Worship of the Sun God or Suryopasana is as ancient as Hinduism itself having its origin from Vedic times. Hence numerous hymns addressed to Him are found in all the four Vedas - e.g. Saura Sukta of the Rg Veda, Aruna Prashna of the Taittiriiya Aranyaka, Surya Namaskara mantras, Surya Upanishad of Atharva Veda etc. These hymns describe the celestial body as the source of energy and sustainer of all life on the planet earth. They portray the Sun as the store house of inexhaustible power and radiance.
The Sun god is also referred to as Aditya. The origin of the worship of the Sun in India is thus several centuries old.
Surya is usually equated with Brahman as "asaavaadityo brahma", meaning the Sun is the icon of Brahman.
Rig Veda says "Surya Atma Jagatastasthushashcha" meaning the Sun God is the Soul of all beings, moving and non-moving.
References to the Sun worship are also found in the Puranas. The famous Aditya Hridayam is a part of the Yuddha Kanda of Valmiki Ramayana wherein Sage Agastya initiates Rama into Sun worship to bolster up His spirits while facing Ravana in the battlefield. We find references to Surya in the Mahabharata also.
Mayura, who lived in the court of Harshavardhana composed the Surya Satakam in praise of Surya and is believed to have been cured of blindness.
It is customary to perform Panchaayatana puja daily among Hindu homes. It is a daily worship of the five deities viz., Ganesha, Shiva, Shakti, Vishnu and Surya (The Sun). Surya occupies a special status among these five deities because He is the only Pratyaksha Devata i.e. He is the only one Deity who is visible to the naked eye not based on any Anumanam (inference) or any other means of knowledge like Sabda etc.The objective of another prescribed daily ritual, Sandhyaavandanam, is the worship of Surya during the Morning, the Mid Day and the Dusk. The Gayatri mantra recited during this ritual is the most sacred invocation to the Sun God praying for a Good Day similar to the modern “Good Day to You” type.
Surya Namaskara, like most yogasanas must be performed only on an empty stomach. Therefore there must be a gap of at least two hours after eating and before performing the namaskara. It is generally practiced in the morning before breakfast or in evening. Surya Namaskaras are performed on a mat, not on the floor.
In some traditions, 12 Surya Namaskaras are performed at one practice. If starting that practice for the first time, it is generally started with fewer (3 to 6) Namaskaras per day, and then gradually increased to 12 Namaskaras per session by the time a week is over.
Shavasana is practiced at the end of practice for rest .Breathing (pranayamas) is synchronized with asanas .Mantras are pronounced at start of each Surya namaskara. There are a total of 8 different postures in the sequence of 12 posture changes of Surya namaskara. Some asanas are repeated twice in the same cycle of a Surya Namaskara. Practice of yoga postures (asanas) generally follows a surya namaskara practice.
In a traditional Hindu context, Surya Namaskara is always performed facing in the direction of the rising (east) or setting (west) sun.
Early morning Suryanamaskar performed for about 20 minutes a day increases bone, muscle and lung power in healthy individuals, while keeping chronic ailments under control in patients.
Surya Namaskar has a deep effect in detoxifying the organs through copious oxygenation and has a deeper relaxing effect. What it can do to your body which months of dieting cannot. And it can do to your mind what no spiritual discourse can.
Not surprising, the world is going crackers over this ancient yogic tradition of worshipping the rising sun. From improving your posture, strengthening muscles to whittling extra inches around the waist, the benefits of Suryanamaskar are many, provided you adapt it the right way.
Weight loss is just one consequence; you can so much as put your life together with this ancient yogic tradition.
Students' Oxygen movement
22/04/2012
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