Kick off Summer at the Courthouse Green!
As yet another summer approaches, we may find ourselves eager to enjoy warmer weather, longer days and carefree evenings. After a cold winter and rainy spring, the flowers are finally blooming and the grass is finally green – vibrant and alive. We, too, may feel more alive. We are given the chance to slow down and embrace the world around us. Yet, it is all too often that we forget that taking our feet of the gas pedals can actually become a source of stress. Any change in our environment is a source of stress – having our routines interrupted and schedules altered can be difficult to adjust to. So, during this time, it is more important than ever to go back to the basics – to connect with what is.
The summer solstice, the “standing of the sun,” marks the longest day of the year and officially kicks off summer. It honors the earth and the sun and the warmth and light that they bring to our summers. Unlike many principals of yoga, which are rooted in philosophy and spirituality, the solstice is physical and scientific. The yoga sutra 3.26 states that, “One learns from the perfect discipline of the sun and solar system.” It functions in perfect patterns to keep mankind alive – the earth remains the ideal distance from the sun to sustain life as we know it, its rotations on its own axis give us day and night and its movements around the sun give us four distinct seasons, each offering gifts of their own. Perhaps, then, there is something quite valuable in the ease of pattern and repetition. In fact, it is these simplicities that may make us stronger.
The practice of 108 salutations offer a bridge between the physical movements within the solar system and the philosophy of yoga – a connection between science and spirituality, the universe and humankind. The number 108 has its own significance – representing Shiva’s attendants, the Mala contains 108 beads circling like the planets of the solar system and representing prayer and meditation. There are 108 Upanishads, 108 pithas and 108 sacred sites within the body. While widely philosophical, the importance of 108 is also mathematical. The average distance of the sun and the mood to the earth is 108 times their respective diameters. So, the solstice offers us the perfect opportunity to tribute our connection to the universe while returning to our own basics. With 108 sun salutations, we can equip ourselves to find the joy we have been seeking. We can learn that there is strength in pattern while acknowledging that patterns change throughout the year, even for earth itself. Through our 108 salutations, we practice discipline and understanding, hence allowing ourselves to find a calmness in slowing down and a beauty in inner peace as we fully prepare to embrace nature and the summer season – rejuvenated and inspired.