Table of Contents
Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutations:
Surya Namaskar is a practice of 12 graceful postures in a sequence which is performed to express our gratitude towards the source of energy(sun) to get our own system fine-tune with the nature and allowing our body to become heated to work against disease and make ourselves feel more lively and rejuvenated. In Ashtanga vinyasa tradition as per K.Patabhi jois we must start our yoga practice with sun salutation so we can make our body eligible to move smooth and in flow.
How to Do Surya Namaskar? Step by Step Instructions:
- Start from standing position and join the palm before chest, Tadasana
- Inhale raise hands over head and bend backward as far as you feel comfortable,
- Exhale bend forward from hip and bring the forehead towards knee.
- Inhale take the right leg back and drop the right knee down, palms on the floor and try to lift chest and chin up.
- Exhale step the left leg back too and join both feet while hands press on the floor and hip lifts higher.
- Now hold the breath drop knees chin chest down on floor while hip remains off the floor.
- Inhale slide forward, bring the belly down to floor, push on to hands and lift the chest and chin up.
- Exhale push onto hands bring the head down and lift the hips high.
- Inhale step the right leg forward between palms and drop the left knee down, lift chest and chin up.
- Exhale bring the left leg forward too, and bring the forehead to the knee.
- Inhale join the palms raise the hands overhead and bend backward.
- Exhale return in standing position.
- Repeat the same posture on left side, and it will make one round
- You can practice as many rounds as it is needed or you want.
Surya Namaskar Benefits:
Sun salutation is one of the best way to exercise the physical body and calm down the mind, it boosts energy, increase heat that allows all diseases to disappear, sun salutation is a way to rejuvenate the whole body, it is a wonderful mix of strengthening and flexibility exercises, it strengthens arms , legs and spine most importantly and also stretches thighs muscles and makes our spine mobilize. Sun salutation can be a cure and firstly a prevention to several ailments such as obesity, low blood pressure (hypotension), arthritis ,joint pain , and can reduce the blood sugar level and so on.
Surya Namaskar Precautions:
- Surya Namaskar is wonderful set of practice which could lead to many possibilities to a person in terms of health and spirituality even and to help one be in touch with nature of one’s own existence, but done incorrectly could lead to problems like injuries, and can disturb some bodily function if not done knowing some precautions
- People suffering from Blood Pressure or Heart problems should make sure they do it with as much ease as possible and better practice under the guidance of a teacher.
- People who have had surgery. (Only after consultation with the doctor)
- Those having hernia should be more careful about how they feel while practicing
- People having any kind of problem in spine should make sure the practice doesn’t make it worse rather do more of a self assessment while practice.
- People should avoid imitating others position, one must try to do the way his body responds to it.
