In short: bound lotus is full lotus with the arms crossed behind the back, each hand holding the big toe of the foot on the opposite thigh. It asks for a comfortable full lotus plus open shoulders, so it is an advanced pose. Learn it with a teacher, and never use the bind to pull the legs deeper.
Bound lotus is one of the oldest described postures: the Hatha Yoga Pradipika’s first description of padmasana is in fact this bound form. Today most practitioners meet it at the end of an Ashtanga practice. Below we explain the name, how the bind works, the precautions and the related poses.
The name and the texts
Baddha means bound or caught and padma lotus. In B.K.S. Iyengar’s Light on Yoga (1966) the body is described as caught between the crossed legs in front and the crossed arms behind, which gives the pose its name. In the Hatha Yoga Pradipika (15th century), in Pancham Sinh’s 1914 translation, the first padmasana places the feet on the opposite thighs, crosses the hands behind the back to hold the toes, rests the chin on the chest and directs the gaze to the tip of the nose. The text’s claims that this destroys diseases are traditional statements, not medical findings.
In the Ashtanga finishing sequence, as documented by AshtangaYoga.info, Baddha Padmāsana is taken from lotus, the hands catching the big toes from behind, and flows into Yoga Mudrā, the forward fold in the bind, before the seated lotus. AshtangaYoga.info notes that Pattabhi Jois taught a hold of several breaths here in the 1990s and that it later became a brief pause on the way into the fold, a small example of how a tradition changes.
How the bind works
Settle into lotus first, with no knee discomfort. Then swing one arm behind the back on an exhale and reach the hand around toward the opposite hip to catch the big toe of the foot resting on that side; Light on Yoga advises catching first the toe of the foot that is on top. Repeat with the other arm. Drawing the shoulder blades toward each other gives the hands more reach. Keep the chest lifting and the knees releasing; the bind should never pull the feet further across the thighs. Many people need years of shoulder work before the second hand reaches; until then, hold a strap or the elbows behind the back.
Precautions in plain words
Everything that applies to lotus applies here, and more: the twist of the arms adds pressure that can draw the feet and knees deeper. The US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health advises people new to yoga to avoid the lotus position, and a 2013 review of yoga injury case reports linked lotus variations to knee and nerve problems. Skip bound lotus with any knee, hip or ankle condition, a shoulder injury, or sciatica, and ask your doctor or physical therapist. Come out at once if the legs go numb or tingle or the knees hurt. This page is general information, not individual advice.
Preparation and next poses
The prerequisite is a comfortable full lotus, built through half lotus and hip openers. For the shoulders, cow face arms and reverse prayer help. The forward fold in the bind, Yoga Mudrā, is covered on our yoga seal pose page; half-bound lotus standing forward bend uses the same one-sided bind standing.
Where it is taught
Bound lotus is part of every Ashtanga finishing sequence and appears in Iyengar and traditional hatha teaching. Explore other seated poses in the pose library.
