Elana Kaufman
CSOCS 3452.01
Professor Laura Douglass
10 October 2012
Kundalini Yoga: The Yoga Practice of Rhythm and Awareness
On a beautiful, brisk fall day I woke up with a positive attitude and an open mind and rode my bike to Kundalini Yoga Boston in Inman Square. I arrived early and walked into the entrance which is home to a small gallery and store. I was met by the kind face of Siri Ram Kaur Khalsa who greeted me with a soft hello. After introducing myself to her, I explained my experience with yoga and though I was not familiar with Kundalini, I really wanted to immerse myself as best as I could while there. She assured me that this would be possible and then went on to tell me a bit about herself and about the studio. She told me that the studio is quite new though she has been practicing and teaching for a very long time; the location in Inman Square has only been there for three years but has already found a great amount of students to enjoy its resources. The calm and welcoming atmosphere and the light, simple, and serene energy of the studio ended up being very much reflected in the practice. Though the physical practice was intense for me at times and even got my body sweating, it was very grounding and did help me find a sense of calm within myself. It was unlike any other yoga class I have ever been to and I am excited to explore it further.
The class that I went to was simply titled on the schedule as “Kundalini Yoga and Meditation.” Going into this experience, I had only a slight of an idea of what I was expecting, as their website had a lot information about what an average class looks like. I also had references and information from a book called The Kundalini Yoga Experience which gave me a great idea of what the practice was like, but I found it difficult to translate into a class and further into a real life setting. I had used it in the past as a way to embellish on my own personal practice and also learn from the extensive information on each chakra. The norms and routines that I gathered a bit of information from before my class definitely were maintained and held true in the class I took.
Upon entering the room to being our practice, I felt very comfortable and treated with special regard by Siri Ram as a new student (and as one of only three students in class that day.) The other student who was in the room stretching and relaxing before class with me, a male in his thirties, told me this class tends to be very quiet and intimate because not many people attend an early Friday mornings, unlike the evening classes which are held each day of the week and tend to be crowded. Later into the practice, another woman joined us but was very respectful and calm upon entering and caused no change in the atmosphere of the class. The intimate and secluded atmosphere ended up appealing to me and really allowed me to have a time that was purely for my own self reflection, attention, and relaxation; I was not self conscious about my movements or breathing as I can sometimes feel and be in a larger class or in a class where I know other students- there was no judgement from either Siri Ram or the other students.
Siri Ram explained that this class was focusing on having a strong root chakra, both spiritually and physically, which provides a solid and steady base to move forward from and how this can help one to further their expansion into the more infinite and less tangible. The exercises were all centered around engaging the pelvis, movement through the hips and lower back and various breathing exercises that allow warmth and circulation to reach all over the body. I found that the practice itself had a seamless and natural balance of where energy was being placed in my being; I felt that I was able to find a balance of rajas and tamas in both mind and body. Throughout the practice there was music which was used to help engage in either a mantra or just to have a rhythm that the breath could follow; this difference in my practice was great- it was extremely enjoyable and had some soothing effects on me, especially on the more strenuous exercises.
The class opened with a mantra chant of Ung Namo Guru Dev Namo which was repeated three times. It was used as an atunement that helps center, ground and protect a person throughout their practice. It was then followed by a warm up that consisted of a few simple stretches that helped get our bodies moving. The warm up was then followed by the Kriya (which is a combintation of postures, prana [breathing] and chanting) that began with three different sitting exercises, which were all focused on rhythm and opening up the root chakra. Each exercise helped to deepen the breath and wake up some of the hip and pelvic muscles in a slightly different way. We then continued on to three standing poses which ranged from squats to side bends, slight back bends, and twists. Throughout the kriya, each different posture was given its own specific time limit and was only done for that amount of time or repetitions, so as to give the body what it needs, possibly with a bit of challenge, but not overwhelm or overwork it. This was then followed by an 11 minute sitting meditation centered around the mantra (and song) Har Har Mukunday. The chant is used as a way to liberate the spirit or soul from the body into the infinite. This meditation was interesting because there was a physical component to it which consisted of drawing the naval muscle in towards the spine with each Har and then with each Mukunday placing the tongue on the roof of the mouth. I found this to be difficult as I wasn’t exactly sure how my breathing would work through this process- the rhythm was also a bit difficult to get into. Though it was one of the most difficult parts of the practice for me, the 11 minutes passed in a flash and I realized that I had been meditating though it wasn’t apparent to me. After this, we spent time in corpse pose and went through the body and relaxed each part, much like we do in our class. After corpse pose we did another meditation which was accompanied by the mantra of Har. The sides of the hands are brought together and hit with a bit of force in this meditation which is a way to manifest and bring change into one’s life. Siri Ram explained that this is one of the most effective and sometimes unexplainable mantras she has ever worked with but should only be done for a maximum of 11 minutes because it can be more than effective and very powerful; the amount of focus and energy encompassed in those 11 minutes is more than enough and more than that is seen as greedy. We ended the class with singing of the song “May the Long Time Sun,” which was beautiful and definitely resonated with the musician and the pacifist in me. It was a time in the practice in which one is able to sing and give love to his or herself, family, friends and the entire world. It was a great way to end the class and really made me feel like I was able to extend some part of my practice, and the good energy I had felt, out to the universe.
The class and studio are extremely open, encouraging, and welcoming, and it seemed that the population and culture that became most involved there were those who had some previous or current experience with Kundalini Yoga. Those who try it out, may be expecting a more typical Hatha yoga practice and could definitely be shocked by the amount of music, chanting, repetition and timing, and emphasis on rhythm and internal connection. I thought that the studio may appeal to the Cambridge white male/female and those who are looking for a bit deeper spiritual connection in addition to their physical yoga practice Some of those who practice there are extremely devout in their practice and are Sikh. Certain events such as Kirtans (which are open to the public) and other forms of yoga devotion, such as dance, use of drums or gongs, or other music or modalities are brought in and combined with Kundalini Yoga and other yogic cultures and presented to the public to try.
The history of Kundalini Yoga has roots largely on the teachings of Kundalini Yoga through Yogi Bhajan. The practice was quoted by the Kundalini Research Institute as, “encompassing the eight limbs of yoga into a singular practice of excellence and ecstasy” (KundaliniResearchInstitute.com). Though it is an ancient practice, Kundalini is adaptable to modern times and was mainly brought back into “modern” society by Yogi Bhajan. Yogi Bhajan was born in India in 1929 and began his spiritual journey and atunement by age 7. By age 16, he was titled a Yogi master of Kundalini by his teacher Master Sant Hazara Singh. He was quoted in The Kundalini Yoga Experience as saying that when he came to the West in 1969 his intention was to “create teachers not to gather disciples” (Khalsa and O’Keefe 15). He founded the organization and community called 3HO, which stands for Healthy, Happy Holy Organization. This organization provided information, hosted lectures and allowed individuals to be certified in Yogi Bhajan’s Kundalini teachings; it is still functioning and popular today. The fact that he wanted to spread this practice as a way to better the life of any person made the difference in how it spread and how quickly it spread; it was accessible and was not limited only to Yogis, living the life of a monk or sage. It gave people the chance to learn and explore the practice without a religious connection, though spirituality comes into play in the practice. It is said to be the yoga which has the potential to be best practiced by the homeowner/homemaker; it appeals to those with spouses and families because it does not require celibacy or specific religious implications, though it is a practice that is closely connected with Sikh faith.
A few aspects of the culture that I observed, but was not very well informed of previously to the class, were the way many who practice Kundalini Yoga wear white clothing, use hair turbans, and instead of yoga mats or towels, may use cotton blankets or sheepskins to practice on top of. I found that this is mainly because the teachings of Yogi Bhajan emphasize the use of natural materials. The color white is important because of its connotations of purity and light and that it contains all other colors. The use of hair turbans is quite common and can also be substituted as the wearing of a hat; this practice is in place as a way to keep energy within the Anja or 6th chakra during meditation. Though I didn’t wear the turban, and I didn’t have a hat to wear during meditation while in the class, I tried to incorporate wearing a hat into my personal meditation and found that it did have some surprising effects on how my focus shifted.
All of the main principles that I was able to find information on through literature, the online resources of the Kundalini Yoga Boston website, and the Kundalini Research Institute website were reflected in some way in the class I attended. The main one that I noted was the aspect of Kundalini Yoga being a way to “[uncoil] the inner awareness of our spiritual nature” (Khalsa and O'Keeffe 11). The common imagery associated with this idea is a serpent coiled at the base of the spine which represents our latent spiritual potential. The movement of that serpent throughout each of the different chakras is the movement to a new state of being and a more aware state of consciousness and fulfillment. The practice is used to work with your inner awareness of your body, mind and spirit and builds off of each of the chakras. Like all yoga, it is the unifying of the entire self into a being who is self aware and compassionate.
Siri Ram said to me in a conversation at the end of the practice that Kundalini Yoga is the, “Yoga of Awareness” (Kaur Khalsa). I found this to be very informative to my yoga practice because as I was working with different areas of my body and using my breath as a way to relax or engage those areas, I found my mind being drawn to the physical sensation but also allowing a certain amount of release. I didn’t find my energy to be depleted; I was engaged and focused. I found that the impact of time restraints, specific numbers of repetitions for motions of postures, as well as the different types of breath utilized throughout the practice, all allowed me to get into a rhythm and to feel very present and in touch with my body. Simply being aware of my body and the different sensations was a practice that I found very enriching and invigorating in itself.
The entire experience ended up with me feeling very calm, together, and open. The rest of my day went very smoothly and I was able to come back to some of the meditations, emotions, feelings and breath that I practiced in the class on my own and still found them to be beneficial. I found that the singing of the “May the Long Time Sun” really made the entire experience so worthwhile; I was able to give a bit of extra love to myself, and to the entire universe through a bit of song. I found myself smiling and almost on the verge of tears because I felt that if I got nothing else from the practice, it enabled me to give an hour and a half to myself to really be in my body, let my worries, self consciousness, judgements, and plans to leave my thoughts; I was allowing myself to get the love that I sometimes deny in my daily life due to school work or other commitments. I was able to take time to appreciate myself for who I am and appreciate the effort that I put in and not criticize. In all, I am very thankful for the experience to explore Kundalini yoga and I think it is something that I will continue to explore through my own spiritual pursuits.
Works Cited
Khalsa, Dharam S., and Darryl O'Keeffe. The Kundalini Yoga Experience: Bringing Body, Mind, and Spirit Together. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002. Print.
"Kundalini Research Institute: Yoga As Taught by Yogi Bhajan." Kundalini Research Institute: Yoga As Taught by Yogi Bhajan. Kundalini Research Institute, 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2012. <http://www.kundaliniresearchinstitute.org/>.
Siri Ram Kaur Khalsa. 5 Oct. 2012. Spoken conversations & interview. Kundalini Yoga Boston, MA.
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