YOGA ASANAS(SURYA NAMASKAR)

Stand erect with the head and body straight but relaxed. The feet are together, and knees are straight and the arms are relaxed at the sides. Inhale deeply and begin.

Bring the hands up from the sides, place the palms flat against each other at the center of the chest. The elbows are pushed out of the sides. Inhale and raise the arms upwards. Inhaling and raising of hands should synchronize. By the time you have stretched your arm, you should complete inhaling. Exhale slowly bending forward, touch the ground keeping the hands parallel to the feet and head touching knees. By the time your hands touch the ground, you should complete exhaling. Retain the breathe and remain in the same position for about 6 to 8 seconds. If you cannot touch the ground, then let your hands go only as far as they can. Inhale and move the right leg back away from the body in a wide backward step. Keep the hands and feet firmly on the ground, with the left foot between the hands. Raise the head. Exhale and bring the left foot together with the right. Keep the arms straight, raise the hips and align the head with the arms. Inhale and slowly lower the hips to the floor, (hips should be slightly raised above the ground) and bend backward as much as possible. Exhale and lower the body to the floor until the feet, knees, hands, chest, and forehead are touching the ground. Inhale and slowly raise the head and bend backward as much as possible, bending the spine to the maximum. Then exhale slowly and keeping the arms straight, raise the hips and align the head with the arms, forming an upward arch.

YOGA ASANAS(SURYA NAMASKAR)

Slowly inhale and bend the left leg at the knee taking a wide forward step. Keeping the hands firmly rooted, place the left foot on the ground between the hands. Lift the head upwards. Exhale slowly and keeping hands firmly in place, bring the right leg forward, so that both feet are together to align them with the hands. Touch the head to the knees, if possible. Inhale slowly and raise the arms upward. Slowly bend backward, stretching the arms above the head. Return to the first position. Now you have completed one round of surya namaskar. Maximum of 4 rounds can be done. Once you start doing the Surya Namaskaar, make sure to continue it regularly for at least ten days to observe its beneficial effects.

UTTHAN PADA ASANA In Utthan Pada Asana, both the legs are lifted upwards. This asana gives excessive strain to the spine. In case of any spinal injury this asana can be practiced by lifting one leg at a time. How to do : 1. Lie on the floor with your body straight. Heels should be together. Look towards the ceiling. 2. Slowly inhale and take in as much as air you can. 3. Holding your breathe lift both the legs up about 10 inches high from the floor. Legs should be held together straight and toes stretch forward. Retain for about 5 seconds. 4. Exhale slowly and begin lowering the legs simultaneously. Complete exhaling by the time your legs are brought back to the floor. Restrictions :

YOGA ASANAS(SURYA NAMASKAR)

Start with three rounds on the first day. Relax for about 5 seconds after each round. Do not practice more than four rounds a day. People who have had spinal injury can do the asana by lifting each leg alternatively. Do two rounds with each leg. Benefits : Strengthens the spinal code and corrects disorders of the back. Reduces paunch and removes constipation, indigestion and gas trouble. PRANAYAM

ranava Mudra for Pranayama (Body Gestures & Mental Attitudes)

The first two fingers of the right hand palm are to be curved and last two fingers are to be kept straight and to be held together. Now straighten the thumb and bending the right hand in the elbow, place the curved fingers in such a way that they come near the lips. Keep the hand from shoulder to elbow glued to the chest. Keep the right hand thumb on the right side of the nose and last two fingers on the left side of the nose. Now by pressing the thumb, the nasal cavity on the right side can be closed and by pressing the last two fingers left side cavity can be closed. The pressure should be light and on just below the nasal bone, where the fleshy part begins. With this arrangement of the fingers, one can close any of the two nasal cavities. Here only the movement of thumb and the last two fingers is expected. Movement of other parts should be avoided. The face should be kept quite gay and relaxed in order to practice breathing more effectively. Further, in order to practice the cycle of inhaling and exhaling, six supplementary types are given. In all these types, the speed of breathing is more. These are actually the types of quick breathing. While practicing these types one should first sit in one of the following Asanas: Padmasana, Vajrasana or Swastikasana. Then, the left hand should be kept in Dhyana Mudra and the right hand in Pranava Mudra. The eyes should be closed and the whole attention should be concentrated on breathing so that it will be possible to acquire it.

YOGA ASANAS(SURYA NAMASKAR)

Type - 1 Keep both the nostrils open and then inhale and exhale with both the nasal passages. This type is nothing but quick breathing with both the nasal cavities. One should inhale and exhale with as much speed as possible and for as much time as feasible. Type - 2 Take up Pranava Mudra and close the right nostril with the help of the thumb of the right hand, and inhale with left nostril and also exhale through the same nasal passage. In brief this type can be described as quick breathing with the left nostril. Type - 3 In this type left nostril is to be closed and the quick breathing is done with the right nostril. Type - 4 In this type close the right nostril, and inhale with the left nostril, and then immediately close left nostril and exhale with the right nostril. In this way try quick breathing by changing the nostrils. Type - 5 This type of breathing is just opposite the previous one, that is, the left nostril is closed and inhaling is done with the right nostril, then immediately closing the right nostril, exhaling is done with the left nostril. Type - 6 This type of breathing is designed by combining previous two types i.e., type 4 and type 5. First inhale with left nostril and exhale with right one, then inhale with right nostril and exhale with left nostril. Later continue the same process i.e. inhaling & exhaling with left and right nostrils alternately. Further switch to fast breathing by increasing the speed of breathing. After sufficient practice the speed of breathing can be increased immensely. Initially one should start with eleven cycles of breathing, and it should be increased to one hundred and twenty one without any fear. However, later the breathing should be made a part of daily practice of other Asanas, and be practiced for two to three minutes. All these types can also be practiced with slow inhalation and exhalation. Here it is important to note that practicing these types of breathing does not mean doing Pranayama. This is simply a preparation of the actual practice of Pranayama.