Asana: Classical Surya Namaskar

Surya Namaskar (“Sun Salute”)

by July Johnson

Photo Cred: @AlinaJack

As we celebrate and embrace the fresh, new year of 2020, we launch our blog into its next phase of exploring yoga and philosophy both on and off our mats.  WELCOME to our adventure as we delve into the next chapters of Asana and Pranayama over the coming months!

A large part of our modern Vinyasa Yoga heritage stems from Patanjali’s 8-limbed path, or Ashtanga Yoga, articulated by Patanjali sometime between 200 B.C. and 400 A.D.  The first two limbs along the path are the Yamas and Niyamas, which we covered over the last 10 months.  So this brings us to the third limb of Asana.  For strict practitioners of the Ashtanga path, each limb was to be explored and integrated in order, so before the Asanas were even explored, one had to integrate the Yamas and Niyamas into their lives in numerical order and then (and only then) could they move on to the physical practice of Asana.  As Ram Dass said, “The ordering of these eight steps is not random.  The first things necessarily precede the last things, and you move through the sequence in order.  You can’t jump the line.”  (Paths to God, Ram Dass)  Isn’t it interesting how, over time and westernization, we’ve jumped right into the physical practice and largely pushed aside the first two more philosophical aspects to explore later – if at all?  We associate this third limb of Asana with Hatha Yoga, another umbrella of yoga that encompasses our modern Vinyasa practice.  Asana has been defined as a “comfortable seat” and has evolved to include all physical yoga poses, shapes, and flows.  As you move through your Asana (physical) yoga practice, occasionally play with the idea of “comfortable seat” and see if you can bring that element of ease into even your most challenging postures; see where your mind goes when you make this leap from ‘challenging’ to ‘comfortable,’ which can be as easy and as difficult as noticing your breath and your inner dialogue.

In writing about the yoga Asana practice, we could take years to cover individual shapes and poses, each with their own sacred geometry. That would be overwhelming and not as fruitful as covering a few basic foundational shapes that are common to nearly every yoga practice, shapes that are always the same when done traditionally.  (Though we modern day yoga teachers do like to add elements of creativity!) 

We’ll begin our Asana exploration with Sun Salutes or Surya Namaskar.  Sun Salutes build heat in our bodies, opening up the forward facing, or ‘sun side’ of our bodies and personalities.  It’s what we show to the world – in public, out loud, every day.  Our Asana practice has deep historical roots, and it’s a good reminder to know where our traditions come from and why we practice them in our yoga flows every time we step onto our mats.  “Sun Salutations are a ritual to reunite individual rhythms with bigger cosmic rhythms.  For example, with the classical variation, the 12 postures represent the sun’s annual cycle through the 12 constellations.  The rising and lowering in the physical poses represents the rising and setting of the sun in its daily cycle.  The ‘peak’ pose is Ashtangasana or 8-prone pose.  This pose is meant to be a prostration, a whole-body bow, to surrender the limited self, the ahamkara (I-maker) or ego.  Then there is the symbolic rising into cobra pose, opening up the heart, the center of connection and compassion.”  (Alison Smith)

As you flow through your sun salutes, move with your breath and unite it with each movement.  Think of each individual pose as less of a stationary position and more of a transition or flow as the breath guides you into and out of each shape.  The breath and the body move together, united in movement and flow.

The classical variation of Surya Namaskar is featured in the text, photos, and video below.  The sequence has been written with one breath tied to one movement, but as you flow from shape to shape, make it your own, listen to what your body is telling you and respond accordingly.  Holding poses for longer than one breath each is up to you, yogis!  Move with compassion, awareness, and your breath!  Remember, each body is different so the poses won’t look the same from body to body, or even from day to day.

Here we go!

1.     Start standing at the top of your mat in Mountain pose (Tadasana).  Feet approximately hip width apart, with the arches of feet lifted.  Palms come together at your heart center (Anjali mudra).  Ground into your feet and reach high through the top of your head.

2.     As you inhale, extend your arms up toward the ceiling.

3.     With an exhale, forward fold with hands to the floor or blocks placed on their lowest level, parallel with your mat (Uttanasana).

4.     Step your right foot toward the back of your mat for a gentle runner’s lunge.  Hands or fingertips will stay on the floor or on blocks.  Keep your right knee lightly bent to open the front of your right thigh.  Inhale as you gaze forward, opening your heart center as the shoulder blades squeeze together.

5.     On your exhalation, step your left foot to the back of your mat, adjacent to your right foot for Downward Facing Dog (Adho mukha svanasana).  If you have blocks under your hands, slide them off your mat at this time.

6.     Inhale, shift forward to Plank (Phalakasana).

7.     Exhale as you lower your knees to the floor.  Bending your elbows greatly, lower your chest to the floor between your hands.  Hug your elbows in toward your ribs.  Lower your chin to the floor as you gaze forward (Ashtangasana).

8.     Inhale to slide your chest forward and upward into Cobra (Bhujangasana).  Squeeze your elbows in toward your ribs.  Press the tops of your feet into your mat to engage your legs.  Lengthen through the top of your head and elongate your neck as your shoulder blades come together and slide down your back.  Lightly pull your navel toward your spine to avoid pinching into your low back.

9.     As you exhale, press back into Downward Facing Dog (Adho mukha svanasana).

10.  While the breath is out, step your right foot up between your hands.  Inhale as you gaze forward with your legs in a runner’s lunge with your left knee slightly bent.  Lightly pull your shoulder blades together behind your back and pull your heart forward.

11.  Step your left foot forward next to your right foot.  Exhale as you fold forward (Uttanasana).

12.  Inhale, reach the top of your head forward and extend your spine long.  Arms will straighten, fingertips will remain on the floor beneath your shoulders, or fingertips can press into your shins (Ardha Uttanasana).

SECOND (LEFT) SIDE

13.  Step your left foot toward the back of your mat for a gentle runner’s lunge.  Keep your left knee lightly bent to open the front of your left thigh.  Inhale as you gaze forward, opening your heart center as the shoulder blades squeeze together.

14.  On your exhalation, step your right foot to the back of your mat, adjacent to your left foot for Downward Facing Dog (Adho mukha svanasana).

15.  Inhale, shift forward to Plank (Phalakasana).

16.  Exhale, lower your knees to the floor.  Bending your elbows greatly, lower your chest to the floor between your hands.  Lower your chin to the floor as you gaze forward (Ashtangasana).

17.  Inhale to slide your chest forward and upward into Cobra (Bhujangasana).  Squeeze your elbows in toward your ribs.  Press the tops of your feet into your mat to engage your legs.  Lengthen through the top of your head and elongate your neck as your shoulder blades come together and slide down your back.  Lightly pull your navel toward your spine to avoid pinching into your low back.

18.  As you exhale, press back into Downward Facing Dog (Adho mukha svanasana).

19.  While the breath is out, step your left foot up between your hands.  Inhale as you gaze forward with your legs in a runner’s lunge with your right knee slightly bent.  Lightly pull your shoulder blades together behind your back and pull your heart forward.

20.  Step your right foot forward next to your left foot.  Exhale as you fold forward (Uttanasana).

21.  Inhale as you rise up to standing with arms extended overhead and palms pressed together.

22.  Exhale to bring your prayer palms back in front of your heart center (Anjali mudra).  Ground into your feet.  Lift through your arches and reach high through the top of your head.

In our flowing asana practice, I like to do three cycles of this Surya Namaskar toward the beginning of practice to warm up and link breath with body and movement.  As you flow through this classical variation, think less about each pose being static and more about linking and softening into each shape.  With practice, it can flow, move, and become your own, and occasionally turn into a moving meditation of breath and movement linked in harmony.  Enjoy!