If you’ve been practicing yoga for a while, you’ve likely heard a teacher drop a mystical number: 84 . “There are 84,000 asanas,” some say, “but the classical number of foundational poses is 84.”

Next time you stand in Tadasana (Mountain Pose), remember: That stillness is the pose of the mountain. That steadiness is the pose of the tree. That breath is the pose of the cobra, the lion, the crane. You are already practicing all 84.

Legend holds that , the Adiyogi (first yogi), realized that the human form is the final, most evolved vehicle for spiritual liberation. To guide humanity toward freedom, he taught 84 fundamental asanas—one for each “lakh” of species. By practicing these poses, a yogi was said to be systematically working through every state of consciousness in existence, ultimately transcending the cycle of birth and death.