In short: triangle pose is a wide-legged standing pose in which both legs stay straight, the trunk extends sideways over the front leg, the lower hand reaches toward the shin, ankle, floor or a block, and the top arm points to the ceiling. It stretches the legs, hips and sides of the body. Reach long before you reach down, and put the lower hand wherever the spine can stay long.
Triangle is one of the classic standing poses and one of the few that nearly every school teaches. The details differ more than you might expect, especially in the Sivananda tradition, so below we explain the name, the main versions, the cues that matter, the precautions and where it fits.
The name and the versions
The Sanskrit name is Utthita Trikoṇāsana. Light on Yoga explains utthita as extended or stretched and trikoṇa as triangle (tri, three, and koṇa, angle), so the full name is extended triangle pose. Many people simply say Trikonasana.
In Light on Yoga, the feet are 3 to 3½ feet apart, the front foot turns out 90 degrees and the back foot slightly in, and the front palm rests near the front ankle or on the floor. In the Ashtanga standing sequence (Utthita Trikoṇāsana A), the index and middle fingers hook the front big toe and you stay five breaths. The Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres teach Triangle as the last of their 12 basic asanas, and their version is different: the feet stand slightly wider than the shoulders, you raise one arm and bend sideways, sliding the other hand down the leg without twisting, holding about 30 seconds and building toward two minutes. All three are true triangles; just know which one your class means. The twisting version has its own page, revolved triangle.
Making triangle work
Keep both legs straight but not locked, and keep the front thigh and knee facing the same way as the front foot; AshtangaYoga.info explains that lining up knee and ankle this way evens out the pressure in both joints. Before bending, reach the trunk forward over the front leg, then let it tip sideways, so the lengthening happens in the waist rather than the lower back collapsing. Iyengar’s picture is of the backs of the legs, the back of the chest and the hips in one line, as if the body were between two walls.
Where the lower hand goes is up to your hamstrings: the shin, a block outside the front foot, or the floor are all fine. A rounded spine with the hand on the floor is a worse triangle than a long spine with the hand on the shin. Turn the chest open toward the side and stretch the top arm up in line with the lower shoulder. Look up at the top thumb if the neck is comfortable; if not, Yoga Journal suggests looking straight ahead or down.
Precautions in plain words
Do not lock or push back the front knee; a micro-bend protects it if your knees hyperextend. With neck problems, look forward or down. With shoulder problems, rest the top hand on the hip. With hamstring injuries or lower back pain, use a block and a shorter stance. If balance is uncertain, practise with your back body near a wall.
Preparation and what comes next
Prepare with warrior II, standing side bend and hamstring stretches such as half standing forward fold. From triangle, many sequences move to revolved triangle, extended side angle or half moon.
Where it is taught
Triangle is in Iyengar yoga (Light on Yoga), the Ashtanga standing sequence, the Sivananda 12 basic asanas, and nearly every hatha and vinyasa class.
