108 Surya Namaskar
Manchester, UK
19th March 2024
06.30am
Practicing 108 Surya Namaskars is a brilliant tonic; it's a physically tapasic practice meaning one which is saturated in movement heat and devotion requiring purpose, dedication, heart and patience.
The Surya postures are traditionally performed as a ritual offering to the sun and more specifically the sun god SÅ«rya - the dispeller of darkness, the one who empowers knowledge and goodness. This ancient sequence is usually practiced before the sunrise as we bow in reverence and gratitude for all that the sun provides before our day begins.
The sequence is made up of 10 or 12 Yoga postures which we will repeat 108 times - an auspicious number with the Hindu tradition. Our session will be broken down so that we practice both variations of the sequence with short breaks between, they'll be moments of music, silence and plenty of group energy to encourage you to persevere through the threshold of doubt.
If you would like to join in but have an injury there will be a variations to help adapt the sequence, or you can do half the sequence / with a friend and complete 54 each.
When our practice transcends pleasure or pain maybe there is really something there for us, if we always push ourselves during our Yoga practice or always appease ourselves maybe a natural avoidance occurs and there's potential to lose connection to the heart of Yoga.
