Mantra Yoga - "Panchatcharam" -Thirumoolar

Panchatcharam means made of five letters. It is the "Namasivaya (na-ma-si-va-ya)". 

In that word, Na refers to the earth, Ma refers to the water, Si refers to the fire, Va refers to the air, Ya refers to the sky.

Swathishtana, Manipuraga, Anagadha, Visuthi, Agnjai all these are dynamic centres which are nerve-plexuses in the body. All these corresponds to the panchapoothas* says Thirumoolar.

He also says the Namasivaya as Na refers to Swathishtana, Ma refers to Manipuraga, Si refers to Anagadha, Va refers to Visuthi, Ya refers to Agnjai.

Thirugnana Samandhar says that the word "Namasivaya" is the sole meaning of all the four vedas and is the supreme name for everything.

"காதலாகிக் கசிந்து கண்ணீர் மல்கி

kaathalaagik kasinthu kanneer malki

ஓதுவார்தமை நன்னெறிக்கு உய்ப்பது

oathuvaarthamai nannerikku uyppathu

வேதம் நான்கினும் மெய்ப்பொருளாவது

vaetham naankinum meypporulaavathu

நாதன் நாமம் நமசிவயவே 

naathan naamam Namasivayavae"

- திருஞான சம்பந்தர் (Thirugnana Sambandhar)

"நானேயோ தவம் செய்தேன் சிவயநம எனப் பெற்றேன் 

naanaeyoa thavam seythaen Sivayanama enap petraen"

says Manicka vaasagar about the greatness of panchatcharam.

"அஞ்சுக அஞ்செழுத்து உண்மை அறிந்தபின்

anjuga anjezhuththu unmai arinthapin

நெஞ்சுகத்து உள்ளே நிலையும் பராபரம்

nenjagaththu ullae nilaiyum paraaparam

வஞ்சகம் இல்லை மனைக்கும் அழிவில்லை

vanjagam illai manaikkum azivillai

தஞ்சம் இதுவென்று சாற்றுகின் றேனே

thanjam ithuvenru saatrukin raenae"

- திருமூலர் (Thirumoolar)

"சிவாயவொடு அவ்வே தெளிந்துஉளத்து ஓதச்

sivaayavodu avvae thelinthuulaththu oathach

சிவாயவொடு அவ்வே சிவனுரு வாகும்

sivaayavodu avvae sivanuru vaagum

சிவாயவொடு அவ்வும் தெளியவல் லார்கள்

sivaayavodu avvum theliyaval laarkal

சிவாயவொடு அவ்வே தெளிந்திருந் தாரே

sivaayavodu avvae thelinthirun thaarae"

- திருமூலர் (Thirumoolar)

says Thirumoolar about the greatness of panchatcharam.

"சிவாய மென்ற அக்கரம் சிவனிருக்கும் அக்கரம்

sivaaya menra akkaram sivanirukkum akkaram

உபாயம் என்று நம்புதற் குண்மை யான அக்கரம்

ubaayam enru nambuthar kunmai yaana akkaram

கபாடம் அற்ற வாசலைக் கடந்து போன வாயுவை

kabaadam atra vaasalaik kadanthu poana vaayuvai

உபாயம் இல்ல ழைக்கும் சிவய அஞ்செ ழுத்துமே

ubaayam illa zhaikkum sivaya anje zhuththumae"

- சிவவாக்கியார் (Sivavaakkiyar)

says Sivavaakkiyar about the greatness of panchatcharam.

In the next post we shall see about the sakthi mantra.

*Panjapootham - the five elements viz., earth, air, fire, water and sky. 

Shaktipat

Shaktipat

                 The spiritual teacher Meher Baba emphasized the need for a master when actively trying to awaken the kundalini: "Kundalini is a latent power in the higher body. When awakened it pierces through six chakras or functional centres and activates them. Without a master, awakening of the kundalini cannot take any one very far on the Path; and such indiscriminate or premature awakening is fraught with dangers of self-deception as well as misuse of powers. The kundalini enables man consciously to cross the lower planes and it ultimately merges into the universal cosmic power of which it is a part, and which also is at times described as kundalini....The important point is that the awakened kundalini is helpful only up to a certain degree, after which it cannot ensure further progress. It cannot dispense with the need for the grace of a Perfect Master."

Kundalini awakening while prepared or unprepared

The experience of kundalini awakening can happen when one is either prepared or unprepared.

Preparedness

              According to Hindu tradition, in order to be able to integrate this spiritual energy, a period of careful purification and strengthening of the body and nervous system is usually required beforehand. Yoga and Tantra propose that kundalini energy can be "awakened" by a guru (teacher), but body and spirit must be prepared by yogic austerities such as pranayama, or breath control, physical exercises, visualization, and chanting. Patañjali emphasised a firm ethical and moral foundation to ensure the aspirant is comfortable with a reasonable degree of discipline and has a serious intention to awaken their full potential. The student is advised to follow the path in an openhearted manner.

Unpreparedness

              The kundalini can also awaken spontaneously, for no obvious reason or triggered by intense personal experiences such as accidents, near death experiences, childbirth, emotional trauma, extreme mental stress, and so on. Some sources attribute spontaneous awakenings to the "grace of God", or possibly to spiritual practice in past lives.

                A spontaneous awakening in one who is unprepared or without the assistance of a good teacher can result in an experience which has been termed as "kundalini crisis", "spiritual emergency" or "kundalini syndrome". The symptoms are said to resemble those of kundalini awakening but are experienced as unpleasant, overwhelming or out of control. Unpleasant side effects are said to occur when the practitioner has not approached kundalini with due respect and in a narrow egotistical manner. Kundalini has been described as a highly creative intelligence which dwarfs our own. Kundalini awakening therefore requires surrender; it is not an energy which can be manipulated by the ego.

Hatha yoga

Different approaches

               The question arises: how is this awakening triggered? There are two broad approaches to kundalini awakening: active and passive. The active approach involves systematic physical exercises and techniques of concentration, visualization, pranayama and meditation under the guidance of a competent teacher. These techniques come from any of the four main branches of yoga but for this purpose could be termed kundalini yoga. The passive approach is instead a path of surrender where one lets go of all the impediments to the awakening rather than trying to actively awaken the kundalini. A chief part of the passive approach is shaktipat where one person's kundalini is awakened by another who already has the experience. Shaktipat only raises the kundalini temporarily but gives the student an experience to use as a basis.

Hatha yoga

             According to the hatha yoga text, the Goraksasataka, or "Hundred Verses of Goraksa", certain hatha yoga practices including mula bandha, uddiyana bandha, jalandhara bandha and kumbhaka can awaken the kundalini. Another hathayoga text, the Khecarīvidyā, states that kechari mudra enables one to raise Kundalini and access various stores of amrita in the head, which subsequently flood the body.

Kundalini awakening

Etymology

             According to well-known teacher and translator Eknath Easwaran, kundalini means "the coiled power," a force which ordinarily rests at the base of the spine, described as being coiled there like a serpent. The concept can be found under different names. For example the eighth century Tantrasadbhava Tantra uses the term kundali ('she who is ring-shaped').

Kundalini awakening

           Through meditation, and various esoteric practices, such as Kundalini Yoga, Sahaja Yoga, and Kriya Yoga, the kundalini is awakened, and can rise up from the muladhara chakra through the central nadi, called sushumna, inside or alongside the spine and reaches the top of the head. The progress of kundalini through the different chakras leads to different levels of awakening and mystical experience, until the kundalini finally reaches the top of the head, Sahasrara or crown chakra, producing an extremely profound mystical experience.

A number of descriptions exist that attempt to describe exactly what the kundalini experience is:

           Sri Ramana Maharshi mentioned that the kundalini energy is nothing but the natural energy of the Self, where Self is the universal consciousness (Paramatma) present in every being, and that the individual mind of thoughts cloaks this natural energy from unadulterated expression. Advaita teaches that Self-realization, enlightenment, God-consciousness, nirvana. But, initial kundalini awakening is just the beginning of actual spiritual experience. Self-inquiry meditation is considered a very natural and simple means of reaching this goal.

Swami Vivekananda described kundalini briefly in London during his lectures on Raja Yoga as follows:

According to the Yogis, there are two nerve currents in the spinal column, called Pingalâ and Idâ, and a hollow canal called Sushumnâ running through the spinal cord. At the lower end of the hollow canal is what the Yogis call the "Lotus of the Kundalini". They describe it as triangular in form in which, in the symbolical language of the Yogis, there is a power called the Kundalini, coiled up. When that Kundalini awakes, it tries to force a passage through this hollow canal, and as it rises step by step, as it were, layer after layer of the mind becomes open and all the different visions and wonderful powers come to the Yogi. When it reaches the brain, the Yogi is perfectly detached from the body and mind; the soul finds itself free. We know that the spinal cord is composed in a peculiar manner. If we take the figure eight horizontally (∞) there are two parts which are connected in the middle. Suppose you add eight after eight, piled one on top of the other, that will represent the spinal cord. The left is the Ida, the right Pingala, and that hollow canal which runs through the centre of the spinal cord is the Sushumna. Where the spinal cord ends in some of the lumbar vertebrae, a fine fibre issues downwards, and the canal runs up even within that fibre, only much finer. The canal is closed at the lower end, which is situated near what is called the sacral plexus, which, according to modern physiology, is triangular in form. The different plexuses that have their centres in the spinal canal can very well stand for the different "lotuses" of the Yogi.

               When kundalini Shakti is conceived as a goddess, then, when it rises to the head, it unites itself with the Supreme Being (Lord Shiva). Then the aspirant becomes engrossed in deep meditation and infinite bliss.

            In his article on Kundalini in the Yoga Journal, David Eastman narrates two personal experiences. One man said he felt an activity at the base of his spine starting to flow so he relaxed and allowed it to happen. A feeling of surging energy began traveling up his back, at each chakra he felt an orgasmic electric feeling like every nerve trunk on his spine beginning to fire. A second man describes a similar experience but accompanied by a wave of euphoria and happiness softly permeating his being. He described the surging energy as being like electricity but hot, traveling from the base of his spine to the top of his head. He said the more he analyzed the experience, the less it occurred.

         The arousing of kundalini is said by some to be the one and only way of attaining Divine Wisdom. Self-Realization is said to be equivalent to Divine Wisdom or Gnosis or what amounts to the same thing: self-knowledge. The awakening of the kundalini shows itself as "awakening of inner knowledge" and brings with itself "pure joy, pure knowledge and pure love."

Description(Kundalini )

              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

 

 

          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.

                                                                                                                  Chakra Kundalini Diagram

Medical research(Kundalini)

• Yogic meditations reduce stress: practicing a form of chanting yogic meditation from a modern tradition of Kundalini Yoga for just 12 minutes daily for eight weeks led to a reduction in the biological mechanisms responsible for an increase in the immune system’s inflammation response. Inflammation, if constantly activated, can contribute to a multitude of chronic health problems. Dr. Helen Lavretsky, senior author and a professor of psychiatry at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, and colleagues found in their work with 45 family dementia caregivers that 68 of their genes responded differently after Kirtan Kriya Meditation (KKM), resulting in reduced inflammation.

• Preliminary research on the effects of Kundalini Yoga meditation known as Kirtan Kriya on retrieving memory and cognitive functions have been encouraging. Limitations of this research can be addressed in future studies with more detailed analyses.

• Venkatesh et al. studied twelve kundalini (chakra) meditators, using the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory. They found that the practice of meditation "appears to produce structural as well as intensity changes in phenomenological experiences of consciousness".

• Lazar et. al observed the brains of subjects performing, "a simple form of Kundalini meditation in which they passively observed their breathing and silently repeated the phrase 'sat nam' during inhalations and 'wahe guru' during exhalations," and found that multiple regions of brain were involved especially those involved in relaxation and maintaining attention.

Observations(Kundalini)

                  The system of exercises and meditations of Kundalini Yoga are demonstrated in some medical applications and trials to provide extensive benefits for improving mental and physical well-being. Some studies have shown that the physical and physiological benefits cover a wide spectrum of ailments, including healing treatments for memory problems, asthma, diabetes, pain, stress-related diseases, rehabilitating addictive behavior, and treating mental disorders.

               All intensive spiritual practices associated with Asian traditions require attentive practice. Psychiatric literature notes that "Since the influx of eastern spiritual practices and the rising popularity of meditation starting in 1960s, many people have experienced a variety of psychological difficulties, either while engaged in intensive spiritual practice or spontaneously". Some of the psychological difficulties associated with intensive spiritual practice are claimed to be "kundalini awakening", "a complex physio-psychospiritual transformative process described in the yogic tradition". Also, writers in the fields of Transpersonal psychology and Near-death studies describe a complex pattern of sensory, motor, mental and affective symptoms associated within the concept of kundalini, known as kundalini syndrome. Believers say that the negative experiences might occur only when acting without appropriate guidance or ignoring advice, as this is a system designed for personal spiritual growth.

Development

                         According to some traditions Kundalini techniques are only communicated from master to disciple once the disciple is deemed ready. In these cases, yogic masters believe that in ascetic settings ignorance or refusal to follow instructions of a master can lead to harmful effects. However, in a few instances teachers from India encouraged students to update and spread the teachings to the West, thereby putting doubt to this claim.Sovatsky,a scholar of Yoga associated with transpersonal psychology, adapts a developmental and evolutionary perspective in his interpretation of Kundalini Yoga. That is, he interprets Kundalini Yoga as a catalyst for psycho-spiritual growth and bodily maturation. According to this interpretation of yoga, the body bows itself into greater maturation [...], none of which should be considered mere stretching exercises.

Practice

              The practice of kriyas and meditations in Kundalini yoga are designed to raise complete body awareness to prepare the body, nervous system, and mind to handle the energy of Kundalini rising. The majority of the physical postures focus on navel activity, activity of the spine, and selective pressurization of body points and meridians. Breath work and the application of bhandas (3 yogic locks) aid to release, direct and control the flow of Kundalini energy from the lower centers to the higher energetic centers.

                 Along with the many kriyas, meditations and practices of Kundalini Yoga, a simple breathing technique of alternate nostril breathing (left nostril, right nostril) is taught as a method to cleanse the nadis, or subtle channels and pathways, to help awaken Kundalini energy.

                    In the Upanishads, it is mentioned that the control of the three bhandas, along with the control of held and expired breaths, are the keys to releasing and harnessing Kundalini energy.

                     Several schools teach methods of visualizing and meditating on the chakras to balance and maintain the pathways for Kundalini energy to flow.

Methodology

              According to yogic philosophy, kundalini is a spiritual energy or life force located at the base of the spine. It is conceptualized as a coiled up serpent. Literally, kundalini or kundala is that which is coiled (Sanskrit kund, to burn; kunda, to coil or to spiral). It is believed that Kundalini yoga is that which arouses the sleeping Kundalini Shakti from its coiled base through the 6 chakras, and penetrate the 7th chakra, or crown. This energy is said to travel along the ida (left), pingala (right) and central, or sushumna nadi - the main channels of pranic energy in the body.This process can be seen depicted even today in modern medical iconography as two snakes spiraling a central staff, and although the origin of this image is more directly derived from the Caduceus of the Greek god Hermes, it may express the same or a similar principle.

            As popularly taught in the under the system of Yogi Bhajan, the system is tailored as a comprehensive spiritual system for personal growth using kriya exercises, pranayama, and meditations along with mantras and dharmic teachings relating to Sikhism. A common mantra used in this form is that of "Sat Nam" - meaning "I am truth". The yoga form was originally shared as alternative and transformational technology for self-development, and to counter the drug abuse of the 60's, but has emerged as a comprehensive spiritual practice with global popularity.

              Technically, Kundalini energy is understood as being sparked during yogic breathing when prana and apana blends at the 3rd chakra (naval center) at which point it initially drops down to the 1st and 2nd chakras before traveling up to the spine to the higher centers of the brain to activate the golden cord - the connection between the pituitary and pineal glands - and penetrate the 7 chakras.

               Borrowing and integrating the highest forms from many different approaches, Kundalini Yoga can be understood as a tri-fold approach of Bhakti yoga for devotion, Shakti yoga for power, and Raja yoga for mental power and control. Its purpose through the daily practice of kriyas and meditation in sadhana are described a practical technology of human consciousness for humans to achieve their total creative potential.

According to one school of thought, there being four main forms of yoga, Mantra yoga, Hatha yoga, Laya yoga and Raja yoga; Kundalini yoga is really considered a Laya yoga.

              Mainstream traditions propose that kundalini energy can be awakened and enlightenment attained by practicing a combination of yogic techniques—ideally following the guidance of a certified teacher—including the use of mantra, prana and breathing techniques, sadhana, asana practice, meditation, or purely through devotion and prayer.

                According to some Hindu traditions, Kundalini yoga is considered a highly developed spiritual awakening which relies upon a technique called shaktipat to attain enlightenment under the guidance of a spiritual master.

              In the classical literature of Kashmir Saivism kundalini is described in three different manifestations. The first of these is as the universal energy or para-kundalini. The second of these is as the energizing function of the body-mind complex or prana-kundalini. The third of these is as consciousness or shakti-kundalini which simultaneously subsumes and intermediates between these two. Ultimately these three forms are the same but understanding these three different forms will help to understand the different manifestations of kundalini .

                The word 'Kundalini' can be traced to the Sanskrit word 'kundala', which means 'coiled'. Kundalini can therefore be used by believers to refer to the latent energy within the human body which is constantly trying to manifest as our insight, power and bliss.

                    According to one author, the word kundalini literally means "the curl of the lock of hair of the beloved." It is a metaphor, a poetic way of describing the flow of energy and consciousness which already is said to exist within each person.

                  The practices are said to enable the person to merge with or "yoke" the universal self. This merging of individual consciousness with the universal consciousness is said to create a "divine union" called "yoga".

History

                 All yoga forms are believed to raise kundalini energy, and have their origins in the pillars and Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, a foundational yoga scripture believed to have been compiled around the 2nd century BCE. Based on this foundation, most yoga forms and meditation derive their structure and discipline from the ashtanga 8-limbed approach, which provide guidelines for the austerities of practice.

              Kundalini yoga differs at that point because its focus is on raising awareness and strengthening the nervous system to handle raising the internal human energy ("kundalini") in order to help enhance the ultimate spiritual experience.

               Before contemporary times, Kundalini Yoga was on the whole a secretive technology. It has it roots in the tantric yoga tradition, which date back to the 8th century, but was not widely taught to the West until Yogi Bhajan (born 1929) brought his understanding of the teachings out of India and to the United States in 1969.

               An earlier written mention of Kundalini Yoga is in the Yoga-Kundalini Upanishad, one of the oldest scriptures of Hinduism. The Yoga-Kundalini Upanishad is eighty-sixth among the 108 Muktika Upanishads, associated with the Krishna Yajurveda from India. The origin of this particular writing is difficult to substantiate because scholars disagree about the exact dates of the composition of the Upanishads, but agree that all Upanishads have been passed down through oral tradition. Some have estimated that the composition of the Yajurveda texts date as far back as between 1,400 and 1,000 BC.

               In the late 1800s into the early 1900s author John Woodroffe, an Oxford graduate, translated some twenty original Sanskrit texts under the pseudonym Arthur Avalon. His most popular and influential book titled The Serpent Power: The Secrets of Tantric and Shaktic Yoga, became a major contribution of the time to the appreciation of Indian philosophy and spirituality and the source of many early Western occult appropriations of tantra and kundalini practice.

                  In 1935 Sri Swami Sivananda penned a detailed depiction of some historically classic Kundalini Yoga practices in a treatise called Kundalini Yoga.

Definitions

           Several definitions of Kundalini yoga have been used in Eastern and modern Western teachings. According to various teachers and authors, Kundalini Yoga has been described as:

"A contrast of active and passive approaches designed to awaken the kundalini." —David Eastman

"Kundalini Yoga consists of active and passive asana-based kriyas, pranayama, and meditations which target the whole body system (nervous system, glands, mental faculties, chakras) to develop awareness, consciousness and spiritual strength." —Yogi Bhajan

"Kundalini Yoga, at its highest form, is practiced for the purpose of attaining bliss, opening the heart center, developing power, serving others, attaining self-realization and ultimately merging into God consciousness." —Swami Sivananda

Kundalini yoga

                Kundalini yoga (Sanskrit: कुण्डलिनी, kuṇḍalinī = '"coiled" + योग, yoga = "to yoke") is a physical, mental and spiritual discipline for developing strength, awareness, character, and consciousness. Kundalini yoga uses a series of asanas, meditations, active and passive kriya sequences, pranayama, and control of the body to empower personal change and improve physical and mental health. Practitioners call Kundalini yoga the yoga of awareness because it focuses on the expansion of sensory awareness and intuition in order to raise individual consciousness and merge it with the Infinite consciousness of God. As a form of yoga and meditation and a foundation for spirituality — practiced properly, kundalini yoga's purpose is to raise the creative potential of a human being to develop universal values, speak truth, and share the compassion and consciousness needed to serve and heal others.