What is Kundalini Yoga?
Although the word may appear strange to many, in actual fact Kundalini happens to be nearer to a person than his or her own heart. It is nearer than the breath in one’s body for it is the breather and the breath, rolled into one. In its latent form it is the very essence of life. And whether you are aware of it or not, there is a rather common symbol of it in the West. It is the Caduceus, the symbol of medicine, of healing, health and transformation, the universal logo seen atop ambulances. It’s a rod with two snakes coiled around it in spirals with two wings at the top. It’s the image of Mercury (or Hermes) holding it.
The central rod signifies the central column, like the spine in the physical body. In Sanskrit it’s referred to as Sushumna. It parallels the spinal column from its root to the base of the skull. And like the spinal column that is a hollow structure protecting the spinal cord, the Sushumna offers an ascending duct for Kundalini, or the light force. Within it are three more channels.
The two snake-like ducts that twist three and a half times each around the central shaft, meet and cross in their ascent, at the Sushumna. They represent two conduits of the flow of the awakened Kundalini energy, called Ida and Pingala. Ida, on the left ending above the right nostril, represents the feminine temperament and is negatively charged. It’s characteristics of coolness relate to the moon. Pingala, the right side that ends above the left nostril, represents the masculine disposition and is positively charged. It’s characteristics of heat relate to the sun.
Modern science, with all its highly developed, cutting-edge technologies and state-of-the-art instruments, has not been able to get a glimpse of these phenomena, because they are part of the subtle body. Only Yogis, mystics and students of Oriental martial arts based on Chi or Ki have reported sighting this light.
The practice of Kundalini Yoga comprises awakening and then chanelizing this energy through the Nadis or channels, up the different Chakras, through Shat-Chakra Bheda. Bheda means to forge a rift or penetrate. Yogis meditate on the psychic centers or Chakras in their bodies to generate this power. Yoga is a system of continuous practice that helps the soul understand that there are higher levels of consciousness above lower levels of awareness and thereby help it ascend the ladder of consciousness. When our energy is raised in the spine we move towards divine consciousness. But at the start of his spiritual quest, the seeker encounters what may be called ‘doors’ or ‘gates’. These are words used to describe the seven chakras.
Kundalini Shakti helps rid us of our deepest tensions, misconceptions about our true nature and, subsequently, teaches us to expand the flow of our creative energies. The goal is to enhance our life by opening barriers and raising our energy up the psychic channel. That is the Sushumna Nadi, running from the base of the spine to the brain. Which is why, Kundalini Yoga can be a profoundly emotional experience – it lets us to see what's really going on in our lives. During its ascent, as the sleeping Kundalini is awakened and wends its way upwards, layer after layer of the mind opens up, a process that stimulates the practitioner intensely. You even experience Yogic powers, bliss and unearth hitherto unknown depths of knowledge.
Mukti, self-realization is said to come about when this energy is raised through the other 6 chakras till it reaches the final and the highest, the Sahasrara Chakra, situated at the crown of the head. This is also said to bring about the blissful state of Samadhi. Through their highly developed sense of perception, Gurus can even assist their disciples in raising their Kundalini Shakti. With their psychic powers, they can see the impediments and obstructions and help release it for them. Hence the paramountcy of the Guru in Kundalini Yoga.
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