What is "malasana"

Mālāsana, or malasana, is a term for various squatted āsanas. The term is being used in various western transliterations, and may refer to various asanas, all involving a squatted position.

The term malasana is most commonly used for the "regular squat pose," also called upavesasana, in which the handpalms are folded together in the socalled namaskar mudra in front of the chest, and the feet are set wider apart, which resembles the traditional defecating position.

The mālāsana, or "Garland Pose", is used for two slightly different āsanas, either with the hands folded around the heels, or with the arms folded around the legs while holding the hands together at the back, also called kanchyasana ("golden belt pose").

The term mālāsana is also used in the Sritattvanidhi to describe the bhujapidasana, the "shoulder press", in which the hands are placed at the bottom, the body balancing on the hands, and the legs resting on the shoulders.