the level of the shoulders: right fingers pointed forward and left fingers pointed backward. Gaze towards your right middle finger. Hold as much as your body allows. Then switch sides.
Beyond the physical this posture brings to our awareness (as we already said while discussing Virabhadrasana I) the truth that the only battle we go through is the internal one. Virabhadra was created from Shiva’s (the absolute) own dreadlocks (matted coils of hair) to fulfill a divine mission. After the mission was accomplished Virabhadra was absorbed back into the divine. It celebrates the cycle of Life that starts in the realm of the transcendental and ends there.
Other than the feeling of trust, confidence that warrior poses nourish within you, warrior 2 allows you to feel the possibility of going through the difficulties of life without any tension (hence the relaxed shoulders) and equanimity (the balance between the right and left arms). See also Virabhadrasana I.
