Saturday, November 27, 2010
When Kundalini Arrives (suggestions)
What to do when Kundalini arrives
Many of us long for an awakening experience and then find, when it finally happens, that we are having many difficulties dealing with it. Kundalini is fickle. It can bring bliss one day, pain the next. Or it can bring one or the other consistently. It can arouse an array of strange symptoms, both good and bad. It does little good to read about the bliss of the saints or a few other lucky souls, if your body is jerking uncontrollably, your face is twitching, if you are having sudden unpleasant rushes of energy, both hot and cold or other strange "symptoms."
Here are some suggestions for what to do when Kundalini manifests in your body. It is a repetition of material I have put up before, but new people often come to this blog seeking help, and this post is primarily for their benefit.
l. First and foremost, try to locate a qualified teacher or therapist to help you through. Kundalini awakening is a deeply transformative process, and it is very difficult to make the journey alone. However, finding the right helper may be quite difficult. Try to locate a Transpersonal Therapist who knows what Kundalini is and understands spiritual transformation. You are not just undergoing extreme adjustment of your nervous system and physiology, you are (whether you know it or not) experiencing a profound spiritual awakening, for you are getting in touch with Source at its deepest level--you are discovering that in a very literal sense you and It are one. It is especially important to clear up as much of your psychological baggage as possible. In other words, it is time to clean up your house and get rid of what no longer serves you. Issues long repressed may come to the surface now, and by facing them you can make greater progress in your journey to greater mental health and stability.
2. Since this process is happening in your body, do everything you can to make your physical system stronger. This includes diet, exercise, supplements--anything that will give you a higher level of physical well being. Walking can be very, very helpful--it lets out the built up tension in your system and helps you to relax. But do whatever exercise seems best for you.
3. Find a "spiritual buddy" to talk to, preferably someone also experiencing Kundalini awakening. You need a friend to share this sometimes weird and tumultuous journey with. Talking helps. If you can't find such a friend, at least keep a journal. It will record your progress and you will be able to look back later and recall what the experience of awakening was like in its various stages.
4. Rid your life of as much stress as you can. The more stress, the greater the blockages and possible pain. Find ways to relax--whether from warm baths, or breathing exercises (I like slow inbreath with mouth closed, outbreath with mouth open--it is simple but it does wonders), or chi gong and t'ai chi., or dancing or just listening to music or saying a mantra or whatever works for you. Slow down. You've got the rest of your life to deal with this major turning point. Allow the inner guide to lead you through.
5. Meditation is good, but I am not convinced that merely sitting on a cushion and trying to clear the mind is the best choice for Kundalini folks. We need to move--and such things as chi gong, or yoga, or dancing, or other physical forms of meditation (and these are meditations themselves) may be more appropriate. Do mantras (sacred phrases) or mudras (sacred hand or bodily gestures) if they help, but don't force yourself to do these if they make you uncomfortable.
6. Whatever you do, don't try to stop the flow of the energies. This can bring about major difficulties. Kundalini has come to you as a gift from the elsewhere--don't refuse the gift, and don't try to dam the flowing stream of energies.
7, Read whatever you like, but don't believe everything you read in books, particularly those texts that rely primarily on ancient writings and techniques. The yogis of earlier times were intently focused on bringing up the energies through the major channels in the body (called Sushumna--the central axis along the spine--plus Ida, and Pingala on each side) These latter wind around the sushumna like the snakes in the medical depiction of the Caduceus. The rising Kundalini often moves through through these channels, but it can also manifest through other ways of expression. Sometimes it is a diffuse energy playing through various parts of the body--and can include surprising areas, such as your ears or cheeks or flanks or toes or just about any place it chooses to go. It can be felt in these places as bliss currents or the opposite, depending on where you are in your process.
Still, there is much good information in books, and it can be reassuring to discover that many others have undergone a process similar to your own. Use your own judgement as to what information is useful to you, what not.
8.If you wish to follow a prescribed technique or method, monitor it to see if it really works for you. I personally feel that we each have an "inner guru" and that it is best to allow it to lead us rather than trying to control it. If a technique is not working (if it makes you feel worse rather than better), drop it, even if some "authority" insists that this is the best approach to Kundalini. Especially in the early stages, it is sometimes better to avoid those practices that arouse more Kundalini energies (such as yoga), though these techniques may be quite useful later when your own energies have settled down more.
9. Don't get too carried away by what is going on with you. Some people think that that when their Kundalini opens they are "enlightened" or have been transformed into some kind of spiritual savior. Yes, you are indeed undergoing a very deep transformation, and you will never return to your previous state of "unknowing." But keep a cool head, go about your daily business, and know that "god is on your side." What you are experiencing is a form of divine love available to all humans willing to open to it. Your job is to allow it to fulfill its own purpose, to witness what is happening, and do all you can to integrate and ground the experience.
10. And do pursue grounding techniques to help you through the difficulties that may come up. Grounding might be simple hip rotation, reading a favorite spiritual poem or chapter, being with another person who is herself well "balanced," talking with a spiritual guide or mentor--again, it is a matter of "whatever works for you." Some people change their diets during this phase, becoming vegetarians; others feel that they become more "grounded" by eating hamburger or other heavier dishes. (But stay away from fast foods, too many sweets, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine and such--these will keep you ungrounded for sure.)
11. You may recall past lives, have "weird experiences" such as smelling wondrous odors, hearing beautiful inner music, feel rapture beyond what you have ever imagined. You may see auras, feel in your own body the energies of others or even inanimate objects. The world may take on an indescribable beauty, and you may sense a compelling "oneness" with everyone and every thing you encounter. You may also have some less pleasant "symptoms" such as those mentioned above--all are part of the process of awakening and adjustment that you are undergoing at this time. You are literally being "made new." These phenomena are all part of the "expansion of consciousness" that comes with the awakening process. They do not mean that you have gone crazy. Many have experienced such transitions to a more open awareness from ancient times to the present.
12. Find your spiritual center and connect with it daily. Know that you have been given a precious gift, one that will lead you to the deepest possible connection with the Divine. You are receiving divine love in its most vivid expression. You are part of a process now occurring world wide, all part of the evolutionary shift now occurring for humanity at large as we enter our next stage of consciousness. Now is the time to "invite the divine into your house." Whatever you call it, however you connect with it, "It" has now arrived and is giving you unmistakable signs of its presence and your enduring connection with boundless love.
(image from Crystalinks.com)
