shavasana means A resting pose in which one lies flat on one's back with the arms and legs slightly spread and eyes closed. It carries an Arena rating of 1527, earned across 66 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, shavasana ranks #46 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words, #696 of 17,131 for Scariest Words, #886 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #1,112 of 17,127 for Most Vivid Words.
shavasana is pronounced /ʃəˈvɑːsənə/.
Why “shavasana” is a great word
SHAVASANA — [Noun] A concluding restorative posture in yoga, performed lying supine with limbs relaxed and eyes closed, intended for conscious integration and release. From Modern Sanskrit शवासन (śavāsana), from शव (śava, "corpse") + आसन (āsana, "posture, seat"). Unlike pranayama, which commands the active regulation of breath, or vinyasa, which describes a dynamic, flowing sequence, shavasana is the deliberate, motionless surrender that follows exertion. It is the profound weight of the body sinking into the floor, the conscious dissolution of tension in each limb, and the silent witness to the breath returning to its autonomic rhythm—a brief, rehearsed death from which one must always rise.
Etymology
From Modern Sanskrit शवासन (śavāsana), from शव (śava, “corpse”) + आसन (āsana, “asana”).
noun
- A resting pose in which one lies flat on one's back with the arms and legs slightly spread and eyes closed.e.g.“There was no way I was going to get sleep unless I did yoga-nidra or shavasan.” — 1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 226:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- asana 63% match — A body position, typically associated with the practice of yoga. vs shavasana →
- shirshasana 61% match — The pose wherein the body is completely inverted, and held upright supported by the forearms, while the crown of the head rests on the floor. vs shavasana →
- dandasana 55% match — A stiff asana (yoga position) with the legs flat on the floor and the body upright. vs shavasana →
- tadasana 55% match — A position in which one stands straight upright with feet together and hands by one's sides. vs shavasana →
- vinyasa 55% match — The transition between poses executed in succession, often timed with regular breathing. vs shavasana →
- samakonasana 54% match — A yoga position in which the legs are stretched out sideways on the floor vs shavasana →
- salabhasana 54% match — The locust pose, a back-bending yoga asana. vs shavasana →
- sannyasa 53% match — The fourth (wandering ascetic) ashrama in Hindu spiritual life. vs shavasana →