Eternal India Encyclopedia

PERCEPTIONS

Eternal India encyclopedia

AWAKENING KUNDALINI

koorma, krikala, devadatta and dha- nanjaya. Praana travels through energy channels called naadis which branch out in all directions. The three main nadis are ida, pingala and sushumna. They are in the trunk of the body. Ida is on the left of the spine and relates to the right nostril and sushumma is the centre. There is a difference in the quality of air when taken in through each of the two nostrils. The 12 other main naadis are : gaandhari, hastigihvika, kuhu, sarasvathi, pusa, sarikhini, payaswami, varuni, alumbusa, Viswadhari, yashaswani and koorma. Koorma in Sanskrit means tortoise or turtle. Koorma naadi is related to koorma praana. In the Yoga Sutras (jl 11.30) it is said, " Koormanadyam st- haiyarnam" -- while practising samyama (concentration, meditation and samaadhi ) on koorma naadi, one attains stability of mind and thereby the stability of the body. Where is this koorma naadi and what does it do? Many Yoga manuals and commentators say that it is at the bot- tom of the spine between the anus and the genital organs, the location for ashwini mudra. By practising samyama (concentration, meditation and samaadhi) on koorma naadi and thereby attaining control over koorma vaayu one attains stability of the mind and body. The practise of praanayama, the yoga of prana, allows one to develop control over the koorma naadi. By doing praanayama all kinds of koormic impurities are destroyed - - since breath is a conscious force that knows everything and a knower of breath knows the secret of everything and by puri- fying oneself one prepares for the rising of kundalini. The first movement of kundalini begins at the spine, at koorma naadi which is the centremost part of one's body when one is sitting in the padmaasana posture with head, neck and trunk straight. The kundalini rises through seven centres of conscious- ness, the seventh of which is located in the brain. When the kundalini reaches the sev- enth centre one attains transcendetal con- sciousness . — Pandit Rajmani Tigunait — "Inner Light", Vol. 3, No. 4

“It is said that the praanic force is omnipresent and omniscient; It knows all about the past, present, and future.” Praana means energy combined with consciousness; intelligence that knows. “I am moving”; that force whose motion or movement is self- regulated and not governed by any- thing else; that which is not blind force; and that which has purpose in vibrating, throbbing and animating in a particular pattern or manner. That self-intelligent force is called praana. In the Vedas and Upanishads, in Yoga, nothing is unintelligent or un- consciousness. It is only a matter of degree or gradation. Consciousness alone exists; therefore there is no unconsciousness, inert or dead matter anywhere. Praana is the force from which other forces of nature — grav- ity, electricity, and magnetism - evolve. We have always assumed that these forces are not intelligent. Even scientists are now discovering that this is not true and these are in- telligent forces. If it is true that the life force is there why do we need to breathe. Yoga says that only an infinitesimal part of that life is in its awakened state; the rest is dormant. Ac- cording to yoga the purpose of life is to unfold the dormant force. The nourishing aspect of the force is also called praana. Another different aspect

Serpent Power The kundalini shakthi, the fiery serpent power that lies dormant at the base of the hu- man spine can under certain conditions be aroused and led upwards along the spine, irradi- ating various chakras or centres on the way, until it bursts in splendour into the cortex and il- luminates the highest of these

chakras, the thousand-petalled lotus in the head. Surely this is the rite or cere- mony of the head to which the seer refers, and which, indeed, is a rare achievement. — Dr. Karan Singh is called apraana, the force involved in the process of cleansing : it expels things that are not needed in the body. Samaana is the force which assimilates the food we eat and the water we drink. Udaama is the praana that helps us move forward, figuratively, mentally and physically. Udaama relates to the process of purification, stability of mind and control over the modifications of the mind. Vyaana is the praana that helps us expand and control. These are the five main praanas. There are five more praanas naga,