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Kundalini Yoga Manual
Kundalini Yoga Manual
Kundalini Yoga Manual
Course
April 1 -April 30, 2016
The Kundalini is the mother of Yoga
Rudrayamala Tantra
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Shiva
Contents
Yoga prayer
Ground rules
Section 1.
Introduction
Yoga Prayer
Section 1
1-2
Introduction
Section 2
3
Section 3
4-14
Section 4
15-76
Section 5
77-85
Section 6
86-126
Exercise
Relationships
Work
Home
Mind-body practice
2. Studying the Book of Life Self-Knowing
Innate nature or Prakirti
The Three Basic Constitutional Types
Earth or Parasympathetic
Fire or interface of parasympathetic and sympathetic
Wind or Sympathetic
3. Shathkarma
1. Neti
2. Dhauti
3. Nauli
4. Basti
5. Kapalbhati
6. Tratak
4. Worship and Prayer
5. Pilgrimage and Fasting
6. Yoga poses
Siddhasana
Vajrasana or diamond pose
Sukhasana or easy pose
Sleep Pose
Bindu (Point) Yoga
Sujun Movements to Awaken Energy and the Chakras
7. Breathing or Pranayama
Sushumna Breathing
Conscious deep breathing through each chakra
9.
Mudras
10. Meditation
.Awareness of the Chakras and Energy
.Meditations from Vijan Bhairava Tantra
.Awareness of the Spine and the Nadi Inside it
.Becoming aware of the spine and nadi in it
light Rising in the Spine
.Spark of Light Jumping from Chakra to Chakra
.Braham or Expansiveness Meditation
.From the Universal to the Individual
.Sound meditations
.Bija mantra for chakras
.Tantric mantras
Section 7
127-160
Pandit Gopikrishna
Jivasu Sudden awakening
Section 8
161-162
Section 9
163
Further Readings
Section 1
Introduction
Kundalini Yoga is Param Yoga or the supreme Yoga. It is ancient yet
contemporary as it can be explained in terms of science without bringing any
religion to define it. Its teachings on themes like non-dual consciousness as
well as the nature of the material world are linked with each other. One
aspect of these teachings concerns the knowledge of Braham, which is
beyond space and time, while the other aspect teaches us about the brain
and the body. These teachings connect the inner and outer world. In
Kundalini Yoga nothing is an illusion and even the "Maya" or impermanence
is real. From human imagination to the ultimate Truth, all is affirmed and
nothing rejected.
Embedded in it is the essence of all other Yogas, all religions, spiritual paths
and philosophies. There is never a condemnation of the body or human
weaknesses. What makes us fall can elevate us. What is poison can become
nectar. What makes ill can cure us. The path of pain and sorrow becomes a
pilgrimage. Body, mind, soul, God and beyond God all are sacred and part of
the same one movement of Truth.
By knowing and practicing Kundalini Yoga not only do we realize the Braham
but also gain the knowledge of this world, its past, present and future. We
can then understand its politics, economy, science, conflicts and culture. We
come to understand evolution and involution (in which consciousness folds
over upon itself). We become like spiders in the complex web of life and the
world. We can enter and exit without entangling ourselves in the complexity
of the world.
We realize Hath Yoga through the first two chakras and Karma Yoga through
the third. The fourth chakra helps us to realize Bhakti Yoga and through the
fifth we realize the Vedanta, Buddha consciousness and Patanjalis Raj
Yoga. In sixth chakra we see the cosmos as it is and in the seventh we
experience Guru Yoga, where we are guided by our own inner Guru or
teacher. From the Geeta to the Upanishads, from Nirvana to Tao, from
Sufism to the Kabbalah- all can be understood through Kundalini Yoga.
What is referred to as Kundalini Yoga now, was previously known as Laya
Yoga. Laya means dissolution. It was called the Yoga of dissolution, because
it dissolves the barriers between energy or Shakti and consciousness or
Shiva. The word kundalini is derived from the Sanskrit word Kundal. Kundal
means a coiled one. When Shakti or energy lies dormant, it assumes the
shape of a coil, like a serpent. When awakened the Kundalini is uncoiled and
straightens up like a serpent and moves through the chakras. This is why its
also known as Serpent Power. Some commentators connect the word Kundal
with Kanda or the sacral area of the spine where the energy of Kundalini lies
dormant. Others relate it to the Kund, the pit or the place where the fire
ceremony in performed, because the nature of Kundalini is fire.
Section 2
What is Kundalini Yoga?
When the energy of consciousness or the consciousness-force, known as
Shiva-Shakti or Purusha-Prakirti, takes the form of an individual life, its
called Kundalini. Kundalini governs life through the chakras. Because of
Avidya or ignorance, only a fragment of the Kundalini consciousness-force
remains active in us while the rest lies dormant in the form of a coil.
Although even partially active Kundalini is enough to sustain life, it causes us
to live in a state of ego and in separation from the rest of the cosmos. The
ego causes us to endlessly cycle through sorrow and joy.
As Sadhana or spiritual effort diminishes our ignorance, Kundalini is
awakened and makes the chakras fully active. The awakening and activation
of Kundalini and the chakras breaks the cycle of the world and the mind and
body unite. Jivatma or soul is experienced and the individual gets glimpses
of Shiva or pure consciousness. This is the first realization on the path of
Kundalini Yoga. If the process continues, the Jivatma or soul comes to its full
realization of the cosmic Shiva-Shakti or Purusha-Prakirti or Paramatma or
non-dual consciousness. This is full realization in Kundalini Yoga.
Section 3
The history of Kundalini Yoga
The story of Kundalini Yoga is the story of a goddess, because Kundalini
represents the feminine aspect of the cosmos. It is also directly connected to
the Tantra. Kundalini and the Chakras are an integral part of Tantra. The aim
of tantric practice is to awaken the Kundalini and the chakras. As a practice
Tantra is pre-historic, however written and pictorial records of its existence
appeared much later.
20,000 BC
This is the earliest finding of the mother goddess figurine from the Pachmari
hills in Madhya Pradesh, India.
5,500 BC
Many female figurines were discovered at the excavation in Mehergarh,
Pakistan.
Shivas forehead. Its cool radiance floods the brain and body bringing bliss,
wisdom and the feeling of the immortality of pure consciousness.
Some say that the Vedic story of Vishnu, in which he crossed the cosmos in
three steps, indicates the three coils of Kundalini. Beyond the three coils lies
another half coil which is about transcending the cosmos.
Chandogya Upanishad which is an older Upanishad and composed before
Buddha, says that Pranic energy (Kundalini) guards the door of the celestial
world.
Kundalini is mentioned in Yajurveda which was described in detail in Advaya
Taraka and Yoga Kundalini Upanishad. Although the Yoga Kundalini
Upanishad is as old as Yajurveda, it was compiled in the 17th century. It
describes the chakras and the goal of Kundalini awakening which is to experience
the non-dual Brahman.
In Varahopanishad, Kundalini is called the supreme power. Kundalini is also
mentioned in Sam Veda through Yoga Chudamani Upanishad. The time for
the compilation of The Upanishad is not clear, but it was after Patanajalis Raj
Yoga.
8th Century
Adi Shankaracharya (788-820)
Adi Shankaracharya was a great Jnana Yogi and philosopher who, in his short
life span of 32 years, wrote commentaries on The Upanishads and brought
the philosophy of Vedanta to the forefront of spiritual discourse. This
influenced the growth of Sanatan Dharma. He also affirmed the spiritual
unity of India by establishing four Maths or ashrams in four corners of India
and started the Dashnami sects of monks which became a vehicle for the
spread of the Vedanta teachings, not only in India, but all over the world.
Adi Shankaracharya, along with sage Pushpadanta wrote the famous work
The Saundarya Lahari describing Kundalini Shakti. Saundarya Lahiri means
Waves of Beauty. Shankaracharya says: You live in secrecy with your lord
(consciousness) in the thousand petalled lotus. You pierced earth
Mooladhara, the water in Manipura, the fire in the Svadhisthana, the air in
the Heart or Anahata, the space in Visshuddhi and Manas between the
eyebrows (Ajna) and have thus broken through the entire Kula Path.
Saundarya Lahri also gives a clear account on how to worship and how to
please the mother Kundalini Shakti.
Tibetan Buddhism
10th Century
Tantra
Although Tantras are old, their articulation and description took on a
definitive form by the 10th century and many of them were complied during
the same period. Tantras contain extensive descriptions of Kundalini. Abhinav
Gupta in his work Tantra-Alok distinguished between Purna Kundalini, Prana
Kundalini and Urdhava Kundalini. Purna Kundalini is a total divine force.
Prana Kundalini, as the name depicts, is only about life force and Urdhava
Kundalini is the upward movement of the dormant life force in the form of a
serpent.
Yoga Vashistha
Yoga Vashistha is one of the most beautiful and profound books of integrated
spirituality from India. Its philosophy was propounded thousands of years
ago, but the oldest available manuscript was written in the 10th century AD.
13th Century
Yoga Yajnavalkya
Yoga Yajnavalkya became an inspirational and foundational text for many
Hath Yoga work including Yoga-Kundalini, Yogatattva and Hath Yoga
15th Century
Hath Yoga Pradipika
Hath Yoga Pradipika is a classical text on Hath Yoga. It was written by Swami
Svatmarama, a disciple of the great Gorakshanath of Nath Sampradya. Hath
Yoga Pradipika is one of the best works to learn about Kundalini. According to
Hath Yoga Pradipika - Kundalini is asleep; closing the door of the Sushumna.
She sleeps above the Kanda, where the Nadis unite. She gives liberation to
the Yogi and bondage to the fool. Anyone who knows her knows Yoga.
Hath Yoga Pradipika describes asanas, pranayamas, mudras and bandhas in
details. Hath Yoga brought the physical body to the forefront of Yoga for the
first time and showed that the body can be the door to the divine and can
liberate us. In many religious traditions the body is considered an obstacle to
enlightenment, but in Hath Yoga it is seen as the means to Moksha. Most of
the common asanas and pranayamas in current yoga practice come from
Hath Yoga.
Guru Nanak
It is said that Guru Nanak mentioned Kundalini. It is described in Guru Granth
Sahib.
16th Century
Shri-Tattva-Cintamani
Shri Tattva Cintamani was written by Swami Purnananda. Its sixth chapter is
called the Sat-Chakra-Nirupana or exploration into six chakras or centres.
The book describes the chakras and practices used to activate them in great
detail. It also describes the experiences of Kundalini moving through the
chakras.
17th Century
Gheranda Samhita
Gheranda Samhita is one of three classical text books about Hath Yoga. The
other two are Hath Yoga Pradipika and Shiva Samhita. It is the yoga manual
that was taught to Chanda Kapali by Gheranda. According to the Gherand
Samhita, The Great Goddess Kundalini, who is the primordial energy of the
Self, sleeps in the region of sex. It has the shape of a snake coiled three and
a half times. As long as it remains asleep, Jiva, the individual spirit, will be
limited in its actions, and true knowledge will not be accessible. But like the
right key that may unlock a door, Hath Yoga can unlock Kundalini's door and
allow the self to experience the union with Brahman and to reach the final
state."
Shiva Samhita
Shiva Samhita describes various Nadis, ten types of Pranas, eighty four
asanas and other yoga practices to awaken Kundalini.
19th Century
Ramkrishna Paramhansa (1836-1886)
Ramakrishna Paramhansa was a unique sage who was able to reach the
state of self-realization through many paths including Islamic and nondualistic practices. He also, through his famous disciple Swami Vivekananda,
revived Sanatan Dharma in India and allowed it to spread throughout the
world.
Ramakrishna Paramhansa was initiated into Tantra by a female teacher,
Bhairavi and, experienced Kundalini. He often used to discuss how this
energy can be awakened in five ways. He stated that it can be like a snake,
bird, fish, monkey and an ant. He also said - "When the Kundalini rises to the
Sahasrara and the mind goes into Samadhi, the aspirant loses all
consciousness of the outer world. He can no longer retain his physical body.
If milk is poured into his mouth, it runs out again. In [this] state the lifebreath lingers for twenty-one days and then passes out.
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20th Century
Paramhansa Yogananda (1893-1952)
Paramahansa Yogananda was an Indian Yogi who migrated to The United
States and brought Indian spirituality to the west. He followed the trail of
Swami Vivkeananda. His book Autobiography of a Yogi is one of the most
popular books on Yoga and describes his Kriya Yoga in detail.
Kriya Yoga is based on the Chakras and energy. According to Yogananda,
Kriya Yoga is [the] union (yoga) with the Infinite through a certain action or
rite (kriya). The Sanskrit root of kriya is kri, to do, to act and react. The Kriya
Yogi mentally directs his life energy to revolve, upward and downward,
around the six spinal centers (medullary, cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral, and
coccygeal plexuses.....
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J Krishnamurti (1895-1986)
Krishnamurti, a great sage and philosopher of the 20th century left a deep
impact on modern spirituality. He shunned organized religions and the role of
a Guru in self-realization.
His statement, ...Truth is a pathless land...and that his mission is ...to set
man absolutely and unconditionally freeare the essence of his teachings.
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their bodies touching each other at seven knot-points. This is exactly how
the Sushumna and its two auxiliary channels are arranged.
Africa
In many parts of Africa people danced to awaken Num (equivalent to
Kundalini) in order to experience Kia, or the state of transcendence.
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Section 4
The Philosophy of Kundalini Yoga
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Introduction
In science, which deals with matter and energy, seeing is of paramount
importance. If a scientist cant see an object or event directly through the
eyes, or indirectly on the screen, or on a piece of paper, then it doesnt exist.
Furthermore, that act of seeing has to be confirmed by many. The act of
seeing by an individual is not enough and is merely an anecdote which may
or may not be true. So replicating the seeing is the essence of science.
Seeing has to be shared in order to bring transformation in the material
world.
For example, if a patient complains about not feeling well, the doctor will
suggest many tests to arrive at a diagnosis. Those tests are not exclusively
analyzed by a single doctor but by many other health professionals such as a
pathologist or a specialist. If all the tests are normal, then the doctor may
say that the problem is in the patients head, which means it is in the mind
or is just a feeling rather than in the body. This also means that problem may
not be real but imagined.
But in spirituality feeling is of main importance, because it explores the
realm of consciousness and conscious transformation within. Seeing is
recognized, but may be considered an illusion. Our mind can project its own
content and see things which are either not there or even if they are there,
they are not seen as they are, because our perception is conditioned. Our
fears, suffering, conflict, guilt, jealousy, happiness, meaning in life, love and
fulfillment are all feelings. Nirvana, enlightenment, liberation, God
experiences are also feelings beyond ordinary feelings, and are experienced
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infinite is not an empty void but contains all that is possible, was possible
and will be possible. People have given this feeling of boundless and timeless
existence many names including God, Brahamn and so on.
As our brain develops and vibrates at a particular frequency, we experience
a specific level of consciousness. The animal brain vibrates at a different
frequency than in humans, and so their perception is different. Because we
are self-aware, we can change the structure and physiology of our brain and
become conscious of those experiences that are not available to other living
beings. This is conscious evolution. Evolution is essentially the evolution of
the brain and body, which vibrate at different frequencies at various stages
of evolution.
All creative and spiritual practices are about changing the structure and
physiology of the brain, in order to tune into more conscious experience. We
have the potential to become conscious of every evolutionary frequency of
the brain, eventually arriving at a point where the frequency becomes almost
infinite or zero. Here we tune into a primal consciousness. This gives us the
experience of non-duality, Nirvana or the feeling of timeless and space-less
existence.
When people are going through a spontaneous spiritual awakening, the
energy flow in their brain and nervous system is strong and can be felt
clearly at certain points over the body. A normal brain, although fully active
physiologically, is not functioning to its optimal capacity; the reason being
that various parts of the brain remain unconnected. But in spiritual
awakening not only some of the physiologically less active parts become
more active, but more and more parts connect to each other making the
brain and nervous system function as one unit, as one whole. Such
functioning of the brain is also observed during orgasm.
During spiritual awakening increased activity and coherence in the brain
functioning are experienced as powerful and harmonious flow of energy at
various parts of the body and are called Chakra points. Chakra means
wheels. At these points energy is flowing through the web of nerves giving
the feeling of a moving wheel. In the same way when energy is flowing
through the spinal cord and brain, it gives the feeling of a serpent moving
within the body. This movement of energy is called Kundalini. Kundal means
a coil. A restful serpent forms a coil, but when awakened it raises its body up
and opens its hood. That is why Kundalini energy is depicted as an awakened
serpent. The brain and the spinal cord look like the body and hood of a
serpent.
In summary, biology evolves and not consciousness. With the evolution of
biology, higher levels of consciousness are experienced. When the biology of
the brain and nervous system evolves, there is strong flow of energy which
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connects to particular nerve plexuses and gives the feeling of moving wheels
which are called Chakra points. The overall flow of this energy is experienced
as an awakened serpent and is called Kundalini energy. Because Chakras and
Kundalini are feelings and not material entities, if we were to open the body
we wouldnt find them anywhere in the body. Similarly, if we were to open
the heart organ, we wouldnt find any love there. Love is a feeling which
connects to the anatomical heart.
What is Kundalini?
Kundalini, Chakras and Nadis
Kundalini is the conscious energy or bio-energy which sustains life in an
individual person and in other living beings. It is the individualized extension
of the cosmic energy variously referred to as Shakti, Prakirti or Devi.
As the manifested cosmos is formed from the union of consciousness (Shiva
or Purusha) and energy (Shakti or Prakirti), at the level of Ahamkar or I-ness,
consciousness becomes involved in the cycle of the world leading to fear and
suffering. As the Shiva-Shakti combination goes down further, at the root
chakra (Annamayakosha) most of the Kundalini energy becomes dormant
and is coiled like a serpent with minimal consciousness. Its remaining
dynamic energy mainly moves to the second chakra (Pranamayakosh) from
where it sustains the body, the emotions and the thinking mind.
As the Kundalini is awakened from it dormancy, it rises again and becomes
more and more conscious. At the level of the crown chakra, it finally achieves
union with Shiva or consciousness again. This leads to the witnessing
consciousness. If the movement continues further up, the cosmic union is
experienced. This ultimately leads to the experience of the non-dual state of
Brahman.
Ignorance whose origin is unknown causes Kundalini to remain dormant and
confined to the material and mental realm. When awakened it becomes fully
conscious by uniting with Shiva or Purusha or primal consciousness and
returns to its cosmic form which leads to liberation. Such liberation also
awakens all of the inherent material and mental forces in the person. During
the awakening of Kundalini, Prana or bio-energy moves up through the
chakras, opens them and make them optimally functional. Kundalini
expresses itself differently at different chakras, because each chakra
represents a different stage of evolution and consciousness.
Kundalini energy flows through the specific pathways or Nadis. Nadi means
flow. The same word is used in Sanskrit for river and also for Nada, which
means sound, because sound also flows like a wave. The Chakras are the
vortex or the dynamic pools of energy in which Nadis end and take origin.
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Out of the thousands of Nadis criss- crossing the body, three are most
important. They are Ida, Pingla and Sushumna. Some also describe three
more nadis interior to Sushumna, namely Vajrini, Chitrni and Brahman nadis.
The Ida and Pingala Nadis correspond to the sympathetic and the
parasympathetic nerves but they are not themselves the nerves. Ida, which
represents the moon, means coolness and calmness. Pingla, which
symbolizes the sun, means action and heat. Ida and Pingla start in the
testicles or vagina, Ida on the right and Pingla on the left. They meet with
Sushumna at the root chakra. Sushumna means Graceful. Sushumna is
called graceful, because when Ida and Pingla are in balance they flow into
Sushumna with gentle equanimity. When the three Nadis meet at the root
chakra, they form the first knot or Braham granthi (the knot of the body). The
three nadis again meet at the heart chakra and at the third eye chakra and
form Vishnu and Rudra Granthi, which correspond to emotion and intellect.
These three knots create dormancy of body, emotions and intellect and have
to be untied to become receptive to the cosmic forces at the mind-body
level. Ida is Tamasic in nature or full of inertia, Pingla is Rajasic or dynamic
and Sushumna is Satvic or harmonious and balanced.
From the Rudra Granthi at the third eye or sixth chakra, Ida and Pingla
descend to the left and right nostril and through the stimulation of the
nostrils by breathing, they influence the right and left hemispheres of brain.
Sushumna doesnt end at the nostrils. It goes all the way up to the top of the
head and opens in the crown chakra.
Up to the sixth chakra, all chakras have petals. These petals are metaphors
for the various frequencies with which they vibrate and are represented as
the Sanskrit alphabets. In Nada Yoga the origin of the cosmos is described
through the un-struck sound of Aum from which all other vibrations are born
and all vibrations are conceived by humans through 50 alphabets. This
means that the mind-body microcosm contains all the vibrations of the
macrocosm in the form of 50 alphabets. The seed mantra or the sounds at
various chakras, is the igniting energy which will make these petals of
frequencies active and vibrate and will help in the communion of the mindbody microcosm to the macrocosm of universe.
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the five senses or organs of knowledge eyes, ears, tongue, nose and
skin
the five experiences of senses sound, sight, smell, touch and taste
the five organs of action mouth, hands, anus, penis/vagina and feet
the five Mahabhutas or gross elements earth, water, fire, air and
space
Purusha
The word Purusha is composed of Pur meaning boundary and Sha means
restfulness. Purusha is the peaceful, tranquil pure consciousness which rests
in the boundaries of living beings including humans. Each living being has its
own Purusha. So there are as many Purushas as the number of living beings.
Later on with the development of Vedanta, plural Purusha became one or
non-dual Brahamn.
Puruha is the transcendental self beyond all description and is pure
consciousness. Its self-existent; it neither creates nor was created. Its
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The five senses or organs of knowledge are the eyes, the ears, the tongue,
the nose and the skin through which Manas and Ahamkar enjoy the world.
The energy of desires goes out into the world to enjoy and cling to it. Such
clinging to enjoyment inevitably brings conflict, frustration, pain and sorrow
to the person.
Five experiences through the Organs of Knowledge or Tanmatras
Sound, sight, smell, touch and taste are the experiences of Manas and
Ahamkar through the five organs of knowledge.
Pure consciousness is completely still and tranquil and is Nirgun Braham. Its
beyond all qualities and attributes and is experienced in the Turiya state.
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Sat or existence expresses itself as Prakirti with the three gunas of Satva,
Rajas and Tamas and when combined with Chit it becomes Sagun Braham or
Braham with attributes, also referred to as God. Aum is the primal sound
through which the manifested and un-manifested universe emerges from
Sagun Braham.
Maya is the expression of Prakirti which hides the true nature of Braham
behind its web of illusion. Because of Maya humans perceive the limited
world as the whole truth.
From Sagun Braham emerge the trinity of Brahma Vishnu-Mahesh
(masculine energy) and their consorts Saraswati-Laxmi-Parvati. Brahma
becomes the creator, Vishnu the sustainer and Mahesh or Shiva the dissolver
of the universe. Out of these three entities are born all other gods,
goddesses and other energies and forms both negative and positive forces.
From Sagun Braham emerges the Buddhi or Atma
From Atma, the Ahamkar
From Ahamkar, the mind
From the mind emerges the physical body with its five organs of knowledge,
five organs of action, five subtle elements and its five gross elements.
Atma, Ahamkar, Manas and the physical body can be described in two ways:
1. Three bodies or Shariras; namely Sthul (the gross body), Suksham (the
subtle body) and Karan (the causal body)
2. Three bodies consist of five sheaths. The gross body is built by
Annamayakosh (matter) and Pranamayakosha (energy). The subtle
body is formed by the Manomayakosh (emotions and feelings) and the
Vijanmayakosh (intellect with reason). The causal body is formed by
Anandamayakosh (bliss or well-being) and is the part of Atma or
individual self.
While Kundalini is fully functional at Jivatmna and Buddhi which is the level of
seventh chakra, it starts becoming dormant and less conscious at and below
the level of Ahamkar. At the level of the body it becomes most dormant. But
inspite of its dormancy its active and strong enough to sustain the functions
of body and mind. Beyond seventh chakra and Jivatman, Kundalini becomes
the part of the cosmic shiv-shakti and of non-dual Brahman.
Kundalini has been called the serpent power, because a serpent also forms
a coil when resting. It is also is experienced as a column of energy curving
upward from the base of the spine to the brain, in the shape of a hooded
serpent. Upward movement of this energy in the spinal column, as well as
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the whirling flow of energy at the six primary centres is termed chakras.
Similar experiences have also been described in other religious traditions.
Kundalini and the seven Chakras are metaphors for a variety of experiences
brought by the awakening of the conscious energy or force in the body and
the brain. As mentioned above, Kundalini symbolizes the dormant energy in
the body at the base of the spine. The word chakra means wheel or the
vortex. Chakras are not physical entities but are the experiences of the flow
of the Kundalini energy through different regions of the brain and the body.
The chakras are the windows through which the microcosm of the body and
mind connects to the macrocosm or the universe. The macrocosm and the
microcosm are formed by the same force or energy, of which Kundalini is one
form.
In mind-body complex, each chakra is connected with a part of the brain, just
as an electrical switch is connected with a light fixture. The switched-on
chakra corresponds to a part of the brain, which is then lit up. In essence, the
opening of the chakras means the opening of the brain. When the whole
brain is activated and functioning, a union of the mind and body occurs, and
if extended further, it leads to the intimate connection between the mindbody or microcosm to the macrocosm.
The chakras are the milestones of evolution and involution. All matter is
energy and all energy is consciousness. But all consciousness is not selfreflective consciousness and all self-reflective consciousness is not free from
conditioning. Movement from the non-reflective consciousness to the selfreflective consciousness is evolution and from the conditioned self-reflective
consciousness to the unconditioned self-reflective consciousness is
involution.
When the movement of consciousness expands beyond the individual and
becomes universal, it is involution. Such movement is like a fountain which
springs forth from the earth, goes up in a narrow stream, reaches its peak
(evolution) and then comes down to the earth again as an expanded
umbrella of the water (involution).
Evolution is the movement from the lower to the higher chakras, from the
first to the seventh chakra which causes integration of the mind and body. It
is a process of ascendance. Involution is the movement from the higher to
the lower chakra in which the individual is integrated into universal
consciousness. It is a process of descendence.
Humans are the most evolved of all living beings on earth. Because of this,
they are full of fear and complexity, and yet they are the most powerful
species on the earth. In addition, as we move up the chakras, we become
more powerful. People of the fifth chakra are more powerful than the people
of the fourth and those of the fourth more powerful than those of the third
and so on. The least powerful are minerals, because they have only one
active chakrathe root chakra. In minerals the second chakra only exists as
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a potential. They are at the bottom of evolution. Plants are more powerful
than minerals, animals are more powerful than plants, and humans are the
most powerful.
The higher the chakra in the evolutionary ladder, the more consciousness it
will have. More consciousness brings more knowledge of life and death,
which leads to more fear as well as more delight in daily living.
From a biological perspective Kundalini is the total energy available to a
human being. Part of this energy sustains the body and the mind, and the
rest moves the wheel of evolution in a person through seven chakras. The
seven chakras are the seven brains in the human body. The seventh brain is
encased in the skull. It is not an independent brain but results from the
integration of the first six brains or chakras.
Social and cultural conditioning makes the chakras dormant and doesnt
allow them to function at their optimal level or to be in harmony with one
another. But with the awakening of Kundalini energy, the chakras become
active and integrate with one another, which leads to the fully functional
individual.
Kundalini energy flows into two main channels named Pingla or sun channel
and Ida or moon channel. The sun and the moon channels correspond to the
sympathetic and the parasympathetic components of the autonomic nervous
system. Normally the flow of the energy in the sun and moon channels is
weak. It doesnt have the force to open the central channel or Sushmna
which corresponds with the central canal of the spinal cord. But after the
awakening of Kundalini, the energy in the sun and moon channels flows with
force and finds its way into the central channel. The flow of energy in the
central channel opens the chakras fully.
What is Opening of the Chakras?
The first meaning of the opening of the chakra is to break down the hold of
the automatic patterns of emotions and thoughts in the body and brain.
As we go through the life, we incur many injuries and abuses, suffers from
tragedies of life and pain, the memories of which are accumulated in our
brain and body. These accumulated memories produce strong emotional
responses in the forms of anger, guilt, grief and violence which become the
automatic patterns of emotions and thoughts. These automatic patterns can
be triggered by small stresses of day to day life and cause deep suffering.
When the energy rushes through the body and the brain and opens the
chakras, it washes away the old accumulation of the memories, cleans the
body and the brain, and heals them.
The second meaning of chakra opening is to experience the full flowering of
the innate intelligence with which each person is born. With the opening of
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the six chakras, the mind and body function at their optimal level and
integrate with each other to form a harmonious wholeness. The person then
becomes a fully functional individual.
The third meaning of chakra opening is that the fully functional individual
experiences universal consciousness and merges into it.
Vertical and Horizontal Movement of the Chakras
Opened by energy, the chakras can move in vertical and horizontal
directions. The vertical movement causes evolution, and the horizontal
movement, the expansion of the consciousness. The vertical movement
brings new realizations and awareness to the person, and the horizontal
movement provides an expansive view of the new realizations and
awareness. For example, the vertical movement of the fifth chakra helps in
the development of the intellect and capacity for thinking with reason and
rationality, while the horizontal movement helps in creating science,
systems, theories, rules, laws, organizations and their use at the local,
national and global level.
Once a chakra is fully active, it moves in all directions. This experience is like
the flight of a swan that not only flies up towards the sky but also becomes
aware of vast vistas around it. The vertical and horizontal movements
complement each other.
The Disciplined Person is a Free Person
On the path of chakra, discipline comes from within. It is not imposed from
outside. The word discipline is related to the word disciple. When a person
becomes a disciple of its own innate nature or intelligence, true discipline
happens. At this point, discipline is natural and effortless. The discovery of
ones nature is the beginning of natural discipline.
Wellness Reserve
Normally our brain and body use only a fragment of their total capacity. We
carry a significant wellness reserve in us, which if released, can heal physical
and psychological disorders and bring us a sense of well-being in our day to
day living. But we must understand what the partial functioning means. We
will take the example of the physical heart in humans. Although at any given
point of time the heart is physiologically fully active, it still has a reserve in it
which can be tapped into by heavy cardiac exercise. Tapping into the heart
reserve may save it from heart attacks in the future and help the person in
living a healthier life.
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The awakening of Kundalini energy and the opening of the chakras, do the
same thing in a person. They tap into the wellness reserve of the brain and
the body.
General Features of Chakras
The first two chakras are named root (Mooladhar) and sex (Swadhisthan)
centers, and belong to matter and energy. They represent the body, the
reptilian component of the brain which is responsible for survival, sex and
reproduction.
The third (solar or Manipura) and the fourth (heart or Anahat) chakras belong
to emotions and feelings and are represented as the mammalian component
in the brain. They are responsible for the six primary and many secondary
and social emotions in human beings. Emotions help in promoting longer and
better survival of the individual and the species.
The fifth chakra (throat or Vishuddha) belongs to logic, reason, science,
language, analysis, and the anticipated future. It is represented as the neocortex or human component in the brain. The fifth chakra helps humans to
become powerful and to survive longer by discovering and inventing
complex tools and technology, and by learning from the past and speculating
about the future. The fifth chakra allows humans to dominate all other living
beings on earth. The first five chakras constitute the ego or the self.
The sixth chakra (third eye or Ajna) is the existential center, where life and
death face each other in their bareness. Activation of the sixth chakra allows
the subconscious contents to become conscious and an existential crisis is
precipitated. The person experiences the fear and the darkness which
eventually leads to the integration of the reptilian, mammalian and human
components of the brain. The process of the integration is completed at the
seventh (crown or Sahasara) chakra, which results in the emergence of a
fully functional individual. Activation of the seventh chakra is the experience
of the innate intelligence, Prakiriti, soul or Atma.
Higher a Chakra is: it is
.More Powerful because higher chakra has more knowledge and
knowledge is power
.Less dense
.More easily accessible
.Less difficult to open
.Less difficult to transform
.Less important for survival
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Emotions
Feelings
Intellect
Insight
Karm yoga
Bhakti yoga
Jnan yoga
Cosmic form with death
Integration
God
Yoga is the state when the individual and the universal are in seamless
union.
Different Chakras Express the Same Energy in Different Forms
In the first chakra of the body, the process of living and dying occur
simultaneously. But with evolution, life and death become two separate
entities which are expressed in different chakras in different forms.
First chakra :
Death and life are one
Second chakra:
Life is sex and fertility and death is impotency and
infertility
Third chakra:
Life is passion and death is anger
Fourth chakra:
Life is love and death is fear
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Fifth Chakra:
Life is creativity and death is blockage of the creativity.
SixthChakra:
Life is life and death is death and they face each other in
their bareness
Seventh Chakra: Life and death accept each other and exist simultaneously
Regression and Progression
In times of crisis, a person may either progress to the higher chakra or
regress to the lower chakra. A crisis which brings the progression or
regression of this kind includes war, natural disasters, personal trauma and
tragedies. A mature ego is formed by the five chakras of the body, emotions,
feelings and intellect. Egos consciousness is conditioned, but it gives a
person stability to face the turmoil and chaos of life. In regression, ego slides
down to the lower chakras of emotions and body chakras which can
psychologically paralyze the person or cause the person to become a part of
a mob and lose individuality.
In progression the person will move up, may go through the existential crisis
of the sixth chakra and arrive at the seventh to become a fully functional
individual.
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them into the sixth chakra and then making them come out at the seventh.
The seventh chakra is the chakra of the awakening of individual
consciousness and well-being which will result in de-addiction and deconditioning. That will be the beginning of an entirely new era. From the first
chakra to the fifth it is the formation and the growth of the ego, the sixth
chakra is the shattering of the ego and the seventh chakra is the entry into a
new integral or soul consciousness in which the ego becomes subservient
rather than functioning as the master as it did until the fifth chakra.
But the seventh chakra is not the end. After the flowering of the seventh
chakra further expansion of the consciousness will begin which we can call
involution. In involution, individual consciousness starts to universalize. The
individual person becomes a universal being.
From an intellectual point of view, it seems that the environmental disaster
and its impact on humans and other species is a catastrophe that created by
the bad choices made by humans. We must prevent it, and we can. We have
the will and freedom to make better choices for the better future of ourselves
and for the rest of the planet.
But from a spiritual point of view, the picture seems different. First of all, we
dont have free will, but we have some freedom of choice. But that freedom
of choice can only be used if we have individualized consciousness. Except
for the few, our consciousness is fundamentally a social consciousness on
which we dont have any control. It compels us to make decisions by
subconscious influences. We are a part of the crowd which we name the
group, community, race, religion, nation or the world. Apart from the crowd
we have little individuality.
While the human intellectual point of view is egoic, narrow, and revolves
around humans, the spiritual perspective goes beyond human thinking into
the experience of the non-dual in which oneness of the universe is realized.
This oneness in all things includes not only humans, but also the minerals,
plants, and animals. Humans are only one type of living being amongst
many. They are a part of a grand cosmic wholeness in which they can
participate as a witness through whom the action is happening, but they are
not the action taker. The cosmos will move with or without them, and they
dont have any control over its movement.
From a spiritual point of view, whatever is happening at the fifth chakra is
due to the force of evolution and cannot be prevented. It will take us to the
sixth and then to the seventh chakra. Environmental disaster is going to
happen but it will be like a pruning of the earth and will push us to the next
stage of evolution. All evolutionary leaps come with catastrophe. Whether it
is an individual or the whole humanity, without the shattering of the old, the
radically new cant happen.
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So far, except for some individuals spirituality is grabbed by the ego. The ego
is spiritualized which we take as genuine spiritual expansion. But after the
sixth chakra, people will experience the true intimations of sacred wholeness
and well-being. Humanitys future is divine and evolution wont stop until we
experience the non-dual oneness of the cosmos. So, in spite of darkness and
disasters there is no place for pessimism. How could there be pessimism if
the whole cosmos is the expression of timeless and eternal consciousness.
But in order to arrive there we must be prepared to endure the shocks and
trauma of the forward thrust of evolution.
Chakras and Creativity
7th Person recreates itself
6th - Existential Transition
5th - Creativity Expressed
4th Creativity Creativity unexpressed
3rd Innovation
1 and 2nd Imitation
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The first chakra is the chakra of death, the chakra of matter and the chakra
of the rooting and grounding.
Being the center of death, the survival of the person is of paramount
importance at this chakra. That is why this chakra is connected with the
adrenal glands whose hormones adrenaline and nor-adrenaline induce the
fight or flight response to deal with emergency situations and dangers to
protect the person. Facing our own death can awaken the root chakra.
Being the center of the matter, this chakra is least conscious. The
consciousness is hidden deep in matter. In the higher chakras of feelings and
intellect, consciousness is easily accessible. That is why the full functioning
of this chakra is most difficult to achieve.
The first chakra forms the roots of the tree of life which we always carry
within us. The tree of life is a metaphor and also the reality of our body. The
element of the earth is right for this chakra, because only the earths
strength can hold the tree firmly in the ground.
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The root chakra is connected to the reptilian component of the human brain,
which takes care of the basic survival needs in the life of a person. The
reptilian brain has the cardiac and respiratory centres in it. This chakra
communicates to consciousness through sensations which are generated by
the flow of energy through the cells and nerves.
The root chakra also expresses maleness or femaleness or a mixture of it in a
person. Being the chakra which is responsible for the formation of the
physical body, it determines the external appearance and sex of a person. In
a man, the first chakra is masculine, the second is feminine, the third and
fourth (as they form one functioning unit) masculine, and fifth and sixth
(again a functioning unit) feminine, and the seventh has both the masculine
and feminine qualities. In a woman, this order is reversed.
This arrangement of gender in humans has deep significance and indicates
that none of us are pure man or woman. We are a mixture of both. A man
has feminine qualities, and a woman has masculine features. All too often,
people are expected to behave and act strictly either as a man or as a
woman, according to their cultural norms. Evolution and Naturality break that
rigidity and brings the expression of both qualities in either a man or in a
woman. At the seventh chakra, the masculinity and femininity in a person
unite. The person becomes a bi-gendered individual. The union of inner
masculinity and femininity brings the same ecstasy that is experienced in the
sexual union of a man and a woman.
Like other chakras, the root chakra has three possibilities. If the chakras
energy is in balance then the person will be calm, contented and connected
to the family and community. If the chakras energy is moving downward, the
person will be stuck in a rut, not making decisions or taking action or moving
forward in life. Such a person becomes excessively attached to a place,
person, or object. Excessive attachment brings greed, which may lead to the
hoarding of wealth, power, or knowledge.
Upward movement of the energy of the root chakra brings evolutionary
changes and integration with higher chakras. The person is not contented
with what he or she is given by the family, community, and culture. He or
she becomes a seeker and pilgrim, and begins a voyage towards becoming a
true individual rather than merely a person. A person wears the masks of
society and culture and doesnt live according to his or her innate
intelligence. A true individual is a human who is cleared of social and cultural
programming. A persons rooting is in society and culture, whereas the
individual is rooted in his or her own innate nature. A persons home is in a
particular village, town or city, but the individual has his or her home in heart
and soul and is at ease wherever she or he goes.
Earth religions are born from the energy and consciousness of the root
chakra and that is the reason that they are rooted in the earth and its
elements.
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First chakra is located between anus and penis/vagina and has four petals
which indicate towards four frequencies with which it can vibrate. Its seed
sound Lum. Its color is red and the element earth.
Smell is the special sense of the earth element and the root chakra. The
sense of smell is the most directly connected with the brain and that is why
the memory of the smell is vivid, primal, emotional and deep. The sense of
smell is the last one to appear in babies in the womb and the first one to
disappear when a person is dying.
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Death and sex (life-energy) are the two fundamental problems of human
beings and both of them are normal physiological activities of the body.
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During the sexual act, seminal fluid moves downward and carries the energy
with it. But when the second chakras movement is upward, the fluid will still
flow downward but the energy will move up towards the higher centres. The
movement of the energy is felt as a stream of tingling sensations flowing
inside the spine bringing the experience of gentle orgasm. Later on the
energy flow becomes constant without any sexual act and brings the
constant feeling of bliss.
Process can also be explained in scientific terms. The parasympathetic
nervous system (vagus nerve) is responsible for the erection or stimulation
and the sympathetic nervous system for the ejaculation. If there is no
ejaculation and only the stimulation or the erection then the
parasympathetic nervous system will remain active for a longer period of
time and will retain the energy. The parasympathetic nervous system brings,
rest, calmness and anabolic activity or preservation of the energy which will
be enhanced and may eventually become a constant experience. Our brain
will retain the energy and will be filled with delight and passion.
Normally we have brain dormancy, because only part of the total functional
capacity of the brain is used and the rest of it lies dormant. The brain
dormancy is due to the cultural conditioning of the brain, which makes the
brain prisoner of the repetitive patterns of thoughts and emotions. Brain
dormancy also brings the dormancy of the pleasure centers in the brain and
they dont function on their own. We have to stimulate the pleasure centers
from outside, and that is how we slowly get addicted to the outside
stimulations.
The bodys only goal is to survive and reproduce and not much is needed for
those two needs of the body. The bodys demand for food and sex is small,
and that too is intermittent and not continuous. When the body is sated, its
desires come to an end and there are no thoughts about sex and food any
more until the hunger for food and sex builds up again. But the mind, in spite
of having sufficient food and sex, craves for more and more and plans for
them in the future. Sexual hunger continues in the mind without interruption,
and this is not only true for sex, but for everything which we experience in
life. It could be jealousy, anger, guilt or even physical pain which becomes
chronic, because the mind gets attached to it and continues with it.
In a way the mind gets addicted both to the pleasure and pain. But too much
pleasure is also pain for the body. If we are too excited and thrilled, the body
feels exhausted. So excessive sex or food are not pleasures for the body, but
the mind with all its fear and discontent finds an escape in sex and makes
the body suffer.
When the second chakra is functioning fully, and its energy is moving
upwards, then the excess of sex comes to an end, which is a natural state of
celibacy. Celibacy doesnt mean withdrawal from sex. Sex is a basic energy
and hunger of the body and should be satisfied. Satisfying the bodys need
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If the energy flow of the second chakra flows downward, then the person
becomes focused on the sexual organs and sex, which leads to the many
mind and body problems. In this stuck state, a persons time and energy are
spent either in contemplating the sexual act or in doing it, which eventually
leads to corruption and decay. The river of energy becomes a pool and
stagnates. The first chakra, which brings rooting and a sense of belonging to
a family, clan, country, or community, is overtaken by the sexual obsessions
of the person. He or she risks everything to indulge in sex.
Yet there is another way to experience sexuality. The second centre is the
ground on which Tantra is born. The Tantras basic message is that sexuality
can be a sacred act and can become a path to the freedom.
Element of the second chakra is water and special sense is taste because
without water we cant appreciate the taste. Its color is orange. It has six
petals and with the seed sound of Vum.
For the sake of clarity and description, scientists have divided the human
brain into three parts, which are different in important ways but still part of
one unified brain and overlap each other. The first, lowest, and oldest part of
the brain is called the reptilian brain. This ancient part of the brain is
responsible for the survival and continuation of life. The root and energy
chakras correspond to this component of the brain and function as switches
to it. The second part of the brain is the mammalian brain, in which
emotions and feeling are formed and experienced, and is found in mammals.
The third and fourth energy centres belong to this brain. The third and the
last part of the brain is distinctively the human brain, connected with
intellect, thinking, reasoning, planning and intuition. The fifth and sixth
centres are connected with this brain. The seventh chakra is not an
independent chakra, but the unique combination of the rest of the six that is
formed by the conscious and harmonious functioning of the all three parts of
the brain as one unit.
The reptilian brain is the lowest part of the brain, where the centres for the
heart and respiration reside, and also the area from where sleep, alertness,
and basic physiological functions are regulated. The reptilian brain lacks the
capacity for full emotions and feelings. It functions on sensations. In the
reptilian world, creatures mate and reproduce and then leave their offspring
to fend for themselves, because they have no feelings of attachment to each
other. Survival at any cost is the rule of the reptilian world, and creatures live
purely on instinct. A human, in the face of continuous danger for his or her
life, may regress to the lower two centres, trying to survive at any cost. This
can often be seen at times of wars and natural disasters.
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Evolutionary Leap
If we look at chakras and the brain, it becomes clear that we carry the
history of evolution within us and also the future which will unfold in coming
centuries. We are connected with everything around us - both alive and inert
- intimately. The whole world, even the universe itself, lives within us not
only in our thoughts, but at the very physical level. Our body cells contain
stellar dust. We experience this as we study the chakras and the energy that
is associated with them. We are integrated beings, and we represent all that
is already there, or that which is possible in the future. We are not merely a
piece of the puzzle of the cosmos, but the whole cosmos itself.
Through the door of the third chakra, we enter the realm of the mammalian
brain and feelings. In the reptilian brain, there is no place for attachment. But
in the mammalian world, attachment plays a very important role through
which parents protect their children until they become strong enough to
survive on their own. At the third chakra, living beings are becoming more
conscious about themselves and the world around them. Evolution is the
process of becoming ever more conscious of oneself and the surrounding
environment. This process involves developing deeper relationships with
oneself and the world around us. Evolution is the process of becoming aware
of more and more connections between diverse events, and discovering the
complex wholeness within us and the outer universe.
Another name for this process of discovery of inherent wholeness is
creativity. Perceiving the inherent connections between phenomena in our
world, and then expressing these connections in creative ways gave birth to
science, religion, art, and culture. In creativity, a person moves from lesser
wholeness to a greater wholeness. In a meadow, a lizard focuses on a
mosquito, while a cow pays attention to the grass, her calf, and the meadow
itself. However, a human being is aware of all this, and the sky above and the
river nearby, as well as the past that has gone, and the future that is going
to come.
At different chakras, time is perceived differently. At the first and second
centres, time is absent which is the experience of eternal. There is no
conscious memory of the past or any thoughts about the future. A lizard is
not aware of the past or future. The present moment is the only reality
equivalent to an eternity, because there is nothing before and after that
moment. Life and death happen spontaneously, and there is no awareness of
them beforehand. At this level no one knows about life and death although it
is there.
At the third and fourth chakras, time becomes a moment to moment
awareness of the here and now, which may expand and extend to more
awareness. This may be described as cyclical and repetitive. Rather than a
moment, eternity now is a day or a month or a year depending on the animal
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or human. In this scheme of time, the day, month, or year repeats itself
endlessly. Time is like a season, the suns motion or waves in ocean. Time
moves in circles and ends at a point, and then starts again where it ended.
Out of this time-cycle, myths are born. Myths of gods and goddesses, good
and evil, devils and angels - all emerge from the third and fourth centres.
These myths never end, but rather keep moving in cycles forever.
In a discussion of the third chakra, it is important to study emotion, as it
becomes increasingly more differentiated at the higher chakras. First,
consider the question of what the difference between feelings and emotions
is. Emotions are the combination of many sensations in a coherent whole.
Emotions are the expression of that coherent whole in meaningful behavior.
Similarly, there is an important distinction between perception and
expression. In perception, the past and future dont play a role, but in
expression they are intimately involved. For example, thirst causes an
emotion that arises out of the various sensations arising in the body. But
when we express that thirst by moving to quench it, we now enter the realm
of feelings. In the process of quenching the thirst, we have to bring the past
and future into action as we evaluate relevant factors such as the location of
the water, its quality and quantity, as well as the availability of water. When
emotions are felt consciously they become feelings. Antonio Damsio
described this fact beautifully in his research.
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The fourth chakra is the centre of feelings, particularly the feelings of love.
Although emotions emerge at the third centre, at the fourth they fully flower
and are experienced in depth. At the first centre, love is expressed as care,
at the second as sex, at the third as passion, and at the fourth centre love is
felt in its emotional form. This love is an energy moving the kaleidoscope of
the mind, bringing beautiful new patterns of creativity into focus.
Love is necessary to save a person from constant fear, which is always
present in the background. In the absence of love, either the person will
succumb to fear, resulting in anxiety and panic, or will try to overcome fear
through aggression and violence. Both withdrawal from the world and
attacking it come from an absence of love.
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Most creative people suffer because they remain at the fourth and fifth
centres and feel fragmented within. Although they create wonderful pieces of
art, music, beautiful poetry, and great inventions, their daily lives dont
reflect their works. They remain focused on the fourth and fifth centres.
Energy experience and the existence of higher centres remain outside their
awareness.
The fourth centre is the door to personal subconscious and a staircase to
universal unconscious. Conscious life is only the tip of the iceberg of our
existence. We are conscious of only a small part of our totality, and the rest
of it lies deep in our subconscious and unconscious. In these hidden
dimensions of our being lie our motives, conditioning, and all the unwritten
history of our human heritage. This is the place where the primal past meets
the present and affects the future. That material and animal energy, by
which the wheels of the human world move, resides in this realm of light and
darkness and expresses through the dreams. These dreams not only connect
us to the animal and material world, but also hold clues to our deeper
identities, and the directions in which we can move. This realm hides our
past, our creative energies, and also our destinies.
Once we are able to contact that energy of the subconscious and
unconscious, we can learn how to tune ourselves with our dreams and
harness the force within to move to a state of wholeness. The barriers
between the conscious, subconscious, and unconscious mind have to be
demolished. When such a process of demolition of barriers is on, tremendous
energy is released in our brain, mind, and heart. By contacting and
harnessing that energy, a person becomes a shaman or a healer.
Path of Shaman
The fourth centre is also the chakra of the shaman. A shaman is a person
who has opened the door of the personal subconscious and has walked
courageously into the unknown darkness of universal unconscious. A shaman
leaves behind cultural conditioning and swims in this primal ocean, each
drop of which heals the wounds of the person. In that adventure, a person
finds his or her own unique spirit- animal or human which may become his or
her totem or deity. This animal or deity contains the energy of the
subconscious and unconscious, which can be now invited to become alive
and stay with the shaman to heal.
The primal sound of Om or Amen vibrates in the depth of universal
subconscious. The sound of Om or Amen was present at the lower three
chakras, but in the form of undifferentiated vibrations. At the heart centre,
this sound becomes audible. Primal sound is not produced by the striking of
two objects rather, it arises in aloneness without the contact of objects. In
Sanskrit, it is called the Anahat sound, which means that a sound is produced
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without striking two objects or energies. That is why the heart chakra is also
called the Anahat chakra.
The fourth centre, with its primal energy, belongs both to the divine and
devil in human beings. Both the divine and devil come from the same root
word Div which mean to shine. When the subconscious and unconscious
energy of the centre is repressed or distorted, it takes the form of the devil,
and when the same energy finds its path and becomes conscious experience,
it becomes the divine. Out of the denial of ones true self is born the devil.
Full realization and acceptance of ones own unique being leads to the
divine.
In a feminine person, this centre is more open and accessible. The centres
mysterious material and animal energy was a cause of fear in the mind of
many people, leading to the persecution of women in many religions.
At this centre, the great mythological world of gods and goddesses, demons
and spirits emerges. While the origins of mythic thinking lie at the third
centre, they come into full fruition at the fourth. It is at the fourth chakra
that the mammalian brain meets the uniquely human component of the
brain. This centre is the bridge between the material and animal past of a
person to the uniquely human present and divine future.
Wind is the element of the fourth chakra, an element that imparts even more
freedom to move and change. The Earth element has little movement, and
while water and fire have more, wind moves swiftly and more quickly than
the previous three. This chakra is connected with the heart, lungs and
thymus gland, which are important parts of the immune system. When this
chakra is active, there may be a sensation of fullness in chest or pain.
Anahat chakras color is green with twelve petals and seed sound Yum.
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and concepts helped humans to cope with the fear of the death. Humans at
the lower four centres were subservient to the forces that protected them.
Those powers were beyond their control, and community or tribal efforts
were needed to take the help of such forces. In that kind of environment,
individuality was not encouraged, because the individual was too weak to
deal with the forces and spirits of nature. The culture and community shaped
the life of the person.
But at the fifth centre, the traditions of the four previous chakras are broken.
Through logic, reason, and language, science emerges as a powerful tool in
human hands that helps in mastering the forces of nature. Instead of praying
to the ancestors of the first and second centres, and the gods and goddesses
of the third and fourth, people themselves start becoming those powerful
spirits, ancestors, gods, and goddesses.
Universal morals, national constitutions, human rights, and systems of
governance emerged at the fifth centre and through them humans moved on
a path to become their own masters and shape their own destiny. Through
the amazing discoveries of science, people seek to become immortal. That
quest for immortality was always there as a fundamental human motive, but
earlier in human evolution that quest was through the intercession of spirits
and gods.
In the fifth chakra, the parallel universe of the mind is born, where thoughts
control the body and environment to create a unique world. Humans are the
gods of this created world that functions parallel to the world of nature. This
is the centre where thoughts gain supreme significance, and a new capacity
of thinking about thoughts is achieved. Natural objects and phenomena are
observed, labeled, and categorized; universal forces are discovered and
uniform laws conceived; logical theories and systems are created, and
science and technology make rapid progress.
At the fifth centre, the individual becomes the fundamental creative unit of
the human world, rather than the family, group, or clan. Accordingly, the
individuals fulfillment replaces the fulfillment of the aspirations of the
community.
The fifth chakra is the centre of discrimination, where, by the help of moral
law and reason, a person connects to the society and moves toward the
greater good. It is not the voice of gods and spirits, but the written law
governing the life of the person. He or she is free to follow the pursuit of his
or her happiness if that path doesnt contradict the social order and does not
violate the rights of others.
When the throat chakra becomes active, there is an explosion of creative
expression. Creativity at the four lower centres was communal, limited, and
mythic, intricately a part of daily living. Although creativity occurs at the
fourth centre, it expresses and communicates fully at the fifth. The person
becomes a creator.
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Writers Block
When people experience a block in their creativity, they are experiencing an
obstruction in energy flow between the fourth and fifth centres. In spite of
the urge at the fourth centre to create, and at the fifth to express and
communicate, no real creativity takes place. The fifth centre has its own
creative power, but it is a mechanical and synthetic one without originality. It
is good for imitation and innovation. The leap into radical new creative forms
either comes from the fourth or seventh centre.
Time at the fifth center becomes linear and flows from the past to the
present and from the present to the future. History walks on the linear path
of time. An emergence of history is possible through the linear perception of
time. Before linear time came into existence at the fifth centre, the story of
the world was told only by mythic stories handed down through oral
communication. In a way, fragments of history were embedded in the myths
but it was not the type of history that emerges at the fifth chakra. At the first
three centres, stories and folklores are conveyed orally; at the fourth, myths
emerge in form of epics, and at the fifth, history replaces myths. Myths are
cyclical and history is linear. Myths emphasize a repetition of events. An
events essence remains the same, but the form changes. But history asserts
that whatever happened in the past will not happen again, because things
will change in the future. History gives a sense of progress, of evolution.
Without linear time, evolution is not possible.
While linear time gives the human mind a sense of progress and evolution, it
also creates more fear and anxiety. Fear of death is always lurking in the
background at all of the chakras, but as we evolve toward higher centres, we
become more and more aware of it. At the fifth centre, we are not only aware
of our remote past through written and spoken history, but also of the future
in which we will not exist physically. The future will continue, but without
being us there. This certainty of not being in the future evokes the fear of
death, which is particularly intense at the fifth centre because of our
increased awareness. At the fifth centre, humans weave a vast web of
escape mechanisms to cope with the fear of death.
When the fifth centre is in balance, the faculty of thinking, reasoning, and
rationality function optimally. It also imparts the quality of making good
moral judgments and not succumbing to superstitions. With analysis and
synthesis through the fifth centre, a person arrives at rational conclusions
that help in deciding the course of future actions. From this centre, Jnana or
knowledge emerges. Jnana or knowledge is the central element of Buddhism
and Vedantic Hinduism.
This centre provides a person with creative expression. The person may be
intensely creative within, but if expression of that creativity doesnt happen,
the person will remain unfulfilled. Great teachers are creative, but they also
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The element associated with the fifth chakra is space. It lies at the root of the
neck and is connected to the cervical plexus, thyroid, and parathyroid
glands. The vocal cords lie within the field of this chakra, which is an
instrument of expression as well. Sound is the special sense of the centre.
Sound is the sense that appears first in human beings, when they are still
growing in the womb as a fetus. It is also the sense to disappear last when a
person is dying. It has sixteen petals and its color is blue and the seed sound
is Hum.
Traditionally the sixth chakra has only two petals, which is deeply symbolic,
and its colour is white, which is significant as well. It is quite a transition from
the complexity of sixteen petal of fifth centre with its vibrant blue colour.
Suddenly the complexity and many sidedness of the centre of reason and
science give way to the simplicity of the two dimensions of existence,
namely life and death.
Individuality and Aloneness
At the first chakra, the person was defined by the family, clan, or the country
and had very little freedom or identity apart from that family or group. There
were no individual rights or privileges, and the community governed a
persons life. But by the time a person arrives at the fifth centre, the rights of
the individual have become paramount, and the person now has the freedom
to dissent from a particular family or group without being punished. But
simultaneously, that person is governed by a more universal law or ethic,
based on kinder treatment of the person. That is what evolution is all about.
The person is moving or growing out of the confining walls of the family,
group, nation, and myth, and is also adopting more universal rules. This is
the process of becoming individual. Individuality consists of shedding the
rigid loyalties of race, religion, colour, and sexual and gender preferences
imposed from outside, and moving inward to realize ones own nature.
Individuality is the process of discovering natures gift. When nature creates
us, it implants its seed within us and that is what we have to know. By
knowing that secret, we establish communication with nature at large and
will eventually be in communion with it. The fifth centre is certainly the
strengthening of the process of individuality that began as soon as the first
centre became active. The sixth centre is the flowering of the same
movement.
At the sixth chakra, everything that supported the person both from outside
and inside is left behind. The family and tribe of the first chakra are no more
with the person, nor are the pleasures of the second and the willful action of
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the third. The mythic world of God, gods, goddesses, angels, and spirits of
the fourth centre are also left behind, and even the realm of logic, reason,
and science of the fifth centre no longer accompany the person. At the sixth
centre the whole of existence is divided into two, a clear duality, in which the
person - as the subject - stands in front of the universe as its object and
adversary. The person is bare psychologically, because all the support,
pleasure, distractions and escape of the rest of the five chakras are no more
with the person. At the sixth chakra, a lonely person is staring at the
universe while the fear of death is rising, and there is no escape from it
because all escape mechanisms of the first five chakars are dropped. Finally
life is confronting death.
The fear of death becomes an unavoidable presence at the sixth centre. Fear
was always present in the background, starting from the first centre, but
there were strong mechanisms to cope with it, escape it, and push it beyond
the reach of awareness. That was essential to live in the world with
reasonable emotional comfort. But those mechanisms of escape ended at
the fifth centre, where the last effort of the mind to protect the person was
expressed through reason, science, and systems. After the fifth centre, no
escape route was left. In a dark and closed universe, a person is left face to
face with his or her own mortality. Life meets death at the sixth centre. Life
and death were always one, but the fear arising out of self-consciousness
separated the two. Now, at the sixth centre, they are facing each other. This
encounter is seen not through two ordinary eyes, but by the third eye of
insight. Two sides of a single existence are facing each other. One side is the
psychologically naked person representing life, and the other side is the vast
but enclosed universe where death is staring at the face of the person, and
there is no escape from it. One is completely lonely, without any support,
and is surrounded by a universe indifferent to the person. That is why the
colour of this centre is white. White is the colour of peace, but also the colour
of death.
A universe full of death, without any escape, is the universe of the
existentialists. This dreadful universe seems to contain only angst and fear,
and appears to offer no escape routes at all. In a paradoxical manner, this
brings a kind of freedom to the person. When a person leaves all the
supports and identities behind, he or she is on her own. The person is free to
think and act as he or she desires, and make choices for which he or she is
totally responsible. Although there is a sense of total responsibility for
thoughts and actions, these actions look absurd because everything seems
to be moving towards the black hole of death. It is the direct experience of
reality without the interference of logic and reason, God, gods or spirits, or
the protective forces of tribes and ancestors. The person is inconsolable,
because there is clear insight and clear realization of the futility of all human
efforts and the meaninglessness of existence. It is truly the opening of the
third eye of Shiva, the god of dissolution. The opening of the third eye brings
the painful and agonizing awareness of annihilation and death. When the life
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and the death face each other awakening occurs. Normally one wants only to
live and doesnt want to die. In a life where there is psychological avoidance
of death, living is incomplete and unfulfilled. Completeness cannot be
experienced if death, which is the other half of wholeness, is not faced.
As the person moves through the chakra awareness of death brings alertness
to the person, an extraordinary state of total attention and focus. The brain
becomes thoughtless yet fully aware of what is going on in the moment. All
senses are alert and the noise of thoughts and emotions stops. The absence
of the noise of thoughts and emotions is a state of peace. Fear is replaced by
tranquility. That is another reason why the colour of this chakra is white.
At this chakra, the perception of reality is direct, and a person receives direct
knowledge, which is why it is called insight. The person can see from within.
Until the fifth centre, perception was conditioned by the family or clan,
religion or myths, or logic and reasoning. But at the sixth chakra, all those
supports drop, and the brain is relatively free to perceive directly. Such an
act of perception and seeing makes those capabilities of the brain active,
which thus far were dormant. Such activation may give a person certain
psychic abilities. While such abilities can be thrilling, they are often
detrimental to further progress because it is tempting to become attached to
these unusual abilities.
Like all other centres, the energy of the sixth centre may move up or down.
The downward movement of energy makes one stuck in a state where one is
fearful of death, expressing itself in deep anxiety and panic attacks.
Although such a person has developed deeper insight and intuition, life may
appear meaningless because the person is constantly trying to avoid
situations that bring anxiety. Often this avoidance behavior turns into the
avoidance of life itself, since many situations that enrich life are also anxiety
provoking.
If the energy of the sixth centre moves upward, a new force is generated that
pushes the person on the way towards becoming a true individual with
wholeness and wellness. In this upward movement of energy, life and death
come together in full awareness, and the person becomes the master of both
the mind and body. A teacher or guru is not necessary any more, as the
person is fully capable now of moving alone on the inner journey. The
Sanskrit name of this centre is Ajna, which means command. At a fully
activated sixth centre, a person becomes his or her own commander. This
mastery of ones own self is not only psychological and existential, but has a
correlate at the level of the body and its physiology. When the centre is fully
functional, the two channels of sun and moon energy meet, unite with each
other, and work in harmony. The energy of the sun channel inspires action,
while the energy of the moon channel takes the person to contemplation and
inner rest. It is the state of stillness and action. These two fundamental
energies of life could not work in harmony before the person arrived at the
sixth centre. The person was split into the deep divide between death and
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life, remaining in conflict between the opposite pulls of the culture and his or
her own nature.
If the sixth centre is fully functioning, it brings peace to the heart and mind
of a person, as well as physical and physiological changes in the body. The
body and mind move towards integration. They were split and in deep
conflict at the fifth centre, but at the sixth chakra a natural and spontaneous
command on the body and minds urges is established. This state of
command is not a result of will or force. It is effortless. Control by will cannot
survive for long and leads to pathologies of both mind and body. Such
discipline brings much sorrow and pain. However, there is a state of natural
and effortless restraint that happens without the interference of will. Such a
state of restraint becomes part of life itself.
Another remarkable feature of this centre is the awareness of ones dual
nature in terms of gender. After all, our left brain is more masculine and our
right brain is more feminine. The left brain is connected with I or isolated
personhood, thoughts, language, details, analysis and action in an outward
and pro-active or more aggressive approach to the world. The right brain is
receptive, emotional, holistic, visual-spatial, and imaginative. It is connected
with emotions, art, music, abstract thoughts and is more silent.
In Indian tradition its beautifully depicted by Ardhanarishwar, half female
and half male image of Shiva and Parvati. Yin-yang symbol also represents
the same idea.
In a man, the first centre was masculine and the second centre was feminine.
Although before the sixth centre the person experienced the opposite gender
within himself or herself, awareness of such qualities was only partial. Mostly
the person ignored, neglected, or actively suppressed such impulses
emerging on the surface because of cultural influence. Up to the fifth centre,
society and cultural influence was the dominant factor with regard to gender
in the life of a person. At the sixth centre, however, one is gradually set free
from those psychological constraints and is able to feel and comprehend the
presence of the qualities of the opposite gender within oneself. At the sixth
centre, a person cannot ignore the presence of the opposite gender within,
and this is expressed through dreams, feelings, and overt behavior. Instead
of behaving according to the expectations of the culture, the person will start
expressing the qualities of the opposite gender. A man may function as a
mother, and a woman as a husband in his or her interactions with the
external world. The sixth centre is the last shrine on the path of the journey
towards the full individuality. The pilgrimage that began at the first chakra is
about to come to an end. The last piece in the puzzle of the body and mind,
the last line in the poetry of individual life, and the last stroke of the brush in
the painting of personal existence is about to take place.
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Third eye chakra is located between two eyebrows and the pituitary gland is
the endocrine gland of this centre, which plays a role in the regulation of all
other endocrine glands. Its beyond elements and the seed sound is Aum.
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diminishes. But a brain that functions on its own resources and energy is its
own master and continues to be aware, passionate and full of delight. This is
a state of freedom and integration, individuality and independence.
We are often confused about the nature of true independence. We think that
independence means a capacity to make certain decisions on our own, or to
live separately and make personal choices about our job, clothes, cars and
house. That is also a type of freedom, but one in which we still depend on the
world for the pleasure. If the outer world is in chaos, then our inner world is
shaken as well. But an awakened brain is not dependent on the external
world for its joy. A person with an awakened brain could be called a Fakir or a
kingly beggar - a person who needs some basic minimum help for the
survival, but beyond that it is not dependent on the world. This individual
can choose a life of poverty, of the utmost simplicity because the brain is no
more a victim of the habits and addictions.
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takes the form of a rising spring, flowing to the top of the brain and then
falling back to soak the whole brain with its effect. It is the Fountain Effect.
The anatomical appearance of the spinal cord and brain looks like a snake.
The spinal cord represents the body and tail, while the brain represents the
hood of the snake. When energy flows upwards through the chakras, it
literally feels as if a serpent with a hood is moving within the body. That is
why in many traditions such energy is called serpent power. The serpent is a
symbol of healing all over the world.
When the cells, organs, nerves, spinal cord and brain are flooded and flushed
by the energy, purification of the body and brain occurs. This purification
means that all those emotional memories, which were accumulated in the
brain and affected the behavior of the person, are washed away. Such
purification leads to the freedom of the brain from the conditioned mind,
which brings healing to both the brain and the body. While the conditioned
mind is washed away in this process of awakening, the technical intelligence,
which is essential for survival and innovation, and also the intelligence which
is capable of thinking and expressing emotions, remains intact. A
programmed brain is trapped in the chains of the past and once the chains of
past conditioning are broken, new energy, which heals and brings wellness to
the person, is released. The past emotional contents of memory are cleansed
and the individual no longer reacts to them. At this point, the individual is no
longer the victim of trauma, tragedies, abuse, anger, hatred, grief and guilt
accumulated from the past. An individual cleaned of the dirt of the past
becomes transparent and in this transparent body and brain the flame of
wholeness and soul clearly shines. The whole tree of life is lit from within,
from roots to the trunk, from trunk to the branches, and from branches to the
leaves, flowers and fruits. From peripheral energy channels to the sun and
moon streams and from chakras to the river of the central channel - all
become active, flowing and connected to each other in wholeness. There is
no more fragmentation. The body and the brain function with their natural
rhythm.
This movement of the energy may give a hot sensation or produce tingling in
the spinal cord, and in the brain it may create pressure or thunder-like
feelings. Often ecstasy is the experience of this state, although this can turn
into pressure and headache if the process intensifies.
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macrocosm. But when the brain and body are not functioning fully, we are
seldom aware of that connection. We live in ignorance by not realizing our
intimacy with the natural universe. Since we dont have an intimate
relationship with nature, we dont treat nature and the earth
compassionately. Whatever relationship we have with nature tends to be
intellectual or sometimes emotional, devoid of any deep connections and
commitment to its well-being. In the absence of the feeling for nature, we
dont mind destroying it indiscriminately. However, once the chakras are
open and the energy is flowing, we experience intimacy with the earth in all
its beauty. We fall in love with the sun, moon, earth, sky, ocean, plants,
animals, humans, wind and water. And if we are in love with nature, then
how can we possibly inflict harm upon it? In this love affair with the earth,
the individual always sees himself or herself in the context of larger forces.
But that doesnt mean that the human made world is rejected. Ultimately the
human made world is also an extension of the natural world but more
removed from it. That is why the individual finally finds a niche in both the
natural and human made world and belongs to both of them. When ones
home is within oneself, there is never a feeling of alienation. This is the
experience of expansiveness.
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other emotions within oneself. Arriving at the seventh chakra doesnt mean
that the person has become completely free from grief, anger, sensuality or
hatred and violence. In witnessing awareness, the persons brain becomes
like a lotus on which water drops of the reactions fall but dont stay. They slip
away without leaving any mark on it. This is the movement towards the state
of Turiya. Turiya means simply the fourth state and is the experience of
tranquility of deep sleep with full awareness.
Experiencing a state of mindfulness or witnessing awareness doesnt stop an
individual from experiencing sorrow and pain, fear or anger. In fact they are
felt more deeply because a clean brain and sensitive nervous system
perceive everything more vividly and sharply. But because of the serene
awareness, no long lasting impressions are left on the mind. In the
witnessing state, a person doesnt retain emotional memories. Events and
feelings are experienced moment to moment, and then they are gone. The
individual is neither carrying the burden of the past nor is trapped by the
worries of the future.
When someone is bogged down by the burdens of guilt, anger, and grief
from the past or is anxious about the future, he or she is unable to live
joyfully in the present moment. The present has been hijacked by the past
and future. An individual in the witnessing state still plans the future in order
to live in the world, but doesnt get attached to those plans and dreams. If
plans and dreams come true that is fine, but if they dont it doesnt matter
anymore. There is no place for disillusionment in the life of an individual in
the state of witnessing. He or she has already crossed that dark sea of
disillusionment and despair at the sixth chakra.
The person in the state of witnessing is sensitive, responsive and with a clear
sense of selfness. Selfness means when others become a part of ones own
self and the sense of selfness keeps on expanding. Selfness is expansive.
The witnessing awareness is the beginning of spontaneous meditation, which
continues effortlessly during both waking and sleep.
It is no longer
necessary to do an intentional meditation practice. Life itself becomes
meditation. At this level, even an act of violence is meditation, because the
action is taken as the last resort in self-defense and is done with compassion
rather than with hatred.
At the seventh chakra, there is no gender. Until the sixth chakra a person
was either a male or a female but at the seventh chakra, the inner feminine
and masculine meet and embrace each other which results in an asexual
union. However, in this union great pleasure is experienced, although it is no
longer a sexual union. True celibacy emerges at this point because the need
for the external male or female diminishes. Various spiritual traditions of the
world have depicted this union in the symbol of a half male and half female
deity.
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The darkness of death, which brought much fear at the sixth chakra, is
resolved at the seventh centre. Death is an ever-present reality and accepted
as part of living. But that doesnt mean that the body will not respond to
danger with fear or that an individual will neglect his or her well-being or
become involved in reckless and dangerous activities. Actually, the individual
worships life as never before. Living is full of delight, and so to waste it or to
end it, carelessly becomes the most unwise decision one could make.
Ignorance breeds carelessness rather than integration and wholeness. The
basic physiological fear of death is a natural protective response in the body
to save it from dangers, and that protective response remains and continues.
However, the psychological fear of death comes to an end.
At the seventh chakra, a person arrives at the edge of time and space. Our
life is defined by the boundaries of psychological space and time.
Psychological space means that there are unbridgeable gaps between our
thoughts, feelings and the feelings and thoughts of others. We communicate
but we are never in communion. Psychological time means that our life is
divided into a linear movement of the present, past and the future. This gap
of space and this split of time lead us into isolation and fragmentation. We
live in a state of becoming or forever chasing the future which never comes.
And we are the prisoners of a virtual space, which we created around us. This
space is but an illusion of the mind. But at the seventh chakra, we feel for
the first time that these boundaries of space and time are not the ultimate
truth; that there is more to realize beyond these limits. This inkling of
something that is beyond time and space is the result of a slipping of
consciousness for a moment, from the edge of the crown chakra into a realm
that is beyond individuality, and allows us to have a glimpse of universal
consciousness.
Seventh chakra is supposed to have thousand petals which simple means
that there are many petals. Its located at the crown of the head and
connected with the pineal gland. It has no color means it contains all colors
and is also beyond all colors.
Involution
Involution means rolling on itself or turning in
Involution happens when integral energy of the chakras starts rolling on itself
or falling on itself. At the end of evolution at the seventh chakra, the inner
lamp of ones consciousness is lit and now, holding that lamp, consciousness
descends from seventh chakra to the first chakra through the sixth, fifth,
fourth, third and second. But this descent is radically different from what was
experienced in ascent from the first to the seventh. In ascent and evolution,
a person leaves behind social and cultural centers and discovers ones own
natural centre. But in descent of involution, even that centre is transcended.
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experiencing them. The individual feels but doesnt suffer. Virat or cosmic
form described in Bhagvadgita the experience of the cosmic dimension of
sixth chakra.
Involution to the Fifth Chakra
The fifth chakra is the chakra of intellect and logic. Involution to the fifth
chakra brings the experience of wisdom. The intellect and logic of the fifth
chakra turns into universal wisdom and insight. Wisdom at this level not only
knows about the state of human beings, but also articulates and expresses
its solution in clear teachings. Jnana or the knowledge becomes Jnana yoga.
Involution to the Fourth Chakra
The fourth chakra is the chakra of feelings. Involution to the fourth chakra
transforms the feeling of love into universal love and compassion. Love and
devotion becomes Bhakti yoga.
Involution to the Third Chakra
The third chakra is the chakra of emotions, will and passion. Involution to the
third chakra brings the experience of universal will, passion and action. The
ordinary action becomes Karma yoga.
Involution to the Second Chakra
The second chakra is the chakra of life, energy and sex. Involution to the
second chakra brings the experience of universal energy or Shakti.
Involution to the First Chakra
The first chakra is the chakra of matter and death. Involution to the first
chakra is the most difficult one and brings the experience of universal matter
being biologically alive and as a conscious entity. Matter is the densest
component of existence and the most difficult to penetrate, because
consciousness is hidden deep in it. At this chakra there is no difference
between life and death. They become one.
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open and dominant chakra in ourselves and then proceed to all the other
centres with the help of yoga poses, meditation, prayer, chanting, breathing
and life style management. A teachers help is sought whenever necessary.
In other people, the chakras and its energy is awakened spontaneously with
or without wanting it. Certain events or states help in this process of
spontaneous awakening.
One such way is through love and passion towards someone or something. If
we really love someone or something with passion and intensity then all our
energies are focused. Our fourth chakra is flooded with the energy, which
slowly or suddenly spills over into other chakras making them active and
more functional. This love or passion may be towards God, a deity, an image,
idea or a person. However, we rarely do things or love someone with such
intense totality. A programmed brain is cautious, careful and calculating. It
cannot take a leap into the unknown. Whatever we do, including loving
someone, there is usually a selfish motive behind it. When passion is
experienced for the sake of passion, it becomes free from the motive, and a
spontaneous awakening happens. Then love becomes devotion and devotion
leads to surrender.
In others, the chakras and their energy may become active if they face
extreme danger or the possibility of death. Dangers and facing the possibility
of death in an illness or accident converges all the energies in a person to a
focal point. When danger is near and death is close, the brain and bodys
innate intelligence brings all its resources together to deal with it. In those
moments, the minds chatter stops and the brain is free from the past and
future. There is an intense focus on the present moment. In some people it
may lead to profound changes that become the catalyst for further
transformation, leading to a life of wholeness.
In some people, these changes are more gradual. Tragedies in the family,
personal losses and disillusionments may become the stimulus for a change
and transformation.
Some people are born with awakened chakras and actively flowing energy.
These people may face problems if their culture doesnt understand such
awakenings. Some of the symptoms of this awakening such as the despair,
low mood, visions, anxiety and emotional turmoil may be taken as a sign of
the mental illness by doctors, or a possession of evil spirits by traditional
healers. Medications, hospitalization or other aggressive methods may be
recommended by medical specialists.
The path of the awakening to ones own chakras and energy is full of
insights, creativity and excitement, but it may also bring significant
physiological and emotional turmoil. In those moments of chaos, a cultivated
patience, teacher, and the help of a loved one is needed so one is not thrown
into despair.
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On the path of awakening a person may feel ecstatic one day and in
depression the next day. One moment the body may vibrate with energy and
the next moment it is completely exhausted. Sleep may be disturbed with
nightmares, and old forgotten memories both good and bad may emerge,
creating mood swings and emotional volatility. The person may feel
depressed and life may seem meaningless. The person may not feel hungry
and may lose weight or feel distressed without reason. Loss of interest in
daily activity may occur, and the body may go through pain. Unusual
anxieties and fear are often experienced. Sometimes, physiological
disturbances in the digestive cardiac, reproductive, nervous and other
systems may happen, or migraine-like headaches may appear. There may be
decreased and increased libido which may put strain on relationships.
But all these disturbances and turmoil are transient and part of the process
of cleaning the nervous system from the dust of the past. All of these
problems will disappear in due course of time.
Evolution or ascent
Chakras
Brain
Body
Kosha
Gland
Compon
ent
Sound
Root
Reptilian
Gross
Annamayako
sh
Adrenal
Matter
Lam
Energy/S
ex
Reptilian
Gross
Pranamayak
osh
Testis/ova Energy
ry
Vam
Solar
Mammali
an
Subtle
Manomayako Pancreas
sh
Emotion
s
Ram
Heart
Mammali
an
Subtle
Manomayako Thymus
sh
Feelings
Yam
Throat
Neocortex
Subtle
Vijanmayako
sh
Thyroid
Intellect
Ham
Third
eye
Chaos
Chaos
Chaos
Pituitary
Existent
ial
Aum
Crown
Harmony Causal
of
the
three
brains
Anandmayak
osh
Pineal
Witnessi Silenc
ng
e
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Experience
Root
Energy
Solar
Heart
Throat
Third Eye
Existential intelligence/Asmita
samadhi
Crown
Involution or descent
Chakra
State of experience
Third eye
Throat
Heart
Solar
Energy/Sex
Crown
Root
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CONCLUSION
During this exploration of the chakras and its connecting energy, we
described the sequence of awakening as linear events starting from the root
centre and ending in the seventh chakra. But in real human experience,
awakening never proceeds in this well organized and linear pattern. Though
we are born with seven chakras, one or two of them tend to dominate our
lives while others function less intensely or may be dormant. So in one
person the heart chakra may be more active and in the other it may be the
throat centre which is more awakened.
The dominant chakra, which is expressing itself in our lives become the point
from where we start our journey, yet our goal is to finally arrive at the
seventh chakra. If someones fifth chakra is functioning well, then that
persons path is through Jnana Yoga or intellect. If the fourth chakra is more
active, then the Bhakti yoga will be the best for the person. If a persons
third centre is more active then Karma Yoga or willful action is the way to go.
The path of the chakras and energy is a zigzag one. One has to take many
detours, sometimes fall, and then stand again and continue. On this path
teachers and teachings can help, but no one can guide a person from minute
to minute or on a day to day basis. Ultimately one has to become ones own
teacher, and only then will the voyage be completed.
In Hindu marriage ceremonies, the bride and groom must walk seven
times around a sacred fire, making a vow with each circumambulation.
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The sixth chakra is the Ajna chakra which is located
between the two eyebrows, in the middle of the forehead. The
tradition of applying a bindi or a red dot on the womans
forehead is to remind the couple that spiritual progress is the
ultimate goal of life. It reminds them not to descend to the lower
chakras after marriage and become lost in the ordinary world.
1.
The first vow is connected with the first or Mooladhar
chakra Arth (wealth)
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Our relationship will fulfill the needs of the body with
guilt-free physical intimacy, in order to un-tie the physical
knot or Braham granthi and make us free in the body.
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5.
The fifth vow is connected with The Fifth or Visshudha
Chakra Buddhi (Intellect)
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Atmic or soulmate-ness is a feeling of a space in which
two people live as two bodies but one existence. They are
connected at all levels yet remain individual and continue to
grow on their own paths.
In an individual, Chakra and its conscious, dynamic energy Kundalini are the
living blue prints and maps of the evolution. Once we experience these maps
and blueprint they become the actual territory of the world within and of the
universe outside.
From the emergence of the universe to the formation of the earth and rise of
the life on it, from earth religions to individualism, democracy, materialism
and growth of the science, the history of evolution is contained in the
dynamic conscious energy which flows through the human body and the
nervous system. Seven chakras are like the seven brains and each brain is a
milestone in the new evolutionary step.
These insights are brilliantly expressed in three Sanskrit words Pind mein
Brahamand means Universe lives in the body.
But the chakras and the Kundalini with its conscious energy not only contains
what happened in the past but also gives a clear clues about what is
happening in present such as various revolutions in the middle east and also
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ego becomes the master and governs peoples life even when it separates
them from the life.
But how does ego achieve this illusory immortality for its owner? The ego
mediated immortality is achieved by creating a world of name and form and
time and space.
Humans cant live with a nameless and formless world. The nameless and
the formless belong to the unknown, and the unknown brings fear to the ego.
Ego can only deal with the known and familiar. The unknown carries the
possibility of death for the ego, because death lives in the unknown. We
dont have the inner knowledge of death. That is why the unknown, which is
nameless and formless, has to be reduced to the known, to bring it to the
level of ego to manage it, pray for and worship it. Naming things and events
and giving them a form is the device of the ego to make the unknown and
the infinite accessible, to change them into symbols, concepts and
definitions.
By reducing the living reality to symbols, the ego can gain some mastery
over the environment, for the better and prolonged survival of the body. But
in the process of naming, the nameless life becomes the prisoner of the
symbol, and its free movement is lost in the rigid boundary of form and
definitions. Instead of the intimacy of the fully alive world, the symbol can
only provide its virtual shadow. Human history is crowded with countless
gods, goddesses, angels, demons and a plethora of other symbols to deal
with the unpredictable forces of nature, life and death. God is the ultimate
symbol; an effort to comprehend the totality of life and death.
While the name and form helps in bringing the boundless and the unknown
to the manageable level of the known, mental time and space impart a sense
of vicarious immortality by creating an endless future in prescribed places. In
the endless future, time never ends. The ego lives forever and has a sense of
immortality. Heaven, hell, spirit world and rebirth are the creation of the
egos immortality drive. The egos illusory immortality is also achieved
through ones children, legacy, a mention in the history, charity, monuments,
work of art, science, wealth and in hundreds of other ways.
The slow maturation of the brain means that the child has to live with the
illusory ego for a long time and can only try to break its hold as a grownup
adult. The shattering of the childs illusion before the ego is mature will have
the devastating consequence that may lead to anxiety, depression,
emotional volatility and even psychosis.
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81
Discontent
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increase in knowledge, fear and anxiety about death also increased. This
time it was not coped with by the old gods, spirits and God, but by the
increased material safety and consumption to prolong life and its pleasure.
Instead of the ego's continuance in the world of spirit, heaven, and rebirth,
the emphasis was on living in the material world as much as possible with
pleasure and comforts.
That would have been fine if this had been confined to a few. But by seeing
and hearing about the freedom of democracy, the individual's rights in
combination with the power of science, technology and material comforts,
people of other cultures started demanding the same. The demand increased
rapidly because of the mass media and communication. People watched in
awe on the television screen, the opulence of the imagined religious heaven
in the real cities of the real world. Masses of people wanted to imitate and
follow western culture to have a taste of that heaven. That is what
happened. That demand and imitation began the process of the
homogenization of the other cultures, resulting in the emergence of the first
world culture in human history, the core of which was formed by the western
civilization. Although the world culture is nascent and new, its spreading
quickly in all directions.
With the rapidly increasing number of consumers, people soon realized that
the earth's natural resources were limited and would eventually run out. But
no one is ready to listen. A consumer is an addict, and the consumption is an
addiction. Who is going to stop whom? All of us are involved in it. It's a
massive movement which cuts across race, religion, and countries. Except
for the very few, most of us are in the same boat of consumerism. The fatal
attraction of the consumerism besides the addiction to comforts and
pleasure, also gives a sense of power and self-esteem to which the ego is
attached. And why not? After all, the self-esteem is egos lifeline.
This process is now unstoppable and the earth cant sustain the consumption
at such high and massive levels. We are moving towards inevitable
environmental disaster. But this disaster is also good news. Its force and
destruction will be like a death impact on humanity which will bring a radical
change in the consciousness of a significant number of people, by pushing
them into the sixth chakra and then making them come out at the seventh.
The seventh chakra is the chakra of awakening of the individual
consciousness and well-being, which will result in de-addiction and deconditioning. That will be the beginning of an entirely new era. From the first
chakra to the fifth, it was the formation and the growth of the ego, the sixth
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chakra was the shattering of the ego and the seventh chakra is the entry into
a new consciousness in which the ego becomes subservient rather than
functioning as the master, as it did until the fifth chakra.
But the seventh chakra is not the end. After the flowering of the seventh
chakra, further expansion of consciousness will begin. This we can name
involution. In involution, individual consciousness starts to universalize. The
individual person becomes a universal being.
From a human point of view, it seems that environmental disaster and its
impact on humans and other species, is a catastrophe created by the bad
choices made by humans, and that we must and can prevent it. We have the
will and freedom to make better choices for the better future of ourselves
and for the rest of the planet.
But from the Naturality point of view, the picture seems different. First of all,
although we have some freedom of choices, we dont have free will. But that
freedom of choice can only be used if we have individualized consciousness.
Except for the few, our consciousness is fundamentally a social
consciousness on which we dont have any control. It compels us to make
decisions by subconscious influences. We are part of the crowd which we call
the group, community, race, religion, nation or the world. Apart from the
crowd, we have little individuality.
While the human point of view is egoic, narrow and revolves around humans,
the Naturality perspective goes beyond human thinking into the experience
of the non-dual in which the oneness of the universe is realized. This oneness
in all things includes not only humans but also minerals, plants, and animals.
Humans are only one type of living being amongst many. They are part of a
grand cosmic wholeness in which they can participate as a witness through
whom the action is happening, but they are not the action taker. The cosmos
will move with or without them and they dont have any control over its
movement.
From a Naturality point of view, whatever is happening at the fifth chakra is
due to the force of evolution and cannot be prevented. It will take us to the
sixth and then to the seventh chakra. Environmental disaster is going to
happen, but it will be like a pruning of the earth and will push us to the next
stage of evolution. All evolutionary leaps come with catastrophe. Whether it
is an individual or the whole of humanity, without the shattering of the old,
the radically new cant happen. Also a wide spread natural disaster may
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unite the humanity because there wouldnt be any other choice except to
face the global catastrophe together as one unit, one body and one
organism.
So far, except for some individuals, Naturality is grabbed by the ego. The ego
is Naturalized and taken as genuine natural expansion. But after the sixth
chakra, people will experience the true intimation of wholeness and wellbeing. Humanitys future is wholesome and evolution wont stop until we
experience interconnectedness and the oneness of the cosmos. So, in spite
of the darkness and disasters, there is no place for pessimism. How could
there be pessimism if the whole cosmos is the expression of timeless and
eternal consciousness? But in order to arrive there, we must be prepared to
endure the shocks and trauma of the forward thrust of the evolution.
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Section 5
The science of Kundalini Yoga
Evolution of the Human Brain
Universal Nature is the source of all that exists. Universal Nature is
primal, without a beginning or an end, and from that boundless and infinite
energy the universe comes into being. From the most primitive life forms, a
process of evolution towards greater and greater complexity began. It took
billions of years for the human brain to evolve into its present form, the most
marvelous instrument of perception in the universe.
Through the brain and the sense organs, we consciously experience
the world. The brain and the body are intimately linked, acting upon each
other in a seamless fashion. Together, the brain and body make it possible
for us to survive in the world, to interact with other living beings, and to
experience a range of emotion.
Because our brain was fashioned by Nature, the brain is capable of
revealing Natures secrets and intelligence. This is why it is sometimes
referred to as the three pound universe. If consciousness can tune into the
brain in a certain way, the structure, function and underlying
interconnectedness of the cosmos both materially and spiritually will be
revealed. It will also reveal the underlying interdependence and oneness of
life and consciousness, which is the experience of liberation.
Each one of us has an innate nature that is unique, and yet is part of
the universal Nature. As we become more conscious of our own inner nature,
we begin to get glimpses of the universal Nature. We discover that individual
and universal Nature is one and the same. We realize that the microcosm
contains the macrocosm and macrocosm contains the microcosm. In other
words, the drop contains the sea and the sea contains the drop.
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possible, was possible and will be possible. People have given this feeling of
boundless and timeless existence many names including God, Braham and
so on.
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centres for the circulatory and respiratory systems, and communicates with
the body through the spinal cord and nerve roots. This helps in the
maintenance of homeostasis or dynamic balance.
At this level, the organism lives in survival and reproduction mode with
all systems controlled by nature in a predictable pattern. Perception occurs
through a complex combination of sensations. There are sounds but no
language and no mental boundaries or attachments. There is no sense of
time and space. The world of names and forms has not been born. The
organism lives in an unconscious eternity.
It is possible to become aware of this level of existence and this
experience is called Non-Duality or Void or Nothingness. This consciousness
at its primitive level can be stimulated by jogging, climbing, running,
exercising, dancing, extreme sports, physical yoga and the sweat lodge
experience.
In summary, the body with physical consciousness at the reptilian
brain level is the root and stem of the tree of life.
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singing, sex, breathing, yoga, extreme sports, trauma and emotional arousal
("Emotional trance").
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Left Brain
The left-brain is a newer development and doesnt have a counterpart
within the older parts of the brain. The left-brain is innovative but not
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creative in that it can improve and perfect existing creative expression, but
raw creativity always emerges from the limbic system or emotional brain.
The particular characteristics of the left brain include a sense of time and
connection to past, present and future (a sense of I ness). The functions of
the left brain are more analytical than the right brain, with cognitive
capacities of reason and logic. Memory is linear and sequential. Thoughts
are structured, bounded and confined by limits.
Neuroplasticity
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Neuroplasticity is the innate ability of the brain to change itself with new
experiences. It used to be thought that brain cells could not change or
regenerate, and that once damage was done it was irreversible. However,
we now know that the human brain has a remarkable ability to change and
reorganize itself by forming new neural connections. Research done on longtime meditators such as Buddhist monks has shown that the brain is flexible
and can be changed even to the last moment of life.
When we read the writings of the sages, we realize that the concept of brain
malleability is not new. Their concept was that both the body and brain could
be changed and transformed by inner and outer experiences. The change
can be positive (positive neuroplasticity) when we can erase negative
patterns of traumatic experiences, or it can be negative (negative
neuroplasticity) such as in case of chronic pain when the pain is projected on
the body from the brain.
On the path of Naturality, neuroplasticity is of great significance. As we learn
to live according to our nature, our brain become more and more free from
past conditioning and eventually the brain is changed radically in the
experience of liberation. It begins to function as a harmonious and integrated
unit, filled with awareness, bliss and compassion (the ABC of life).
Sri Aurobindo, and his spiritual companion, the Mother of Pondicherry, went
even further, experiencing and describing a radical transformation of the
body at the cellular level. Similar experiences were reported by the
contemporary sage UG Krishnamurti. We can call this Somato-plasticity (the
word Soma in Greek means body). But as yet, there is no scientific
explanation for this phenomenon - it will take time before scientists can
discover this secret of the body.
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the early signs of this state is a sense of well-being which becomes an everpresent feeling. At this stage the tree of life achieves full growth. The
characteristics of witnessing consciousness are as follows
The brain functions as one and as an integral part of the body. This
is experienced as oneness of mind and body.
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Bliss (Anand) state or Samadhi This is the first experience of joy (or
bliss) from within.
Amness (Asmita) state or Samadhi This is the experience of ones
existence in space - This is Am"-ness.
Section 6
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deteriorate within a few days. During the night we take a whole journey from
the waking state to the dream state and then to dreamless sleep where we
merge into the very source from where we emerged. But we dont remember.
What we experience in the morning is a sense of rejuvenation and energy
and we are ready for the day. Disturbed sleep leave us tired with poor
decision making capacities.
Yoga practice makes the brain energized and the mind calmer. It gets more
blood flow, its size expands, and its various parts become more connected
with each other which leads to a harmonious and holistic functioning. If we
dont have adequate sleep then such a radical transformation of the brain
may be disturbed, and we may not get the full benefit of our spiritual efforts.
Only a few Yogis and meditators are able to compensate the lost sleep
through asanas, pranayama and meditation. Most have to make sure that
they sleep well. Sleep and dream time can also be used for meditation
practice.
Sleep helps us in:
Detoxification of brain
Healing and growth
Rejuvenation of the immune, nervous, muscular and skeletal systems
Memory processing: Working memory is important, because it keeps
information active for further processing and supports higher-level
cognitive functions such as decision making, reasoning, and episodic
memory
Dreams: Dreams are important symbols of our psycho-physical state.
They not only give us a clue as to what is happening in our individual
life, but they can connect to the Sagun Braham or universal
consciousness which is the common heritage of all humanity.
Connecting to Universal consciousness not only heals a person but
takes them to higher Samadhi states. The inner Guru is born out of
these dream experiences, and we can be guided in our spiritual
journey on a day today basis. Dreams can also be a source of
creativity. Many scientists, painters, writers and musicians got their
inspiration from dreams, including James Watson who discovered DNA
and Beethoven one of the greatest musicians.
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Food
Food is the next important part of a yogic life. The doshas are connected with
the digestive tract in a person. The stomach is connected with Kapha or
earth, the small intestine with Pita or fire and the large intestine with Vata or
wind. In Ayurveda, Doshas determine what type of food one should consume.
The most important food caution in a yogi is to eat less than a full stomach.
As we mentioned earlier the brain of a yogi needs more blood supply than a
normal person, because the brain tissues are expanding and connecting with
one another. Eating to the point of having a full stomach will divert the blood
supply to the stomach rather than to the active brain, reducing the effect of
yogic efforts.
Yogic food should be fresh, warm, vegetarian, unless adequate vegetarian
food is not available (Tibet, Siberia, polar region) or a person cant digest it
(Dalai Lama). Food should be cooked properly and must not contain too
many hot spices. Raw food is good only for few people or for a limited time
period.
The human digestive tract contains a full brain known as the Gut Brain. The
gut brain cant think but feels. It gives a clear idea of the qualitative aspect
(Satvic, Rajsic, and Tamsic) of food. Good food brings a sustained feeling of
well-being, while Rajsic and Tamsic food may give transient pleasure but they
are detrimental to ones well-being and nourishment in the long term. That is
why we must think carefully about what kind of food we eat.
Exercise
Neither the Asanas nor pranayama can replace a whole body workout.
Exercise not only moves the muscles, joints, bones and organs to increase
the blood perfusion, but it prevents brain aging and deterioration of memory.
Brisk walking is the best exercise. Many who are involved in Yoga dont
exercise and become overweight.
Relationships
The most important relationship of a yogi is with himself/herself. In other
words its the self-love and self-acceptance which is the beginning of Yoga.
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Many reject this part of theirself and their body, because its too painful to
look at the dark parts of life. People label themselves as ugly and not worthy.
They try to cope with self-rejection through mastering perfect poses or
become a disciplinarian. Yoga involves following our own nature with ease
and comfort. Unless we create a loving and harmonious relationship with
ourselves, no matter what we do with our practice it wont come to fruition.
Self love is not self-indulgence or narcissism but rather self-care and selfrespect. If we can love ourselves, we can love others without being
pathologically attached or dependent on them. A lack of relationship with
ourself brings co-dependency and lack of fulfilment.
Walking on a yogic path doesnt mean dissolving our relationships with the
world and living in isolation. We still remain connected to the world, but the
center of that connection is not in others; it is within ourselves. In other
words the center of life is within rather than in the outside world.
Work
To become a Yogi doesnt mean that we stop working and expect the world to
provide a livelihood for us. We have to fulfill our physical needs on our own.
But this work must be according to our innate nature which will enrich our
yoga practice. Most peoples work is against their nature, and the work
becomes a burden rather than a joy which leads to fulfilment. Working
according to our nature is Karma Yoga (Yoga of work). In Karma Yoga the
work itself becomes an end rather than a means for some other end. It
generates delight and is done without being attached to the fruit of the work.
Work itself becomes fulfilment.
Home
We dont need the help of a Vastukala or Feng Shui expert to built or arrange
our home. Our home should be planned according to our Dosha or
personality. A Vata person needs a small but cozy home with warm colors. A
Pita dosha must have a bigger house with cool colors and a Kapha persons
house must be free from darkness and humidity. The home should have just
enough possessions for the need of the person.
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2.
3.
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When the air and space elements combine, the Wind personality is born. In
this personality, the sympathetic nervous system is more active.
There is no pure personality or constitution - each individual has
components of all the three main constitutions. However, in most
people one constitution tends to dominate.
We can learn about our own unique constitutional blend by reflecting on a
variety of physical and psychological characteristics. In the next section,
each basic constitutional type will be described. By studying these
descriptions, we can begin to identify characteristics that reflect our own
mind and body. As we learn more and more about our inherent constitution,
we can make changes to our lifestyle in order to balance the constitutional
elements that may be causing ill-health.
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sleep excessively
These
people
tend
to
form
enduring
and
deep
107
become restless
develop insomnia
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Wind or Sympathetic
Wind has air and space elements. It is the most unstable personality type
because of the presence of swiftly moving air in the expansiveness of space.
Body
People with a Wind-predominant constitution tend to be thin, with dry,
cold skin.
Sleep: They are often restless sleepers, and have many dreams.
Eating: They may have an irregular appetite and poor digestion. Their
weight may fluctuate rapidly.
Exercise: They can move rapidly, but they often have poor endurance.
Sex: Quick arousal and fall.
Mind
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Sympathetic
or Wind
Interface of
sym. &
parasym. or
Fire
Parasym or
Earth
Build
Thin
Medium
Dry
Oily
Lustrous
Body
Temperature
Cold, minimal
sweating
Warm, profuse
sweating
Cool, moderate
sweating
Digestion
Poor
Good, intense
appetite
Sexual Arousal
Quick arousal,
quickly spent
Passionate sex
life
Exercise
Endurance
Poor, exhausted
quickly
Good
Can endure
heavy exercise
Irregular sleep
with many
dreams
Pulse Rate
Around 80 or
60-80/per min.,
above/per min., strong & stable
may be irregular
Body
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<60/per min,
strong
Mind
Memory
Poor
Slow to
remember but
retain
Emotion
Fear
Excitement
Calmness
Thinking
(cognition)
Plenty of
superficial
thoughts
Logical &
precise
Slow &
methodical
Stress Response
Anxiety/flight
Anger/fight
Freeze
Lifestyle
Irregular &
erratic
Planned, busy
Steady, may be
stuck in a rut
Vocation
Creative, artist
Leader, pioneer
Manager,
caretaker
Natural
Inclination
Loyal believer,
follower
TOTAL
3. Shathkarma
Shath means six and Karma means actions. Shathkarma are six actions or
techniques to clean and purify the body and mind. Following are the six
techniques which constitute Shathkarma and are described by Yogi
Swatmarama in Haha Yoga Pradipika
7. Neti
8. Dhauti
9. Nauli
10.
Basti
11.
Kapalbhati
12.
Tratak
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1. Neti In Neti nasal passage are cleaned with the help of either plain or
warm salt water. Neti pot is used for the cleansing. In Sutra Neti a thread
or thin rubber catheter is used which is inserted from the nose and comes
out of mouth. Neti helps in the problems of nose, sinuses and throat.
2. Dhauti Dhauti is to clean the stomach by drinking one liter of warm salt
water on empty stomach and then vomit it out. In Vastra Dhauti a long
and thin cotton clothe is used instead of water.
3. Nauli Nauli is the forceful movement of abdominal muscles to tone
them up and also massage abdominal organs to clean them and make
more active.
4. Basti Basti is the cleaning of the gastrointestinal tract by sucking the
water through anus into large intestine or drinking it and then allow it
come out from anus. Another way to clean the intestine is to perform
Sankha Prakshalana in which large quantity of warm salt water is drunk
and it slowly comes out through the anus because salt water cant be
absorbed by the intestine.
5. Kapalabhati Described under Pranayam
6. Trataka Trataka is unblinking focus on a point or flame to develop
concentration.
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to increase the effect of the worship. Worship should engage all five senses
to bring more power to the process of worshipping and can be accompanied
with the chanting of mantras or prayers either loudly or silently.
Instead of a deity, a person can worship sacred geometrical forms such as
Yantras and Mandalas. Yantra means instrument or device and Mandala
means circle or form. Yantras and Mandalas represent the form and essence
of the deity and of the universe.
Devotional Images on the Journey
Prayer is the hearts longing to unite and merge with the Divine. Usually, this
prayer is focused on an image, idol or deity to which human-like qualities are
attributed. Prayer cannot occur in a void or be offered to nothingness or the
unknown. We need some image, whether it is of a god, goddess, prophet,
ancestor, or elemental force to offer worship. Because these images are
embedded in our subconscious, prayer is inwardly directed and fired by
emotional energy.
Devotion is the force that guides prayer. A devotee is moved to pray by the
desire to surrender to some higher presence. That complete surrender is an
act of transcending the ego or limited self.
The path of meditation leads individuals to the same ego transcendence as
the surrender of prayer. However, meditation takes the path of the intellect
and is the silent, calm, non-judgmental witnessing of ones thoughts and
mind. Dedicated devotion to the practice of meditation eventually throws us
into the radical experience of ego-transcendence. We achieve a newfound
clarity as well as a deep experience and comprehension of the wholeness of
the internal and external worlds we inhabit.
Both in meditation and in prayer, it is the light of awareness that
illuminates the dark corners of the mind and clears away the memories that
clutter it. Shadows of these memories remain, but their emotional content is
gone. The turmoil associated with them is also gone and we experience the
freedom of true transcendence.
In meditation and in prayer we choose particular words, images and
movements, organize them into a sequence, and perform them according to
a plan. This mental and physical activity is clearly formulated by the mind,
but it is the only way to begin on a deliberate path towards deeper
awareness. The mind becomes a disciplined tool, which is necessary for us to
move to the point of ego transcendence.
This explains why, in the beginning, meditation or prayer is mental,
mechanical and repetitive. As we engage more deeply, the process becomes
more organic, revealing the inner nature of the mind and its inherent vitality.
We reach a breakthrough point after which meditation and prayer become
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5.
Pilgrimage
Travelling for transformation is pilgrimage
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6. Yoga poses
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Yoga brings the following benefits 1. Full orientation of the body in space and time. This brings about a state
of balance, which enhances body awareness. The body learns to move
naturally and without fear.
2. Moving from body image to the body-actual. Our body image is created
by our cultural memories and beliefs and does not represent the real
body. Many mind-body pathologies are the result of our body image.
Body actual is the bodys map in the brain and represents the real body.
Living in body-actual is to ground the awareness in reality and create
stability.
3. Paying attention to body postures brings the mind and body together.
Normally our mind is absorbed in thinking and is distracted while the
body is in action.
4. Holding a body posture for a sustained period of time stimulates neurovascular bundles in the body, which are rich in sympathetic and
parasympathetic nerves. During a yoga pose, the pressure on specific parts
of the body stimulates neurovascular bundles and plexuses. This leads to
relaxation because of decreased activity in the sympathetic nervous system
and an increased activation of the parasympathetic nervous system. The
brain, immune and endocrine systems begin to function at their optimum,
creating mind-body homeostasis, which is experienced as a sense of wellbeing.
5. Poses and movements release embedded memories of abuse, trauma
and pain and heal the body and mind.
Yoga poses were not invented by a specific person in a particular time
and place. They developed from the observation that when we experience
inner states such as fear, anger, peace, joy and tranquility, the body moves
in a particular way. A joyful child may begin to dance spontaneously. If we are
sad, we may also be able to experience joy if we dance. Happiness brings a
natural smile but if we smile intentionally it may give us a feeling of
happiness. Laughter yoga is based on this observation. Great actors know
this and produce expressions at will by changing their breathing and taking
specific body postures. It follows that if we intentionally move in a certain
way or take a certain pose, we create specific inner states in the body. This
is the law of Reciprocal Response.
Consciously maintaining a certain pose also gives us a more accurate
orientation of the body in space, which generates better balance, grounds
the mind in the body and improves its overall functioning. This is the result
of right hemispheric stimulation, which has a calming effect and also
increases creativity and hemispheric synchronization. Also, the brain
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develops a more accurate map of the body and is able to work in harmony
with it.
In the beginning, yoga poses and movements are intentional but a point
comes when they become spontaneous. Our inner state guides the body to
assume certain postures that allow for a smooth, unobstructed flow of
energy.
In order to optimize the benefits of yoga, the following guidelines should be
observed:
1. Poses should be sustained for varying lengths of time, depending on an
individuals flexibility and endurance. The minimum duration is twenty
seconds.
2. At no point should we hold our breath.
3. Individuals should remain aware of the pose and/or breath.
4. Opposite poses complement each other and bring balance.
5. One should not feel tired after yoga poses.
Siddhasana- or the pose of the accomplished one is the best for Kundalini
Yoga because of the pressure on root and energy/sex chakra. To be in
Siddhasana...
.Sit on the ground
.Place left heel at the perineum between anus and penis/vagina and the right
heel on the root of penis or vagina in such a way that lower part of the legs
placed over each other and are comfortable
.Back is straight but relaxed
.Hands can be placed on knee in Jnana mudra
Vajrasana or diamond pose
In this pose we sit on our heels with back straight and hands resting on
thighs
Sukhasana or easy pose
Any comfortable sitting pose in which back is straight
Sleep Pose
Sleep pose is the posture we take when preparing for sleep. It helps in
preserving energy and maintains calmness during sleep.
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2.
3.
Next, lie prostrate with your folded hands fully stretched forward
4.
Then, raise your head and press the seven bindus or pressure points
as follows:
Eyebrows
Temple
Cheek bone
5. Now, place your chin in your cupped palms, and use your thumbs to
knuckle the inner sides of your eyes
6.
7.
8.
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In Kundalini Yoga any Hath Yoga pose can help in awakening the energy.
Rub the bones behind the ear with the index fingers
Rub the margin, lobe and inside of the external ears with the thumb
and index finger
With the left hand massage the junction of the neck and the upper
back a in clockwise fashion
With the right hand massage the junction of the neck and the upper
back in a counter-clockwise fashion
Massage the point of the throat chakra with the fingers both in a
clockwise and counter-clockwise direction
With the fingers rub and press the space between the clavicle and the
upper part of the breast bone or sternum
With the right hand massage the heart chakra in a clockwise direction
With the left hand massage the naval area (third chakra) in a counterclockwise direction
With the right hand massage the naval area in a clockwise direction
With both hands strike the soft part of the lumbar area
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With the inner side of the right palm massage the outer side of the left
elbow and forearm
With the inner side of the left palm massage the outer side of the right
elbow and forearm
Gently strike the space between the thumb and the index finger in an
interlacing manner
Massage the space between the big and second toe with both index
fingers
7. Breathing or Pranayama
Breathing is a unique phenomenon in humans because of its involuntary
and voluntary aspects. First of all, breathing happens in the present, so
whatever we do with the breath is going to be connected with the present
moment. Secondly, breathing is a bridge between the body and mind and so
it changes when we experience different mental and emotional states. If we
are calm, breathing is deep and slow. If we feel a sense of love, our breathing
becomes deep and slow. In anger, the breath is deep and fast, while in fear,
it is shallow and rapid. In extreme fear, we hold our breath. Thirdly, breathing
is partly involuntary and partly voluntary, which means that we can partially
control it to achieve certain body-mind states. Pranayama is particularly
useful to awaken the Kundalini and chakras.
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Sushumna Breathing
Sushumna breathing is a technique of conscious breathing in which we feel
and assume that we are inhaling deeply from the lower end of the spine and
going up all the way up to the crown chakra point and then exhaling deeply
and going down all the way to the lower end of the spine.
Conscious deep breathing through each chakra
In this type of breathing we feel and assume as if we are brething into chakra
and breathing out of chakra.
Full Yogic Breath
Full Yogic breathing is a combination of abdominal (lower lung), chest (middle
lung) and collar bone (upper lung) breathing to make the whole lung expand
and massage the abdominal organs by the up and down movements of
diaphragm. Full Yogic breathing stimulates stretch receptors in the lung to
stimulate the parasympathetic system, specifically Vagus nerve to put a
person in anabolic or relax and digest mode.
Full Yogic Breathing starts with active inhalation and abdominal or
diaphragmatic breathing in which deep inhalation moves the diaphragm
down and as inhalation continues it lifts the ribs to expand the middle chest
and finally the upper part of the chest expands lifting the collar bone.
Exhalation is passive in which diaphragm moves up, abdomen flattens, ribs
and collar bones return to the normal position.
Ujjayi
Word "Ujjayi" comes from the Sanskrit "ud" and "ji" means "to be victorious".
Ujjayi breath means, the breath of victory over minds turmoil. It also means
who makes us Ujjaval or full of glow and brightness.
In order to practice Ujjayi breath take a deep inhalation through your nose or
mouth and then exhale slowly through your nose while constricting the
throat muscle to produce the sound of ocean waves which you can hear
clearly.
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8.Bandhas
Bandhas means locks. Bandhas are used to lock and pool the energy in
particular parts of the body by contracting muscles and then channelizing
that energy in specific directions and locations to awaken the Kundalini.
Bandhas untie the three knots of Brahma, Visnu and Rudra granthis at root
chakra (Muladhara), heart chakra (Anahata) and throat/third eye chakra
(Vissudha) to release more pranic energy for spiritual awakening.
Three main Bandhas are used in Yoga. When all three are used together they
are called Maha or great Bandha.
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9.
Mudras
Mudras are hand and finger gestures (or occasionally the whole body), which
stimulate sensitive energy points to have specific positive effects on body,
Prana and mind. Word Mudra comes from Mud=pleasure and Ra=bringing
forward. Gestures which bring positive and pleasant effects on mind-body
are Mudras. It also means seal or enclosure. Mudras are extensively used in
spiritual practices and dance. Although there are many Mudras but the
important once in Yoga are the following:
1. Jnana or Chin Mudra Jnana means wisdom or insight. Murda which
brings Jnana is called Jnana Mudra. To perform Jnana Mudra touch the
tip of the index finger with the tip of the thumb. Rest of the finger are
straight and parallel to each other. This Mudra is performed with both
hands.
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upper lips with the ring-fingers and the lower lips with the little fingers. After
establishing the Yoni mudra, the mind is focused on each of the seven
chakras.
Shambhavi Mudra
The Shambhavi mudra or Shiva mudra is named after Shambhu which means
Shiva. The Shambhavi mudra is done by rolling both eyes upward and
towards the third eye chakra. The eyes remain open.
10. Meditation
What is Meditation?
Meditation is the de-conditioning of the brain and body. It is Relaxation,
Awareness and Expansion of Awareness. The word meditation comes from
the Latin root meditatum, which means to ponder. Dhyana comes from the
Sanskrit root dhyai, meaning to contemplate or meditate. It also means
attention. Meditation can help to shatter the prison of conditioning, allowing
us to emerge into a new state of being.
The History of Meditation
It is not certain when the practice of meditation actually began. Perhaps
it started with the first humans on earth as they naturally experienced
various states of altered consciousness. Later on, it became an essential
practice that shamans, healers and priests used to communicate with spirits
and dead ancestors.
Meditation was a part of the pre-Vedic and Vedic tradition in India and
techniques of meditation were described more than 5000 years ago. It is an
integral part of all Indian religions and practices. The most definitive book
about meditation - Vigyan Bhairava Tantra - is four thousand years old. It is a
dialogue between Siva and his consort Devi, in which Siva describes 112
meditation techniques to Devi.
It is important to note that a meditation technique is NOT
meditation. However, meditation techniques are important ways to calm
the mind and bring many other benefits to body and emotional states.
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Focus on the fifth or throat chakra at the root of the neck and connect it with
the sixth chakra in middle of eyebrows with a stream of golden energy.
Focus on the sixth or third eye chakra in the middle of eyebrows and connect
it to the seventh or crown chakra on the top of the head with a stream of
golden energy.
All seven chakras are connected with a stream of golden energy, which is
flowing upward.
Now we are going to visualize, imagine or feel that the many energy
channels from various parts of your body are converging into different
chakras and funneling their energy into them.
Be aware of the energy channels from both lower limbs and experience this
energy funneling into the first chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from the pelvis and buttocks and
experience this energy funneling into the second chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from the abdomen and the corresponding
part of the back and experience this energy funneling into the third chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from the chest and the corresponding part
of the back and experience this energy funneling into the fourth chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from both upper limbs and shoulders and
experience this energy funneling into the fifth chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from the face and the adjacent area and
experience this energy funneling into the sixth chakra.
Be aware of the energy channels from the head area and experience this
energy funneling into the seventh chakra.
All of this golden energy comes out from the top of the head like a fountain,
comes down around the body, and is absorbed by the earth; and so the
active circulation of energy continues. This golden energy forms a protective
sheath around the body.
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Bring your focus to your feeling heart which is either in the center of
the chest or slightly to the right side
Visualize, imagine or feel rays of light radiating from the root chakra
Now allow the light rays to go from center to center until they reach
the crown.
Allow it to jump from center to center until it reaches the crown chakra
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Braham is a Sanskrit noun, which is derived from the verb Briha, which
means expansive or vast. Sometimes it is equated to the word God, but in
its original sense, the word means the ever-expanding awareness which
includes all that is possible and all that exists. It includes the Becoming and
the Being. It is time and space, as well as that which is beyond time and
space.
The brain has no perceptual boundaries and can focus on a dewdrop or
on a remote galaxy in the immensity of space. It can go back and forth
between the states of Being and Becoming with ease. But when the ego or
the self, which consists of thought, breaks the intimacy between the brain
and the biological universe, we become confined by mental space and time.
We are trapped in a world of names and forms, and suffer from fear, conflict
and discontent.
Labeling our world is essential to create order. However, when labeling
carries a judgment such as good and bad, inferior and superior, ugly and
beautiful or right and wrong it creates division, fragmentation and conflict.
The same applies to form. We create a mental map (form) of what is
desirable, pleasurable and familiar. What is outside of these things is
excluded from that mental map. This also leads to fragmentation and
distortion.
The purpose of Braham or Expansiveness Meditation is to expand the
boundaries of consciousness and to eventually break them. This allows the
brain to become free to experience unbound perception. In the process of
expansion, the brain begins to include even that which is not familiar,
desirable or pleasant in its field of consciousness. As a result, fear and
hostility dissipate as our sense of rigid otherness disappears. All becomes a
part of the one, non-dual movement of life. It is a state of Peace, Passion and
Bliss, free from fear, conflict and discontent.
Technique:
A guide to this form of meditation is as follows:
1. Begin with slow, deep and gentle belly breathing for five minutes.
2. With closed eyes feel the whole body, not focusing on any particular
body part. Feel the presence of the body. This establishes awareness of
your own presence. Stay with it for five minutes.
3. Allow your relaxed awareness (and/or body) to expand slowly three to
four feet around you. Notice what you hear, see and feel. Stay with it
for five minutes.
4. Expand your awareness further in all directions until it fills the space
you occupy (room, studio etc). Whatever comes into this field of
expanded awareness becomes a part of you. People, objects, buildings,
sounds, light and any elements of nature- all become part of your
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Let that warm glow slowly fill the body from within starting
from the head, and then move to the eyes, face, neck, shoulders,
chest, left upper limb, right upper limb, belly, pelvic area and
buttocks, left lower limb and right lower limb. The whole body
glows with a warm light.
7.
8.
9.
Allow it to expand further and fill the whole room. The whole
room is filled with your own presence and whatever comes into the
field of your presence and awareness becomes part of you. 2-3
minutes
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10.
11.
12.
13.
Allow the presence to enter into you, through the opening of the crown
chakra on the top of the head. The presence fills your head space and
brain with a peaceful, loving light
Allow the presence to descend to the third eye chakra and to the
forehead, the eyes, the face and the ears. All are filled with a peaceful,
loving light
Allow the presence to descend to the throat center and to the neck, the
shoulders and the arms. All are filled with a peaceful, loving light
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Allow the presence to descend to the heart center and the chest,
lungs, heart and space within. All are filled with a peaceful, loving light
Allow the presence to descend to the solar center and to the abdomen
and to the organs within the abdomen. All are filled with the peaceful,
loving light
Allow the presence to descend to the lower end of the spine and to the
perineum and the whole pelvis, and they are filled with the peaceful,
loving light
Allow this peaceful loving presence to descend down to the thighs, legs
and feet and from there, allow it to come out through the soles of the
feet, to merge back into the space from where it came, completing the
circulation.
Sound meditations
In Indian classical music Swars or seven notes are connected with a
chakra and a god or goddess. Swara means who creates its own
sweetness. Each note is a seed which, with the help of other notes, holds
the potential to sprout, thus creating rich and lush growth sounds and their
corresponding states. Each of the seven notes is related to one of the seven
chakras and deity. It is believed that the playing of a raga will stimulate one
or more of the chakras and also connect individuals to the energy of a deity.
Connecting to the chakras means, stimulating the endocrine glands, immune
system and the whole of the body and mind. In essence, to play or listen to a
raga is to practice spirituality and to awaken the body and the mind in
harmony.
Swar Sas is mother of all notes and is known as Shadja. Shadja is the
goddess whose four heads represent the spread of sound in all four
directions or in circular form. Light travels linearly. Shadjas eight arms
signify the octave. The fifth note, Pa, is the father note.
Chakra
Deity
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Animal
SA - Do
Shadja Mother
Muladhar or
root
God Ganpati
RE - Re
Rishabh
Bull
GA - Mi
Gandhar
Manipura or
solar
Goat
MA - Fa
Madhyam
Dove
PA - Sol
Panchama Father
Vishuddha or
throat
Narada
Cuckoo
DHA - La
Dhaivat
Ajna or third
eye
NI - Ti
Nishad
Sahashara or
crown
God Surya
God Shiva
Peacock
Elephant
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and also connected to Agni or fire and can be used to gain strength,
power and clarity. It can be sung as Om Hum Shivaya Namha or
Sivo Hum
3. Hrim Hrim is a mantra of goddess as the mother of the universe
which carries with it all the power and energy of the world, including
the ability to destroy the illusion. It can be sung as Om Hrim Durgaya
Namha
4. Krim Krim is the mantra of the goddess Kali. Kali brings Kal or death
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Lakshmi. It brings abundance within the mind and body and in the
outer world. It can be sung as Om Shreem Laxmiaya Namha.
10.
Om Namo Shivaya, Om Namo Shivaya, Om Namo Shivaya, Om
Namo Shivaya I bow to the one who brings the well-being
11.
Om Shakti, Om Shakti, Om Shakti Om - Om Shakti, Om Shakti,
Om Shakti Om I praise the creative force of the universe
12.
Jai Mata Durga, Jai Mata Kali, Durga Kali Namo Namha Hail to
mother Durga and Mother Kali
13.
14.
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Bandhas Jalandhar
Meditation - Focusing on the flame at the root of the neck
Sujun movement Massaging the root of the neck in front and back
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Section 7
Experiences of Kundalini and Chakras
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becomes light like air, when you possess inexhaustible energy for work, know
that Kundalini has become active.
When you get divine intoxication, when you develop power of oration, know
that Kundalini has awakened. When you involuntarily perform different
Asanas or poses of Yoga without the least pain or fatigue, know that
Kundalini has become active. When you compose beautiful sublime hymns
and poetry involuntarily, know that Kundalini has become active.
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Pure force of Kundalini frees all parts of the body from the diseases. Joint by
joint she fills the radiance in various regions of the body and frees the flow of
the blood through vessles.
Once every cell has been enlightened, the Kundalini again permeates the
whole being and fills it with divine power. At the same time she absorbs all
the forces of the body into herself and only she, the pri-mordial force of life,
remains.
Youth and age cease to exist and a pure state, existing beyond time, is born
in their place. Externally the body appears as clean and pure as the body of a
child, but the power of that force within is beyond description. The body of
the yogi possesses the radiance of gold, though it is of incredible lightness,
like the wind. The mass of earth, the weight of water, he no longer carries
within himself. All is thus achieved. The salt of the body dissolves itself in the
water. The water is consumed by the fire within. The fire in turn is
extinguished by a cooling wind in the heart. Only this cool whisper of divine
breath remains. On it the yogi is borne through all worlds, can look beyond
all seas, and even understand the thought processes of an ant. He walks
over water without getting his feet wet. Nothing lies beyond his reach. The
force itself becomes name-less, and the body is no longer of this earth, but in
its perfection is raised aloft into the heavens, where it becomes a worker of
wonders, without any effort.
The divine Breath is the reflection of the primordial Kundalini, the
immaculate Goddess. She is truly the Mother of the whole Universe, the
ultimate majesty of the soul. In the hour of a Yogis death Kundalini gathers
itself on the spinal column. Only the skin still covers the visible body of the
yogi, who has already ceased to live in the world of the elements. He is
empty and has become light.
Into the breath of the heart the Kundalini climbs and becomes a fountain of
divine sounds, as it unites with Shiva, the all-pervasive divine Being. The
body trembles all over with a gentle thunder at the consummation of this
union, and the resonance causes the opening, at the top of the head, of the
gateway to sublime freedom. Here at the top of the head is the region which
is called Sahasrara, or the thousand petalled lotus, and in the very centre, far
above the Void that spreads beneath the heart, there resides another Void,
that is called Brahmarandhra, or the dwelling place of God.
At the moment of death the power of Kundalini surges up for the last time
through the Sushumna channel in the centre of the spinal column, and
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pierces the zone of the Brahmarandhra, taking all the\ forces of life with her,
leaving nothing behind: everything dissolves into the stream of Kundalini,
whose own force is no longer discernible, nothing more than a gentle breeze.
Then the five elements that make up the body are dispersed, and fall away;
the body dissolves into itself, and this breeze of life unites with the breath of
the Divine, and both melt into the invis-ible formless form of God. Awareness
becomes free and absolute. It is no longer separate from Shiva. The Yogi has
become Gods child.
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aspirant) falls into Samadhi. Second, the frog-like motion: just as frogs make
two or three short jumps in quick succession and then stop for a while to
proceed again, in the same way something is felt advancing from the legs to
the brain. When this reaches the brain, the man gets Samadhi. Third, the
serpentine motion: as snakes lie quiet, straight or coiled up, but as soon as
they find a victim in front, or get frightened, they run in a zigzag course, in
like manner the 'coiled up power' rushes to the head, and this produces
Samadhi. Fourth, the bird-like motion: just as birds in their flight from one
place to another take to their wings and fly sometimes a little high and
sometimes low without however stopping till they reach their destination,
even so that power progresses and reaches the brain, and Samadhi ensues.
Fifth and last, the monkey like movement: as monkeys going from one tree to
another take a leap from one branch to another and thus clear the distance
in two or three bounds, so the Yogi feels the Kundalini going to the brain, and
Samadhi ensues."
These experiences he would detail at other times from the Vedantic
standpoint, as follows: "The Vedanta speaks of seven planes, in each of
which the Sadhaka has a particular kind of vision. The human mind has a
natural tendency to confine its activities to the three lower centres the
highest of these being opposite the navel and therefore is content with the
satisfaction of the common physical appetites, such as eating and so forth.
But when it reaches the fourth centre, that is, the one opposite the heart, the
man sees divine effulgence. From this state, however, he often lapses into
the three lower centers. When the mind comes to the fifth centre opposite
the throat, the Sadhaka cannot talk of anything but God. While I was in this
state I would feel violently struck on the head if anybody raised worldly
topics before me. I would hide myself in the seclusion of the Panchavati
where I was safe from these inflictions. I would flee at the sight of worldlyminded people, and relatives appeared to me like a yawning chasm, from
which there was no escape if I once fell into it. I would feel suffocated in their
presence---almost to the point of death, and I would feel relieved only when I
left the spot. Even from this position a man may slip down to the three lower
centers. So he has to be on his guard. But he is above all fear when his mind
reaches the sixth centre opposite the junction of the eye-brows, He gets the
vision of the Paramatman and remains always in Samadhi. There is only a
thin transparent veil between this place and the Sahasrara or the highest
centre. He is then so near the Paramatman that he imagines he has merged
in Him. But really he has not. From this state the mind can come down to the
fifth, or at the most, to the fourth centre, but not below that. The ordinary
Sadhakas, classed as 'Jivas' cannot come down from this state. After
remaining constantly in Samadhi for twenty-one days they break that thin
veil and become one with the Lord for ever. This eternal union of the Jiva and
the Paramatman in the Sahasrara is known as getting into, the seventh
plane."
Excerpt from the book, Sayings of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
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about six I began to lose my physical body, and naturally the physical
elemental did what it liked; I was semi-conscious.
The morning of the next day (the 20th) was almost the same as the previous
day, and I could not tolerate too many people in the room. I could feel them
in rather a curious way and their vibrations got on my nerves. That evening
at about the same hour of six I felt worse than ever. I wanted nobody near
me nor anybody to touch me. I was feeling extremely tired and weak. I think
I was weeping from mere exhaustion and lack of physical control. My head
was pretty bad and the top part felt as though many needles were being
driven in. While I was in this state I felt that the bed in which I was lying, the
same one as on the previous day, was dirty and filthy beyond imagination
and I could not lie in it. Suddenly I found myself sitting on the floor and Nitya
and Rosalind asking me to get into bed. I asked them not to touch me and
cried out that the bed was not clean. I went on like this for some time till
eventually I wandered out on the verandah and sat a few moments
exhausted and slightly calmer. I began to come to myself and finally Mr.
Warrington asked me to go under the pepper tree which is near the house.
There I sat crosslegged in the meditation posture. When I had sat thus for
some time, I felt myself going out of my body, I saw myself sitting down with
the delicate tender leaves of the tree over me. I was facing the east. In front
of me was my body and over my head I saw the Star, bright and clear. Then I
could feel the vibrations of the Lord Buddha; I beheld Lord Maitreya and
Master K.H. I was so happy, calm and at peace. I could still see my body and
I was hovering near it. There was such profound calmness both in the air and
within myself, the calmness of the bottom of a deep unfathomable lake. Like
the lake, I felt my physical body, with its mind and emotions, could be ruffled
on the surface but nothing, nay nothing, could disturb the calmness of my
soul. The Presence of the mighty Beings was with me for some time and then
They were gone. I was supremely happy, for I had seen. Nothing could ever
be the same. I have drunk at the clear and pure waters at the source of the
fountain of life and my thirst was appeased. Never more could I be thirsty,
never more could I be in utter darkness. I have seen the Light. I have
touched compassion which heals all sorrow and suffering; it is not for myself,
but for the world. I have stood on the mountain top and gazed at the mighty
Beings. Never can I be in utter darkness; I have seen the glorious and
healing Light. The fountain of Truth has been revealed to me and the
darkness has been dispersed. Love in all its glory has intoxicated my heart;
my heart can never be closed. I have drunk at the fountain of Joy and eternal
Beauty. I am God-intoxicated."
Source: Lutyens, Mary. Krishnamurti: The Years of Awakening,
(Boston: Shambhala, 1997) pp. 157-160.
1961 and beyond... excerpt is from his Note Book
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Little sleep but wake up to be aware that there is a great sense of driving
energy which is focused in the head. The body was groaning and yet it was
very still, stretched out flat and very peaceful. The room seemed to be full
and it was very late and the front door of the next house was shut with a
bang - There was not an idea, not a feeling and yet the brain was alert and
sensitive. The pressure and the strain were there causing pain. An odd thing
about this pain is that it does not in any way exhaust the body. There seems
to be so much happening within the brain but yet it is impossible to put into
words what exactly is taking place. There was a sense of measureless
expansion.
As one sat in the aeroplane amidst all the noise, smoking and loud talking,
most unexpectedly, the sense of immensity and that extraordinary
benediction which was felt at il L., that imminent feeling of sacredness,
began to take place. The body was nervously tense because of the crowd,
noise, etc. but in spite of all this, it was there. The pressure and the strain
were intense and there was acute pain at the back of the head. There was
only this state and there was no observer. The whole body was wholly in it
and the feeling of sacredness was so intense that a groan escaped from the
body and passengers were sitting in the next seats. It went on for several
hours, late into the night. It was as though one was looking, not with eyes
only but with a thousand centuries; it was altogether a strange occurrence.
The brain was completely empty, all reaction had stopped; during all those
hours, one was not aware of this emptiness but only in writing it is the thing
known, but this knowledge is only descriptive and not real. That the brain
could empty itself is an odd phenomenon. As the eyes were closed, the body,
the brain seemed to plunge into unfathomable depths, into states of
incredible sensitivity and beauty. The passenger in the next seat began to
ask something and having replied, this intensity was there; there was no
continuity but only being. And dawn was coming leisurely and the clear sky
was filling with light. As this is being written late in the day, with sleepless
fatigue, that sacredness is there. The pressure and the strain too.
UG Krishnamurti (1918-2007)
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very basis of thought and in doing so negated all systems of thought and
knowledge.
Krishnamurti called this state of freedom of the body as the "natural state".
He claimed that the demand for enlightenment was the only thing standing
in the way of enlightenment itself, if enlightenment existed at all. He said It
is the body that is immortal. It is living from moment to moment. As a human
body it is an extraordinary piece of creation. But as a human being he is
rotten because of the culture.
His experiences of transformation were closer to what is described as
Kundalini.
U.G. refers to the events that happened to him during the summer of 1967
as the 'calamity':
I call it 'calamity' because from the point of view of one who thinks this is
something fantastic, blissful and full of beatitude, love, or ecstasy, this is
physical torture; this is a calamity from that point of view. Not a calamity to
me but a calamity to those who have an image that something marvelous is
going to happen.... I can never tell myself or anybody that I'm an enlightened
man, a liberated man, or a free man, or that I am going to liberate mankind.
On the eighth day he was sitting on the sofa and suddenly, in his words:
There was a tremendous outburst of energy--tremendous energy shaking the
whole body and along with the body, the sofa, the chalet and the whole
universe--shaking, vibrating. You cannot cause that movement.... Whether it
was coming from outside or inside, from below or above, I didn't know--I
couldn't locate the spot. It lasted for hours and hours.... There was nothing I
could do to stop it; I was totally helpless. This went on for days.
Then for three days U.G. lay on his bed, his body contorted with pain--it was,
he says, as if he felt pain in every cell of his body. Similar outbursts of energy
occurred intermittently throughout the next six months, whenever he lay
down or relaxed.
It's a very painful process. It's a physical pain--it has a form, a shape of its
own. It is like a river in spate. The energy that is operating there does not
feel the limitations of the body; it is not interested; it has its own momentum.
It is not an ecstatic, blissful beatitude and all that rubbish!
U.G. explains that thought had controlled his body to such an extent that
when that control loosened, the whole metabolism went agog. Then the
movement of his hands changed. They started turning backwards. 'That is
why they say my movements are mudras (mystical gestures).'
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Certain hormonal changes started occurring in his body. Now he didn't know
whether he was a man or a woman. Suddenly there was a breast growing on
the left side of his chest. It took three years for his body to finally fall into a
new rhythm of its own.
Here U.G. questions the value of this description for the world. Reading
about it may be dangerous because people may try to mimic the outward
manifestations of the process. People have a tendency to simulate these
things and believe that something is happening to them.
While going through these changes in his body, his friends observed that
Up and down his torso, neck and head, at those points which Indian holy
men call chakras, his friends observed swellings of various shapes and
colors, which came and went at intervals. On his lower abdomen the
swellings were horizontal, cigar-shaped bands. Above the navel was a hard,
almond-shaped swelling. A hard, blue swelling, like a large medallion, in the
middle of his chest was surmounted by another smaller, brownish-red,
medallion-shaped swelling at the base of his throat. These two 'medallions'
were as though suspended from a varicolored, swollen ring -- blue, brownish
and light yellow -- around his neck, as in pictures of the Hindu gods. There
were also other similarities between the swellings and the depictions of
Indian religious art: his throat was swollen to a shape that made his chin
seem to rest on the head of a cobra, as in the traditional images of Siva; just
above the bridge of the nose was a white lotus-shaped swelling; all over the
head the small blood vessels expanded, forming patterns like the stylized
lumps on the heads of Buddha statues. Like the horns of Moses and the
Taoist mystics, two large, hard swellings periodically came and went. The
arteries in his neck expanded and rose, blue and snake-like, into his head.
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development, I was completely taken by surprise; but regaining my selfcontrol, keeping my mind on the point of concentration. The illumination
grew brighter and brighter, the roaring louder, I experienced a rocking
sensation and then felt myself slipping out of my body, entirely enveloped in
a halo of light. It is impossible to describe the experience accurately. I felt the
point of consciousness that was myself growing wider surrounded by waves
of light. It grew wider and wider, spreading outward while the body, normally
the immediate object of its perception, appeared to have receded into the
distance until I became entirely unconscious of it. I was now all
consciousness without any outline, without any idea of corporeal appendage,
without any feeling or sensation coming from the senses, immersed in a sea
of light simultaneously conscious and aware at every point, spread out, as it
were, in all directions without any barrier or material obstruction. I was no
longer myself, or to be more accurate, no longer as I knew myself to be, a
small point of awareness confined to a body, but instead was a vast circle of
consciousness in which the body was but a point, bathed in light and in a
state of exultation and happiness impossible to describe.
About a year after his first Kundalini experience, his dreams began to take on
a "phosphorescent" quality and he experienced the transformation of his
dream life:
Every night during sleep I was transported to a glittering fairyland, where
garbed in luster I glided from place to place, light as a feather. Scene after
scene of inexpressible glory unfolded before my vision. The incidents were of
the usual character common to dreams. They lacked coherence and
continuity, but although strange, fanciful and fantastic, they possessed a
visionary character, surrounded by landscapes of vastness and magnificence
seldom seen in real life. In my dreams, I usually experienced a feeling of
security and contentment with the absence of anything the least disturbing
or disharmonious...
Krishna, Pandit Gopi, Kundalini: Path to Higher Consciousness
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my chest. I had intense nausea as well a desire to use the toilet. I felt a
sense of impending death. Frightened and thinking that I was about to die, I
somehow gained the strength, threw myself off the bed and crawled to the
bathroom. Soon I was holding my head under the running cold water from
the tap. After a few minutes, the treatment worked. The headache began to
disappear and my energy began to calm. I stood up and looked in the
bathroom mirror. My face was ashen grey, as if all the blood had been
drained from my body and it felt completely empty. The total duration of the
experience must have been about ten minutes. I came out of the room and
looked at the ashram buildings, the river in the valley and people walking on
the street. They looked like holographic images projected in empty space.
Their solidity was gone and they were like images from the dreams.
repeated intense inner body heat "hot flashes", hands and/or bottoms
of feet extremely hot, spine, back, head, entire body heat
repeated cold flashes, inner body cold spots, certain chakra areas turn
cold for periods
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Feelings like snakes or ants crawling on the body, particularly along the
spine, or between the feet and head
severe belly bloat, swelling in the gut & upper diaphragm area,
intense phases of pain in the head, pressures in the head, skull sore
and bruised feeling
inability to function, need for privacy & quiet to survive all you're living
through
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4. Boundaries
When we have a healthy ego, we also need to create boundaries.
Appropriate boundaries protect us from others who might harm us physically
or emotionally. The concept of boundaries also applies to our own mental
landscape. We cant allow all of the endless thoughts and emotions that arise
within us to occupy our brain, or else our emotional landscape will be in
chaos. We must learn the art of discriminating between what is healthy and
appropriate for us, and what is harmful. We must allow in only that which can
be assimilated with ease and comfort. It can be tempting to leave ourselves
wide open to all sorts of people, experiences, thoughts and emotions but
this is not healthy. Creating boundaries is the art of saying No.
4. Quest
Quest the inner and outer restlness of ego to find, discover, possess
and know more.
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time. Also, our experiences are being constantly filtered by the ego, allowing
in only those perceptions that do not shake an artificially created sense of
security. The combination of these factors results in a narrow and distorted
view of the world.
The protective boundaries imposed by the ego also block us from fully
experiencing who we are. By confining reality to symbols, we gain some
sense of mastery over our environment. But in the process of naming the
nameless, life becomes trapped by symbols and its free movement is lost
within the rigid boundary of form. Instead of intimacy with a world teeming
with life, we experience only a partial view of the world, limited by the
boundaries created by our symbols. We have to go beyond these boundaries
in order to experience life and death directly.
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living beings. Love expresses itself in many forms depending on the stage of
evolution. It can manifest as sex, passion, emotional attachment, devotion,
intellectual longing and universal love or connection.
Not only does love have a basic survival value but it is essential for
pleasure, joy and wellness in daily life. Babies who are not touched in a
loving way during the early months of their lives suffer from an inner atrophy.
Their brains do not mature fully and they miss something vital for proper
development. They may look physically healthy but their inner world doesnt
have the same richness of feeling and response. They may be emotionally
cold and are often unable to form lasting bonds. They may lose their capacity
to receive and give love, and as a result experience loneliness. We cannot
live without pleasure, so if deprived, we seek pleasure through food, power,
wealth, dominance and excessive consumption.
Real love not only gives us freedom from those complex systems of
pleasure but also cultivates a natural restraint. A person who experiences
love derives contentment from within by connecting lovingly with others.
Such contentment prevents the search for excessive external pleasure. Love
gives us a feminine or nurturing quality, and a gentle flexibility expresses
itself within us. Loving people dont seek worldly power for their own gain
and they are not empire-builders. At some level, it is a lack of love that
pushes us to consume, dominate and kill. We may become materially rich
but remain poor, lonely and insecure within.
Although each cell of our body is soaked with love, we don't always
perceive that love. So often, these feelings are obscured and suppressed by
the thinking mind. As time goes on, the mind's presence becomes more and
more overwhelming and slowly love becomes a thought process. However, if
love is given its full expression, then it can break through the rigidity of the
mind, and wash away all the structures created by thought. Love clears the
path for a sacred journey.
When the body discovers its innate love, the prison of the ego is
shattered. Love unleashes energy in the very root of our being, uncovering
hidden memories of trauma, tragedies and conditioning. Because it washes
away the past and awakens the body, love provides space for true revolution
and real reformation. The bodys awakening is a biological transformation
that soaks our whole being with unending passion.
As love ascends from the lower levels it becomes progressively freer. It
moves from sex to attachment, attachment to devotion, devotion to
creativity and finally from creativity to bliss. When love surpasses its own
limits, it becomes nameless and timeless.
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We have seen that the idea of free will actually isolates us from the rest
of the world. If we truly had free will, we could act independently of the past
and future. But this is simply not possible. As we develop a more scientific
understanding of our world and of our own body and mind, it is becoming
clear that there are no independent entities, individuals or even thoughts in
the universe. Everything is connected with everything else. Since every part
of nature affects and influences every other part, there is no possibility of
complete independence and therefore, we cannot have true free will.
Instead, we must see the universe as a whole, wherein each part is integral
to the whole.
However, the absence of free will doesnt mean the absence of freedom.
Life always gives us many choices, and there are many doors to freedom
waiting to be opened. We can think of life as having a wide range of
possibility, which may become reality as our awareness expands. With this
expanding awareness, one becomes cognizant of the presence of the many
doors of freedom - doors that were always there but hidden. As we learn to
open these doors, we move into greater awareness and a different quality of
freedom.
This freedom is part of a wholeness that goes beyond an ego trapped by
ignorance. As we make a choice on the path to freedom, a new door opens.
This gives us more freedom and more choice. Finally, a point comes when
this freedom becomes boundless, timeless and infinite. At that point all doors
disappear and no structure confines life. This is the experience of a cosmic
state. Here, there is no free will but total freedom.
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Despite the limitations imposed by the ego, there is always a part of our
being that does not surrender to these constraints. The flame of innate
nature burns brightly deep within each of us, calling us to explore our own
unique path. Our innate nature is dynamic and constantly sends signals of its
presence. We may ignore it in order to maintain a comfortable existence
within society, but then we live a fragmented life plagued by a persistent
conflict between our innate nature and the ego. It is the struggle between
what is and what should be.
This fragmented life can lead to a persistent state of alienation, conflict
and discontent. We are aware that something is missing from our lives
something precious and unique.
We lack a sense of wholeness and
fulfillment, but we dont know how to achieve this state of well-being. As a
result, we struggle with a deep sense of frustration. There are many ways in
which we try to assuage that frustration, whether by the pursuit of material
goods, power, or money.
In an earlier chapter, we explored the concept of innate nature at some
length, drawing in concepts from Ayurvedic ideas about constitution and
personality. As we progress on our inner journeys, we begin to reclaim our
own innate nature. As this seed of self-understanding begins to grow and
then to flower, we become increasingly aware of our own destiny the
unique roles that we are meant to play in this world.
But the path to discovering our innate nature is a long and difficult one.
Teachers, parents and social and religious leaders encourage children to
dream, wanting children to achieve great things to help create a better
world. Rarely do adults encourage children to realize and express their innate
and natural potential. These waking dreams become part of the ego.
Although these dreams are borrowed from culture, we still carry them with us
to escape fear. Such dreams dont come from a childs authentic nature, so
they are fragile and can shatter easily when faced with the existential
problems and challenges of life.
Children are encouraged to dream in order to reach the top of the social
ladder. However, once the dream is realized, many still remain unfulfilled and
the search goes on for more. It is rare to meet people who feel a sense of
fulfillment and abundance after having achieved their dreams. These
borrowed dreams cannot bring contentment.
But does this mean we should not have dreams at all? Dreams are both
wonderful and appropriate if they are in accordance with our own nature and
not against it. They can bring passion and joy. Once we are in touch with our
true nature, a different kind of dream emerges. These dreams express our
innate nature through the arts, science, religion and a new culture.
In the process of fulfilling our dreams, reaching a goal becomes the most
important task. This becomes a burden because we want to attain the
reward as soon as possible with the least amount of effort. But when dreams
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emerge from our inner nature then the journey becomes as delightful as the
destination. Our parents, teachers, leaders or culture no longer determine
our goals. We decide what goals to pursue and we feel fulfilled because both
dream and action come from within. Each person comes to a point of selfactualization, and will experience the same joy of fulfillment regardless of
their position.
However, this natural process is all too rare. Most of us pursue dreams
contrary to the natural flow of life and inevitably, they are shattered. This
disillusionment is painful but it opens the door for the discovery of our own
nature. However, disillusionment in itself is not sufficient for true
transformation. Disillusionment may temporarily shatter the worldview given
to us by culture and give us a brief glimpse of who we truly are. Usually
however, cultural traditions, family and religion swoop in to pacify us. Before
we can go beyond disillusionment in search of our innate nature, we are
seduced back into society. Since most of us cannot endure the pain of
disillusionment, we happily accept the consolation of these old dreams and
abandon our quest for truth.
A person who never pays attention to their own innate nature remains
ignorant about the power and energy hidden within and depends on external
sources for psychological survival. The path of self-discovery is not easy,
since a new way of living has to replace the old. Everything truly new has to
come from within the seeker rather than from the outside world. Often the
disillusionment that brought about the possibility of self-discovery is quickly
replaced by another dream from culture and the cycle starts all over again.
The person never arrives at the state of self-fulfillment.
These dreams ultimately lead us nowhere. There is no progress on lifes
path, as we keep moving within the same boundaries. Slowly the inevitable
physical and psychological decay sets in. As we grow old, both in body and
mind, society leaves us behind. After a life spent pursuing dreams and goals
shaped by culture, we are seemingly discarded. We become obsolete in the
outer world, and empty within. Stripped of outer rewards, we face old age in
desolation.
However, we may refuse to accept dreams re-packaged by society. We
say no to the prescriptions, distractions and consolations, and refuse to
forget the wound that disillusionment has created. Rather than distracting
ourselves in the pursuit of mindless pleasure, we feel the pain in its entirety.
We dont seek shelter in theories, philosophies or religion, but stay with what
we are experiencing in its full depth and darkness. We refuse to repair the
shattered dreams, because we realize that underneath lies something
precious. As we allow ourselves to undergo this process, the sensitive self
emerges. In the darkness of despair, a nascent self has been nourished.
Without the death of the old self, the new cannot be born or grow. Despair is
poison for the old self but it is vital nourishment for the emerging natural
self.
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Despair is a time of darkness during which one does not know where to
go. This is a difficult time because all that belongs to the past becomes futile
and meaningless. Relatives, friends, power, wealth, religion- everything that
once formed the foundation of life, feels empty and meaningless. Yet from
this darkness, new life emerges. In the process of rebirth, we become
psychologically free. The journey from the borrowed dream into Soul is about
the transformation of a person into an individual.
The most surprising thing is that after disillusionment, dreams return.
These dreams, however, are rooted in our individuality and innate nature and
contain all the energy and passion of our body, feelings and thoughts.
The process of shattering, disillusionment and rebirth into our innate
nature is summarized below.
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individuals. Like the ego, the soul expresses itself in many ways. Below are
some of the main ways that we can feel the presence and movement of soul.
- Connection love and compassion
-- Natural meditation
- Well-being
- Healing and creativity
- Accepting mortality
- Awakening of our bodily, emotional and intellectual intelligence
- Witnessing Consciousness
- Discovering Destiny
Connection Love and compassion
The word soul comes from the word solo which means to stand alone.
However, it doesnt mean feeling lonely or living in isolation. Aloneness is
the experience of being with ones own self. To be alone means that the inner
space which was once occupied by the ego is emptied and refilled by ones
own fullness.
With soulfulness there is a sense of space within to move, think and live.
We dont feel isolated because now connection and communication with the
world is genuine, authentic and wholesome. True compassion develops. In
order to be compassionate we must have enough space within to truly feel
anothers fear and suffering. We cant be compassionate when our inner
space is cluttered with our own sorrows and unresolved problems.
When we try to show compassion through an ego state we inevitably
fail, because the ego is riddled with divisions and fragmentations. Our
compassion is selective and biased. We constantly react to events, mostly
based on unconscious biases and judgments as well as memories of past
events. Reaction is always based on the past and future and creates chaos in
the psyche, consuming a great deal of energy, reopening old wounds and
creating new wounds. So much of the time we live a wounded life, due to this
recurrent process of reaction.
However, the soul responds rather than reacts. A response is
immediate, without any involvement of the past or future. Response is
conscious and comes from the present moment. Mirroring, and the
compassion that is born out of it, is a state of total perception without delay
or analysis of any kind. It is not a thought-out process but an immediate
response, not interfered with by memory. Its a complete feeling that doesnt
leave a mark on the brain. The brain becomes a smooth, self-cleaning mirror.
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brain, leaving little energy to face and resolve lifes deeper problems.
Awareness turns these memories into a stream of energy. This energy
washes away the old, from the brain and body and old wounds are healed.
We are left with a clear body and mind.
Soulful creativity is different from ordinary creativity. In ordinary
creativity new forms of poetry, science, music and philosophies are created.
Although the souls creativity includes all these creative expressions, it also
helps in recreating the creative people themselves. With awareness and
compassion, we are carved into new individuals. We are recreated according
to our own innate nature and reborn as fully functional and healed
individuals.
The lives of many creative people are full of suffering, discontent and
self-destruction. Those around them also suffer and pay a high personal
price. However, in soulful creativity, we are in harmony within and with the
outside world.
Awakening of Body, Emotion and Intellect Intelligence
At the very root of individual existence is our innate nature. This
nature branches into three components of our being - body, emotions and
thoughts. Each has its own intelligence. The higher the position of a
component in terms of evolution, the more powerful and dominant that
component becomes. Emotion is more powerful than the body and the
intellect is stronger than emotion. The ego muffles the intelligence of the
body, which results in a conflict between the intellect, emotions and body.
As we discussed earlier, the pure direct experiences of the body and
emotions are filtered and edited by the ego. We rarely experience anything
directly, because of fear of the unknown. When the ego goes through the
dark and turbulent passage of the subconscious, it is slowly stripped of its
power. Only at this point is it possible for us to face our own death. In these
moments of clarity, we realize that the notion of I as the doer is an illusion.
As the illusion of the doer ends, witnessing consciousness begins.
Two stories from the ancient Hindu scriptures illustrate the significance of
facing our fear of death. The Katha Upanishad is a book of rare beauty and
depth, in which the story of Nachiketa captures the essence of the dialogue
between life and death. Nachiketa is a young man who has a deep faith as
well as an enquiring mind. One day he questions the meaning of a ritual that
his father is performing. His father is insulted by his probing questions and
curses him, sending him to face the Lord of death, Yamraj. In a moment
Nachiketa arrives at the abode of Yamraj, a place where nobody ever returns
to the world of the living. Yamraj is not at his home, and Nachiketa has to
wait three days for him to return. When Yamraj finally returns, he becomes
curious about this boy who has waited so long to see him, and has such an
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enquiring mind. After they speak for some time, Yamraj finally tells
Nachiketa that he may return to the land of the living and that he will be
granted three boons. For the third boon, Nachiketa asks: "Lord! Every living
being in the world is mortal. They go through a cycle of happiness and grief
in accordance with their meritorious work or sin. It is said that even if the
body dies, the soul remains eternal. What is the secret of this? Tell me the
answer to this."
Yamraj wants to avoid the answer to this question but Nachiketa
persists. Finally, Yamraj elaborates on the nature of the true Self, which
persists beyond death. The key of the realization is that this Self (within each
person) is inseparable from the supreme spirit, the vital force in the universe.
Satisfied, Nachiketa returns to his home and re-unites with his father. The
meaning of this story is that only the knowledge of death can bless us with a
full life.
The same theme is explored in the story of Savitri and Satyavan from the
epic known as the Mahabharat. Savitri, representative of feminine energy,
frees Satyavan, the masculine force, from death by her courageous
encounter with the Lord of Death. Satyavan is a prince who is told by a seer
that he will die at an early age. The princess Savitri loves him deeply, and
marries him in spite of knowing about the prediction. Satyavan does die at
his appointed day and time and is taken away by Yamraj, the Lord of Death.
But Savitri has a determined spirit, and decides to follow Yamraj into the
Kingdom of Death. Moved by her devotion, Yamraj finally agrees to restore
Satyavan to life. The Savitri-Satyavan story is a metaphor about the meaning
of life and death. Savitri in this story represents the embodiment of spirit and
spirituality, which is capable of bringing the essence of life back from the
clutches of death. Consciousness, rather than the physical body, is the
essence of life.
Bodys Intelligence
We are grounded in our bodies, the basis of our lives. Within the body, all
evolution and involution takes place. The last part of involution, the most
difficult to achieve, is the expansion of the bodys intelligence into a
universal experience. How can the expansion of the bodys intelligence be
described? Although we can be aware of thoughts and emotions, we are only
dimly aware of the interior functioning of the body. It is a dense darkness
where consciousness lies deeply buried. Most of us go through life never
becoming aware of the bodys unique intelligence.
In animals, the body moves and functions in instinctual patterns that
govern eating, sleeping, and reproduction. But in humans, this bodily rhythm
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is disturbed by the ego. The quantity of food, exercise, sleep, sex, and work
are all governed by the ego and this comes in direct conflict with the natural
rhythm of the body.
When a person moves into a soul state, the egos grip is released and the
body begins to function with its natural rhythm, with an inherent inner
discipline. Its a state of natural austerity, where the body takes what is
necessary to maintain life, no more, no less. There is no withdrawal or
indulgence. When the body is functioning with its own natural rhythm, it
maintains an inner balance or homeostasis. In this state of homeostasis, we
feel a deep sense of wellbeing and energy. A constant sense of wellbeing is a
sign that the bodys intelligence has awakened. This is an important step on
the journey, but by no means the last.
Emotional Intelligence
Emotions originate in the body and are connected to the limbic system of
the mammalian complex of the brain. Emotions provide finely tuned input
about the internal and external environment, which helps to protect the body
and maintain a state of internal balance or homeostasis. While the body has
its own mechanisms for maintaining balance, emotional intelligence
compliments and enhances these mechanisms. Emotions are spontaneous
and automatic. When we become conscious of them we experience them as
feelings. The distinction between emotions and feelings has been clearly
described in the writings of neuropsychologist Antonio Damasio.
There are six primary emotions- fear, anger, happiness, sadness, surprise
and disgust. These six have been observed in the facial expressions of
people from various cultures all over the world. Out of these six emotions,
four and a half are negative. Surprise can be negative and sometimes
positive. We have more negative emotions to ensure survival against the
many dangers present in the world. Fear is the most basic emotion and the
root of all other emotions as we have explored.
Many of the emotions and feelings we cherish are compound emotions
created by social and cultural conditioning. They are a mix of primary
emotion and social and cultural learning. Such emotions include guilt,
jealousy, shame, resentment, love, hatred, and embarrassment. All emotions
have their own purpose, even those that we typically classify as "negative"
emotions. When the emotion is not connected to the body and the higher
cognitive functions then it can have detrimental effects. For example, fear is
useful to a point but in excess, it paralyzes and constricts life. Anger is a
defensive action but excessive anger becomes violence. Jealousy is
necessary because it protects a relationship and pushes us to be our best,
but in excess, it is destructive. Guilt is corrective but excessive guilt is a
prison.
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doesnt mean that we never experience fear or sorrow. They will instead pass
through us for a moment and will be gone without a trace in the next.
Discovering Destiny
Destiny is the feeling of a clear, conscious purpose in life that emerges
from our innate nature. A sense of destiny fills life with passion and meaning.
It is not a job or a duty its a movement that continues until death. It never
ends because when we arrive at a certain point, another journey begins. It
may or may not be useful to society and we may or may not receive rewards
for it. Yet when we are on that journey, we do not need external rewards,
because the experience of passion, meaning and wellbeing satisfy that
desire for reward.
Destiny is not an intellectual or emotional concept - it is embedded in
each cell of the body. Our social and cultural environment may help it to
flower but the seed of destiny already exists in our body and mind. Lifes
purpose is to discover this seed of destiny and allow it to grow in a full tree.
Destiny ignites passion and unites the mind and body in a harmonious
whole. Its there all the time and continuously gives us insights. We are born
with our destiny. If we believe in reincarnation or rebirth, then destiny is the
continuation of the story of our past lives, threads of which we pick up in this
life. If we dont believe in rebirth/reincarnation, then destiny lies in our
genetic makeup. Its predetermined but has flexibility. It has definite roots
but also wings - the roots are in our body and the lower part of the brain,
while the wings are in the newest part of cerebrum where we interact with
the society and culture.
The basic nature of our destiny is innate and comes from within, but its
expressive form has immense freedom and is directly related to the
environment in which we live. For example, if a person is destined to become
a leader, that leadership role may take on different forms depending on
where that person is born. He or she may become a family, tribal, business,
spiritual, community or national leader.
Unfortunately, many of us never discover our destiny. We die still
longing for passion, meaning and fulfillment in life, and we feel as if our work
has been left unfinished. Fear is the reason behind this. Destiny is a step into
the unknown and fear is the response to the unknown. In Indian tradition, the
stage of Vanprastha (going to the forest) is when we step into the unknown
and find our destiny. The last stage of Sanyasa or renunciation (all is put
forth) is the complete fulfillment of that destiny.
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were two of the greatest sages in history. They described their experiences
as inner quests based on reason, and they refused to believe in anything
mystical or based solely on faith. They stated that spiritual experiences are a
natural part of life and could be explored by anyone through systematic
analysis and practice, much like a scientist investigates the laws of nature
and the universe. They were spiritual scientists through and through.
All of us are liberated at some level - however there are always more
levels of liberation to experience. Abraham Maslows self-actualization and
Carl Jungs individuation are stages of liberation, as are Buddhas Nirvana
and Raman Maharishis abiding in the eternal non-dual Self. If we explore Sri
Aurobindos teachings and the experiences of Mother of Pondicherry and UG
Krishnamurti, they describe an experience of liberation that is body and
matter based. These teachers talk about divine materialism where matter
itself becomes conscious.
Liberation is not a point but a process that begins even before we are
born. From conception to becoming an adult, we go through the evolutionary
stages of the universes emergence from Nothingness. If we continue to
search further and succeed, we will experience Nothingness itself and be
released into its timeless and nameless womb, the source of all that exists.
During the process of liberation we become more and more conscious,
bringing more awareness and knowledge. Eventually during this process of
expansion, consciousness transcends knowledge and we come to
persistently live in a state of non-knowing and yet we are fully aware. Nonknowing is the direct experience of existence without the aid of the thinking
and reasoning mind.
In essence, liberation is an endless process with no point of final arrival. A
problem develops when we think that our own or someone else's liberation is
final and accept ourselves or someone else as the authority. When we
proclaim ourselves Gurus or become blind followers of some other selfproclaimed Guru, the process of liberation stops. We may bask in reflected
glory and feel elevated while the Guru is alive. However, once the Guru is
gone our liberation also comes to an end. Instead of doing the hard work of
learning, understanding, practicing and experiencing, we waste time waiting
for something to happen.
Learning from a teacher who is not posing as an authority or Guru is a
good spiritual practice. Spirituality, like medicine, politics, economics or
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Universal Mind:
companions
The soul is the ending of all known paths, but it is the beginning of
another journey that has no clear guideposts. In order to arrive at soul, we
must ascend to the seventh chakra through the lower six chakras. The
seventh and last one is the soul point. There is no path beyond it everything is veiled in mystery. We cant do much except to be vigilant and
wait. Suddenly it may happen - we are thrown off the edge of our
individuality and released into vast space brimming with experiences. This is
the realm of universal mind or consciousness, which is named GOD by many
religions.
The experience of Universal Mind unfolds in stages, described as follows:
a sense of Oneness with the World; the God Experience; Universal Love, and
Becoming Prayerful.
Universal Mind is an ever-changing sea of experience. It contains the
shadows of all that has happened, is happening and will ever happen in the
universe. It is a store of all the memory records of human experience, nature
and the universe itself. It carries the past, the present and also the future. It
has the micro and macro, subtle and gross, high and low. It is a churning
ocean of creativity. The greatest musicians, poets, painters, scientists and
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intellectuals access the energy of this endless creative force and if they
remain connected, their creativity is never exhausted.
Universal Mind contains darkness and light, evil and good, negative and
positive. The Universal Mind is the God of all faith-based religions. God is the
sum total of all experiences ever possible. The God of Universal Mind is half
dark, full of death and destruction and half light, brimming with life and
vitality. If we only accept the light and life and reject the darkness and death,
we miss the totality that is God.
The God of Universal Mind is the God of duality. We experience God but
we remain separate. The relationship is of Master and servant, Lord and
devotee and Lover and beloved. Although Universal Mind is vast and feels
infinite, it remains within the boundaries of space and time.
Universal Mind is the womb from which all myths are born. These myths
are the common heritage of humanity. They contain archetypal images and
figures and often appear in our dreams. During dreaming when the censuring
and controlling part of the ego is absent, we have access to the mythic and
mystical world of the universal mind.
Universal Mind is not tranquil or still - to be in constant flux is in its very
nature. Its the state of being but also the process of becoming. Universal
Mind is also named KalpTaru or "wish-fulfilling tree", because it can fulfill
any desire that is in accordance with our nature. There is a feeling of total
trust and surrender, and we become channels of universal energy.
With the experience of Universal Mind we feel a sense of oneness with
the world, and the world becomes the expression of the one God. The grace
of God in the world brings the experience of universal love, a love that is not
selective or limited. It embraces all as the creation of God. In Universal Mind,
death and life become lover and beloved and cant be separated. This brings
further freedom from the fear of death because we realize that there is no
death and that when our body dies, the spirit lives on in Universal Mind.
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Sixth Chakra:
Life is life and death is death and they confront each
other
Seventh Chakra: Life and death accept each other and exist simultaneously
We can see how our understanding of liberation is deepened by this
reflection on the chakras. The language of the chakras gives us a way to
express this inner journey from the ordinary to the sacred, and then to a
state beyond. We can also explore various form of yoga practice that
deepens our understanding of the unique energy of each chakra.
In this journey through the chakras, there is no fixed endpoint. Even if
one reaches the seventh chakra, where life and death accept each other,
there is still more to explore and discover. The ascent through the chakras
from the first to the seventh is only at the beginning of another journey. Once
evolution of the expression of consciousness reaches its peak, then one can
begin to descend down the chakras (involution). Carrying the flame of
consciousness, we explore the chakras in the light of biology and the body,
until we reach the first chakra where the energy is most dense and difficult
to penetrate. Illumination of the first chakra has been called Material NonDuality. Yet even this is not the end - the human journey of exploration must
continue.
The journey towards union of the universal and the divine is
represented in the following table:
Third chakra
Fourth chakra
Fifth chakra
Sixth chakra
and life (Virat)
Seventh chakra
Emotions
Feelings
Intellect
Insight
Energy
Integration
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Ultimately, Yoga is the state when the individual and the universal are
in seamless union.
Section 8
Precautions about Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini Yoga is like anyother yoga and same precautions should be
observed as in the practice of other Yogas. Best way to remain safe is to
know your mind and body and practice according to it. Walk the middle path
in the beginning and then slowly move to your limits. In case of sudden
awakening of Kundalini you can consult a Kundalini yoga teacher.
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Body has tremendous wisdom and it can adjust and adapt to many
experiences of Kundalini awakening.
To be on the path of Kundalini Yoga gives us the extra responsibility of taking
care of our body and mind. To eat qualitatively and quantitatively good and
nutritious food, to have enough rest and sleep, to exercise the body and live
in harmonious relationships with others are the basic priniciple of Kundalini
Yoga. Home where we live should be clean and suit our innate nature or
Prakirti and we practice those asanas, pranayam and meditation which are
suited for our mind and body. That is why the first and most important
learning in Ayurveda is to know our constitution or innate personality and
then to put a lifestyle according to that personality. The seven pillars of the
Yogic life are already described in the self-care section.
Make sure you are aware of your physical and mental state. If you have
physical problems such as slipped discs, lung and heart diseases, high
blood pressure and diabetes, hormonal deficiencies or excesses,
aneurysms, stiffness and any other significant organ problem, either
dont do Kundalini yoga or proceed with extreme caution. If you have a
history of mental health problems or are suffering from them, either
dont do it or proceed with caution. Such mental health problems
include anxiety, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, other types of
psychosis or any eating disorders. Kundalini Yoga can make some of
these problems worse or can precipitate an acute attack of the illness.
Warm up with gentle poses and breathwork before you move on to the
hard poses, mudras, bandhas and other kriyas or actions.
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Section 9
Further Readings
1. Sri Aurobindo or adventure of consciousness Satprem
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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www.nadyoga.org
www.naturalitypath.com
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