The name of this asana is composed from the following Sanskrit roots: Surya means Sun and Namaskara means to greet full of devotion and love. Thus, Surya Namaskara means “The yogi greeting of the Sun”. It is a simple technique that awakens the entire being and is normally performed at sunrise, before asanas, as a warming up technique.
Its performance has the effects of awakening and amplifying the solar, masculine, yang aspect of the human being. Surya Namaskara confers a perfect health, force, harmony, efficiency and longevity.
Surya Namaskara is an almost uninterrupted sequence of 12 movements, 6 simple movements which are repeated inversely, that are performed several times.
It tones up all the muscles of the body, accelerating the breath and the heart beat without causing exhaustions or breath loss.
WHO CAN PERFORM THE ASANA?
Women should not perform Surya Namaskara during the first two days of their period. Pregnant women can perform it only until the fifth month of their pregnancy and they can start and perform it gradually after giving birth. In case of hernias, Surya Namaskara is not indicated.
HOW TO PERFORM THE ASANA
STARTING POSITION
Stand with your feet parallel and close to each other.
FIRST STAGE
Place your palms together in front of your chest, placing the tips of your thumbs in the hollow of your neck, perpendicularly on the other fingers; the spine is perfectly straight, the feet are parallel and very close together without touching.
Exhale slowly all the air from your lungs through the mouth. Put your elbows against the ribs but maintain the hands in their initial position.
Then exhale deeply trying to eliminate the last molecules of air from the lungs by contracting your abdomen. When the lungs are completely empty, contract all muscles starting with the soles, then the ankles, the thighs, abdomen (already contracted thanks to the forced breathing), the back, chest, arms, hands and neck, we contract all the body muscles.
Common errors: If the hands are not placed at the right height and the fingers (except the thumbs) are not together, the residual air cannot get out of the lungs completely.
SECOND STAGE
Relax all the muscles and raise your stretched arms up and backwards, curving your pelvis as much as possible and looking straight to the finger tips. Inhale deeply and slowly through the nose.
Common errors: If the pelvis and the back are not well curved, the muscles of the back will not be stretched enough.
THIRD STAGE
Exhale through the mouth and bend until you reach the floor with your hands. Try to put the hands on the floor entirely (with all their area); bring your head as close to the knees as possible.
At the final stage of the movement partially contract the abdomen. In the beginning, when the body is quite stiff, the hands will not be able to touch the floor.
Keeping the chin well pressed to the chest will diminish gradually all the function problems of the thyroid.
Common errors: If the head is not close enough to the knees, the bending of the body is not big enough and the effects are much diminished.
FOURTH STAGE
Inhale deeply through the nose putting the entire sole of the right leg on the floor, including the heel, and push the right knee forward. Thus, the right ankle, thigh and sole will form a Z.
Push simultaneously the pelvis as close to the right knee as possible. The left leg is stretched backwards but not at maximum, as it is impossible for it to reach the correct position.
Then straighten the back while looking towards the ceiling or, if performing outdoors, towards the Sun, but keeping the eyes closed.
Common errors: Do not bend the head and do not put the leg bone perpendicularly on the floor. Do place the sole instead of the toes on the floor.
For an easy performance, distribute almost all the weight of the body to the right bent leg and to the right arm, which will allow a slight leaning of the pelvis and will facilitate the bringing back of the stretched leg.
FIFTH STAGE
Now form an inversed V with the heels well stretched towards the floor and, if possible, keep the heels on the floor.
The head will be pointed towards inside, pressing the chin to the chest, the back will be as straight as possible, contract the abdomen and the muscles of the thighs and direct the inner focus towards the navel.
Common errors: If you stay only on tiptoes and do not keep the head straight, this position will not look as an inversed V; do not bend the back and contract the abdomen.
SIXTH STAGE
Exhale through the mouth while getting down to the floor. The only contact points with the floor must be the chin, the chest, knees and toes. In this position the abdomen cannot touch the floor as the pelvis is well curved.
The nose cannot touch the floor now. This posture confers a very special curve of the spine, which was maintained perfectly straight in the previous posture.
Common errors: Do not put the pelvis on the floor; the sole must not face upwards, the toes must be against the floor.
The hands have to stay firmly on the floor. The soles must eventually come back to the same starting point.
In the beginning it is quite difficult to perform this position correctly but perseverance will give the best results.
SEVENTH STAGE
Inhale through the nose, lift the head as much as possible and curve the pelvis very much, without touching the floor with your body.
The only contact points with the floor are now the toes and the hands. The arms are outstretched and the shoulders are pushed backwards to allow the chest expand in the front.
Common errors: The thighs must not touch the floor and the shoulders must not come forward, as they do not allow the chest to expand.
EIGHTH STAGE
Come back to stage five, the posture looking like an inversed V while keeping the air inside the lungs.
The head will be pointed towards inside, pressing the chin to the chest, the back will be as straight as possible, contract the abdomen and the muscles of the thighs and direct the inner focus towards the navel.
Common errors: If you stay only on tiptoes and do not keep the head straight, this position will not look as an inversed V; do not bend the back and contract the abdomen.
NINTH STAGE
Retain the breath in the lungs. In this stage the right leg will be stretched on the floor while the left sole is firmly placed on the floor.
Common errors: Do not bend the head and do not put the leg bone perpendicularly on the floor. Do place the sole instead of the toes on the floor.
For an easy performance, distribute almost all the weight of the body to the left bent leg and to the left arm, which will allow a slight leaning of the pelvis and will facilitate the bringing back of the stretched leg.
TENTH STAGE
Exhale through the mouth and bend until you reach the floor with your hands, thus returning to the same position as stage three. Try to put the hands on the floor entirely (with all their area); bring your head as close to the knees as possible. At the final stage of the movement partially contract the abdomen.
Common errors: If the head is not close enough to the knees, the bending of the body is not big enough and the effects are much diminished.
ELEVENTH STAGE
Relax all the muscles and return to stage two, where you raise your stretched arms up and backwards, curving your pelvis as much as possible and looking straight to the finger tips. Inhale deeply and slowly through the nose.
Common errors: If the pelvis and the back are not well curved, the muscles of the back will not be stretched enough.
TWELFTH STAGE
Eventually, exhale deeply through the mouth and relax all the muscles of the body, returning to stage one.
Place your palms together in front of your chest, placing the tips of your thumbs in the hollow of your neck, perpendicularly on the other fingers; the spine is perfectly straight, the feet are parallel and very close together without touching.
Exhale slowly all the air from your lungs through the mouth. Put your elbows against the ribs but maintain the hands in their initial position.
Then exhale deeply trying to eliminate the last molecules of air from the lungs by contracting your abdomen. When the lungs are completely empty, contract all muscles starting with the soles, then the ankles, the thighs, abdomen (already contracted thanks to the forced breathing), the back, chest, arms, hands and neck, we contract all the body muscles.
Common errors: If the hands are not placed at the right height and the fingers (except the thumbs) are not together, the residual air cannot get out of the lungs completely.
When performing very well the “Greeting of the Sun” you can make a whole series of movements in 45 seconds. The first aim is to make 15 performances in approximately 12 minutes. After 6 months of continuous practice you can easily perform 40 series in 25 minutes.
PART 1 | PART 2