“SHE IS BEAUTIFUL, LIKE A CHAIN OF LIGHTENING
AND FINE LIKE A LOTUS FIBRE,
IN THE MIND OF THE SAGES.
SHE IS EXTREMELY SUBTLE; THE AWAKENER OF PURE KNOWLEDGE; THE EMBODIMENT OF ALL BLISS, WHOSE TRUE NATURE IS PURE CONSCIOUSNESS”.
Sat Cakra Nirupana.
Many people know ‘Kundalini Yoga’ as a physical practice involving postures and breath work. And it’s a very fine practice.
And more than that: Kundalini is the energy that creates this whole universe, that which brings everything into being. In the human form, having been brought into being, Kundalini rests and becomes ‘dormant’.
The practices of all the forms of yoga, physical and otherwise, gradually, bit-by-bit, very gently, help to awaken the latent creative energy of Kundalini within. And in so doing, there is a chance of loosening the chains of thoughts, beliefs and life experiences, which can elevate from survival level to finer qualities of life and experience.
The Kundalini System is expressed diagrammatically through the Cakras
each one holding key concepts, an element, and a sense and symbolizes a ‘level of consciousness’ that applies to the human condition.
Through working through the issues and the signature concepts that are represented by each level of consciousness, there is an opportunity to begin to let go of the blockages that prevent us from knowing our true being and reaching our full Human potential.
It’s worth mentioning that it’s possible that through engaging in very strong mechanical Kundalini awakening practices, these blockages may be forcibly removed before the aspirant is ready, and this can cause trauma. Some of the danger stories of arousing Kundalini energy come from this too early, forced arousal through mechanical means. Swami Sivananda Radha says in Kundalini for The West, ” The warnings about the practice of Kundalini Yoga, particularly without the help of an experienced teacher, are well-founded”… However, “There is no need to be fearful about the path of Kundalini when it is practiced with the help of an experienced teacher”.
By looking at the issues that we experience as human beings one at a time, and seeing what we think about them, how we stand by them, it’s possible to come to a deeper qualites of seeing, feeling, experiencing and knowing how we want to live our lives in the world.
These ideas and concepts can be explored through practices that by-step the intellect, allowing inspiration and information to arise from the intuitive mind, creating the possibility for new insights to arise.
“In the course of spiritual growth, all of our concepts, ideas and beliefs have to be investigated and re-evaluated over and over again. What you are thinking now may hold no value in three months or three years. You will have grown, your awareness will have increased and your level of understanding will have risen. From being a sleepwalker a hypnotised or conditioned person, you gradually become a person who is aware. The process of waking up from ignorance and delusion, of becoming free from as many limitations as possible, and eventually of reaching the goal of Cosmic Consciousness – this is the purpose of the path of Kundalini”. Swami Sivananda Radha, Kundalini for The West.
‘The Kundalini system is a very straightforward and direct path that expresses eternal truth; it is alive now. Cakra means “wheel’ and wheel implies movement. So you want to move from the position where you are now in your personal development to something more elevated and intense. You can do this by reflecting on how you have learned in the past and what you could do differently. Where do you want to go? What do you want to achieve?” Swami Sivananda Radha ‘Yoga. A Path To Awareness’,
“The yogic path is the pursuit of liberation from all limitations. We have to begin where we are… The path of Kundalini is precise in its minute development; it is a good and safe guide”. Kundalini For The West, Swami Sivananda Radha