Why do we roll to the right?

Students often wonder why we are invited to roll out to the right after resting in savasana, or other reclining poses. There are a number of reasons we do so, on both a symbolic and physiological level.

In India, it is considered more auspicious to enter a holy place with the right foot, and in many parts of the world, we extend our right hand in greeting. The right side also represents the east; rolling toward the east, or the rising sun, symbolises asking for blessings, grace, and bliss.

Physiologically, since our heart is on the left, when we roll to the right, it remains open and free of pressure. Rolling to the right also keeps the ida nadi (one of the main channels of prana, or the life force, which corresponds to cooling energy) active and helps keep the body in a state of calmness as we come into a sitting position.

You may notice that pregnant women in the class are invited to roll to, or rest on, the left. During pregnancy all side-lying poses should be practiced on the left side, to avoid pressure on the vena cava vein, which moves blood from the lower part of the body—the uterus—to the heart.