sequence of sun salutation in hatha yoga

In particular, Namaskars were first described around 1500 BCE in the Rig Veda, the oldest collection of sacred Hindu scriptures, composed of more than one thousand hymns rich with metaphor, myth, and instruction. That means that movement meditation may have been practiced in this swath of land across northeast Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northwest India around 3500 BCE, more than 5,500 years ago. The earliest archaeological evidence of yoga culture was depicted on seals of Harappan, one of the most ancient urban cultures on the Indian subcontinent.

Prana Vinyasa Yoga teacher Shiva Rea brings back the transformative missing links through her six-week Master Class session, Evolution of Namaskar. But a few crucial pieces of the original custom never quite caught on in today’s mainstream practice. Talk about a throwback: Traditionalists trace the roots of modern Sun Salutations back to rituals called Namaskars performed more than 3,500 years ago. Now turn your eyes upwards towards the waist.Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! While bending, try to touch the knees with the forehead or nose. The palms should be placed almost parallel to the sides of the legs. With regular practice, you can do this within a week. If you could not reach the floor with unbent knees, just try your maximum. While doing this exhale and squeeze in the abdomen. Keeping knees straight, drop the hands to the floor. Hold your breath until you start the next position. When you come to concentrate on the head, smile gently. On reaching the shoulder, proceed to the fingertips concentrating on each and every tip. Concentrate on each part that you stiffen. Start with the toes and move gradually up to the top of the head. Stiffen the whole body starting from the feet. Raise the chest and pull the abdomen in and up as far as possible. Join hands with palms pressing each other and resting on the chest. Stand erect facing sunlight with knees together. Spread a blanket on the floor where there is sunlight. The ten-step Surya Namaskar as taught by Shri Bhawanrao Srinivarao is explained here. All versions of Sun Salutations (except Kalari versions) being taught by different yoga schools today are modified versions of this ten-step sequence only. This was how the modern Sun Salutation came into being. Shri Bhawanrao remodeled the traditional Surya Namaskar with ten steps (see picture). However, the Sun Salutation he practiced was the traditional one with Mantras and Vedic hymns. In his book The Ten Point Way To Health (1928), Shri Bhawanrao narrated that his father had been practicing Sun Salutation for more than fifty-five years. However, it is different from Aditya Hridyam, a Sun Salutation described in the great epic Mahabharata. In the traditional prayer, it is offered to Sun God with Mantras.

It is a prayer offered to Sun God with a specific yoga sequence. Hence Surya Namaskara means Sun Salutation. What is Surya Namaskar in Yoga? Surya Namaskar Meaning Hence it is an ideal exercise with all-around development for maintaining a healthy body and mind. Sun salutation involves arms, legs, the entire spine, and the neck. Unlike other exercises, it tones up the whole body. Yet it provides comparatively more benefits with less effort and time. It requires no instrument, companion, or suitable weather conditions as it is in the case of other exercises like walking, swimming, etc.

The sequence itself covers the required counterposes. It is a complete set of yoga poses that won’t require any counterposes. Furthermore one can get mastery the practice without spending much time and effort. Sun Salutation is a universal kind of exercise suitable for all ages, children, women, and men.

This article is a comprehensive guide that attempts to answer all the queries on Surya Namaskar. In the system of Suryanamaskara are combined several postures with rhythmic breathing, rapid movement, sunbathing, and prayerful contemplation of divine power that the sun represents. If for any reason, one could not find time to practice many yoga poses, it is enough for him to practice a few rounds of this sequence that will make him fit and healthy. In other words, a beginner can easily master this sequence and get most of the benefits that an adept yoga practitioner gets. The peculiarity of this sequence lies in the fact that it is beginner-friendly and yet gives the benefits of advanced yoga practice. Sun Salutation or Surya Namaskar is one of the most popular Hatha Yoga sequences. Surya Namaskar in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.

Sequence of sun salutation in hatha yoga