Awakening the Chakras
At the Zinal Conference in September 1981, Swami Satyananda Saraswati described the different levels of spiritual awakening and explained that the awakening of the chakras and sushumna nadi must precede the awakening of kundalini.
All the chakras are directly connected through ida and pingala nadis to each and every organ in the body in that particular area. For instance, swadhisthana chakra is directly connected through the nerve channels with the urogenital and ovarian system. Anahata chakra is connected with the cardiovascular system and the lungs. Vishuddhi chakra is connected with the ears, nose and throat. Now, these are the connections which exist between the chakras and the physiological organs so far as ida and pingala are concerned. But when awakening occurs, it first takes place in sushumna nadi.
The word 'awakening' is used in three different contexts: awakening of chakras, awakening of sushumna, and awakening of kundalini. First awakening of chakras must take place, then awakening of sushumna, and only after these two, awakening of kundalini takes place. If the chakras and sushumna are closed, and kundalini wakes up by your practices, where will this great force go? Before generating so much electricity, you must have a conducting channel and a distributing system. Sushumna is the conducting channel and the chakras are the junctions from which the energy, aroused by the awakening of kundalini, is distributed to different organs and zones is the body.
There is another important point to be noted. Sushumna runs from mooladhara up to ajna chakra, but it must pass through swadhisthana, manipura, anahata and vishuddhi. When every chakra is closed, it forms a block like the high barrier you find on the highway. If awakening of kundalini takes place, the energy will only go up to a particular chakra, but it cannot pass beyond that because the chakra is closed, it is not awakened.
In the awakening of kundalini, the first important thing that we have to do is awaken the chakras. Awakening of the chakras takes place by the practice of certain asanas. That is precisely the purpose of the asanas. Therapy is only a by product. Then you must awaken the chakras by practising the mantra or bija mantra and concentrating on different points. The third way to open the chakras is by the practice of pranayama. However, the practices of asana and mantra are the best ways to awaken or to revive the chakras.
When awakening of a chakra begins, you may have certain visions and experiences. You must remember that those visions and experiences do not represent the awakening of kundalini, or even the awakening of sushumna. Usually the experiences which represent the awakening of the chakras are of a fantastic nature, but they do not mean anything when you try to assess their results. I will give you an example. Many years ago, I was meditating on the bank of the Ganga in Rishikesh, and suddenly I had a very vivid experience. I saw the whole earth broken into two. It was a very clear vision, and I remember it even today, but this vision had nothing to do with reality; I just had it.
Now, this is an experience of the awakening of the chakras. You can see angels, divine forms, sun, moon and stars. You can hear music or you can feel a sort of bliss or ecstasy. These and many other experiences represent the awakening of the chakras. Then comes the awakening of sushumna. When awakening takes place in sushumna, you can feel the rod of light. You can feel an upward passage fully illumined from within.
These experiences which I am telling you about are described by the saints in different religions by means of songs and stories, which unfortunately the devotees do not understand today. However, the awakening of kundalini is an event in man's life. Every experience has a "tangible proof, whether it is the awakening of extrasensory perceptions or the awakening of a particular kind of genius. It may be in the form of a prophecy that you are able to deliver to the people, a transformation in the physical elements of the body that you are able to materialise, or a magnetic influence that you are able to cast on the masses of people as a politician, a musician or a saint.
The awakening of kundalini has tangible, positive, concrete proofs. You cannot say that your kundalini is awakened if you have no proof. If people come to me and tell me that their kundalini is awakened, I ask them, 'How do you know it?' They say, 'I feel this, I feel that.' I tell them, 'It is not enough.' Because when the awakening of kundalini takes place, you completely transcend the normal categories of mental awareness. The scope of knowledge becomes greater.
Most people are under the mistaken impression that kundalini is experienced in the lower parts of the body, but the sensual experiences such as pain, pleasure, taste, touch, sight, smell and sound are all felt by different circuits in the brain. Similarly, all the chakras are linked to a specific area in the brain. When these zones are activated, different experiences, expressions and faculties come into action.
When kundalini passes through swadhisthana, or remains there for some time, all your latent and suppressed vasanas or passions come out. When kundalini is in anahata chakra, then you become filled with absolute devotion. Even an atheist will change when kundalini is in the proximity of anahata chakra. You become a great poet, a singer, a clairvoyant, and you are able to conquer people by the immensity of your love.
When kundalini is in vishuddhi chakra, then the nectar or the ambrosia is consumed properly by the body, and the cells of the body are rejuvenated. Emaciation and old age vanish. The body is transformed into the body of a young person. That is why it is said that when the kundalini is in vishuddhi chakra, one enjoys eternal youth.
This is a very important topic that we have discussed today. Everybody, whether householder or sannyasin, must remember that awakening of kundalini is the prime purpose of human incarnation. The different pleasures of sensual life, which you are enjoying and which you can enjoy, are intended only to enhance the awakening of kundalini amidst the adverse circumstances of man's life.
So, in order to awaken kundalini, first you must have a guru, then a mantra, then a system of practice comprised of asana, pranayama and occasional hatha yoga shat kriyas, then ajapa japa and kriya yoga in successive order. And if you follow this yogic course, even if your kundalini is not awakened, it does not matter. At least awakening of the chakras and sushumna will take place.
Exploding
Kundalini
Lecture
given by Swami Satyananda Saraswati
at Senate
Hall, University of Bangalore on 22.3.1979.
The subject
of kundalini yoga has become very popular in India as well as abroad and so it
has become necessary for all of us to understand both its practical and
philosophical aspects in clearly defined terms. Just as Ananta, the serpent
king, is the support of the whole earth, so too is the serpent kundalini the
support of all tantra and yoga. The concept of kundalini and its ascent through
sushumna, the royal road, has been symbolised in many stories and parables of
various religions throughout the world.
One of the
greatest stories symbolising kundalini is found in the tales of Lord Hanuman,
the monkey god. The story of Hanuman symbolises the sadhana of one striving to
awaken this inherent power. It is said that once, as a child, he was standing
watching the sunrise. Suddenly he felt hungry and leapt into the sky and ate
the sun, believing it to be a huge apple. Immediately all the three worlds
became dark and the gods grew panicky. Hanuman definitely did not eat the sun.
It is merely a symbolic expression representing the withdrawal of prana or the
solar force from his body into the sushumna passage. This is the secret
understanding of kundalini.
Kundalini
yoga is a part of the tantric tradition. Although the word kundalini literally
means 'coil', according to tantra it is derived from the word kunda meaning 'a
deeper place', like havan kund. Kundalini is mahashakti, residing in a deeper
place, mooladhara. Tantra incorporates many branches within its fold such as
hatha yoga, mantra yoga, laya yoga, asanas, pranayama, kriya yoga, yoga nidra,
bhakti yoga and above all kundalini yoga. The prime purpose of tantra has
always been to awaken this great dormant potential and evolve the human
consciousness beyond the frontiers of mind and time and space.
The mind is
limited by certain barriers and its functions are confined to space and object.
The word tantra is a composition of two ideas: expansion and liberation. Its
aim is to expand consciousness and finally liberate it from its union with
matter in the micro cosmic as well as macro cosmic aspect. Human consciousness
is evolving constantly, it can never be disintegrated totally. Death of the
body does not kill the consciousness. Disease of the body does not affect it.
Tantra is the science of this consciousness.
The two
great forces in man
It is said
in the Gita that there are two eternal forces known as purusha and prakriti.
They are the beginningless and endless forces behind the whole cosmos and our
human existence. Prakriti is the matter, the totality or manifestation. Purusha
is the consciousness manifesting itself further in the realm of mind, manas,
buddhi, chitta and ahamkara. Existence and the individual being arise when
purusha and prakriti come together.
For ages
and ages throughout the cycle of reincarnation and evolution, these twin
realities have moved and lived together as an inseparable unit. Even today in
our individual existence we are a composition of matter and consciousness. The
eternal union between these two aspects of creation has been so great that it
has not been possible for an ordinary man with a gross and intellectual mind to
separate them. The philosophy and practices of tantra aim at breaking this
inseparability. Therefore yoga involves a process of separation (viyoga), and
when pure consciousness is disconnected from entanglement with the mind and the
manifested world, union (yoga) is the result.
In relation
to the micro cosmic unit, within our physical body there are two forces: chitta
and prana. Prana is the life force and chitta is the totality of awareness- the
conscious, subconscious and unconscious states of the mind. Combined they are
responsible for our knowledge and action. They control the karmendriyas (senses
of action), the gyanendriyas (senses of cognition), and the functions of mind
and consciousness.
Prana and
chitta are channelled through our physical body in two nadis known as ida and
pingala, which flow within the framework of the spinal column. In the same way
as radioactive waves pass through the different lines in a transistor radio but
are not perceptible to our naked eyes, the flow of mental and pranic
consciousness in ida and pingala is not perceivable even after anatomical
dissection of the spinal cord. Nevertheless they are realities.
Ida flows
through the left nostril and pingala through the right nostril. Ida represents
coolness, the moon and the mental and psychic functions. Pingala represents
heat, the sun, energy and activity. Recent scientific investigations have shown
that the temperature of the left nostril is slightly less than the right
nostril supporting the age-old yogic theory.
The word
nadi is generally translated as nerve channel, but the yogic definition
differs. Nadi comes from the root word 'nad', to flow. It is not a vehicle or a
nerve channel, which indicates a physical part of the body. Ida nadi is the
flow of mental consciousness and pingala nadi is the flow of pranic
consciousness. Prana and chitta flow throughout the body controlling every
part, every organ, activity, impulse, every action and reaction of the whole gross,
subtle and causal bodies.
These two
nadis emanate from the base of the spinal cord at mooladhara chakra and
terminate at the top of the spinal cord in ajna chakra. In the masculine body,
mooladhara chakra is situated in the area of the perineum between the excretory
and the urinary system. In the female body it can be found at the posterior
side of the cervix. Mooladhara chakra is known as the seat of kundalini, the
great mahashakti. Ajna chakra corresponds to the most important controlling
gland in the human body known as the pineal gland. It is situated at the top of
the spinal cord directly behind the mid-eyebrow centre in the area of the
medulla oblongata. From mooladhara, pingala goes to the right and ida to the
left and they curve and cross each at swadhisthana, manipura, anahata, and
vishuddhi, finally terminating in ajna.
Finding the
balance
The third
and most important channel flowing up the centre of the spinal cord is known as
sushumna, the synthesis or spiritual nadi.
The force of sushumna is kundalini.
In tantra, kundalini is said to be sleeping in mooladhara chakra in eternal
nidra, in eternal potentiality, wrapped in tamoguna. As long as sushumna and
kundalini are in this dormant state, they are considered to be a tamasic force.
But when ida and pingala are balanced, this tamasic force is activated and
awakened. If the awakening of kundalini takes place prior to the balancing of
ida and pingala, however, the sadhaka may suffer severe physical, mental and
emotional disturbances.
Ida and
pingala nadis are of prime importance when we talk about kundalini yoga. All
the karmas, samskaras, frustrations and jealousies, and all that the mind and
prana are made up of, are contained in the flow of ida and pingala. This means
that all you have experienced in the past remains in the system of ida and
pingala in a micro cosmic form. Unless these samskaras and karmas, both good
and bad, painful and pleasant, are exhausted and purified, the awakening of
sushumna may result in total imbalance of the nervous system and in extreme
cases a person may suffer insanity or become a criminal.
Psychic
awakening in an individual does not necessarily take place with the awakening
of sushumna. Sushumna is an independent system and does not lie across ida and
pingala. Many experiences which aspirants have may correspond to the awakening
of prana in pingala or consciousness in ida. The hatha yoga shastras clearly
explain that harmony and balance between the mental and pranic forces are
absolutely necessary before the awakening of sushumna, the experience of
samadhi.
When ida
flows, the right side of the brain functions, and when pingala flows the left
side of the brain operates. When the flow in sushumna is activated the whole
brain participates in the activities of life. Sushumna is the pathway for the
upward ascent of kundalini; it does not flow through any other nadi. When ida
and pingala flow at the same time, when their temperature is equal, when the
differences between prana and consciousness are broken down and all the various
aspects are in perfect balance, kundalini is compelled to travel through
sushumna nadi to brahmarandhra, a higher centre in the brain.
It is
clearly written in the shastras that one should not awaken kundalini without
first awakening sushumna. If you have a motor car but there is no roadway
leading from your home, what are you going to do? In the same way when
kundalini wakes up you have to give it a passageway. The opening up of sushumna
becomes the means of communication between the lower and higher worlds.
Necessity
of the practices
Before the
awakening of sushumna the practices of hatha yoga, including asanas, pranayama,
mantra yoga and so on are essential in order to purify the functional and
structural form of ida and pingala. It is important for the aspirant to
understand that the process of awakening of this divine consciousness needs
thorough, complete and expert planning. It must be done gradually under the
guidance of one who has gained previous knowledge of the path.
The word
hatha in tantra is a composition of two syllables 'ha' and 'tha', representing
the two forces prana and mind, shiva and shakti, sun and moon, Ganga and Jamuna
and so on. The definition of hatha yoga has been misunderstood and
mistranslated as physical practices, but it is an esoteric system intended to balance
these forces and awaken man's deeper personality. Asanas are not physical
exercises merely for the health. They are designed to give a mild stimulus to
the chakras so that when the awakening takes place one will not be startled.
Now we have come to understand this more clearly in the light of modern
scientific research.
In the same
way, the practices of pranayama are not deep breathing exercises for increasing
the supply of oxygen into the body. Oxygen alone is not the pranic force that
helps you in yoga. What is important are the ions which are released from
oxygen after a process of separation induced by the practices of pranayama. For
example, in nadi shodhana pranayama a concentration of these ions, or pranic
energy, occurs around ida and pingala nadis, increasing in intensity according
to the number of rounds practised. In normal breathing this does not happen.
With continued practice of alternate nostril breathing, over a long period of
time, this concentration is harmonised and sushumna awakens.
Some people
who are not familiar with Sanskrit misinterpret pranayama as 'control of
breath' but the word pranayama is composed of 'prana' and 'ayama'. Ayama is a
dimension or field. As there are radioactive and electromagnetic fields there
are also pranic fields in the physical body. So far, in the scheme of our
evolution, we have been able to extend the prana into only the first three
dimensions of our existence: the gross, subtle and causal bodies corresponding
to the waking, dreaming and sleeping states. However, there are seven bodies-
one that we can see, two that we can feel, and four others that we can neither
see nor feel. They correspond to the chakras and to the seven planes of
consciousness - bhu, bhuvah, swaha, maha, jana, tapa and satyam. The purpose of
pranayama is to extend the permeation of prana into these other bodies, into
the realm of samadhi and beyond.
When prana
which is now controlling the karmendriyas and gyanendriyas is withdrawn from
every part of the body and is no longer bound to mooladhara chakra, kundalini
breaks out. When Hanuman ate the sun he stopped the flow of pingala nadi, also
known as Surya(sun) nadi. As a result the function of prana stopped, the heart and
the brain ceased to work, and the other organs were nominally existing. He
transcended the waking, dreaming and sleeping states, and the three worlds went
dark. Feelings, sensations and the functions of the mind ceased. This is
achieved through the practices of moola bandha, uddiyana bandha and jalandhara
bandha. When you practise these three bandhas in combination with pranayama you
are directing the prana into another ayama, into the field of kundalini.
Pranayama stimulates prana and the bandhas direct it to the required centre,
preventing dissipation.
Hatha yoga,
asanas and pranayama are intended initially to prepare the sadhaka for bearing,
enduring, holding and understanding the experiences of kundalini yoga.
Awakening of kundalini influences the physical elements in the body, so it is
understood in kundalini yoga that the physical body should be rendered free of
toxic elements. The body that has been purified by the fire of yoga will be the
most permanent and most trustworthy base for the awakening of kundalini. For
kundalini to arise the body must be able to cope with its force and the nervous
system must be strong, healthy and mature. When these preparations are complete
the practice of dhyana begins.
It is
believed by some practitioners of yoga that dhyana is a method of
concentration, but in tantra and kundalini yoga it is said that concentration
is an injustice to the free flow of the mind. The nature of the mind is to
expand and to flow. You can direct the mind but you can't control it. In kriya
yoga you will find that no effort is made to force the mind or to concentrate
it on one single point. Supreme awakening does not depend on concentration. It
has nothing to do with the functions of the lower mind. The purpose is not to
change the nature of the mind because the mind is not an ethical, moral,
religious or national entity. This life is a force; the mind is a vritti, a
formation. Therefore, in kundalini yoga we don't waste time fighting or
interfering with the natural behaviour of the mind.
Then what
do we do? For a few years work on hatha yoga, kriya yoga, and pratyahara.
Practise nadi shodhana until it is perfected. Then Gayatri mantra can be
incorporated into it. For example, perform pooraka, antaranga kumbhaka, rechaka
and bahiranga kumbhaka with the mantra in the ratio 1:2:2:1. Maintain this
ratio without fail. In addition, practise jalandhara and moola bandha in
antaranga kumbhaka; and jalandhara, uddiyana and moola bandha in bahiranga
kumbhaka.
After one
round of nadi shodhana, pause for a while in chin mudra and fix your gaze, with
eyes closed, at the nose tip, nasikagra mudra. When your pranas become quiet
and tranquil, start another round. After the second round of nadi shodhana,
again pause and practise nasikagra mudra. In this way continue for five rounds
of nadi shodhana pranayama coupled with bandhas and combined with your own
mantra or Gayatri mantra. If you use Gayatri let one mantra form one unit; if
you use some other mantra you will have to adjust the ratio according to your
capacity.
Prepare
yourself
The rising
of kundalini is an historical event in life, when a man departs from his
involvement with lower forms of knowledge into higher realms of understanding.
In the evolution of consciousness there have been definite historical
landmarks. One was when it departed from unconsciousness to consciousness in
the vegetable kingdom; another when it departed from vegetable life to sensual
life in the animal kingdom, and another when it departed from animal life to
human life. Now man lives in the mind by logic and mathematics. The awakening
of kundalini is the most important landmark in the history of mankind when he
shall make an absolute departure from the realm of reason into the realm of
intuition. Kundalini yoga is intended to revolutionise the consciousness of
mankind to fully understand the concepts previously known only through our
intellect. Kundalini is the opening of that era in human life when the ordinary
mind becomes a super mind.
Today the
thinking individuals, belonging to any religion in the world, are becoming more
and more aware. They want to know how to make an exit from their present
existence and its limitations. They want to know the purpose of living and the
end they are working towards. All over the world people are seeking the truth.
Can it be found in the church, temple or mosque? Can it be read in the
scriptures? Is it the awakening of kundalini?
We have
been searching for a long time and from all that I have seen and experienced in
life, I am not going to accept anything else but the practical side of yoga. It
is the one way that is open to all. The practices are available and you are not
asked to change your vocation, to renounce your family, or to believe that
marital life is sinful. Tantra is one of the few philosophies throughout
history that regards marital life as the holiest relationship that a man can
have with a woman. It is known as dharma and is the primary philosophy of
tantra and yoga. Marital life is the rock base on which kundalini yoga is
situated.
The yoga
shastras are dedicated to one purpose only: how to prepare the millions and
millions of different people all over the world - people with sensual,
animalistic, passionate, fearful, intellectual, and sattvic natures - for the
awakening of kundalini. It is for this purpose that the concepts of dharma and
karma have evolved, that ashrams and temples were built, that the order of guru
and shishya was created.
As a
householder with involvements and responsibilities, with mental, moral,
emotional and physical difficulties of daily life, keep one purpose in mind. Prepare
yourself for the awakening of that great power. With this aim, you will achieve
success in life.
Finally,
please do not be in a hurry for this experience. First train your mind. In
order to discover if you are ready for the experience of the beyond, test
yourself to see whether you can endure anger, worry, love and passion,
disappointment, jealousy, hatred, memories of the past, sufferings and sorrows
for the dead. If you can maintain a balance of mind in the face of these minor
mental and emotional conflicts, if you can still feel joy when the scales are
heavily loaded against you, then you are the aspirant for kundalini yoga. When
all your preparations have been made, sit down, practise your kriyas and wait
for the bomb to explode. Kundalini will awaken from its slumber, bringing about
an historical change in your life.
