Surya Namaskar: 10 Steps vs.12 Steps

In my last blog post of 15 Minutes daily to start your Journey for Stress Free Life, I talked about how anyone can start small or take baby steps to embark on a journey of a stress-free life. One of the important things I highlighted in that was cultivating a habit of performing daily Surya Namaskars or Sun Salutations.

There are many different ways or versions of Surya Namaskars. The most prominent difference in those versions is about the number of steps used. Either there are 10 steps used or 12 steps used while performing Surya Namaskars. We often get confused regarding which method to follow, which one is correct, and why. In this post, I'll share my thoughts and experiences encountered while conducting various yoga sessions. 

This picture describes 12 steps Surya Namaskars:

Pic Courtesy: Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan Trust Calendar 

This table provides asanas used in this 12 step method along with breathing style.

Step #	आसन	āsana	Breathing Style
1	हस्त उत्थानासन	hasta utthānāsana	Inhale
2	पाद हस्तासन	pāda hastāsana	Exhale
3	अश्व सन्चालनासन	aśva sancālanāsana	Inhale
4	चतुरंग दंडासन	caturaṃga daṃḍāsana	Exhale
5	शशांकासन	śaśāṃkāsana	Inhale and Exhale
6	अष्टांग​ नमस्कारासन	aṣṭāṃga namaskārāsana	Exhale and Hold
7	भुजन्गासन	bhujangāsana	Inhale
8	पर्वतासन	parvatāsana	Exhale
9	शशांकासन	śaśāṃkāsana	Inhale and Exhale
10	अश्व सन्चालनासन	aśva sancālanāsana	Inhale
11	पाद हस्तासन	pāda hastāsana	Exhale
12	प्रणामासन	praṇāmāsana	Inhale

• The only difference between the 10 step method and the 12 step method is an addition of  śaśāṃkāsana  (or Rabbit pose)  at step # 5 and # 9
• Every time I conduct a Surya Namaskar session, I teach only 12 step method as a lot of people provided me a positive feedback about this method. People who were skeptical of performing Surya Namaskars in the beginning of a session were able to do it without any pain, issues or doubts. People with back pain were also able to perform Surya Namaskars without any complaints.
• There is a logical reasoning behind performing 12 steps Surya Namaskars. śaśāṃkāsana (or Rabbit pose) is a natural relaxing position. A child often sleeps in this position. This asana provides a good relaxing stretch to the upper body. Due to its nature and calming effect, it also relaxes the mind and removes depression or anxiety. It improves blood supply to the head and thus nourishes the eyes and the brain functions. While performing 1 Surya Namaskar, this asana is done twice and in a cycle of 12 Surya Namaskars, it is done 24 times. Hence, it is quite natural that 12 step method provides more encouragement to anyone to perform Surya Namaskars due to the addition of śaśāṃkāsana (or Rabbit pose)

Conclusion

There is no right or wrong method while performing Surya Namaskars. If 12 steps method is encouraging you to continue performing Surya Namaskars, then go for it. If you're already using 10 steps method and happy with it, then continue with it. Follow the method that best suits to your body as performing daily Surya Namaskars with accurate positions and appropriate breathing style is really important to get its benefits.  

In the next blog post, I'll talk about the effects of sound using Bij Mantra's or seed syllables while performing Surya Namaskars. 

Disclaimer: Before performing Surya Namaskars or any yoga postures, always consult your doctor and exercise caution as these postures may have certain limitations.

15 Minutes daily to start your Journey for Stress Free Life

Are you getting stressed in your daily life? Don't have time to go to the gym? Want to have an energetic day every day? Want to loose weight etc.? These are common problems everyone is facing in this fast paced life. But, the thousands of years old gift from India to the world i.e.,Yoga has answers to all these problems.  

Let's start small, take some baby steps. Let's not add more stress due to new year resolutions. 

Can you carve out 15 mins from your daily routine? Not really? Start with 5 minutes and gradually increase it to 15 minutes every day without fail. Start  spending those 15 minutes on the following activities.  

1. Surya Namaskar  or Sun Salutations: Start your day with sun salutations to get energy booster. It is a yogic practice of 10 (or 12) physical postures called 'āsanas' practiced in a consecutive sequence. It is easy to do, less time consuming and provides enormous benefits to your body, mind and soul. A quick search on YouTube can give you thousands of videos on how to perform sun salutations and what benefits it offers. If you have never done this before, start with 1-2  Surya Namaskars daily and gradually increase it to 10-12  over a period of 3-4 weeks. With a regular practice, a set of 13 Surya Namaskars (each containing 10-12 postures) won't take more than 7-8 minutes. Start small but do it consistently (Total time 7-8 minutes).
2. Kapalbhati (kapālabhātī): It is a frontal brain cleansing technique to shine the kapāla,  or brain. It helps to stimulate the brain cells. This cleansing activity, a preparatory step for pranayama or breathing exercise, consists of rapid exhalations like bellows of a goldsmith sucking abdominal muscles inwards and the air rushing out of the nostrils. Again,  a quick search on YouTube can give you thousands of videos on how to perform kapalbhati and what specific benefits it offers. With practice, one can perform 60-120 forceful exhalations per minute.  Start with a few exhalations and increase it gradually  with consistent practice (Total time 2-3 minutes).
3. Bhramari (bhrāmarī): Another pranayama, or breathing exercise, called as Bee Breathing technique, is very useful for getting a calming effect on the mind almost immediately. Continuously practicing it benefits in reducing high blood pressure and mental stress.  In this exercise, you need to exhale slowly through your nostrils by producing humming sounds; like a buzzing bee with eyes, ears and mouth closed. click here to know how to perform. You can perform this technique in any sitting position such as either cross legged, sitting on chair etc. (Total time 2-3 minutes)

So what is the big deal about these 3 techniques compared to all other yoga techniques? 

• Each one of them is very effective
• You spend less time but get more benefits
• You can start with any one of them. E.g. start with Bhramari for immediate results

How to do it?

• Ideally, start doing these in the morning, but if you can't, it is fine to do in the evening as well
• More effective when you do it with an empty stomach
• Start small, progress gradually and be consistent
• When you do all the three, follow the same sequence as mentioned above

With years of practice, I realized that starting small with simple activities will help one engaged and interested in continuing these activities regularly. I do all three every day. Start your day with lots of energy, or end it stress free by spending less than 15 minutes daily, and results are guaranteed!   

P.S. Use these three activities to get you a head-start for developing discipline for conducting regular exercise. Once developed, you can get on to more advanced yogic practices to get more benefits.