108 Sun Salutations to Honor the Sun and Welcome New Beginnings

First of all, 108 is a sacred number... 1+0+8=9. 9 represents universal love, enlightenment, and spiritual awakening. There are 108 beads on mala necklaces used to count during meditation. There are 108 energy lines converging to form the heart chakra and 108 pressure points/sacred places in the human body. The distance of the sun to earth is about 108 times its diameter.

Ok. So.. ideally I wanted to do 108 sun salutations at noon on the summer solstice. But scheduling wise it just wasn't going to happen. So instead of skipping it all together, I decided to create my own ritual and do the 108 salutations today, June 1st and allow this day to represent the shift toward the new season, the start of new energy, and to acknowledge/become aware of the changes coming soon.

I've never done 108 sun salutations before. I think the most I've ever done in a row was maybe 10 ish. I had no idea what to expect but I figured since I’m in decent shape that I would be fine.

30 rounds in... I’m tired. I’m bored (that sounds awful). I’m distracted. There’s a weird little bug crawling across my mat. Now I feel itchy like there’s bugs all over me. Ok. Relax. I’m fine. Back to it. 36 done. Tired. Worried about my toes. Hungry. Thinking about bananas and coffee. Wondering how to make this more fun. I realize that I am in control of my reaction to this experience. I can shift my perception of reality in this moment and change it to whatever I want it to be.

I know! I’ll turn it into a ’dance’!

That lasted about 5 rounds.

Tired. Grunting. Tobby (my 84 pound golden retriever) came over to check on me and give me kisses. Thanks pup.

Powering through now. I stopped pairing my breath with the movement (I know, I know... I know better).

Winded. Tired. Sweaty. Mentally irritated. 18 more to go. I’ll slow it down and match the movement with the breath now. I just can’t wait to meditate-I am sooo ready to sit still.

18 more. I. Can. Do. This.

Ahhhhh my back!! Ok... no more back bends. Baby cobra instead. It’s fine.

The last two rounds were the best. I took my time. I felt happy. I felt calm. I felt present with my breath.

I did it!!

Now I get to meditate.

I meditated with my mala beads. It went by so fast. I felt like I left and went somewhere else. It’s amazing how much deeper I get in meditation after doing something strenuous/physical. Any stagnant energy gets moved around and dissolved.

Looking back I wish I didn’t rush through some of those rounds or worry/think about the other things I needed to get done today. I felt like I was in a time crunch even though I’m not really. I think I put the idea in my mind that I just needed to get this done. Overall, it was an interesting and inspiring experience and now that I know I can do it, I’m looking forward to the next opportunity to do 108.

The love and light in me honors the love and light in you, namaste.