Basic Facts About Kundalini Yoga

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Many of you must have heard the term 'Kundalini Yoga' but we are sure not many of you are aware of what it is all about. To begin with, let us first understand what is Kundalini power. 'Kundalini' is a form of cosmic energy which resides in every human being. It is the dormant, female spiritual energy which dwells inside an individual that can be awakened through yoga and meditation.

Kundalini has often been described as the coiled sleeping serpent within an individual which is waiting to be awakened. The power of Kundalini is said to be located at the base of the spine.

Once it is awakened a human being experiences subtle spiritual existence at the physical level. In other words, the person can experience enlightenment, self realisation and ultimately nirvana.

The sleeping and dormant force of the Kundalini can be awakened through regular practice of meditation, pranayama, yoga and chanting mantras. Let us take a look at the basic facts of Kundalini Yoga.

The Kundalinis
Kundalini means a ring or coil which denotes the serpent like energy concentrated at the end of the spine. Our 'subtle body' consists of the energy channels known as the 'nadis', the psychic centres or the chakras, the 'prana' or subtle energy and the 'bindu' or centre point. The kundalini power is said to reside at the base of the spine, somewhere near rhe navel and the rectum.

Kundalini Awakening
The Kundalini power can be awakened through Shaktipat or spiritual transmission through a Guru or teacher. When awakened, Kundalini is said to rise up from the muladhara chakra through the central nadi, called sushumna, inside or alongside the spine and reaching the top of the head. The progress of Kundalini through the different leads to different levels of awakening and mystical experience, until Kundalini finally reaches the top of the head, Sahasrara or crown chakra, producing an extremely profound mystical experience.

Approaches
There are basically two approaches to awakening the Kundalini power. The active method and the passive method. The active approach consists of physical exercises, techniques of concentration, breathing exercises and meditation. These techniques come from the branches of yoga namely the Sahaja yoga, Kriya yoga and Kundalini yoga.

The passive approach is the path of surrender where the Kundalini power of one person is awakened by another person who already has experience.

The awakening involves the Kundalini physically moving up the central channel to reside within the Sahasrara Chakra above the head. This movement of Kundalini is felt by the presence of a cool or a warm breeze flowing across the palms of the hands or the soles of the feet.

During the first few days of practice, the person may experience mood swings, headaches, insomnia, emotional numbness. However this feeling slowly goes away and the individual moves towards experiencing eternal bliss through the Kundalini yoga.

Kundalini yoga has been found to be a natural healer at both the physical and spiritual level. It gives you enormous strength, steadiness, patience, lightness of body and mind.