The asana usually appears as a seated spinal twist with many variations, and is one of the twelve basic asanas in many systems of Hatha Yoga.

The asana is named after the great yogi Matsyendranath. The name comes from the Sanskrit

words ardha meaning "half," matsya meaning "fish," eendra meaning "king", and asana

meaning "posture" or "seat.”

Article gives variations and benefits.

To read article in PDF format click on PDF.

This article was first published in the August 2015 issue of Tattvaloka, the Splendour of Truth. Tattvaloka is published under the aegis of the illustrious 9^th century Sringeri Sri Sharada Peetham, and the Jagadguru Sri Sankaracharya of Sringeri. This article is courtesy and copyright Tattvaloka (http://www.tattvaloka.com/) You can subscribe online at http://www.tattvaloka.com/buy-online . Cost is Rs 496/ for one year (12 monthly issues) print, Rs 1,390 for three years, Rs 11,900 for Lifetime subscription.