DENVER, CO, USA, January 31, 2008: I spent Sunday morning watching 90 yoga devotees bending themselves into shapes so feline that I pulled three muscles and jammed a knee just watching. On this morning, members of the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, a social and cultural organization, were there to observe an ancient ritual called the Surya Namaskar — Sanskrit for “Sun Salutation.” It is a body conditioning method that uses the ancient Indian Yoga techniques.
The hour-long marathon, consisting of 10 yoga poses repeated 10 times in six-minute sequences, was part of a nationwide effort by 7,000 participants. Their goal: Reach 1 million Sun Salutations in two weeks.
Vidya Tontalapur, a software developer at Level 3 Communications in Broomfield, sat and surveyed the room. Like him, most of the people there hailed from India. They moved here as part of the tech boom. Many had brought their children.
“This is one way to stay connected to our culture,” Vidya said. “And one way to make sure our next generation retains their heritage.” That can be a hard balancing act. Even as a laptop fed ancient Hindu music through a loudspeaker, a little boy went through his yoga drills wearing a Denver Nuggets T-shirt sporting “Iverson” on the back.
Ramesh Kanekal, an electrical engineer, arrived from Colorado Springs with his wife and daughters. We talked before they took the floor. “I’ve been doing this about two years,” he said. “It’s good for all parts of the body, from joints to breathing, and for all-around health.” His wife, Visa Tanikella, a software engineer, nodded toward their two girls. “They’ve been doing Sun Salutations with us every day,” she said. “They’ve been having fun.”
“This is our home now,” Vidya said. “But we take our inspiration from India.”
For more information about this project visit http://www.hssus.org/sny