Kundalini (kuṇḍalinī, Sanskrit: कुण्डलिनी, Thai: กุณฺฑลินี) literally means coiled. In yoga, a “corporeal energy” – an unconscious, instinctive or libidinal force or Shakti, lies coiled at the base of the spine. It is envisioned either as a goddess or else as a sleeping serpent, hence a number of English renderings of the term such as ‘serpent power’. Reportedly, kundalini awakening results in deep meditation, enlightenment and bliss.
Kundalini is described as a sleeping, dormant potential force in the human organism. It is one of the components of an esoteric description of the ‘subtle body’, which consists of nadis (energy channels), chakras (psychic centres), prana (subtle energy), and bindu (drops of essence).
Kundalini is described as being coiled up at the base of the spine. The description of the location can vary slightly, from the rectum to the navel. According to Sahaja Yoga, the kundalini resides in the triangular shaped sacrum bone in three and a half coils.
The kundalini has been described as a residual power of pure desire by Nirmala Srivastava. The image given is that of a serpent coiled three and a half times around a smokey grey lingam. Each coil is said to represent one of the three gunas, with the half coil signifying transcendence.
Kundalini and How to Ignite it
The Kundalini is often described as a female serpent coiled 3 and 1/2 times at the base of your spine…sleeping away. It’s a bit bizarre that such a divine being would be taking a nap at the base ofyour spine, yet she truly contains the most awesome power you can imagine in the Universe. Your Kundalini will sleep here until our bodymind is fully awakened to living 24-7 as the divine all-powerful God-being we truly are.
This is called Samadhi. When we awaken her infinite Shakti power for the first time, we receive a spiritually enlightening experience (Satori) that can last for days. We then realize who we are is something much bigger than before. We see we are this energy, enthusiasm, inspiration and begin to realize we are responsible for the divine creation of our life exactly the way it is.
Kundalini is the supreme cosmic enlightening energy, that resides inside us, deep at the core of our being. Kundalini is the most powerful force in the Universe, and brings enlightenment to our world. Your Kundalini awakens the manifesting being in your life! Anything you wish to manifest is possible with an awakened Kundalini.
If we stay stuck in a life we are not excited about or love, the Kundalini snoozes away, patiently waiting for us to become totally conscious and realize that we are NOT just this ego-mind who is identifying with thoughts while feeling trapped in a body. In fact, the very moment we slow down and stop living in our busy heads filled with ideas of our past and future, she begins to rise up our spine and lets us know WE are this awakeness itself.
All our hidden Siddhi powers come from an awakened Kundalini. Examples of the Siddhi powers are supernatural abilities of strength, sight, hearing, levitation, bi-location, instant manifestations, etc… Basically anything you can imagine beyond the everyday world is possible when your Kundalini is awakened. The Siddhi powers are our natural abilities, yet through societal conditioning they have been suppressed and we have been programmed to believe they are malicious or wrong. They are as natural as the warmth from the sun above.
How To Raise Your Kundalini
If you continue to stay in the present moment, you will slowly dissolve the deepest of illusions our mind has been constantly re-creating about a true/false reality and start seeing The Reality of an ever-present energy of divine bliss in everyone and everything. If we buy into the illusions of the mind at any moment, the cosmic Kundalini falls back asleep. She will do this until we are completely present again to the Reality of Existence found only within the Here and Now.
Staying consciously awake in this eternal moment, the phenomena of psychic abilities, paranormal powers and magical manifesting capabilities will naturally begin to appear. She will give you the ability to attracting anything in the Universe you desire. Because you are merging with the Kundalini’s infinite power, the body will no longer have ANY experience of having mental, emotional or physical pain. The experience of being bathed in an ever-present Source of divine peace and awesome power will be your new way of living.
If you are open and willing to step into your destiny as a divine being of God, read on. Awakening this incredible power is a very delicate and gentle process. We are connecting with the greatest energy in the Universe. It is so powerful we need to be very tender with it, to allow it in.
When each of the seven major chakra centers in your body are ignited, you will step completely out of the time-bound world of the ordinary and into the most extraordinary super-natural realm of your being. The God and Goddess within you will become very apparent to all, and you will absolutely know without a doubt, the truly magical and all-powerful cosmic God-being you truly are. This is the ultimate goal of the human experience.
Meditation To Ignite Your Kundalini
Sitting on the floor with legs crossed, for the first 5-7 minutes relax every muscle and organ in your body. Imagine a golden white light is caressing you on the inside, releasing every concern, worry and tension you have.
Next, let your body gently undulate back and forth, in small circles, in mini figure eight’s, or in whatever ways that feel most natural, easy, effortless and sensually enjoyable. You can even move as you were having a very relaxing slow sexual experience sitting with a divine being. Let the rest of your body move and sway as it needs to.
Let each vertebrae in your entire spine (all the way up to your head) be affected by the undulating motion of your body. The energy is flowing up from the bottom to the top of your head. You can also imagine that your spine is as loose as seaweed on the ocean floor. It is so relaxed and at ease, going with wherever the ocean waves flow. This will loosen the Kundalini up so that she can rise completely out of the top of the head.
During this time, keep your attention on the energy between your sexual anatomy and the base of your spine. As you are undulating, breathe into this lower area deeply and slowly. Imagine a golden Lotus flower radiating rays of light is blossoming there.
With a devoted concentration, you will feel a warm or tingling energy along the base of your spine or higher. The more conscious and relaxing the experience is, the more the Kundalini will move and grow.
When you begin to feel a rising sensation of energy, stop the undulation and be completely still. Set the intention for your thoughts to slow down and eventually stop. Begin to relax into the stillness. Breathe slowly and deeply up to 5 minutes into your belly, without forcing it. You will notice that your body is breathing on its own. As you continue watching your belly breathe naturally, follow your breath, as it will take you deeper into the stillness.
When you are completely relaxed into the stillness, rest deeply inside. Relax into your spine that should be vertically straight and aligned yet deeply relaxed.
As there is absolutely no more tension in the body, imagine that a rainbow of energy is forming along the back of your spine and down the front of your body. Each area or charka has a specific colored light associated with it. Please visualize the following colors for each area.
- Red = Base
- Orange = Sexual region
- Yellow = Solar plexus
- Green = Heart
- Blue = Throat
- Indigo = Forehead/ 3rd eye
- Violet = Top of head
- White/golden = Center of the top of the head aligned with the spine.
Depending on how tall you are, there will be between 3 and 8 quarter sized balls of light in each chakra region. As you place your attention a colored ball, it can ignite your whole body filling it with light.
Starting at the base of your spine, follow the center of your body going very slowly up the front to the top of the head, then down the neck, and back following the spine to make a complete rainbow circle. You may also start up the back and go down the front. Go in any direction that feels most natural for you. The quarter sized balls may grow or shrink in size and the colors can merge and fade into the lights next to them.
When you have made at least 10 rainbow circles around the body, imagine that a white/golden ball of light is forming at the center of the Earth, rising up in a column of light to the Earths surface, and entering the base of your spine.
Feel it slowly entering you. As it slowly ascends to the top of your head, allow it to flow out the Crown Chakra like a fountain. Let the energy cascade all over your body and bathe in the shower of this golden loving light. Allow it to penetrate every muscle, organ, and cell in your entire body, and purify your entire energy system!
Stay in the shower of golden light for as long as you can.
I recommend doing this golden showering for 10 minutes every day.
How is kundalini awakened through mantra yoga?
In mantra yoga the student is initiated by means of a mantra. If the kundalini is to be awakened by means of this yoga then it is essential that the guru gives consciousness or “chaitanya” to the mantra. This consciousness can be viewed as the cit-shakti-kundalini. Through repetition of the mantra the cit-shakti-kundalini of the mantra resonates with the cit-shakti-kundalini of the student and in this way the student’s kundalini is awakened. The reader may have noticed that there doesn’t seem to be a great deal of effort applied in this approach. This is true and in many ways this approach is more akin to Siddha Mahayoga in which the guru can use sound or “shabda” as the instrument of initiation.
Signs And Symptoms Of Awakening Kundalini
Many individuals whose Kundalini has been unexpectedly unleashed DO NOT KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING, and the prevailing social ignorance about this multidimensional transformative process makes it hard to findmedical or alternative health practitioners or spiritual advisors who recognize the symptoms, particularly when they are strongly physical. Many people know that the risen Kundalini flings open gates to all sorts of mystical, paranormal and magical vistas but few realize it can also dramatically impact the body. A large percentage of Shared Transformation subscribers have reported long bouts of strange illness as well as radical mental, emotional, interpersonal, psychic, spiritual and lifestyle changes. Over and again we hear stories of frustrating, sometimes desperate visits to doctors, healers, counselors, etc. who neither understood nor were able to help with the myriad pains and problems catalyzed by raging Kundalini.
The following are common manifestations of the risen Kundalini:
- Muscle twitches, cramps or spasms.
- Energy rushes or immense electricity circulating the body
- Itching, vibrating, prickling, tingling, stinging or crawling sensations
- Intense heat or cold
- Involuntary bodily movements (occur more often during meditation, rest or sleep): jerking, tremors, shaking; feeling an inner force pushing one into postures or moving one’s body in unusual ways. (May be misdiagnosed as epilepsy, restless legs syndrome, or PLMD
- Alterations in eating and sleeping patterns
- Episodes of extreme hyperactivity or, conversely, overwhelming fatigue
- Intensified or diminished sexual desires
- Headaches, pressures within the skull
- Racing heartbeat, pains in the chest
- Digestive system problems
- Numbness or pain in the limbs (particularly the left foot and leg)
- Pains and blockages anywhere; often in the back and neck
- Emotional outbursts; rapid mood shifts; seemingly unprovoked or excessive episodes of grief, fear, rage, depression
- Spontaneous vocalizations (including laughing and weeping) — are as unintentional and uncontrollable as hiccoughs
- Hearing an inner sound or sounds, classically described as a flute, drum, waterfall, birds singing, bees buzzing but which may also sound like roaring, whooshing, or thunderous noises or like ringing in the ears.
- Mental confusion; difficulty concentrating
- Altered states of consciousness: heightened awareness; spontaneous trance states; mystical experiences (if the individual’s prior belief system is too threatened by these, they can lead to bouts of psychosis or self-grandiosity)
- Heat, strange activity, and/or blissful sensations in the head, particularly in the crown area.
- Ecstasy, bliss and intervals of tremendous joy, love, peace and compassion
- Psychic experiences: extrasensory perception; out-of-body experiences; pastlife memories; astral travel; direct awareness of auras and chakras; contact with spirit guides through inner voices, dreams or visions; healing powers
- Increased creativity: new interests in self-expression and spiritual communication through music, art, poetry, etc.
- Intensified understanding and sensitivity: insight into one’s own essence; deeper understanding of spiritual truths; exquisite awareness of one’s environment (including “vibes” from others)
- Enlightenment experiences: direct Knowing of a more expansive reality; transcendent awareness
Some people have told us they find the concept of “Kundalini” foreign and prefer to simply call this their “awakening,” which is fine with us. But for most who contact us, the Kundalini explanation provides an important framework with which to accept and work with their experiences. We each have a unique way of interpreting, honoring and describing our spiritual wisdom. I do not believe there is only one right way to know or express the truth. Far more important, I believe, is to have an open heart and to be faithful to our own path, wherever it may lead.
We have also been asked why we do not put more emphasis on union with the Divine and God-realization, which are very much central to spiritual awakening. Since everyone experiences and interprets their mystical experiences differently and very personally, to make sure no one will feel excluded, we just speak of “awakening consciousness” or “transcendent states” on the ST Web pages. In our Shared Transformation newsletter, individuals with variant religious beliefs are welcome to (and DO) tell about their experiences of this sort. Some speak of God, Christ, Goddess, the Holy One, Spirit, or simply a magnificent Whole in which we all partake.
Also, for some people, profound spiritual realizations do not occur until months or years after the other signs and symptoms. Individuals who are having experiences of an obvious spiritual nature are usually more able to integrate and benefit from the process, regardless of how they may label it. But those who experience what seems to be illness or weird psychic phenomena often are very alarmed until they understand that they are not sick or crazy. And even the enlightening and beautiful experiences can be so powerful that people doubt their sanity.