Surya Namaskar Yagna Concluding Program - a Report
The Surya Namaskara Yagna which invigorated our commitment to our yoga sadhna in the New Year brought together all the aspirants in an auspicious environment on Jan 23rd, 2010 in ICC, Milpitas, Bay Area. This day is celebrated throughout USA as "Yoga Day USA"
The ceremony was opened by the resonant and skillful chanting of Aditya Hridayam led by Ashwini.
This was followed by Raghuramji's message who, as always demystified the whole practice in his beautiful and simple style and explained the philosophy behind the integrated practice of surya namaskara.
Venkat presented the details of surya namaskara, its health benefits, the dos and donts, and then skillfully led us through the surya namaskara practice along with the mantra chanting. He then challenged us with his much awaited 24 count surya namaskara. For the little kids, that was the coolest part of the program !
After Anil introduced chief Guest Dr Prasad Kaipa, we then got to sit at the feet of the management Guru who shared his reflection on the relevance of yoga in our day to day life. Prasadji covered the chakras and what it means in day to day life, he covered various aspects of yoga and how it can build an integrated personality. Finally Prasad ji talked about 3 gaps that prevent us from maintaining our integrity and how to overcome those gaps. He said "Integrity is not just essential for leaders, but for everybody. It is at the root of character. If I can work on my integrity in 2010, I have a feeling that the returns on that investment will not only benefit me, but also my organization and my family." Regarding three gaps, he listed them as
• The Saying-Doing Gap (Credibility gap)
• The Feeling-Doing Gap (Commitment gap)
• The Being-Doing Gap (Courage gap)
According to the dictionary, integrity is “the quality or state of being complete or undivided” Simply put, we would say a person has integrity if his or her words, actions, thoughts/feelings and being are aligned. Whenever I find the alignment between these components in my life, I feel “complete” or whole".
His message inspired us to develop our awareness through yoga and apply that awareness on a daily basis to consciously move away from everything that limits us and go towards our expansive integrated self. It was a blessing to receive guidance from Shri Kaipa who shared his wealth of knowledge and wisdom so graciously with us.
Sharat then shared with us, the agenda and the roadmap for Yoga Bharati in the coming years. This was followed by Shailesh's vote of Thanks.
The delicious food at the the end of the ceremony was provided by Smt.Gopi Godhwani, lovingly referred to as Gopiji of ICC. Her delicacies gave ample happiness and satisfaction to our Annamaya Kosha.
While the opening ceremony of surya namaskar yagna on Jan 1st was the beginning of a commitment to our sadhana, breaking away from the limiting old patterns of existence, the closing ceremony was a milestone to celebrate the strength of our commitment and to take it further along to manifest the latent potential in all of us.
Leading the Yoga awareness movement all over the world, Yoga Bharati organizes Surya Namaskar Yagna (Sun Salutation Marathon) every year to encourage everyone to add Yoga to the list of new year resolutions and start the new year on a healthy note!
It is very easy to participate in this marathon. Do a simple, quick and effective Surya Namaskar as many rounds as possible, daily and compete with the other participants as in a marathon. You can do it alone or as a group, at home or office or any of the yoga classes organized by Yoga Bharati, and self-report your count to us.
The event starts on New Year Day - Jan 1 every year and completes on Ratha Saptami Day of that year
Upon completion of this event, results will be announced and participants with the highest Surya Namaskara count are recognized.
Yoga Bharati provides the needed information and training to start the practice free of cost.
Check out the FAQ page
For registration or other enquiries, please contact us by sending an email to suryanamaskar@yogabharati.org
