Surya Namaskar
Origin of Surya Namaskar
Surya ( सूर्य ) means Sun and Namaskar ( नमस्कार ) is a greeting in the Bharatiya ( Indian ) tradition. Namaskar/Namaste means being aware of the Supreme Consciousness in the other, which in this case is the Sun Lord.
The Sun is revered as Lord or a God ( Deva ) because of what it does, it’s contribution to the Earth.
People haven’t been able to very clearly mention the exact year of its origin.. Some say that Lord Hanuman used to practice it, a similar practice called Aditya Hridayam is mentioned in the Ramayana ( Yuddha Kanda, Canto 107 ) in which Lord Rama performed similar postures ( Taught by Rishi ( Sage ) Agastya ) to take inspiration from The Sun.
Bhawanrao Shriniwasrao Pant Pratinidhi popularized this practice, it has been asserted that he had invented the practice, but Bhawanrao himself said that it was a common practice in the Marathi tradition.
He has elaborated the practice it in his book The Ten Point Way to Health.
Many great recent time Hatha Yoga teachers and Gurus like Shri Krishnamacharya and Swami Sivananda have also been aware and mentioned the benefits of Surya Namaskar.
Is Surya Namaskar religious?
It all depends on how a person sees it.
Sanatan Dharma, many religions and great saints and wise people have said that God is in Everyone. Infact if you Google ” See God in Everyone ” right now, you will see how commonly many have said it.
I personally am an open minded individual and try to be open minded towards knowing and understanding things.
People say that Bharat ( or Hinduism as they call it) has 330 million Gods !
We have so many Gods because of the freedom people have to choose their own God.
People see God or Divinity in Govardhan Parvat ( A mountain near Vrindavan ), Trees, Forest, Rivers, The Sun etc . Prayers are also a way to actually show their gratitude towards all mentioned.
This topic is definitely something that can be discussed among scholars and thinkers with an open mind and a lot can be written about it.
Another set of people see it as an form of exercise to stay fit and not really going deep to understand the origin etc of it.
Its up to you to decide 🙂
How to Perform Surya Namaskar ?
Preparing for Surya Namaskar
Stand Straight, hands by the sides. Keep the whole body relaxed
Step 1 PranamAsana
Bring both hands in Namaskar, the tips of the thumbs touching the Heart center.
You can gently bow your head in humility and gratefulness for all the Sun God does for us.
*( I am referring him as Sun God ( Dev ) ( सूर्य देव ) because Dev/Deva means the one who has many divine qualities )
Step 2 Hasta UthanAsana
Breathing In raise the hands up along the ears as seen in the image. Bend from the hips.
Be aware of the backward stretch.
Step 3 Pada HasthAsana
Breathing Out go down. Place the hands by the sides of the legs as in the picture otherwise you can let them hang near the feet. Keep the knees straight.
Step 4 Anjaney Asana/ Ashwasanchalan
Surya Namaskar has 12 asanas, Right side + Left Side = One Round.
We are doing the Right side first.
Bring the right leg back and keep them on the toes or straight and the keep the front leg at a 90 degrees angle between the hands as seen in the picture.
Lunge forward and look at the Sun / eyes gently closed.
Breathe In in this posture
Step 5 ParvatAsana
Breathing Out Move the front leg back. Keep a similar gap between both the legs and hands. Try to flatten the feet on the ground and the head between the arms.
Step 6 Ashtang Namaskar
Bend both the knees and place them on the ground. Now place the chest in between the hands.
In AshtAng ( 8 parts ) Namaskar – 8 parts of the body are touching the ground. Both the feet(2), knees(2), hands(2), chest and chin.
Hold The Breath in this posture
Step 7 BhujangAsana
Join the toes, heels and knees together
Breathing In Raise the Head then neck, then the upper back. Do not raise the lower back in the air, it will stay on the ground. Keep the elbows near the body.
Step 8 ParvatAsana
Move into Parvatasana, and Breath Out
Step 9 AshwaSanchalanAsana
Bring the Right leg forward ( we are moving the right leg first as we are giving right leg priority in the Right side )
Breathe In
Step 10 PadaHastasana
Breath Out in Pada Hastasana
Step 11 Hast Uthanasana
Breathing In raise the hands in HastUthanasana
Step 12 PranamAsana
Breathing Out
Bring both hands in Namaskar, the tips of the thumbs touching the Heart center.
You can again gently bow your head in humility and gratefulness for all the Sun God does for us.
So this was the Right Side, Now do the left side.
In the Left Side everything will be the same, except in in Step 4 bring the left leg back first and in Step 9 bring the Left Leg forward first.
Why I would say it is so beacause in the left side Left Leg gets the priority and moves first while going back or Front.
( Please Note – Different Schools and teachers may teach different variations of SuryaNamaskar, I am not saying that my way of doing it is the only right way and others are wrong.
Surya Namaskar has different variations as taught by different teachers and Guru’s.
One thing that is constant and most important is the essence of it. Generally all the SuryaNamaskars are almost similar with 12 asanas on each side. )
Benefits of Surya Namaskar
- Increases Blood circulation and is good for the Circulatory System.
- Regular practice gives a good posture.
- Massages the Internal organs and hence improves their functions.
- Strengthens and tones the body
- Improves concentration and mental focus
- Brings relaxation
So do practice and let know if you have any further questions 🙂
