Yoga is often referred to as a ‘moving meditation’. This is a matter of the intention one brings to their practice, which informs the decisions that we make, and how we choose to move and experience what we are doing. The Sun Salutation, Surya Namaskar, is a practice whose repetitive poses can be beneficial for learning how to go deeply into practice, moving rhythmically with the cadence of the inhalations and exhalations. The history of this practice is one that spans centuries and has transformed considerably in its journey. Its modern form is considerably different from its ancient roots, but the practice as it exists today can be combined with meditative intention that provides timeless benefits.
Surya is a Hindu deity, the god of the sun and its life-giving light. Namaskar is Sanskrit for ‘Salutation’. (The term ‘Namaste’ is comprised of the words ‘Namas’- salute, and -te, you. “I salute you”). A Namaskar is a salutation, or act of acknowledgment and reverence, towards a god, element, or concept. In his 2001 adaptation of the Hindu epic, The Ramayana, Ramesh Menon writes of its heroes, the princes Rama and Lakshmana,
“The princes awoke. Rested and smiling, they waded into the fragrant river, they worshipped the rising sun with Suryanamaskara” (Menon 19).
The Surya Namaskar that the hero Rama practiced was most likely a prayer said to fulfill the ritual of Sandhya, prayers said at sunrise and sunset. Reverence for the sun is written of in ancient Hindu texts like the Vedas and Upanishads, but the Surya Namaskar practiced in modern Hatha Yoga has its origins in early 20th century India. At this time, Hatha Yoga gurus and disciples began to practice, teach, and promote a form of Yoga that was eventually introduced to the west, the Hatha Yoga that we know now: ancient meditation postures sequenced in accordance with modern physical fitness ideas, presented with philosophical underpinnings from Indian spiritual texts and ritual.
The modern Surya Namaskar is a combination of ancient reverence for the life-giving sun, and body-building techniques of the 19th and early 20th century. One of its most prominent champions was Bhawanrao Shrinivasrao Pant Pratinidhi, the Raja of Aundh. In the Economic Times article, “Bhawanrao Shrinivasrao Pant Pratinidhi: The Man Who Promoted Surya Namaskar”, Vikram Doctor writes,
“The Raja insisted on first his children performing …and then all children in schools in Aundh. In 1923 he wrote a book in Marathi on the practice which he then had translated into English. In advance of this, in 1927, he wrote to the Times of India explaining the benefits: “The great speciality and importance of this exercise of Namaskars consists in that it can be taken most profitably at all times in all seasons, at all stages of life and by all men and women” (Doctor).
I’m inclined to agree with the Raja. Surya Namaskars are a great exercise for beginners, because they warm and open the body, and combine pranayama and meditation in motion. While performing the asanas of Surya Namaskar, one is meant to move with the inhalations and exhalations, which becomes easy to do because of the repetitive nature of the asanas in the sequence. Following this flow takes you into a deeply experiential state. The mind clears, and you are completely tuned into your body.
Sun Salutations can be placed at the beginning of a longer sequence, or done as a morning workout followed by a quick Savasana or meditation. While performing Surya Namaskar, we face the sun and move in appreciation of its light and embracing its warmth, or, if it is a cold day, we contemplate its perpetual presence even if it is hidden by clouds. The sun is a generous entity, giving light to every corner of the world, to every being. The Sufi poet Hafiz wrote,
“Even after all this time, the sun never says to the earth, ‘You owe me’.
What becomes of a love like that?
It lights the whole sky”.
Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation)
This is a shorter adaptation of the common 12 step Sun Salutation. This adaptation would be appropriate for beginners. Chaturanga Dandasana (Four Pointed Staff), has been omitted because beginners or those with chronic pain or previous injury in their shoulders and wrists may find these asanas difficult to perform.
- Sit in Sukhasana (Easy Seated Pose) and begin Ujjayi Pranayama (Ocean Breath). Breathe through your nostrils, into the pit of your stomach, fully suffusing the belly, your chest, and rib cage. Exhale, feeling the belly release the inhaled air and settle back against the spine, and the chest and rib cage release the breath, as well. The inhalations and exhalations should be audible, and have the cadence of ocean waves.
- Come to hands and knees, your shoulders open and bottom slightly lifted, your neck and head lifted and your face facing forward, spine natural and relaxed like the top of a table, your knees grounded, and your palms flat on the floor. Inhale. Round your spine, tuck your chest, bring your chin into your chest, look down, and exhale. These are cat-cow tilts. Like Ujjayi Pranayama, they warm and open the body, and help establish the rhythm of your breath.
- Come to Cow Pose, spine like a table-top, place your toes on the ground, straighten your knees, and lift into Adho Mukha Svanasana, Downard Facing Dog. From Down-Dow, walk your feet between your hands into Uttanasana, forward bend. Engage your abdomen to roll up into standing.
- Stand in Tadasana (Mountain Pose) with your shoulders relaxed, arms at your sides, neck relaxed, gazing forward.
- Sweep your hands upward, your palms meeting together above your head in Upward Salute.
- Let your arms glide back to your sides, back to Tadasana.
- Repeat this movement, from Tadasana to Upward Salute, and complete it by resting the hands in prayer pose in front of your chest. This is the Anjali Mudra, the Reverence mudra.
- With your hands in Anjali Mudra, tune into your breath. Enjoy its rhythm, feel its warmth within your body. If you are outside, feel the sun on your face, and take a moment of gratitude for its warmth and light.
- Raise your hands to Upward Salute. Extend your hands to your sides, exhale as you bend forward from the hips and extend your abdomen over your thighs. Rest your hands on your ankles or on the ground, whichever is more comfortable for you to reach, in Uttanasana, forward Bend.
- Engage your abdomen, on an inhale, as you extend your spine like a table-top and raise your chest over your knees. Your hands should rest on, above, or below your knees. This is Ardha Uttanasana, Half Forward Bend.
- Exhale back to Uttanasana, then place your hands on the ground or your mat. Extend your right leg back in a lunge.
- Let your right knee rest on the mat or ground, and inhale as you raise your chest, until you are standing on one knee, chest, torso and head upright, neck relaxed, gaze ahead. Your left foot is planted firmly on the floor, your left knee bent. You should be ‘down on one knee’, like a man about to propose marriage, or Tim Tebow! If you have regular discomfort in the knee that is supporting you, then place a pillow or folded blanket beneath it.
- Breathe here, with your hands raised as in Warrior 1. You can hold a Yoga strap to help your balance.
- On your exhale, return to a lunge. Inhale as you walk back to Uttanasana. Exhale in Uttanasana.
- Inhale in Ardha Uttanasana.
- Engage your abdomen, not your spine, and let your shoulders and arms travel with your abdomen as you roll up to Tadasana.
- Hands to Anjali Mudra. Breathe and reflect.
- Repeat 1 through 11, but this time on your left side. From lunge, come down to rest your left knee in ‘Tebow Pose’, and your right knee bent and right foot on the ground.
- Repeat 12 through 16.
- From here, you can return to Sukhasana and breathe in Ujjayi Pranayama, or you can come to relaxation in Savasana.
Please, do not attempt to practice the guidelines shared here if you have a prior injury or chronic illness which would require consulting a doctor before you begin an exercise regimen. Practice in a room that is not too hot or too cold, drink water and wear light, comfortably fitting clothes. If you are on a prescription medication, please follow the medication’s guidelines as usual. If you are, or might be pregnant, if you have a history of high blood pressure, are prone to or have been experiencing headaches, pain in your eyes, ringing in your ears, nosebleeds, or dizziness, please do not practice the guidelines shared here before consulting a doctor.
References
Menon, R. (2001). The Ramayana: A Modern Retelling of the Great Indian Epic. New York. North Point Press.
Doctor, V. (June 15, 2018). “Bhawanrao Shrinivasrao Pant Pratinidhi: The Man Who Promoted Surya Namaskar”. The Economic Times. Web. Retrieved October 17, 2019. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bhawanrao-shrinivasrao-pant-pratinidhi-the-man-who-promoted-surya-namaskar/articleshow/64607546.cms
Sthira Yoga 