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Surya namaskar is as secular as is the sun!
I like Yoga but I am not a Hindu. I am not very religious, but some scholars in my religion suggest that we stay away from yoga. In particular, their problem is the chanting of “Aum” before and during some breathing exercises, and surya namaskar since it is akin to worshipping some God. What is your take on it? Agnostic
Yoga is the science of health, inspired by nature, and aimed at being one with the nature. So far as the association of yoga and the Hindu religion goes, Yoga is as Hindu as the western medicine is Christian. To those mandarins who are heckled by the use of ‘AUM’, “the primordial sound according to the Hindu philosophy” let it be said that firstly, this prelude to meditation is entirely optional: you can choose your own mantra or no mantra, as many sects have chosen their own; Buddhism’s meditation techniques are also a case in point.
Secondly, AUM was used, as was yoga, thousands of years before the Hindu identity came into being! I call Hinduism an identity in the same secular spirit that Swami Vivekananda called it a philosophy. So far as surya namaskar is concerned, again, it has nothing to do with worshipping any God.
In the West, surya namaskar is rightly translated into and termed as sun salutations and the most frequently assumed pose within is called the downward dog! I wonder if a more secular name than sun salutations or surya namaskar is possible. The term is as secular as is the sun!
What is my swadharma? Is it the path in sync with the way that I have always been (my nature) or is it the path in sync with what I have always aspired to be? Priyamvada
Swadharma is your responsibility, your duty and your Karma, that you are good at, and by virtue of you being good at it, it becomes your responsibility to follow it! It’s a realisation of your potential (in the sense of self actualisation), and then acting on it. For instance, if you are good at business then your responsibility is to do good ethical business. Performing to your fullest potential is what swadharma all about.
Some scholars have tried to link it to nature and also varna (as an extension/surrogate of nature), but then the morphology of the Varna has to be understood to clearly reflect on its nuances. Therefore, of the two alternatives you have given in your question, I will go with the latter with a caveat. It is the path in sync with what you have always aspired to be ‘provided’ you are also good at it! That is to say that your potential (natural or trained), lies in it.
Have any questions about life, management, philosophy, education, literature, yoga, mountaineering in India, or psychological issues or all of these? Ask Himanshu Rai. He is a Professor at IIM Lucknow, an author, mountaineer, yoga enthusiast and a Sanskrit scholar. Mail at askhimanshu@htlive.com
DISCLAIMER: The responses in this column given by me are based on my learnings and experience. They should, by no means, be taken as a substitute for medical/ professional help.