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Golden Sun,
Hey, I did a search on Adyashanti (I’m always curious about
spiritual teachers)..then when I saw he was teaching “thunder breathing” I was taken aback! I learned that from Max aka Dorje aka “Q” ( I guess he’s a Lama now!). That was in 1997 when I lived in Hawaii. I found his website now, looks pretty good. It’s a trip to see him after all these years. I have him to thank for my taste for fine tea (he gives teamaster classes).Cheers,
HassanTrunk,
I feel the urge to respond to what you’re doing. I have been having spontaneous yoga “kriyas” related to sacral pulsing for some time now. The action of my kriya is similar to your exercise..which occurs when I’m laying supine (sometimes even in the prone position). The contractions are around the sacrum (and buttocks too I think) and cause my whole pelvic region to “bounce” up and down in quick movements. I would say about 4-5 contractions a second.
The other piece to this, which may or may not interest you, is the simultaneous pulses taking place in the muscles surrounding the occipital region. These cause my head to pulse forward (rotationally) in the same manner. Maybe something to do with movements of cerebro-spinal fluid? The head pulses do not occur every time. I assume, in yoga terminology, this is all part of the process in becoming urdhvaretas ( a yogi in whom the seminal energy flows upwards to the brain and is stored up as Ojas Sakti or spiritual energy).
hassan
Max,
This might be a good article for your collection..espousing the less familiar spontaneous path of kechari mudra. I came across this information doing searches on google newsgroups (Kavindra is the source, you can keyword his name along with “yoga”, “kundalini”, or just his name).
I don’t know if I necessarily believe all that Kavindra says on topics of yoga, like whether or not willful practice of kechari mudra is futile…even dangerous. I do know without a doubt what he says about it’s spontaneous occurrence is true, since I have been having spontaneous kechari mudra movements for several months. It is just as he describes in the article below. I practice from the same type of lineage (Siddha Path)that he does, so spontaneous yoga occurrs every time I sit, rather than willful exercises.
Anyway, I thought since you guys are getting hot on this practice, you might like some additional info…best of luck!
Kavindra
On
Kechari Mudra
(clipped from Google groups)It is interesting to me to suddenly see discussion of khecari mudra appear on this NG at this time. I have occasionally deliberated whether or not to bring the subject up myself, and was fascinated to see that such a discussion appeared simultaneously with my own posting in reference to it to Keutzer. It is a relief to me to write about it, since km is at the center of the main challenge I have been facing in my sadhana over the last couple of years.
Both my Guru, Swami sri Krpalvananda, and his designated successor, Swami sri Rajarshi Muni, have experienced this mudra. I know that the descriptions of it have puzzled (and probably horrified) many people when they have come across them in the Yoga Shastras.
For those who are interested in reading the Shastric writings on KM, brief (and very cryptic) references can be found to it in the Siva Samhita, Hathayoga Pradipika, and Gherandha Samhita. A more extensive description can be found in the Yogakundali Upanishad.
KIDS: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!! Those writings are intended for those who have had initiation into the specific kind of Yoga they address. Without the “secret keys” of this initiation, these books cannot be fully understood. Attempting to cut the tongue with a knife, pull it with pliers, and insert it into the sinus cavity will not bring the effects these Shastras describe. Although they utilize these symbolic terms to represent what occurs spontaneously when one progresses far enough into surrender to shakti, anyone who tries to take them as literal instructions will destroy their chances of attaining Samadhi.
I myself was on the verge of making this terrible mistake when I first discovered the writings of Swami Krpalvananda. I had spent several years attempting to practice Yoga without the guidance of a Guru. I was under the misconception that the “secret” of Yoga was something I could deduce by reading and cross-referencing all the ancient texts I could get my hands on, and experimenting with what I thought were the instructions they gave. I thought that I was being intelligent by doing this, thus avoiding the Guru-disciple relationship, which appeared to me to be submissive and exploitative. I thought I was being smart, but I was almost too stupid to live.
My self-directed approach yielded many powerful experiences, but after a while I became aware that there was another level to which I was unable to attain. I tried to think of something (besides initiation) which would enable me to break through to this level. The only viable candidate which seemed to carry this possibility was kecari mudra, which I had avoided experimenting with for obvious reasons. I bought myself some tumeric and sea salt, and took a knife to the tendon beneath my tongue. Frightened of the pain, I managed to make only the slightest nick in the tendon after about an hour of anxiety and wincing. In spite of the pain, I was feeling pretty proud of myself for that little scratch when I was done.
I can only attribute it to the Grace of God that I acquired a book (now out of print) entitled “Krpalupanishad.” This was a translation of some of the more technical writings by Swami Krpalvananda, compiled and edited by one of his disciples. I got it later that very same day. I happened to have the opportunity to stop through an ashram some distance from where I lived, and wanted to buy a new book on Yoga since I had read & studied all the ones I had collected up until that point. The trouble was that the many books by various spiritual teachers were too expensive for my limited income. Krpalupanishad was on a “sale” rack, as its publication was being discontinued- most people find it to be far too technical to understand.
Which was largely the case for me. However, the sections that I did comprehend were able to immediately answer a number of questions I had been harboring- and most importantly, explained why one should never attempt to produce khecari mudra by willfully cutting themselves.
I will emphasize here that my personal experience of KM is limited. I have experienced the beginning of the process, up to and including the spontaneous (but in my case, partial) tearing of the froenulum. Because my life circumstances demand that I place limitations on the intensity of my sadhana at this time, I generally “put the brakes on” when prana begins to advance this process. What follows is a recapitulation of what the Masters in my lineage have described in regards to it.
There are ten mudras which develop in a specific sequence that are integral to the process or raising the awakened kundalini. They begin to occur when the currents of prana which normally progress downwards and outwards reverse their direction and begin to flow upwards along the shushumna. Khecari mudra is fifth in the sequence, following mulabandhamudra, uddiyanabandhamudra, jalandharabandhamudra, and shakticalalamudra in that order.
Khecari mudra specifically is preceded by three processes: Jhivana kriya, dolana kriya, and nabho mudra. Jhivana kriya are those spontaneous movements which cause the tendon under the tongue to become separated. The initial cut usually occurs when the tongue extends itself as to its limit, and moves back and forth across the lower front teeth in a sawing motion. When this began to occur to me, I was struck by how much this movement resembled movements made by psychiatric patients suffering from the neurological disorder called Tardive Dyskenesia (I have been employed in a number of different psychiatric settings over the years, which gives me some perspective on what may be happening on the neurological level with these processes).
I must again emphasized that these movements occur without any volition at all. When they begin, it is tempting to try to “help” the process along willfully, which is a disaster. Inventing exercises to strengthen the tongue may help, but are not necessary (there is some debate as to whether or not doing this will be a hindrance in meditation later on).
The fingers may form into a pincer-shape and further widen the initial incision. How such an operation can occur without the individual intending it may be a puzzle to some readers, so I will cite a parallel again from neuropathology: Certain types of Obsessive-Compulsive disorder in which the individual experiences a strong compulsion to pluck at or pick at a specific spot on the body. This urge develops out of a state of inner tension, which is then relieved by the compulsive behavior. What happens in the meditation of surrender to shakti is similar- with the exception, of course, that it can be controlled at any time, and does not have the compulsive quality once the meditation session has ended. It is fascinating, though, how the sensation of pain is experienced as a sensation of relief when the tendon is being cut; it is as if a vague itch is being scratched. Of course, the sense of relief is no longer there when meditation is concluded for the day, and the person may be quite uncomfortable the rest of the time.
Nabho mudra consists of curling the tongue towards the back of the mouth in a way that stretches the tendon. This minor mudra can occur as a part of other processes; here it of course occurs in order to further enlarge the incision.
When jhivana kriya frees the tongue from the bottom of the mouth, dolana kriya can then really begin to achieve its purpose: The lengthening and strengthening of the tongue to an extraordinary degree. Under the operations of prana, this is done in such a way that the connective tissues, tendons, etc. are kept strong and intact as they elongate. When people attempt to stretch it out willfully, these connective tissues are damaged. The consequence is that a tongue mutilated in such a way will never be able to complete khecari mudra.
Khecari mudra itself begins when the transformed tongue curls back as in nabho mudra, but is now able to slide its way up behind the soft palate. At this point, it locates a juncture of bone on the underside of the skull. This is referred to as the “Gate of Brahma” in the Yogakundali Upanishad, and it is said that “even the Devas (Gods) are unable to open it.” In other texts it is referred to as the “tenth gate.”
What now happens is that the elongated and strengthened tongue begins to apply extreme pressure to this juncture, and literally breaks it open. When this occurs, the tongue is then able to slide up into the cranial cavity and actually begin to apply direct pressure upon various parts of the brain.
Upon completion of khecari mudra, there follows a process called “melana” or “maithuna” which is one of the most closely kept secrets of Yoga, along with shaktichalanamudra (the means by which awakened kundalini is made to ascend). The tongue is metaphorically described as a phallus (lingam), while the cranial cavity is described as a womb (yoni).This is more than just a metaphor, though. Sigmund Freud postulated that a newborn infant’s suckling reflex was essentially an erotically driven operation, and that the erotic sensation gradually descends to the genitals with development. There is a nadi which links the tongue with the swadhisthana chakra, or sex center. I have experienced the transference of erotic energy from the swadhisthana region to the tongue, and it is definitely what drives the tongue to make such powerful movements. Honestly, I don’t think I would have been able to overcome the fear and pain involved if it weren’t so intensely gratifying at the same time.
The fact that sexual metaphors have been utilized in various Shastras to describe KM and the processes that develop from it has had some unpleasant consequences. People who read these passages without understanding what they are really meant to be describing get the mistaken impression that they describe some sort of modified/ritualized sex act. Experimentation with this misconception has resulted in some pretty mind-blowing ways of having sex, which are then mistaken for awakening kundalini, samadhi, etc. Consequently, lineages of “Tantric Sexual Yoga” have been perpetuated that have obvious “marketing” advantages over those that understand & practice brahmacharya.
As Muniji describes it, the flesh of the soft palate actually turns into a sphinctre-like structure which closes up when the tongue comes down again. It is my own speculation that the tough, protective membrane called the dura mater remains intact, and sheathes the tongue when it protrudes upwards.
The region affected by this pressure is the center of the underside of the brain- the area known as the limbic system. Rajarshi Muni described how the tongue pressed upon what he called a “bundle of nerves” with the result that sensory experience was cut off completely. Due to it’s location and function, I believe this “bundle” that Muniji described was the upper section of a structure called the Reticular Activating System, through which all sensory information travels to get to the higher brain centers. This is the final and complete form of pratyahara- perfect sensory isolation. The full forms of dhyana and samadhi, with the subsequent effects described in the Shastras, are wholly dependent upon the completion of this process in its spontaneous form.
Note that the activity of KM on the pineal and pituitary glands has some very profound effects on the whole body- a kind of “reversal of puberty,” it would seem- part of the process of becoming an urdhvaretas Yogi. It should be noted that the “tasting of nectar” has something to do with this. Most people seem to think that “nectar” or “sweetness means the taste of snot from having the tongue in the sinus cavity. This is not amrta!
