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Wake Up and Refresh With Sun Salutations and Alternate Nostril Breathing

written by Emily Garrettfor Venus Rising Magazine

Aries 07 Issue

An Aries woman is driven by a desire to act. She is not the person who you will see sitting back waiting for things to happen. She makes things happen. An active participant in life, she exudes confidence and moves forward with intention. In fact, its difficult for an Aries woman to sit still. Passionate to live a full life, she accumulates one adventure after another. Aries represents the more masculine side of ourselves, our action-oriented side that gets things done. When balanced, an Aries flows easily along her path, stopping only to rest, and then waking up to continue her pursuits.

Sun salutations honor the phases of the sun and its-life giving qualities. The sun provides us with food to eat, warmth, and light. Its phases throughout the day honor the cycle of our lives. One of creation, preservation, and destruction, the sun rises, warms and lights the day, and then sets. This cycle is in continuous motion, both in the small activities of our life, like preparing a meal, keeping it warm, and then eating it and in the bigger sense of our existence like birth, life, and then death. An Aries honors the energetic impulse that drives this continuous cycle. The sun also symbolizes our masculine energy, the moon being feminine. 

Half Sun Salutes (Ardha Surya Namaskar)

To practice half sun salutes begin standing in tadasana/mountain pose (see Libra). As you inhale, reach your arms overhead. As you exhale, fold forward over your legs and reach your nose toward your knees. If your hamstrings are tight or when you fold forward the crown of the head points toward the wall in front of you rather than the floor, then please bend your knees enough to point your crown toward the floor. As you inhale, lengthen your spine away from your legs, and look forward on the floor in a flat-back position. As you exhale, fold toward your legs again. As you inhale, rise through your flat-back all the way up to stand. You can bend your knees a little bit as you do this. Press into the soles of your feet to help rise. As you exhale, bring your hands together in front of your heart. Take a complete breath here and feel the effects. Repeat four more times. This is a great practice to do in the morning. It will help wake you up and stretch you out.

The same energy that keeps an Aries woman moving and engaged in life can prevent her from stopping and responding to unexpected life events. When life asks her to slow down, she can become angry and disappointed. If a friend or coworker seem to be holding her back, she may become upset with them. Unlike Pisces people who are extremely aware of their surroundings, an Aries girl is so driven that she may not notice what surrounds her. It's times like these when she needs the strength to slow down and deal with the situation at hand, even if it might temporarily stop her from moving toward her goal. In fact, it's the goal itself that can limit her ability to relax into the moment.

Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana)

Nadi shodhana breath, or alternate nostril breathing, balances the two hemispheres of the brain.  Each hemisphere correlates with the masculine or feminine aspects of ourselves, the right brain feminine and the left brain masculine. When we breathe mainly through the left nostril, the right brain or our feminine side is more active. When we breathe mainly through the right nostril, our left brain or masculine side is more active. Nostril dominance changes about every hour and a half. This contributes partly to the fluctuations of our moods on a daily (or hourly) basis. Nadi shodhana helps to even out nostril dominance. It has a cooling, calming effect on the system making it a wonderful breath technique to balance our more masculine Aries side with the feminine side that allows us to emote, to feel, and to take the time to nurture ourselves and others. The act of sitting still is also good practice for an Aries. The fact that Nadi shodhana provides something to do while you sit, will hopefully make sitting easier.

To practice nadi shodhana, begin by finding an upright comfortable seat. Make a gentle fist with your right hand and release your thumb, ring finger, and pinkie finger. This is vishnu mudra. Turn your hand so it faces toward you, and relax your elbow into your body. Close off your right nostril with your thumb. Inhale through your left nostril. Close your left nostril with your ring finger. Release your thumb from your right nostril, and exhale out your right nostril. Inhale through your right. Then close off the right nostril with your thumb and exhale out your left. This is one round. Begin with five to ten rounds. Try to inhale and exhale for the same duration. If it's helpful, you can count and inhale and exhale for the same number of counts. After completing the breath technique, take a moment to sit and feel the effects. Nadi shodhana is both calming and refreshing. With practice, work up to fifteen minutes or more (up to forty rounds) and notice how its effects last throughout the day.  

Avoid injury! When practicing yoga, listen to your body and take responsibility for your safety. Always move gently into poses, and do not push too hard.

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