Verse by verse · Hatha Yoga Pradipika
HYP 1.38
Lying flat on the back like a corpse is śavāsana; it removes fatigue and gives the mind rest.
Written and reviewed by The Kriya Yogi · Updated 21 September 2026
Sanskrit, in transliteration
uttānaṃ śava-rūpaṃ tad śavāsanaṃ / śrānti-haraṃ citta-viśrānti-kārakam
Our own plain rendering, checked against the standard published translations.
What the verse says
One of the oldest surviving descriptions of the pose every modern class ends with. The text gives it two functions only: it removes tiredness and it rests the mind.
In practice
Note what is absent — no detox, no cure, no energetics. Two honest claims, both of which you can verify in ten minutes on the floor.
This verse sits in Hatha Yoga Pradipika, chapter 1 — read our commentary on the whole chapter.