Kundalini Awakening

What is Kundalini?
by H.H. Sai Maa

Om Jai Jai Sai Maa

What is Kundalini?

The Shakti, or Divine energy aspect of consciousness or Self, is located at the base of the spine, coiled on herself in the chakra called Muladhara. This energy is called Kundalini and means that which is coiled. She dwells in a latent condition in every human being. Kundalini is a great, majestic, sacred, and infinite power. She is the One who creates all the universes. Kundalini is covered by a veil called Anavamala.

When awakened, She brings revolutionary transformation in one’s life. Changes and transformation on every level of one’s being occur when this process starts unfolding within. When one is in the presence of a Master whose dharma is to awaken this Shakti Kundalini Ma, the veil is instantly destroyed through the Shakti and Grace of the Master. This is a grand step in sadhana (spiritual practice) because one moves from darkness to Light as the Kundalini Shakti energy starts to move from the Muladhara chakra (the first center vortex in the body) up to the crown chakra (the Sahasrara) through a subtle channel called the Sushumna nadi. In this journey, Kundalini shakti—the feminine aspect of Divine energy—moves from the base of the spine, pierces all chakras and merges at the crown with the male aspect that is Sahasrara, Shiva. Here, Shiv and Shakti unite.

Another aspect of the Shakti divides itself into four parts: the mind, subconscious mind, intellect, and ego. The five elements representing ether, air, fire, water, and earth then appear from the throat to the base chakra. When one’s body is created, one forgets the Self because of the gross world of matter. Remember that matter is consciousness itself. Subtle bodies are created, a supracausal body that is blue, a supracausal body that is black, the subtle body of the Heart or Ka body—full of white Light, then the red Light of the physical body which resides in the eyes.

Kundalini Ma is the power behind everything one sees or experiences outside—meaning She is very awakened, active, and in action. Inside, She is resting in the Muladhara chakra at the base of the spine waiting for the human to decide, to choose, to move forward to Her sahasrara with Her Beloved. In this state of involution, one has lost awareness of Self.

Now, one is trapped in ego, in the world, in attachment. Only courage, choice, faith, and awareness will take one back to where one came from. It is as if from the fontanelle to the base chakra there have been layers and layers of thick cloth on that Light or consciousness. It is not possible to see the Light unless one decides or chooses to uncover the Light by pulling the layers off himself/herself consciously. Again, this is Grace. By Grace only, God or Self will once again marry one with itself. This Grace is bestowed by the Master or Guru to experience the Glory of the most hidden among the hidden. Also, the more one’s karma is cleared by the Shakti of the Master or Guru, the more one’s clarity becomes obvious, the more one’s dharma is then clear. Kundalini is the supreme Shakti and as She rises, all these vortices are purified, cleansed, activated, and become more light, become illumined by the fire or light of Self, of consciousness. This light increases gradually and one day all of the chakras become one bright column of light reaching the summit, then Shiv and Shakti unite at the highest level.

Kundalini Shakti is everything. She is spiritual awakening, she is Love, she is beauty, and She is the Mother who takes care of worldly life, as well as our inner life. She shows us that everything, including ourselves, is Divine. She improves our daily lives, and that which is not perfect will find its way to perfection. The Kundalini Shakti, when activated, can take the form of any God or Goddess and will take us back to source.

Some say it is an experience that cannot be compared to anything else on this planet, that it is beyond all their expectations. Some share that it’s like birth. Others say it’s just a deep transformation that they cannot put into words. Some even say it’s a feeling of a new world, a new life. There is a new dimension in our worldly activities. Whatever is needed She will provide, but our desire must be clear and sincere. The experience can be so intense that we will cry. Someone may ask you why you are crying and you won’t even know. It is just a deep feeling of love of God, of source, of the whole universe going on inside of you. And most of the time, one wishes to be by herself/himself. Waves of love will move within that Shakti. Great power will be activated.

This Shakti exists in every human being, but again, as I said, it is usually in a dormant form. It is very difficult to know the Kundalini Shakti, very difficult. She’s the supreme principle of life. She has no birth, no heir. She’s limitless; She’s subtle; She’s spirit; She’s mind; and She’s beyond mind. She’s unseen as well as seen, and She pervades our whole body; and even though Her temple is in this body, Her abode is at the base of the spine. When, by the Grace of a Guru or Divine Being, through the Grace of a beam of Light, She’s awakened—She unfolds Herself.

After awakening, meditation becomes peaceful and blissful, and our everyday life is full of life force. The power of Shakti is experienced more and more. Then one starts to feel she/he is entering the space of the ultimate goal, being pure consciousness.

Until one experiences the awakening of this Shakti, there is no inner peace; there is no tranquility. The purpose of our life remains unfulfilled. With the awakening of the Kundalini by the Grace of the Master, perfection becomes possible. The Guru doesn’t have to give any touch, instruction, technique, or any other physical initiation. The Guru is the Shakti of Kundalini, which permeates the whole area around the Master. Just by being with the Master, one’s Shakti is spontaneously awakened, and with the awakening of Kundalini, knowledge, purity, and unity of the Supreme reality is activated within. The Master transmits Her/His own Shakti into the student.

Kundalini is a vast mysterious domain. Through Divine Grace, Kundalini is experienced with Joy, bliss, and ease. When the Kundalini becomes activated, She moves from the root chakra to the crown chakra. Sometimes She will stay for several months in one chakra. Blockages will get removed, fear or anger will come up—one may even get sick. It is She who is doing this. She is cleansing. She is bringing these things to the surface. This is Her duty; this is Her seva. While activating, the Mother takes us from the world of duality to the world of non-duality and connects us with the pure, Divine consciousness that we are. Worldly desires will diminish. The same desire will shift from worldly existence to the Divine. Our whole system, the whole nervous system, the central nervous system—all are transformed. When the Kundalini is awakened, She starts Her process of cleansing all obstacles that block the Sushumna. The Sushumna is a subtle energy channel that extends from the root chakra to the crown chakra. This is the channel where the Kundalini flows when awakened.

When Kundalini Ma is cleansing us, all our addictions, belief systems, and concepts will fall apart. We can only rely on the Divine Principle once She is awakened. One is to understand intellectually that there is an involution process, meaning that pure consciousness in its subtlest form manifests Herself as Shakti, as consciousness at the base of the spine and in the brain. She is the power of all universes and, with the Grace of the Master, She takes one to the Light. This is why it is said that the Guru or Master is supreme.

The Grace granted by the Master will take one to his/her own real nature, to his/her essence. Many cultures revere this power by different names: Chi, Holy Spirit, Ki, Supreme Energy. During the time of Ancient Egypt, we all heard of the serpent and it is still on the walls today. In different mystery schools, The Great White Brotherhood, The Great White Sisterhood, and in all great Himalayan teachings, the knowledge of this power is widely known. Kundalini Shakti is the power of God within us, God’s creative power. Our whole universe is saturated with this power.

When we allow Her to unfold, we can move from the first chakra to that space where we only experience Divinity. This experience may not last long because She has to go back down to the lower chakras to continue the cleansing work. Then She will come back up again. She is universal Love. She is limitless, endless, and She carries Divine Power. She exists both on the inner planes as well as the outer planes. When She is active, new vitality spreads through one’s whole being. She blesses us with Her grace and takes us to the Father. When we surrender to Her, when we offer ourselves to Her, we experience Her glory. With Her, we can be successful in any field, in any domain. Until She is awakened, supreme Love, supreme Joy cannot be attained, cannot be experienced.

Kundalini Shakti is a great mystical power. She manifests Herself sometimes as electric shocks. Maybe you have experienced that. You can lose yourself in this power because it can be very overwhelming. Heat, spontaneous Joy, kriyas, or meditation can take place. Inner sound can be heard and you cannot control it. You may see beams of Light or rays of Light that appear instantly. You can even see yourself as Light. You can also feel badly. At the same time, you may feel you wish to move into meditation and get this feeling of meditation while walking. The Shakti will definitely be more active in your being. You can feel at the same time much activation in the body while
remaining in a state of deep calmness.

Sometimes when the Mother Shakti wishes to work intensely with you, She will put you in a place, in a position, in a situation where you do not move. After several hours, you may open your eyes and see you are in exactly the same place. From the first chakra to the seventh, the liquid energy or power in the Sushumna will move and unknot some very, very fine knots, finer than hair; thus karma will be transmuted. Just after awakening, one may experience anger, jealousy, frustrations, all kinds of negative stuff. This is because the Light is entering these dark chambers or chakras and you are seeing the dust or cobwebs!

Much deep work goes on. With this awakening, it’s very easy for one to start on the path of spirituality, of Divine knowledge, of humility. When one moves with Her into a transcendental state, then love, bliss, and power are experienced more and more. Over time, a state of enlightenment is also experienced. This awakening is a Divine gift and it’s only through Grace, through immense infinite Grace, that it happens. It doesn’t happen to everybody in his/her lifetime. Some people have to practice the spiritual life for 20 to 35 years and Kundalini is still not awakened and they can feel quite frustrated, but when the Beloved is ready, the Guru or Master is always there with His/Her boundless, limitless Love and Grace. The Heart is full of Love.

No space, no time, no future, no past, exist in that experience—only Love and compassion. The Love and the compassion for the Guru or Master are felt and some of you even ask, “How can I ever repay you? How can I pay this debt? How can I ever repay you for changing my life like this?” Well, my Love, know that I am also forever indebted to my Guru. My Guru is my Supreme Self and only through His Love, His Grace and blessing, am I able to cross the ocean of this world of duality. And also through His Grace, the Grace He showers upon me, am I able to serve others. He’s my own Supreme Self. He’s pure consciousness, allowing me to serve through Grace.

We are simply to allow the Grace of the supreme Kundalini Shakti to enlighten our being. Surrender to Her. Offer Her yourself. The Kundalini Shakti—and again I will repeat this—can be awakened in many different ways: by touch, by conscious intent, by fright, by a look, or by thought. In an instant it can happen. When one’s eyes meet the eyes of the Master or Guru, the latter knows this is The One for him or her. At this very moment the latter feels great Love or Devotion; the Master or Guru who is saturated with Shakti instantly will awaken the Kundalini. When this energy starts moving, all the gateways will be activated. The magnificent crown chakra, which is always perfect and bright, awakens and allows us to communicate with the Supreme. The Kundalini Shakti will cleanse and purify us completely, fully. The sushumna, the tube of Light that leads one to the crown, will become brighter and brighter.

In this awakened state, we move beyond the mind. We may even feel the presence of the Guru or Master as white, gold, or blue Light. Deep gratitude can be felt. You may even feel that you are going to faint or that your body needs sleep. Very often when you are close to very high Shakti, your inner power and your real potential are being activated. Kundalini is pure consciousness and when you sleep, the consciousness is being shifted—Divine awareness is being experienced.

You may feel you are not the same person anymore. You may feel a freedom that you have not experienced before. You feel totally free, a certain union with the Self, the Divine. You may even feel that you are bigger or taller. The mind is quiet; there is a deep tranquility like you are missing nothing in the world and you are fully satisfied. You also feel that you are witnessing emotions of others or witnessing your own emotions instead of getting involved in them. And you also feel very strong, like you fear nothing and you can face any situation. It is like your eyes are really open for the first time. You cannot ignore situations anymore. You cannot pretend anymore. One sees the world in a different way. One gradually moves out of falsehood and finally begins experiencing the difference between truth and non-truth. As Baba says, “You are wearing new glasses now.” It’s another world. You are now in the world of the Mother.

This awakening transmutes the illusion, the maya of the ephemeral world. This inner Shakti or inner fire will consume the energies that do not serve the personality any longer, as the whole being becomes divinized, a pure mind, a pure personality. The principle of Kundalini is Light divine, so just imagine: When Light gets in the cave of darkness, it may not be easy at first, but afterwards it is the Divine Life principle that dominates. This being is no more a normal person, but is becoming a natural, a real human being.

She/he starts to be filled with Divine Love, Divine power, or other Divine attributes. Now, life is fresher, such delight to breathe with Shakti. He/she lives in higher awareness. Every breath will connect this being to a more sincere, more true life experience—meaning living Truth, Peace, Contentment, Wisdom, Knowledge, and all expansion in Truth will be present. Faith is increasing, much less doubt is there, and there’s courage to continue sadhana fully.

The sense of sacrifice is now over and often one is eager to please the Master/Guru. One may wish deeply to be with the Master or Guru physically. Of course, the Shakti does not function in a logical way, so no expectations please! Any moment the Kundalini Shakti may give you a sublime experience. The more She is Loved by one, the more transformation occurs. Every now and then, a sweet taste of nectar is experienced in the throat. One easily experiences bliss of consciousness when prana is active and the Sushumna opens.

Peaks of union with Self or Shakti may be experienced. After awakening, it is recommended to be by oneself because of distractions. This being becomes so refined that any little noise can be disturbing; everyday life becomes a burden. One can feel pressure in the Chakras. This is when it is better to stop physical activity and just witness. Pressure in the center of the chest is common, even pain in the bones. The universal Heart chakra is being opened, waves of vibration, waves of Shakti, Light expansion, instant knowingness, words of wisdom, Grace and Love for the Master or Guru, God or Self intensify.

The flow of Shakti from the Master or Guru is felt and spontaneous healing can occur for oneself or for others. Most of all, Divine Love, Divine Love—One wants to run to the Guru’s precious feet. This sacred bond of Love between the seeker and the Master allows this sacredness to take place. When, over time, this being loses herself/himself in the Light of the Guru, the form of God, the form of Divine Light, the Guruhood of the disciple starts unfolding, blossoming. This is the victory of the relationship between disciple and Guru.

When Kundalini is awakened, we find Her everywhere. She is ageless. She is beyond time. She is absolutely everything and there is no place you will not find Her. When we are one with Her, all the Joy we have longed for will be experienced—even with material things, such as a house, car, marriage, or a job. It is also very easy to work with Her in your job. Kundalini Shakti doesn’t ask you to stop working and stay in a cave. No, I can tell you it is wondrous to move even into new jobs because that’s how we experience more of the world. One can use one’s work as a vehicle to experience bliss. We are Kundalini Shakti, so we will experience that Joy, that inner world full of bliss. Wherever you go, Kundalini Shakti is being spread, is being activated. This Joy comes from Her, from the source.

Now, sometimes you may experience that this Joy comes and goes. The explanation for that is the body may need more rest to digest all these new energies, but it is not leaving you.

The fear and emotion that She is bringing to the surface from the first, second and third chakras may make you feel lonely, like the Divine has left you, but it is not that. It is the cleansing of all of the past actions, the impressions from your life before. The ego and the mind wait for this opportunity to take over. Fear is watching to take over. This is the time to be joyous, chant, meditate, read, listen to music, or be with people who uplift you until this Divine Joy is totally established.

In all of us, this Divine source has two different aspects: one as a manifestation of the worldly existence (which is functioning quite well), and the other aspect is the inner existence (which is asleep in most of humankind). This is the reason why most human beings do not live in harmony. They are looking, urging, searching for that piece, that piece of the Truth, that knowledge of the Truth. That is Kundalini Ma.

She is the highest power, the power of consciousness itself. She is the Mother of all Mothers. She is the creation. She is active. She is visible and She is also invisible; She is the visible aspect of the invisible Shakti. There is nothing greater than She is. There is nothing greater than Kundalini Shakti. Her Light is the brightest of all Light that we can think of. She is the Absolute. She is the fire that can burn, that can dissolve, and at the same time, that can create. She’s pure, total free will. Gods and Goddesses bow to Her, to Her power, to Her beauty, to what She creates. She unfolds all as Herself; out of Her womb comes the world. She creates all universes; She is life; She is death; She is food; She is the body; She is the senses; and She lives with us as us. She lives within us as us. She is purity, She is abundance, She is love, She is light, She is All. She is that Divine power that dwells within each of us as our own Self. She is our organs and our glands, and She makes everything function. She is our heartbeat, and She is so subtle that we do not perceive Her most of the time. She is eternal wisdom; She is eternal Love; She is the eternal witness; She is pure knowledge; and She knows Herself as Herself and as us.

Where is the sun? Where is the moon? Where are the stars? Where is the galaxy? She is that. Her activation in us is the real beginning of our way to spirit, to the Holy Spirit She is. She allows us to explore the underworld, and lets us dive inside of ourselves to experience Her. She allows us by Her Grace to explore the inner world within us. This is the Grace of the Guru or Master. The Guru who transmits Her/His own Shakti in Shaktipat activates this Shakti within us; so, when one merges with the Shakti, one merges with the Guru.

The Kundalini will move from the lowest energy in us to the highest, to uplift everything. Through this journey, She will pierce all the chakras and dissolve all blockages of this lifetime, as well as other experiences of life in other lifetimes. As the Master or Guru is created in the perfect image of the creator, Mother, Father, God, our birthright is to merge with the creator where we originally came from. We are to meditate on our Inner Light.

We are to honor ourselves, our Supreme Self. We are to worship our Supreme Self, and to understand through that Grace our personality, by practicing self-inquiry and introspection. We are to bow to our Supreme Self. We are to live in total, integrated faith, knowing that God is around us, that God dwells within us as us. The Kundalini Shakti is the creator as well as the creation. She purifies all the senses.

Our Kundalini Shakti can purify all the senses. When She starts purifying our eyes, for instance, we see things more clearly. It’s like everything becomes refined. She will be in the eyes, giving our eyes new powers. We can see things at a great distance and very small things. She will move into another aspect of the sense of sight where our inner eyes start being open. When these inner eyes start to open, it’s like we don’t feel our physical eyes anymore. We start to see this blue universe inside. We see this massive Light that sparkles inside us and we see things through this soft, tender, and subtle Light. For example, if we look at a tree, we see the tree, but we also see the Light of the tree. When Kundalini Shakti purifies the sense of smell, we get to smell as we never have smelled before. It’s like we are connected with the essence of the smell itself. The smell of food becomes different, and flowers have a different fragrance—it’s like we’re moving into the divinity of the smell itself. And sometimes we are just overwhelmed by Divine fragrance. It comes out of our body. Perfume is gross compared to that fragrance, that smell.

As one starts expanding, all limitations evolve into vastness. The current Shankaracharya says, “Shiva can only create when He is united with Shakti; without Shakti, Shiva cannot create.”

During Navaratri, Baba said, “We call the Goddess by different names—know it is only cosmic power: Saraswati, Lakshmi, Durga, it’s all one.” Baba loves to chant the Gayatri (mantra), who is the Cosmic Mother. Nothing exists without the Mother. It is important to Love both Mother/Father creator within, the parents of the universe. The Love out of the limitless, boundless Love merges and becomes Beloved, and Beloved becomes Love. Both parents are made, created from the same Shakti ;they are to be One, as two is duality. No one can ever disturb their merging or union, so mysterious, as they are both installed in the smallest and subtlest atoms. Her whole being embraces Him as a garment and He weaves the whole for Her to play—His service to Her, whole and sweet.

So the Shakti Kundalini, who is within each Being, contracts Herself and becomes a denser manifestation, just like water becomes ice. In the Sahasrara—inside the subtlest form of the universe where the sacred union of Shiv/Shakti takes place—this all-transcendent, non-form, all-pervading Light starts moving forward toward the space between the fontanelle and the pituitary, the space before all was created in a sort of Milky Way, pure creation.

It is the role of the Guru to awaken the Shakti. The Guru is the Grace and the power of God. Through this Divine Grace, the individual consciousness will automatically merge with the Divine consciousness. The more one is devoted to God, to the Guru, to the Divine, to Ishwara, to the Divine Mother (which is all the same), the more one receives. Know one thing: The more we give you, the more we will demand from you for humanity, because the Divine Self will shine forth its splendor and it is not only for you, it is also to serve others. The Grace of a Master will never leave a seeker, even if the latter chooses to be with another Master.

In a fraction of a second one can experience the whole universe. Such is the significance of the Guru. In the Puranas it is said, “Guru Is the Supreme of All” and It Is So True. This is Divine Reality. Allow yourself to merge yourself in the Supreme. Immerse yourself in this Supreme Bliss. There is nothing other than that if you wish to be free of pain, free of duality, and free of misery.

Love You All,
Your Ever,

November 2000, Puttaparthi, India