Spring Surynamaskar in Four Directions

Tomorrow we'll be doing four rounds of suryanamaskar. We'll begin facing north, then south, next we'll shift the mats around and face west and do the final round facing east. For the first (north-facing) round we'll sit in chairs, begin with a centering moment or two, a few neck and arm warm-ups and proceed with the basic poses of the sun salutation done modified while seated in a chair. It helps to be creative, to work slowly, to stay focused on the vinyasa. Don't allow the prop, the chair, in this case, to distract you from the poses. But do use the support of the chair to help you connect with your best alignment in tadasana, arms overhead, the forward bends and so on. When we shift to the south we'll continue to use the chair for support in some of the poses, but we'll be standing on the floor rather than sitting. For the third round those who are able will set the chair aside and continue without props, perhaps with some modifications such as knees down in chaturanga dandasana or cobra on the forearms instead of upward facing dog. The final round facing east will be the most complete and challenging for each of us regardless of what props and which particular modifications we'll be using. I am eager to see how creatively we can use the chairs, how smoothly we can move from direction to direction, shift the mats and transition from modified poses to more advanced asanas without losing the flow of the vinyasa.