Happy Summer! It’s officially here as of June 21 and the Summer Solstice.
It was the longest day of the year and the annual maximum amount of sunlight day made me happy.
In yoga it’s customary to d0 108 Sun Salutations on solstices.
Why you ask?
The practice of sun salutations honors the change of seasons, as they help remove toxins in the body. We honor our primary source of energy: the sun.
From this source:
Why is the number 108 special? It is considered sacred in many Eastern religions and traditions. The mala beads (a string of 108) are often used for rituals and worn either around the neck or wrapped around the wrist. Here are some of the significances and facts of 108:
- 1, 0, 8. 1 stands for higher Truth, 0 stands for emptiness or completeness in spiritual practice, 8 stands for infinity or eternity.
- Hindu deities have 108 names. Mala beads are used to count each one of the deities in meditation.
- In Advaita Vedanta, there are 108 authentic doctrines in the Upanishads aiming to approach the truth and to destroy ignorance.
- In the Hindu chakra system, there are a total of 108 energy lines converging from the heart chakra. One of them, sushumna, leads to the crown chakra, and is said to be the path to Self-realization.
- In Tibetan Buddhism, it is believed that there are 108 sins.
- In Japan, at the end of the year a bell is chimed 108 times to finish an old year and welcome a new.
- In Indian relgions, nirvana is only reached once you overcome 108 earthly temptations.
- In Ayurveda, there are 108 pressure points in the body.
- In karate martial arts, the 108 figure is prominent. Suparinpei literally translates to 108.
- In astronomy, the diameter of the Sun is 108 times the diameter of the Earth.
- In the Sanskrit alphabet there are 54 letters, each having a masculine and feminine, totaling 108.
- With time, some say there are 108 feelings, with 36 related to past, 36 related to present, 36 related to future. 36X3=108.
- In Astrology, there are 12 constellations and 9 arc segments. Also, there are 12 houses and 9 planets. 9×12=108.
- In Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism, atman refers to the Self, or the soul. Atman goes through 108 stages on the journey.
So there are many reasons to celebrate the Summer Solstice and the number 108.
When it’s officially summer, it’s also time for easy meals that use what’s in seasonal abundance like:
I like to dip mine in 60-second homemade creamy honey mustard dressing
Or try Raw Taco Salad with Raw Taco Nut “Meat” for a quickie and fresh meal.
This “meat” always impresses even those meat-loving die-hards and takes 30 seconds to make.
Or if zucchinis are coming out of your garden like crazy, or they’re cheap and plentiful at your farmers market like they are at mine,
make Raw Pasta Salad with Creamy Lemon & Herb Dressing
So easy. And it uses up the zukes that are coming out of your ears this time of year. Need a spiralizer or info about what I use, here.
And for dessert, Vanilla Avocado Banana “Ice Cream”
Thank you to everyone who has commented or emailed me that you’ve tried this recipe and really enjoyed it! Field reports are wonderful to have!
And from my last post, it was fun reading what Smells Good to you and if you have a sensitive sniffer or not.
Questions:
1. Have you ever done 108 Sun Salutations or did you celebrate the Solstice in any way on the 21st?
I did about 54 sun salutations (half) at home. I ran out of time to do any more!
I also don’t hold my downward dogs, but move continuously through each sun saluation, one into the next, until I feel I really need a breather, and then I’ll hold a downward dog, catch my breath, and then repeat continuous loop style, so to speak.
And I have been to solstice parties before. Usually with yogis, free spiritis, and creative types. The food is always vegan and potluck style and delicious, the conversation is groovy, and the vibe is mellow.
But this past solstice, no such parties for me. I had a flat tire I was dealing with! No time to party.
2. What foods are you loving now that it’s Officially Summer?
P.S. Thanks for the continued support and entries for the Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Giveaway.
this was so helpful! i actually had this discussion with nate the other day, we were wondering why ‘108’ sun salutations. now i know! last year i did 75 sun salutations, none this year was too busy! i did get in a bodyrock workout in the am. my fave summer foods are burgers & blueberries
now you know why…glad it helped clear things up.
Amazing photos, as always–I love seeing your photography develop. (That would have been a pun once upon a time…)
Fascinating number stuff, I always enjoy those kinds of lists.
I’ve been loving melons, watermelons, peaches, mangos….
Oh your 1st line..thank you for the laugh!!! :)
I must be very lucky because my house number is 108 :-)
The Romans thought 7 and 8 were lucky, so if you made it to 56 you were golden.
your lucky # is 108 ??!! Wow, very cool!
See you’re destined to win the lottery. Or at least get your 1st TS accept :)
I have done the 108 sun salutations before and it is so calming!! You my friend have the freshest most delicious recipes kicking around here!!!
Question – Are you a personal trainer at all or thought of doing it? I am toying with the idea so I can teach more people things….but not sure if online is a good option to take a course ;)
xxoo
I have ordered the books and thought about doing it about 18-24 mos ago but life changed, needs/priorities/desires changed and it’s not in the cards for me at this point.
I did the ACE books/materials and was going to do self-study but I’d rather study photography these days :)
I didnt get to do my 108 salutations this solstice :( but I did get to do some yoga and thats what counts! My super-yogi friend actually had a solstice party this year but i was out of town and couldn’t go.
Also, it doesn’t feel much like summer up here in Canada. It’s all rainy and cold :p I miss my Florida sunshine!
Hi Averie! First time commenter here :)
Just wanted to say I really enjoy your blog….and I live in San Diego too! I just got home from college for the summer, and I’m currently loving absolutely everything about just being home in SD (especially the beach!).
As for FOOD I’m loving, definitely all the amazing summer produce! Pineapple (my favorite!), cherries, peaches, strawberries, the list goes on.
Have a great day!
always nice to “meet” another local!! :)
I had no idea about the significance of 108! Cool stuff. mmm that ice cream. Must have! Summer food must haves= cantaloupe, watermelon, tomatoes, corn, anything grilled! Hope you’re having ag ood day :)
108 salutations! That’s a LOT!
Yesterday was beautiful in SD. So much so that I even went out & ran (and I quit running a long time ago)!
Summer foods are a go in my house! Juices, smoothies, tons of fruit (melons, berries, cherries, etc..), and salads have been filling up my belly these days!
I love summer! We took the first boat ride of the season last week…sunsets are so much prettier on the water!! My favorite things of the season are the product, boats, ocean, cookouts, beaches, and summer rain!!
I have done 108 salutations before for both the summer and winter solstices. The next day I always feel so amazing! However I slacked this year…but I did get in a quickie practice in my ohmygracious hot upstairs and it felt triple super duper good.
108 sun salutations– I think I’d die! Haha…I can barely get through the ones that they do as a warmup in my yoga class :-)
Neat explanation of the 108 sun salutations….but as a geography nerd, I must tell you that it isn’t the vernal equinox (whoops!). An equinox is when day and night are of equal length because the sun is 90 degrees to the equator. On the summer solstice, however, the northern hemisphere is titled towards the sun (hence the longer days) and the sun’s rays are at a 90 degree angle to 23.5 degrees of latitude (instead of 0 degrees at the equator). So there you go!
I edited the text copy. I still don’t fully “get” it…my mind makes and creates recipes from scratch and makes photos and photography much easier than it understands these types of things but I took you word for it and just removed the vernal eqinox verbiage. That is VERY commonly thrown around in yoga circles so there are millions of “confused” yogis…not just me :)
Very interesting on yoga and summer solstice. Great raw recipe inspiration.
1. Nope, not yet.
2. Anything raw and cool since we’re in tripe-digit heat now, lots of frozen grapes and chilled watermelon.
I didn’t even know about the yoga/summer connection. Thanks for teaching a new thing, yet again :)
Summer means watermelon to me. I’m sure there are other things I start to enjoy more, but whenever someone mentions food and summer, my mind is reminded of watermelon and then I can think of nothing else!
my pleasure. thanks as always for reading and your wonderful comments :)
I could do sun salutations all day long. I’ve done the 108 sun salutation practice for years… at least 5 years, except yesterday, ah! I totally forgot until I woke up this morning. I love that you’ve gone into detail about the 108 and it’s significance. I love this post!!
the fact that you’ve ever done 108 is awesome :)
Oh my goodness. I need to make that raw pasta salad! Need to. Great picture of it too :)