Some disorders amenable to Surya Namaskara
A list of some of the disorders amenable to Surya Namaskara runs as follows: acne, boils, anaemia, poor appetite, fatigue, obesity, underdevelopment, varicose veins, joint and rheumatic conditions, headache, asthma and other lung conditions, digestive upsets, indigestion, constipation, kidney problems, sluggish liver, low blood pressure, epilepsy, diabetes, skin conditions (eczema, psoriasis, leucoderma), prevention of the common cold, endocrine gland imbalance, menstrual and menopausal problems, mental conditions such as anxiety, depression, neurosis, psychosis, to name a few. It is also, of course, useful for generalized body development and to stimulate normal growth.

The basis of therapy
The human body is composed of a number of different organ systems working together to perform particular body functions and to maintain the organism as a whole. The vital processes, such as digestion, circulation of blood, etc., are not carried out in isolation, but result from the balanced interaction of various mutually interdependent organ systems. Failure of one system, organ or function has a detrimental effect on the whole body, and disease is inevitable.

There are many reasons for the body systems to break down. Medical science knows of: congenital (from birth), ineffective, neoplastic (cancer), traumatic, metabolic, allergic, iatrogenci (doctor-induced), drug induced, endocrine and neurological causes. There is also a large psychosomatic group, where the mind causes physical alterations and diseases. Despite this large variety of possible causes of disease, there is a large group of idiopathic or unknown causes.

From the yogic point of view, ill health is a result of an imbalance in the energy systems of the body. No matter how intelligent, or how good and law abiding a person may be if his energy systems are not functioning properly, that person will suffer from disease. Often a disease may strike without warning, however, it is more than likely that it has been latent for many years, buried in the genetic structure of the body or in some deep and subconscious area of the mind. A cure from disease, therefore, no matter what its apparent, surface causative factor, lies in the rebalancing of the energy systems which govern that area of body or mind and which are responsible for the maintenance of healthy growth, input and output, and so on. In this regard we have to study the flows of energy called ida and pingala.