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madsketcher
USA
3 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 08 2008 : 2:01:02 PM
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 Hi all,
I'm brand new - I did my very first Kundalini exercise last night... I am using Kelly Howell's "Awakening Kundalini" CD for now. I had a few questions/concerns:
I'm doing this in a chair (with a cushion as lower back support) - is this ok, or is it better to sit on the floor with legs crossed? It is WAY more comfortable for me in the chair.
I realized that I was NOT doing the root lock properly toward the end of the guided meditation today, but will be incorporating it in future meditations, like later tonight... I do feel a change in energy already, though. Breath of fire in particular is quite fun - I have a well built diaphragm for it. Can you do breath of fire anywhere (like in your car) and still get the same benefits?
Has anyone here had a weird urge to make vocal noises during their practice? Toward the end of my session today, I started going "ah... ah... ah..." almost like something was trying to speak through me. I just allowed it to flow out of me. What is that all about?
Also, any recommendations on books and other CDs? Thanks! |
Edited by - AYPforum on Jun 10 2012 10:17:46 PM |
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Scott
USA
969 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2008 : 2:45:38 PM
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Hi madsketcher,
Welcome to the forum.
First, a word of caution. Tread lightly. Kundalini may shock you, and cause bad health...sometimes even possibly mental illness. I would personally recommend that you follow AYP instructions, by starting with deep meditation for the best chance at having a balanced approach. When Yogani stresses taking your time in the beginning, it's wise to take his advice and not move faster just because it seems like it couldn't hurt. It's also wise to really get good at the meditation, and focus primarily on that, because that's the core practice in this system. All the flashy kundalini stimulating stuff can be tossed aside...it's all secondary.
I am of the opinion that meditating sitting upright in a chair, with no backrest, is a great way to do deep meditation. Sitting cross legged can cause energy problems (blocked channels in the legs, too much rising energy). Also, physical problems if you're practicing beyond your current capability.
Although, in some circumstances, the highly regarded asanas (lotus, siddhasana, etc) have great uses. After the kundalini is awakened and balanced, I think adding these great poses does wonderful things to the energy in your body...also affecting your meditations. It becomes as if the pose itself causes your deep meditative state.
A cd I like is "The Divine Sound" by Omdasji. It awakens the kundalini in a balanced way, and is very effective. I like the main lessons here for practical material on the subject. Another good reference is the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. Oh and also the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali; I like Alistair Shearer's translation the best.
Good luck. |
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madsketcher
USA
3 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2008 : 8:18:27 PM
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Hi Scott,
I've done some reading today on the subject of dangers in Kundalini - thanks for your tip! I sort of "chanced" upon this not too long after a specific manifestation I initiated (one having to do with divine energy), so I feel that this is a right time for me to start doing this... I'm not trying to awaken it forcefully - I just want to see where the practices take me. From what I understand, this "shock" may be caused by an unevolved or not-very-spiritual psychological state. I'm sure that confusion of self would also be involved. I've thrown out a lot of nasty habits in one year, which I feel would help this experience to be positive. I actually think that my Kundalini is already active but imbalanced. This is another reason why I'm starting.
And I do meditate daily - 1 to 2 times a day, 15 minutes each time. I don't do it silently, though... I use hemi-sync. Does that make a difference? |
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Scott
USA
969 Posts |
Posted - Mar 09 2008 : 04:27:59 AM
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Hemi-sync is brainwave entrainment, right? That stuff seems unnatural to me. Too forceful. But if it works for you, and continues working for you, then it's good! There are no rules besides to do what works best. Anything that anyone suggests is just that - a suggestion. As Yogani says - "the guru is in you".
Kundalini shocking someone, at least as far as I know, has nothing to do with having an unevolved or not-very-spiritual psychological state. In fact, I think the more spiritual you are, the more it can shock you. The purpose of the shock, in my experience, is to bring the practitioner out of their own delusions...so a person with a balanced kundalini will be more down to earth than someone with kundalini phenomenon going haywire.
The purpose of AYP's deep meditation is to bring silence to the forefront of the mind, which naturally balances the kundalini's energy. The purpose of kundalini, is to bring the practitioner fully to silence by bringing the blockages to true silence to the forefront of the mind in the hope that you'll let go of them. |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Mar 09 2008 : 04:58:18 AM
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Hi madsketcher,
Welcome to the forum! I find it a little unclear if you intend to start following the AYP practices or if you intend to experiment with other kinds of practices?
If you intend to follow the AYP system, it is recommended not to mix practices since it may cause major overload. The I AM meditation itself is a very powerful practice (that's why we don't meditate more than 20 min - it's not necessary due to the great power of it - compared to other systems where meditation may be recommended for hours).
Another reason not to mix is the difficulty to discover which practice gives which consequences. To take care of that trouble, it's recommended to add another practice only after the first one has settled to a comfortable level, perhaps after weeks or months of stability. Then it's easier to see what happens with the energies when next practice is added. When the next has stabilized over weeks or months, yet another is added etc etc.
Why wait for weeks or months if it seems to work well? Due to the sleeping effect! Energies build up slowly and then suddenly without warning it has already gone too far, it's boiling over and the mess is a fact! So the "take it easy"-part is important - we call it "self-pacing" here!
This may seem frustrating in the beginning when we are very curious and exited about the spiritual world of energies, but trust me, it's worth the patience you show. As Scott mentions, too much energies too quick will probably cause you distress of some kind.
Please check out the Main lessons if you haven't. You'll find all the info you need there, and if you haver more questions, please check the forum - lots and lots have been written here to answer common questions. The YOGA FAQ is superb to quickly find your way around! |
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Scott
USA
969 Posts |
Posted - Mar 09 2008 : 06:46:11 AM
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| EMC is very right about the sleeping effect (I call it creeper effect but to each his/her own). Practices will seem to be going great and you will be having tons of progress, then BAM - too much...and you will have to seriously cut back. |
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madsketcher
USA
3 Posts |
Posted - Mar 09 2008 : 10:45:47 PM
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Thank you so much for your help, guys. I had another thing that I wished to bring up... through my entire life, I have been able to "flex" the energy through my legs. I can do it just by thinking about it... it's like a contraction, with no muscles. It creates a HUGELY numbing/tingling sensation the more I focus on it. When I'm finished "flexing" my legs will feel lighter and sort of "cleaned" or refreshed. I have played with this a lot in my life, not thinking much of it. Could it have possibly caused inbalances? I know that this is Kundalini, but what exactly am I doing when I focus on this area in the legs? I'm aware that I can now shift it upward but I haven't really done that much.
I've gone back to plain ol' meditation for now until I learn more about shifting/awakening Kundalini, but is it safe to do the breath of fire and ocean breath while meditating? I'm not doing anything elaborate like the guided Kundalini practice during the meditation until I learn more. |
Edited by - madsketcher on Mar 09 2008 10:48:49 PM |
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Scott
USA
969 Posts |
Posted - Mar 10 2008 : 12:07:28 AM
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| You can do whatever practices you want, so long as you seem balanced to yourself. The best advice I can give regarding breathing is to let the breath go on its own...when kundalini is awakened breathing practices can be problematic, so surrendering is the best way to balance it out. |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Mar 10 2008 : 08:27:28 AM
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| If you follow the AYP deep meditation, it's not recommended to bother about the breathing during meditation. We focus only on the mantra. The breathing is taken care of before meditation in the Pranayama practice. |
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