A few of those are my most hated yoga poses! No downdog for me - child's pose is my favorite resting pose (other than sivasana). Squats are never fun for me either. You did not specify which pigeon, but I do like all of them for different reasons. My favorite poses (in terms of instant feel-good) are most of the spinal twists.

somewhat ambivalent, actually. I once took an Anusara yoga class in which the instructor kept going back to this pose, and I remember feeling extremely angry and frustrated with myself. Then I spoke to her afterwards and she didn't seem surprised, since some yoga poses open up repressed feelings. Now, I appreciate Downward Dog because I feel that it connects me to feelings in my body and mind that I don't often want to entertain, like anger or sadness. And the simple act of incorporating it into my day has actually been really cathartic.

It's amazing when you first try to get into it and the hips are tight, but after a minute or two they start to relax and you can go deeper into the pose. Nirmala - that's very interesting what you said about Downward Dog. As for Pigeon, I have been told that women store emotions in their hips, so that's a good one for clearing out emotional baggage I suppose.

It's interesting how the individual is going to find a pose to be very different from another person. I vary from Stephanie B. I don't like poses like Child's Pose at all. I feel a little squished and closed-up when in that one. I have to keep my legs apart and often, pile my fists one on the other to get somewhat comfortable (strangely enough, I have trouble sleeping if I'm not on my stomach.) Of course, I keep trying to find ways to become comfortable with the pose over time, as I did with final relaxation (I hated it for a long time), but poses that involve forehead on the floor generally don't resonate well with me. I do well with poses like Rag Doll, in which I bend over but on the floor with forehead down doesn't work for me. I've only done one type of Pigeon Pose, which the teacher called "Pigeon", Stephanie B. Perhaps you can describe them all and I can choose the one I'm familiar with?

Mine would be:

Triangle

Forward Fold

Bakasana or crow pose

headstand

chaturanga

But that varies-some of those used to be my most challenging poses!

For me it's not particular poses but rather a genre or category of poses. So in the cases where I have a fancy (and by the by, I try not to even get into the preference realm) it would be inversions. I'd be lying, to both you all and myself if I didn't acknowledge I like turning things upside down.

But I wonder, do we "like" any things that we think we're not "good" at. Everyone's favorite is something they can do eh? What lesson is there for us as yogis?

Well, Gordon, looking at some of the other answers, I'd have to say that is not always the case. It's the challenge of succeeding in a pose that has some of our friends here on Wellsphere choosing particular poses as their faves. In my case, I must admit you are right for the most part. I do choose poses that are not hard on me. However, they are poses I have had to work into (Pigeon and Downward Dog) over a bit of time. I do admire you for preferring inversions. I have a difficult time being upside down. Maybe someday I'll be able to handle it better but for now, I'll keep working at it.

Remember, it's also important to do the poses we don't like! My un-favorites are Bridge and Camel. For the poses I do like - all the forward bends - I have started using a block for the intermediate stages. It really helps to relax before you can get all the way to the floor.

I find that my favorite postures change. Right now I am really into Kurmasana (tortoise pose) and Suptakurmasana (supine tortoise posture).

My lease favorite postures are hasta padangustasana (extended hand foot thumb posture).

Ooh tortoise. Makes my SI hurt just thinking about it! :) And Lela, I'm right there with you on backbends. Interestingly enough, they USED to be my favorites. BUt now I have an ongoing injury that makes them downright miserable!