Sun salutation for beginners: learning the sequence in parts

A short history

Despite its reputation as an ancient practice, the sun salutation as a flowing exercise sequence is relatively modern. Historian Joseph Alter notes that it was not recorded in any hatha yoga text before the nineteenth century. It was popularised in the 1920s by Bhawanrao Pant Pratinidhi, the Raja of Aundh, whose 1928 book presented it as a health routine; he himself described it as an existing Marathi tradition. T. Krishnamacharya later made its flowing movements a basis of his teaching in Mysore, and his students carried that into the Ashtanga and Iyengar styles.

Traditional sun salutations may also be accompanied by mantras naming the sun. These are a devotional element; whether they are used depends on the teacher and tradition.

Why versions differ

There is no single correct sun salutation. The Ashtanga system uses two sequences, A and B, with B adding chair pose and warrior poses. Sivananda yoga includes a low lunge and a plank. Iyengar teaching uses a simpler set built around standing, a forward fold and the two dog poses. If two teachers' versions do not match, neither is wrong. Learn the version used in the class or recording you follow.

The sequence in four sections

Most versions can be grouped into four sections. Learning each section separately makes the whole easier to remember.

1. Standing and reaching: stand with feet steady; reach the arms up overhead.
2. Folding down: fold forward from the hips toward the legs; then lift the chest halfway with a long back, hands on the shins, thighs or floor.
3. The floor section: step or jump back to a plank or to hands and knees; lower to the floor; lift the chest into cobra or upward-facing dog; press back to downward-facing dog.
4. Returning: step the feet toward the hands; fold forward; come up to standing with the arms reaching up, then lower them.

Simpler options for each section

Each section has an easier version, and you can mix easier and fuller versions within one round.

• Folding down: bend the knees generously, or rest the hands on blocks so you do not need to reach the floor.
• Stepping back: step one foot back at a time instead of jumping.
• Plank and lowering: put the knees down before lowering, or skip the lowering and go from hands and knees straight to a low cobra.
• Cobra or upward dog: keep the chest low and the elbows bent; the lift does not need to be big.
• Downward dog: bend the knees and let the heels lift; or rest in child's pose instead.
• Returning to standing: step forward one foot at a time, using blocks under the hands if the floor feels far away.
• Without the floor: a chair-supported version that reaches up, folds forward to the thighs and leans into the chair can keep the rhythm when getting down to the floor is not suitable.

A way to learn it

Rather than trying to learn the whole sequence at class pace, practise it slowly at home in sections.

1. Practise the standing and folding sections alone a few times, pausing in each position.
2. Practise the floor section separately, starting from hands and knees, until the order feels familiar.
3. Join the sections together slowly, taking as many breaths as you like in each pose.
4. Only then try linking one movement to each breath, as many classes do. If that is too fast, use two breaths per movement.
5. Repeat only a few rounds at first; more rounds add fatigue faster than you might expect.

Breathing in the sequence

Many classes link each movement to an inhale or an exhale: usually inhaling to reach up or lift the chest, and exhaling to fold or lower. That convention keeps the sequence rhythmic, but it can make the pace too fast for beginners. Taking extra breaths is fine. The priority is to keep breathing and not hold your breath through the harder parts, such as lowering from plank.

Points of care

The sun salutation repeatedly bears weight on the hands and moves between standing and the floor, so it suits some bodies and days better than others. If your wrists are uncomfortable, you can use forearm or chair-based variations instead. If you get dizzy moving between folding and standing, come up more slowly and pause before the next movement.

NCCIH describes yoga as generally safe for healthy people when practised properly with a qualified instructor, and notes that people with conditions such as lumbar spine disease, severe high blood pressure, balance problems or glaucoma may need to modify poses. Repeated forward folds and head-down positions are worth discussing with a clinician if any of these apply to you.

Sources & Classical References

1. Wikipedia: Surya Namaskar — History of the sequence, with citations to Alter, Singleton and Goldberg, and the variations used by different schools.
2. NCCIH: Yoga: Effectiveness and Safety — General safety guidance and conditions that may need modifications.