Kundalini Introduction

Kundalini Introduction

"To activate the unconscious means to awaken the divine, the devi, Kundalini - to begin the development of the suprapersonal within the individual in order to kindle the light of the gods. Kundalini, which is to be awakened in the sleeping Muladhara world, is the suprapersonal, the non-ego. For this reason, Kundalini is the same principal as the Soter, the Savior Serpent of the Gnostics."
The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga, Carl Jung.

Lecture 4, 26 October 1932, Notes of the Seminar, Princeton University Press, USA, 1996, Page 68/69
Inside the enclosed occidental structure of insightful perspective, Kundalini  is frequently connected to psychological imbalances.

A Kundalini energy evolution inside the human body, that can pressure the mind to undergo distorted states of consciousness, which includes hallucinations, sense of expansiveness, emotional outbreaks and epileptic spasms, psychotic episodes and so forth, can be brought up by the practice of yoga, through a near-death experience, intense concentration, meditation, and even through psychedelic drugs and intense fear.

Not too many scholars in the west recognize these dynamic and vibrant phenomena as a form of extrasensory adjustment that the human species have to go through in other to evolve. This lack of knowledge is understandable, on account that the occidental perceptive, when it comes to “the paranormal”, is alienated from the rest of the world by the pressures and demands that its own cultural prevailing conditions impose. That is why most intellectuals here may underestimate the discovery of the old Indian sages and their interpretations will be subject and subjugated by the western mind limitations.

Kundalini as described in the scriptures is curled up somewhere in the sacrum three and a half rounds (we have to take in account that different schools of thought differ on the exact location of the base chakra). Vedic phenomenology affirms that this arousing is related to the manifestation of a magnetic inner movement that the yogi undergoes and in some cases endures for the sake and compelling promises that this evolving process is associated with.

Kundalini as a sacred gift is considered to have equivalent manifestation in different religions.

Christians in the past call it 'pneuma'. If you investigate deeply you will find matching descriptions throughout and Sufis would swirl and fall to the ground in ecstasy.  Quakers, and  Buddhists in India and Tibet, as they practice inner heat techniques that allows them to handle the low temperatures of the Himalayan mountains, Buddhist in Japan who practice a similar form and meditate under a frizzing waterfall, Taoists, Judaist as in the torso-rocking prayer, and the quivering Eastern Orthodox.

Kundalini Explained

Kundalini Explained

According to yogic belief, Kundalini rises from the first or base-chakra up through the spinal inner canal, (sushumna), and it is assumed that in the way to the seventh chakra it will ignite each and every chakra (psycho-spiritual centers).

As Kundalini touches every psycho-spiritual center, mystical powers (siddhis) are developed. However, all sacred texts see this as a hindrance, persuading and convincing practitioners to abandon and ignore them. It is of utmost importance not to evaluate this development exclusively by judging these superior spiritual skills gained through the practice. You can only measure spiritual advancement by comparing the thoughtless gaps and increase of peace you experience or the process of depersonalization you are going through.  
Many Yoga masters, Gurus, modern new aged literature, and even in the landscape of Transpersonal Psychology, is recommended not to employ any of these techniques devoid of the supervision of someone that already walked the path.

Whichever the variety of introspective investigation or religious practice, it could be disastrous without the support of the foundation of the cultural background or if psychological groundwork and training is ignored and not present.

Whenever and wherever we bring the Kundalini subject up we can observe that there are many warnings stated in many scriptures and books, and they should not be undervalued and taken lightly. All the contrary, we have to be extremely cautious.

There is an increasing amount of Kundalini associated troubles and tribulations in the west because we are neglecting and ignoring this suggestion and warning advice. 

This psychosomatic awakening that causes a high level of anxiety, nervous energy and strong apprehension took the name of Kundalini Syndrome in transpersonal psychology, by the growing popularity of people affected, they understood that these symptoms were supposed to transpire in correlation with protracted and rigorous meditation, breathing exercises, introspective techniques or as a consequence of extreme and severe shocks like an accident, deep sadness, confined imprisonment or near death experience ( as in a flat line patient).

The Kundalini syndrome’s main symptom is a progressive deconstruction of the mind in which the personality gets stripped in an extremely painful way over a number of months, or years in some cases. Sometimes the signs could be revealed to the subject in a tremendously forceful way in which the individual can suffer a very strong detonation at the foundations of being. Here the ego could be painfully annihilated, bringing an instantaneous enlightenment experience that will end in pure and continuous bliss which come after this cataclysm.

There are specific symptoms that are described by modern transpersonal psychology schools. These are alterations in temperature, sensations of electric current that takes over the entire nervous system, unrelenting headaches and pain in the eye balls, tickling or stinging sensations along the spine, digestive problems, mental and emotional turmoil, nervous tension, despair, depersonalization, constant sexual excitement, passionate temper changes, which interlink with moments of ecstasy, profound stillness, body quakes, alteration in breath, heart rate and so forth.

Kundalini: Goethe & Shopenhauer

Kundalini: Nietzsche Goethe & Shopenhauer

On January 3, 1889, Nietzsche first exhibited obvious signs of Kundalini awakening which was confused and diagnosed as mental illness.

Analysts from all over have recurrently identified a syphilitic disease as the cause of his illness, but other studies have suggested that it was brain cancer. Others have classified Nietzsche's "madness" as frontal temporal dementia. On the other hand, René Girard and Georges Bataille believed that the foundation of Nietzsche's breakdown had its roots on a psychological depersonalization, enthused by his modern way of thinking and deep contemplative period in which he looked absent minded.

What I believe by studying his symptoms and the way his writings evolved is that he had a blasting experience of Kundalini evolution in his body that caused an abrupt energy onset too  early for his unprepared nervous system and brain to handle. This contributed to the development of a condition of ego and mental collapse, triggered by a major depersonalization experience.

What in fact occurred is really unknown, but there is an incident in which Nietzsche eyewitness’ the beating of a horse and he ran hurriedly to the horse, threw his arms up to stop the beating and embraced the horse while crying, and after that he collapsed to the ground.

Although Nietzsche has notably been misrepresented as a precursor to Nazism, he relentlessly and unsympathetically condemned anti-Semitism, and nationalism. In 1886 he fought and stopped seeing his editor because of his evident disagreement to his editor’s anti-Semitic position. After that followed his split with Richard Wagner for the same reason and many other similar eruptions and he exhibited  strong compassion after this arousal.

"If you stare long enough into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you."
Friedrich Nietzsche
Edgar Allan Poe in a poem describes some of the Kundalini symptoms in this famous poem FOR ANNIE.

Goethe and Schopenhauer as well show signs of a partial awakening to me.
 When it comes to colors, Goethe corroborated that color was a visible and visionary phenomenon that collided against the narrow limitations of Isaac Newton's “Wave Length Theory” in which he used a prism crystal.

Goethe had a vision of an eighth color, which inexplicably came into sight in between Violet and Red, apparently manifesting as a circular shape color divergent from a linear rainbow-like   incomplete circle. Goethe names this mysterious color MAGENTA.

Schopenhauer
The first time Schopenhauer studied the Gita he put it on his head and danced in a static way. When the natives asked him what was the reason for this crazy conduct, he said, "The book is not only worth reading but is worthy of being put upon the head and danced to! I by no means knew that there were once upon a time people on this earth who spoke this way. What I thought could never be put into words has been expressed in this book so simply."

Transpersonal psychologists state that the Kundalini’s strong and out of control awakenings are not fundamentally pathological in all cases, but they can generate severe psychosomatic, schizophrenic, and   hallucinogenic warning signs if it is set in motion externally from a suitable socio-cultural environment.

From a western standpoint kundalini can be described as a prosperous supply of supernatural or libido power in the unconscious mind.

The practice of Kundalini in the short brings about the blissful disbanding of dualistic consciousness into the awareness of the harmony of non dual reality.

For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun? And what is it to cease breathing but to free the breath from its restless tides that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered? Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb. And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.
- Khalil Gibran, from The Prophet.

Nadi Channels

Nadis Channels

 Nadis are subtle cylindrical pipes that branches throughout the physical and astral body and transmit psychic currents to different centers. Through these Nadis the fundamental power or of life (Prana) surges. Given that they are composed up of delicate astral substance they are undetectable. These Nadis are not the nerves, arteries and so on that are acknowledgeinto the Vaidya Shastra. The physical and astral body have different kinds of nadis.

1. GROSS nadis composed by blood vessels, nerves, lymph canals, etc.
2. SUBTLE nadis which are imperceptible conduits of subtle power.

This subtle nadis are divided or categorized in two types:

1. Pranavaha Nadis: Carrying Prana (vital Force).
2. Manovaha Nadis: Manas Shakti (mental Force) flows in theme.

In the yoga system we have three most important nadis.

Ida running by the sympathetic nerve, Pingala along the parasympathetic nerve and Shushumna in the center of the spine.

As such, the ida nadi is associated with the artistic and restorative system of the body and the right hemisphere of the brain affected by left nostril, whereas the pingala nadi is associated with, calculative and mathematical responses coming from the left hemisphere of the brain which is affected by the right nostril. As each rises up the back and neck and over the head, this nadis meet in the ajna chakra, or ‘third eye,’ and then drop down into the nose, the ida nadi terminating in the left nostril, and the pingala nadi terminating in the right nostril.

There is a virtual autonomy of this two hemispheres that is obvious and evident on a daily basis.

'Split - brain' patients confirm that after surgery they feel completely normal. In an effort to relentlessly heal cases of epilepsy, surgeons through a delicate intervention cut the corpus callosum, the major group of neural fibers relating the left and right hemispheres of the neocortex. The standard activities and manifestation of 'split-brain' patients in itself imply that the purpose of corpus callosum is subtle. It is vital not to overestimate the separation of functions in a normal human being. The multifaceted wiring arrangement of the corpus callosum denotes if I am not wrong that interface and communication between hemispheres is a fundamental interrelation.  

If you are really healthy, you will breathe predominantly through the Ida nostril for about one hour and fifty minutes, then through the Pingala nostril for an equal time.

Each Hemisphere has a different quality and conversely stimulates us in diverse ways changing dramatically our moods and even affecting severely the health of the physical body.

Ida & Pingala Nadis

Ida & Pingala Nadis

Here are some examples of qualities of these two hemispheres:

Shushumna Nadi

SUSHUMNA – in the center of the spinal Column

 The Sushumna hypothetical speaking is chaotic for most material purposes, this is because the ego somehow is absent and all material under takings should be avoided during its flow and take advantage of this stage to do spiritual practices that suits the practitioner. Sushumna could intensify to sexual enjoyment, but the most important thing it could bring forth liberation.

The Kundalini ascends through the Sushumna when it awakens with its tremendous force.

Kundalini, awakens and evolves through Prana, while Shakti is none other than that explosive accumulated prana in movement and it is responsible for most enlightenment experienses.

The pranic force raises trough Pingala while the right nostril is active with fiery masculine energy. Manas shakti  or mental force, rises through Ida  while the left nostril is open with feminine and cooling enerjy.

Atma Shakti (spiritual force) in the other hand rises through Sushumna (Central conduit)

Here we can find a clear example of enlightenment states and how this force called kundaliny can be the precursor of different states of consciousness and emotional upheavals; it all depends in which channel it flows, it can make you insane and it can confer total freedom from the mind which is the root of insanity.
If it rises in the center of the spine and the nerves system is ready to handle the extra voltage then certain particular states and feelings will spring from nowhere, in India they call them Samadhi, in Zen Buddhism satori and so on.
Here there is a guide and a complete description of some of them, or the most important ones so you can compare and see if you can find any similitude of what you are experiencing.

Prana has 2 manifestations; the passive or immaterialized form, Prana, and the power of Pure Consciousness which rises above all creation and the obvious manifested Prana, that is, the energy behind creation. 

The higher Self is motionless Prana since it is perfect and does not need any changes.  On the other hand some texts unveil the secret and tells us that the higher self goes even beyond Prana itself and it is not limited nor encapsulated by it.  On the contrary, Prana is contained in the self.

Prana suffers an adaptation when entering the physical body.  It intermingles with the air element, first and foremost the oxygen and carbon dioxide that we breathe and which keeps us alive. Prana happens in space and resides in it as the air.

[Vinay comment: the above is somewhat different from my understanding of prana;  I think of prana as the subtle form of oxygen (not CO2), but it not really oxygen.  It is the life force itself, but comes into the body via breathing, food, and even thoughts.]

Prana in the human body has five subdivisions and they are:

1. Prana  which is in the heart and the element associated with it is fire  and sense of sight, prana has the tendency to ascending.
2. Apana in anus and genital organs, and is connected to earth and sense of smell, and the current is down wards. 
3. Samana in navel region, related to the water element.
4. Udana in throat,  interrelated to the sense of taste, and responsible of digestion.
5. Vyana in the whole body interconnected to the space and the sense of hearing. Viana is call the Aura as well Vyana udana is the means of transportation of the soul and is said to channel it from one body to another following death.