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

Lesson 208 - Q&A – Inner energy collisions and strong emotions

From: Yogani
Date: Thu Jun 10, 2004 3:29pm

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 have been doing Kundalini yoga for about a year now and have recently taken a teacher training program where I first did a Sadhana. I have been practicing on my own and in class and have done my first Sadhana at home yesterday. I found myself feeling fine until later on at night. I was suddenly enraged in anger and wanted to punch something. This is not my usual tendency and I felt it this morning as well. I was wondering if it had to do with doing too much Kundalini or maybe my system is cleansing too much too fast. I'm really not sure and wanted to run this by you to see what you thought. It was as if something took over me and my emotions were so overwhelmed and this is unusual since I usually take things easier andhaven't gotten enraged like that since I was a child.


A: Strong emotions can come when inner energy collides or is having excessive friction with obstructions in the nervous system. Interestingly, ecstatic experience is created in the same way. It is just a matter of degree of energy flow and getting the inner dynamics of purification in the right order.

This is obviously not a static situation. If we increase energy flow without sufficient removal of obstructions first, there can be unpleasant collisions and friction. If we are releasing obstructions too fast, then our ordinary inner energy flow can run into the loosened and lingering obstructions, causing irritability.

In the lessons we have a variety of strategies built into and around the practices to avoid the uncomfortable aspects of this situation. For the most part it works, and we can move ahead smoothly and quickly with purification and opening of the nervous system.

In the case of kundalini yoga, what I keep running into with people that are having symptoms like what you described is premature crown openings. I don't know what you are doing in the way of practices, but these symptoms are often associated with practices at the crown. You may wish to read lessons posted in the past few weeks on crown opening.

With a premature crown opening, the energy flow is often too much for the matrix of obstructions still embedded in the nervous system. A prematurely opened crown and a more or less average nervous system are not a good match, and, if pressed, can lead to years of misery. Gopi Krishna is the classic authority on this kind of "doing it the hard way" road to enlightenment.

Traditionally, the smoothest path to enlightenment has been via purification and opening of the third eye to root spinal nerve. This is the approach in the lessons, and we hit it from every angle with an integrated system of practices. By this means, the crown is opened by indirect influence, and the extremes of an energy flow/obstruction matrix mismatch are usually avoided. Instead, the path is filled with steadily rising inner silence and ecstasy, which is what we want from our yoga.

So, with the little you have shared, that is my best guess -- you may be moving too much energy up with the crown instead of working it through the third eye to root spinal nerve first. There is much more detail in the lessons on this, particularly in the past month or so.

I wish you all success on your chosen path.

The guru is in you.

Note: For detailed instructions on building a balanced daily practice routine with self-pacing, see the Eight Limbs of Yoga Book.

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