International Yoga Day on June 21 – salutations to the sun
Yoga is an invitation to feel happy, an invitation to bring the mind and body back into balance. Yoga tests us and it also relaxes us. Yoga is practiced everywhere. Almost everyone who cares about their physical and mental wellbeing will have taken an interest in yoga or attended a yoga class at some point.
Today, June 21, is International Yoga Day. International Yoga Day was celebrated for the first time four years ago. In December 2014, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring June 21 to be International Yoga Day. This day is intended to highlight and raise awareness of the health benefits of yoga. Since then, it has taken place annually on June 21, to coincide with the first day of summer.
To mark International Yoga Day, we are dedicating ourselves to a sequence of exercises that is practiced in the most diverse ways all around the world. The sun salutation is perhaps one of the most popular yoga sequences. Depending on which style is followed or preferred, it is taught and practiced in many variations. And what would International Yoga Day be without a sun salutation?
Translated from Sanskrit, Sūrya Namaskāra literally means “salute to the sun.” It mobilizes, stretches and strengthens a wide variety of muscles, ligaments and tendons, and it activates the cardiovascular system. The sun prayer, as it is also known, is traditionally practiced in the morning. Throughout history, people have activated and mobilized their mind and body by turning to the sun and greeting it, allowing them to start the day full of strength and energy. The connection between mind and body, between movement and breathing, is one of the most important parts of the sun salute, as it allows you to lose yourself more in this meditative exercise.
The sun salutation is a bow to the sun. It is intended to symbolize the deep humility and gratitude towards it and to show appreciation for its life-giving light and nourishing warmth.
The sun salutation is often practiced at the beginning of a yoga session as a warm-up exercise and then gently incorporated into further yoga postures. The sun salutation is also great before a run or a work-out, as it reduces the risk of injury.
The sun salutation is one of my own personal favorites. It lets me start the day full of energy and feeling light, strong and flexible. The sun salutation is also good if you have already had a long day but still have things to do. Thanks to the revitalizing effect of the sequence, a few rounds of the sun salutation will leave you feeling refreshed and full of energy. One of the nicest things about Sūrya Namaskāra is that it can be performed anywhere in this magical world – in any hotel room, on any beach, on any terrace, in any room, or anywhere else.
Sun salute, we salute you!
Enjoy your salute to the sun and live your life to the fullest. I hope you all have a wonderful International Yoga Day filled with an abundance of sun salutes and lightness.
Namasté
Eva-Maria Flucher
Eva-Maria Flucher – yoga cosmopolitan
Eva-Maria Flucher has traveled to more than 50 countries around the world, many of them more than once. Based on her knowledge of yoga, Ayurveda, mind management, travel and living that she has acquired while spending time in the widest variety of places in this magical world, she has developed her own unique DO-YOGA method. Proprietor of DO-YOGA in Styria. Eva-Maria has held seminars and workshops in many countries on three continents. She is the author of the book “Travel Yoga – Relaxed on the Road” and has written various specialist articles about yoga and mind management for renowned magazines (e.g. Yoga Journal, Ayurveda Journal and ERFOLG). Eva-Maria is a successful blogger in various social media channels on the subject of yoga and mind management.
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