What is Kundalini, Chakra and Nadis ?

Kundalini Yoga and Tantra -The Evolutionary Energy in Man, in which that " the human organism is evolving in the direction indicated by Siddhas, Yogis, Rishis and Sadhus, by the action of the wonderful mechanism located at the base of the spine.
 

Science has yet to explain the extraordinary abilities and feats of the Siddhas, Yogis, Rishis and Sadhus, The Hindu holy men of India. They are believed to have ability to read and transmit thoughts, able to duplicate themselves and appear in two places at once, to give flowers completely different scent, and to call back the spirits of dead. For the Siddhas, Yogis, Rishis and Sadhus, the entire universe is driven by urge, to unite with the divine and this gives them extraordinary powers.

Researchers in the field of parapsychology have studied the mysterious abilities of these holy men, and have confirmed many of these astonishing observations. Modern science, however,generally rejects any notion that Siddhas, Yogis, Rishis and Sadhus posess any extraordinary abilities, because this goes against our rationalistic mode of thought. 

For the Hindus the abilities of Siddhas, Yogis, Rishis and Sadhus are certainly not seen as unusual. Indeed, all the holy scriptures of Hinduism which include the Tamil scriptural classic Tirumantiram, Vedas and Bhagavad-Gita agree that the human soul, the self(atman), is identical with the cosmic principle, the absolute(brahman). Perhaps there is a lesson for the sceptics here, for it seems that deeper we probe into enigmas of human life, the closer we come to the mysterious and unacknowledged forces that dwell within us all.

What is Kundalini ?

According to the philosophy of Tantra, the entire universe is a manifestation of pure consciousness. In manifesting the universe, this pure consciousness seems to become divided into two poles or aspects, neither of which can exist without the other.

One aspect, Shiva, is masculine, retains a static quality and remains identified with unmanifested consciousness. Shiva has the power to be but not the power to become or change.

The other aspect, Shakti, is feminine, dynamic, energetic and creative. Shakti is the Great Mother of the universe, for it is from her that all form is born.

According to Tantra, the human being is a miniature universe. All that is found in the cosmos can be found within each individual, and the same principles that apply to the universe apply in the case of the individual being.

In human beings, Shakti, the feminine aspect is called Kundalini. This potential energy is said to rest at the base of the spinal cord. The object of the Tantric practice of Kundalini-yoga is to awaken this cosmic energy and make it ascend through the psychic centres, the chakras, that lie along the axis of the spine as consciousness potentials. She will then unite above the crown of the head with Shiva the pure consciousness. This union is the aim of Kundalini-yoga: a resolution of duality into unity again, a fusion with the Absolute. By this union the adept attains liberation while living which is considered in Indian life to be the highest experience: an union of the individual with the universe.

Tantra, "The cult of the feminine",is the root of yoga and the most all-inclusive spiritual system ever developed. Yoga is well-known whereas Tantra is in mystery. Yogis and quantum physicists share a wonderful view of the universe as a sea of "quantum foam", of space and time existing not as fixed realities but as mental constructs. The yogi is concerned with this "unspeakable mystery".

What is Chakras ?
Chakras are psychic centres that lie along the axis of the spine as consciousness potentials. The chakras are not materially real and are to be understood as situated, not in the gross body, but in the subtle or etheric body. Repositories of psychic energies, they govern the whole condition of being. They are usually represented as lotuses.

When kundalini is struck, she awakens, uncoils and begin to rise upwards like a fiery serpent, breaking upon each chakra as she ascends, until the Shakti merges with Shiva in sahasrara chakra.
As kundalini reaches each chakra, that lotus opens and lift its flower; and as soon as she leaves for a higher chakra, the lotus closes its petals and hangs down, symbolizing the activation of the energies of the chakra and their assimilation to kundalini.

The increasing number of lotus petals, in ascending order, may be taken to indicate the rising energy or vibration-frequencies of the respective chakras, each functioning as a transformer of energies from one potency to another.

                               

Each of the chakras, according to the Tantras, corresponds to one of the elements of which the known world is compounded. Muladhara represents solidity; Svadhisthana, liquidity; Manipura, the gaseous; Anahata, the aerial; Vishuddha, the etheric, or space. One can see the whole process as a progressive transformation of the elements, with an increase of volatility.

This ascent through the chakras can be viewed as an upward journey through the self which refines and subtilizes the energy that is the kundalini, until at the sixth chakra, the Ajna, centre of command, a qualitative change has taken place

What is Nadis ?
In addition to the seven chakras of the subtle body, the Tantras have described a network of subtle channels known as Nadis. According to the tantric treatise Shiva Samhita, there are fourteen principal nadis.
                                                  

Of these, Ida, Pingala and Sushumna are considered the most important. Ida is the left channel. Ida is white, feminine, cold, represents the moon and is associated with the river Ganga (Ganges). Originating in Muladhara, Ida ends up in the left nostril. Pingala is the right channel. Pingala is red, masculine, hot, represents the sun and is associated with the river Yamuna. Originating in Muladhara, Pingala ends up in the right nostril. Sushumna is the central channel and is associated with the river Saraswati. Running up the body from just below

Muladhara chakra to Sahasrara chakra at the crown of the head.
Muladhara is the meeting place of the three main nadis and is known as Yukta Triveni (Yukta : "combined", tri : "three", veni : "streams"). In Muladhara, Shakti, the static unmanifested Kundalini, is symbolized by a serpent coiled into three and a half circles around the central axis Svayambhu-linga at the base of the spine. The serpent lies blocking the entrance to Sushumna, the central channel with his mouth. Sushumna remains closed at its lower end as long as Kundalini is not awakened.

The technique of Kundalini Yoga consists in using Prana (the vital air), guiding its circulatory movement through Ida and Pingala down to the base of the spine into the space where Kundalini lies coiled. Shakti Kundalini will then awaken and rise up Sushumna, energizing the seven chakras.

by Vijayakumar Alagappan