Surya Namaskar

What is a Surya Namaskar?

Surya Namaskar, also known as Sun Salutation, is a sequence of twelve powerful yoga poses. It is a full-body exercise program with several physical, psychological, and spiritual advantages. Practicing Surya Namaskar helps to improve flexibility, strengthen muscles, and enhance cardiovascular health.

Surya Namaskar, Salute to the Sun or Sun Salutation, is a practice in modern yoga incorporating a sequence of some twelve gracefully linked asanas. The asana sequence is first recorded in the early 20th century.

The basic sequence involved moving from a standing position into Downward and Upward Dog poses and then back to the standing position, but many variations are possible.

Steps of Surya Namaskar

Step 1:

Prayer Pose (Pranamasana): Begin the Surya Namaskar practice with the Prayer pose (Pranamasana). Stand upright on a yoga mat with feet closely aligned with each other. Take a deep breath, expand your chest, and relax your shoulders. While you inhale, raise your arms and as you exhale, fold the hands in prayer position before your heart. It is the first Namaskar towards the sun.

Step 2:

Raised arms Pose (Hastottanasana): Retain the previous position. Upon inhalation, lift your arms up and slightly lean backward. Ensure your biceps are close to your ears. Try to stretch your whole body. The stretching loosens up the knots in the entire body.

Step 3:

Standing Forward Bend (Hasta Padasana): As you exhale; bend forward at the hip and bring your arms downwards. Place the hands beside your feet. Make sure your knees are straight and spine is erect. The pose strengthens the back, abdominal muscles, and nervous system.

Standing Forward Bend (Hasta Padasana)

Step 4:

Equestrian Pose (Ashwa Sanchalanasana): Inhale, and extend your left leg behind as far as possible. Now, fold your right knee and place it close to the right part of the chest. Keep your hands on the floor and spread your fingers. Look up and bend your neck slightly backward. This posture provides physical benefits and increases flexibility in the legs.

Step 5:

Staff Pose (Dandasana): Breathe in, stretch your right leg behind, and bring your body into a straight line. Keep your body parallel to the floor. A great pose that tones the wrists, legs, and arms, and prepares the practitioner for more challenging arm balances.

stick pose

Step 6:

Salute with Eight Parts (Ashtanga Namaskar): Slowly bring your knees to the floor and breathe out. Rest your chin, chest, hands, and feet on the ground, and raise your hips and abdomen high. This yoga asana makes the chest muscles and hands strong.

Salute with Eight parts(Ashtanga Namaskar)

Step 7:-

Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana): Tuck your elbows to the side of your body. Press your palms into the mat and lift your chest and head off the ground. Rotate your shoulder blades away from the ears and arch your neck backward. Gaze in an upward direction. It is a perfect pose to treat a headache and a backache.

Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)

Step 8:

Downward Facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana): Transform into the downward dog from Bhujangasana by elevating your hips up, keeping the heels on the ground, and making an inverted-V with your body. This yoga asana rewards the practitioners with multiple benefits such as relief from stress, improved circulation, enhanced respiration, and better posture, to name a few.

Step 9:-

Equestrian Pose (Ashwa Sanchalanasana): Turn into equestrian pose from adho mukha svanasana. Repeat the step (4) again but with the opposite side. Inhale, bring your left foot forward and place it between your hands, and then rest your left knee on the ground. Look upward towards the ceiling.

Equestrian Pose (Ashwa Sanchalanasana)

Step 10:

Hand to Foot Pose (Hasta Padasana): Gently bring your right foot next to your left foot. Keeping the position of your hands intact, lift your body upward and slowly come into a Hasta Padasana Posture.

Hand to Foot Pose (Hasta Padasana)

Step 11: Raise arm Pose (Hasta Uttanasana): Take a deep inhalation, stretch your arms up overhead, and slightly arch your back. Try to stretch your body upward instead of backward and keep your biceps close to your ears.

Raise arm Pose (Hasta Uttanasana)

Step 12:

Mountain Pose (Tadasana): Finally, exhale, bring your arms down, and stand upright in a relaxed manner. Feel the positive vibrations within your body and mind. Experience unparalleled serenity and refreshment.

Mountain Pose (Tadasana)

Benefits of Surya Namaskar:

1. Improves Blood Circulation of the Body:

Due to the active process of inhalation and exhalation, the lungs are constantly ventilated and the blood remains oxygenated. It’s a great way of detoxing your body and helping it get rid of excess carbon dioxide and other toxic gases

        2. Your Mantra to Weight Loss:

When done at a fast pace, it is a great cardiovascular workout that stretches the abdominal muscles while simultaneously helping you reduce excess weight around your stomach. The asanas also result in toning your arms, abs and giving great flexibility to your spine. Moreover, It helps to strengthen your entire skeletal system including your ligaments

        3. Promotes a Regular Menstrual Cycle:

If you’re facing the problem of an irregular menstrual cycle, these asanas will help you suppress this irregularity and if practiced daily, it ensures an easy childbirth

          4. Benefits your Skin and Hair:

By incorporating it into your routine it will keep you youthful and healthy even in old age. It improves your blood circulation and aids in bringing back the glow on your face; preventing the onset of wrinkles, and making your skin look ageless and radiant. It also prevents hair loss and the aging of hai

            5. Anti-anxiety and Calming Properties:

Surya Namaskar helps to improve memory and the nervous system. Moreover, it stabilizes the activity of the endocrine and thyroid glands, thereby reducing anxiety and inducing the sensation of complete calmness and tranquility.

Contraindication of Surya Namaskar

Bodily Weakness:

Since this is an involved yoga sequence, care should be taken if one has general body weakness or muscle and bone weakness.

Bad Back:

In Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskar), the spine expands and contracts to put pressure on the lower back and hip. Hence someone with a very bad back or injured back should certainly avoid this even if one has practiced this for years. It is essential to take a yoga teacher’s guidance or start slowly once the yoga practitioner has recovered from the back ailment or injury.

Pregnant Women:

Not advisable to be done by pregnant women as this puts pressure on the back and the abdominal area.

High Blood Pressure:

People suffering from high blood pressure should avoid this sequence. But with proper guidance from a yoga teacher someone not elderly can begin this yoga pose slowly and carefully.

Heart Problem:

Someone with a heart problem is advised to consult a physician before practicing Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskar). Remember that the age factor does play a big role for someone with heart conditions.

Arthritis:

Knee strength plays an important role in the various postures in Surya Namaskar. So someone who has severe arthritis leading to knee stiffness, should take it slow or avoid this sequence.

Wrist Injury:

Injury at the wrist will make the sequence difficult as pressure on the wrists in poses like Cobra Pose, Adho Mukha Svanasana, and going down to Eight Limb Pose would cause more stress and injury to the wrists.