Surya Namaskar : Salutations to the Sun

Surya Namaskar, or Sun Salutations, is a flowing series of movements done in coordination with the breathe.  There are twelve total positions, each alternately flexing the spine.  Sun Salutations warm up the body for deeper yoga practices.  They help to expand the capacity of the lungs and massge the internal organs.  Sun Salutations eliminate excess fat and give you sustained energy throughout the day.  The practice originated as a form of worshiop to the Sun.  Surya means Sun and Namaskar means to bow down to and make offerings.  Surya Namaskar is traditionally practiced facing the rising of the Sun.  Offerings of rice, flowers and water are made and different Mantras representing different names of the Sun are recited, either in synch with each posture or at the beginning of each new series of postures.

Here are the Mantras
Om Sri Savitra Surya Narayanaaya Namah
Om Mitraaye Namah

Om Ravaye Namah
Om Suryaya Namah
Om Bhaanave Namah
Om Khagaaya Namah
Om Pushne Namah
Om Hiranya Garbhaaya Namah
Om Mareechaye Namah
Om Aadityaaya Namah
Om Savitre Namah
Om Arkaaya Namah
Om Bhaaskaraya Namah

Journeying to see my Guru

The music of Snatam ("Sun-Autumn") has been a constant soundtrack to my life for the last 6 years. I have been to her concerts at Seaside Church, and other San Diego venues. Her concerts are always ecstatic events. Last year I visited the 3HO Summer Solstice Sadhana, a ten day festival of Kundalini Yoga in the high desert of New Mexico. Snatam was under close watch as she was several months pregnant with her first baby. I watched her from a far and enjoyed sharing space with her. I was going to attend the Solstice again this year, but then became informed of a week long intensive training of kirtan with Snatam ocurring a few weeks after the Solstice. I thought the smaller venue and focus on Kirtan with Snatam would be an amazing experience for me to develop my ability to chant and lead others in chanting. The concept of "Guru" is so powerful in Yoga. Your Guru is your teacher, but much more than that. Your Guru is like your direct connection with the divine here on Earth. First with the Sivananda Organization and next with the 3HO, I seem to arrive a few years after the Guru has died. I join the movement when everyone is grieving their loss, and I am left feeling at a loss for a Guru. Learning about these men from India second hand just doesn't make me feel a connection to them. But when I listen to Snatam sing, my heart is moved, I often cry from the joy bursting from inside of myself. I listen to her words "Let there be no space between you and God," and I feel it becoming reality in my own being. And she isn't so foreign to me. She is close to my age, grew up in California, we even went to neighboring colleges (and today I discovered we drive the same car!). I am ready to listen to her, love her, offer up prayers for the health and safety of Snatam and her family. And now I am blessed to spend a week in her home, learning from her and singing together. Thank you God for this enormous opportunity! May we all be blessed to live our dreams and connect with our Guru, on this night of the Guru Purina, the full moon where in India we honor our teachers.