Note: For the complete lessons, with additions, see the AYP Easy Lessons for Ecstatic Living Books.

Lesson 261 - Kundalini Surge

From: Yogani
Date: Mon May 16, 2005  11:55 am

New Members: It is recommended you read from the beginning of the web archive, as previous lessons are prerequisite to this one. The first lesson is, "Why This Discussion?"


Q: I recently came across your AYP site and I found the lessons to be absolutely mind blowing. I have been practicing meditation off and on for the past 22 years but, till recently, have never been able to sustain it on a regular basis. But recently I had an experience that has frankly left me quite shaken. I desperately need your advice on the matter before I proceed further.

I have never had any remarkable experiences through meditation till about a couple of months back. I was meditating as usual when suddenly I felt something rushing through my body and my whole body started buzzing like I was attached to a high power cable. I felt it throughout my body and mainly in my head. It was like some powerful vibration had hold of me. I was fully conscious throughout though my eyes were closed. The feeling was a bit like I was being sucked under through general anesthesia. My eyelids started throbbing madly, my breathing became deep and tortured like a bellows and my heart started speeding up and pounding like I had just run 15 miles. The blood was rushing in my veins like it was flush with intoxicating spirits. Despite all this I wasn't scared and actually felt totally alive and invigorated. For about a week after that my eyes felt heavy and sometimes started burning also. Can you please explain to me just what happened to me on that day? I have never been able to get that experience again though I feel that vibration very, very mildly. But I desperately want to have that feeling again. I have written to many learned people since then but none have favoured me with a reply. Maybe they felt it was too foolish and beneath their capabilities.

Can you please, please help me and possibly guide me in my future endeavours in the spiritual world? I will look forward eagerly for a positive reply from your side.


A: Thank you for writing and sharing.

What you have experienced is a kundalini surge. It is one step on your journey to enlightenment. The sensory symptoms are caused by increased inner energy going through obstructions in your nervous system. As the obstructions dissolve and the energy flow balances out, the contrasting experience will seem less. That is a good thing, because excessive kundalini energy flowing through obstructions, while exhilarating, can be exhausting and unsettling (as you have noticed already). With sound yoga practices done over the long term, experiences can be managed and will gradually refine to be celestial. Even that will not be "It." The final destination will be found rising in our everyday living and relationships, which become permeated with unshakable inner silence, ecstatic bliss and outpouring divine love. That is our destiny. That is the full union of our inner and outer life.

It should be noted that a dramatic kundalini surge like you experienced is not a prerequisite for the full awakening of the ecstatic aspect of our inner life. It can begin very quietly and build gradually over time as our nervous system becomes more purified through daily yoga practices. In fact, this is a prudent course for all to pursue, even those who have had a dramatic awakening. In AYP we have a name for this gentle, well-regulated kind of kundalini growth. We call it the rise of "ecstatic conductivity." It is the same energy, progressing steadily in a natural and sustainable way. We don't always have a choice on how our kundalini first manifests. In rare cases, it can be problematic for some time after. It is a matter of karmic tendencies we have in us, which are related to the kinds of practices we have been doing both recently and in the distant past (previous lives).

In AYP we endeavor to keep it all going forward on an even keel, without shrinking from the necessity of promoting our spiritual evolution. This steady, stability-oriented approach is aimed at giving us the best opportunity to complete our spiritual transformation in this lifetime, even as we continue to live a normal life in society. Even if we do not complete the journey in this life, we can make huge progress that will bring us much joy. We are also building the habit of stable growth into our subtle nervous system, so we can pick up where we left off more easily the next time around. None of our effort is ever lost on the path of yoga.

There is a ways to go, and I'm sure you'd like to make the journey as swiftly, enjoyably and safely as possible. It is important to keep things in balance, to keep moving forward while not getting too carried away with the energy experiences for their own sake. The practices in AYP are designed for promoting and managing this process. Spinal breathing is especially useful for promoting and balancing the inner energies. It is the second practice in AYP, right after deep meditation. You will see it returned to again and again throughout the lessons in relation to cultivating the inner energies in a balanced way. Deep meditation and spinal breathing are the essential core practices of AYP. The many additional practices covered in the lessons greatly enhance the results that come from these two.

If you continue through the lessons you will find much material that is relevant to your experience. If questions arise that are not covered, feel free to write. Do your research first. Make sure to review the topic index on the website for easy reference to lessons on many subjects of interest. You may wish to look up "kundalini" for more perspective on your recent experience. Do go through the lessons in sequence from start to finish as well. The AYP open, integrated system of practices is a progression -- a step-by-step development.

For some reason, most traditional teachers avoid discussing kundalini process and experiences -- sweeping it all under the rug. That is like not telling our children about sexual reproduction when they are approaching biological maturity. Kundalini is the spiritual equivalent of sexual reproduction. It is the same energy operating with an expanded purpose in our nervous system. It is spiritual reproduction within us!

It is hoped that the AYP lessons will provide some good perspective on what has been happening, and useful practices to apply as you travel along your chosen spiritual path. Practice wisely, and enjoy!

The guru is in you.

Note: For detailed discussion on kundalini awakening, self-pacing and grounding, see the AYP Asanas, Mudras and Bandhas book.

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