Kundalini Yoga Surya Namskara

Kundalini Yoga Surya Namaskara KY kriyas (From The Aquarian Teacher, level one textbook)

	1) Standing Straight (Samasthiti), Stand up Straight, feet together, toes and heels touching, weight evenly dustributed between both legs. Find your balance. The arms are by tour sides, fingers together.
	2) Stretching Up. Inhale, bring your arms up over your head, palms touching. Elongate the spine, lifting he chest and relaxing your shoulders. Be sure not to compress the vertebrae of the neck and lower back. Look up at the thumbs.
	3) Front Bend (Uttanasana). Exhale and bend your torso forward. As you bend forward, keep your spine straight, elongating it as if reaching forward with thr top of the head. When the spine can no longer be held straight, relax the head as close to the knees as possible. Ideally the chin will be brought to the shins. Keep the knees straight and place the hands on the floor on either side of the feet, with fingertips and tips of the toes in line. Gaze at the tip of the nose.
	4)Inhale, raise the head up, straighten the spine, keeping the hand or fingertips on the floor. Gaze at the third Eye Point.
	5 ) Push-up (Chaturanga Dandasana). Exhale and bend the knees, stepping or junping back so that the legs are straight out behind, balancing on the bottoms of the bend toes. Elbows are bend, hugging the rib cage, and palms are flat on the floor under the shoulders, with fingers spread wide apart. The body is in a straight line from forehead to ankles. Keep yourself equally balanced between hands and feet. Do not push forward with the toes.
	6) Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana). From this position, inhale, straighten the elbows and arch the back. Stretch the upper back so that there is no pressure on the lower spine. Point the forehead at the sky and gaze at the tip of the nose. Fingers are spread wide apart.
	7) Triangle Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Exhale, lift the hips up so that the body is balanced in an inverted v-shape.Adem uit en til de heupen zo op dat het lichaam in balans is als een driehoek met de punt naar boven met de voeten en handpalmen plat op de vloer, de ellebogen en knieën recht en de vingers uitgespreid. Richt de aandacht op de navel en blijf in deze positie vijf ademhalingen.
8) Inhale and jump or step back into position 4. 9) Front Bend (Uttanasana). Exhale and bend forward into position 3. 10) Stretching Up. Inhale and come all the way up into position 2. 11) Standing Up (Samasthiti). Exhale and return to the starting position with arms by the sides, position 1.
COMMENTS: When Yogi Bhajan was studying with his Teacher, the Sun Salutation was used as a warming up exercise before starting the Kundalini Yoga Kriyas. This is an excellent warming up and is beneficial as an exercise in its own right. It increases cardial activity and circulation, sterches and bends the spine, massages the inner organs, aids the digestive system, exercises the lungs, and oxygenates the blood. Synchronize your breath with the movements to create an uninterrupted rhythm throughout the sequence of positions. Start by practicing three rounds and then gradually increase to five or six. When practiced with awareness, this improves one's ability to maximize performance and enjoyment of all yoga postures.