Spiritual Benefits🔗

In surya namaskar, if the asanas (postures), correct breathing and mantra are practiced together, surya namaskar becomes a complete dynamic meditation technique in itself. Surya namaskar is a complete spiritual practice (sadhana) on its own.

Surya namaskar is a salutation to the sun. When practicing, one can express gratitude toward the outer sun for the energy it provides to planet earth. The sun is the giver of life and energy. Therefore, one can recognize this and sincerely salute the sun and give gratitude. Gratitude is the highest spiritual quality hence the practitioner will start the day by humbling themselves, bowing their head, offering gratitude and respect to the sun.

Although surya namaskar is an expression of gratitude to the sun outside of oneself, in a deeper sense, surya namaskar is a practice that enables the practitioner to recognize their inner sun. As the sun rises everyday, it brings intelligence, life and energy. As the practitioner transverses their spiritual path, they start to recognize they have light also within them. Their inner sun starts to rise and hence, their inner intelligence and energy starts to express.

There is an even deeper awareness of the sun salutation that is normally understood. When done with the chanting of the mantra, it becomes a deep cleansing process that un-clutches our mind from our personal identity (mamakar). Every sun salutation mantra ends with 'namaha'. The syllable 'ma' refers to our personal identity and the word namaha means surrendering the identity. Whenever we perform the surya namaskar, our awareness, the inner sun throws light on our true identity which is Divinity or Divine. Surya namaskar should not be reduced to a mere bending or stretching of the body but needs to be done with this profound understanding; then the benefits are enormous.

Each asana performed in the surya namaskar vinyasa sequence relates specifically to one of the seven main energy centers (chakra). While performing each asana in the surya namaskar, the practitioner can put their awareness on the chakra that the specific posture corresponds to.

The following diagram identifies the seven major chakra and their location at the metaphysical level (the etheric plane) in the human body.

We should understand that each of the seven main chakra is blocked by specific negative emotions. The chakra can be unblocked, made to flower and expand by infusing awareness into the chakra and promoting the positive emotion associated with the chakra.

The positive emotions that can potentially help the chakra to flower are;

Muladhara Chakra (Root Centre) - Welcoming Reality

Swadisthana Chakra (Two Inches Below the Navel) - Focusing on Continuity

Manipuraka Chakra (Navel Centre) - Clarity

Anahata Chakra (Heart Centre) - Unconditional Love

Vishuddhi Chakra (Throat Centre) - Individuality

Ajna (Between the Eyebrows) - Innocence and Simplicity

Sahasrara (Crown Centre) - Gratitude

During the practice of surya namaskar, it is optional to bring the awareness to each chakra. However, to make the practice more spiritually focused, practice the movements very slowly while bringing the awareness to each chakra, flooding each with the positive emotion.