Kundalini Yoga’s prime aim is to elevate the yogi’s consciousness; distributing the cosmic life force we all inherently have up the spine to the crown chakra. To do so it combines breathing (Pranayama), yoga postures (Asanas), body locks (Bhandas), chanting (Mantras), hand & finger gestures (Mudras) and meditation to uncoil the Kundalini energy dwelling at the base of the spine.

This energy is dormant in most people and represents our unique creative potential. Naturally the unraveling of this powerhouse of energy means big changes.

When activated or uncoiled this aforementioned energy travels up the spine towards its ultimate destination – the crown chakra. It does not always make it to the top but the distance covered however small results in some sort of positive change, be it a shift in perception, release or stagnant emotion or a change of habit, to name a few.

En route towards the crown the energy moves thru the chakras, (centers of consciousness), as the energy moves thru these ‘gateways’ elements associated with each chakra are heightened. This can feel intense and overwhelming, joyous and exhilarating depending on where one is at.

Raising one’s kundalini is easy, keeping it elevated is the tricky part, and to do this requires discipline, devotion, consistency and patience in your practice of Kundalini Yoga.

There are many merits to practicing Kundalini Yoga, apart from the exhilaration, joy and buzz after a class that many experience, here are a few more:

Kundalini Yoga:

• has a direct bearing on the glandular system thus enhancing the ability to look and feel great. Yay!
  • heightens the senses… So, your ability to taste, smell, feel and see are increased. Apart from the obvious meaning of the senses, this can also mean: your taste in your lifestyle changes; your intuition increases; you may feel more compassionate and giving; and/or develop more awareness of your reality.
  • deeply encourages a relationship with Self which in turn helps eliminate habits like smoking or alcohol addiction. The realization that You are more than your neuroses hits home and the crutches that once kept you supposedly ‘happy’ or ‘coping’ are no longer needed.
  • helps one overcome negative feelings and encourages a positive attitude towards yourself and others. Your tolerance level for previous irritations increases and your tendancy to overreact decreases. Wahe!
  • develops the ability to ‘keep up’ during even through the most challenging kriya, which in turn helps to  strengthens your positive mind: the ultimate antidote to dis-ease of any kind.
  • Most important of all Kundalini Yoga supports your Divine Purpose in life, that of becoming the best human being you can be. The practice of Kundalini Yoga has the beautiful effect of encouraging you to recognize you are a spiritual being. The ripple effects of this new perception are many! A new found appreciation for the physical body and respect for all things are a couple that spring to mind.

Kundalini Yoga is simply put: the most effective method for achieving alignment with the limitlessness of the Universe. The way to get there? Through your body, mind and spirit.

Kundalini Yoga is not about dropping who you are, or becoming something else. It’s about embracing your Sat Nam, the Truth of Who You Are…and that dear folks is the most beautiful thing that can befall a human being. Kundalini Yoga is the uber must-have accessory for living a happy, heathy and holy existence in our time.

Wahe Guru!

Written by Mahnpahl Kaur

“The kundalini experience does not mean you have gone into a deep breathless trance and are beyond this world. … It integrates you more fully with reality and gives you a broader vision and sensitivity so that you can act more efficiently.” ~ Yogi Bhajan

“Keep up and you will be Kept Up” Yogi Bhajan

Shakti Dance is often referred to as the yoga of dance; I think there’s more to it than that. Shakti is a pretty word, yes – and its meaning is colossal in symbolism and meaning. Shakti is Sanskrit for the “personification of the Divine Feminine Creative Power”.  So Shakti Dance is the tapping into, and expression of the great source of universal creative power. We all (men and woman) have it and the way in which we express it is purely unique.

Shakti Dance uses the tools of free and flowing dance movements with the ancient wisdom of yoga, in particular Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan. The notion of dancing in a personal and yet divine way has been around since time immemorial, Shakti Dance as a modern concept began in the early 90’s, bringing this sacred and ancient ritual back  into society’s swing.

Most people dance after a few drinks, or a night out on the town. The beauty of Shakti Dance is that it’s done in a safe and sacred space, during the day, making it easy to incorporate the benefits without the haze of a hangover.

Rather than using dance to express one’s egoism or cloaked neuroses. Dance in a Shakti Dance class is used to connect with yourself in a sincere way. It’s a way to express the celebration that is life, and to share it with other folk. It’s great to be able to dance with others in a setting where being fuelled by alcohol or the like isn’t de rigeur.

The great thing about a Shakti Dance class is that it unfolds in a natural and spontaneous way, the rhythms you dance to change as do the tempos. Every class is different. The freedom of form cultivates a heart-centered and high-energy participation which gets one out of one’s intellect and with the help of the sacred sound current (Naad) gives you a sense of happiness and fun. Connecting with the Naad is profound and fosters an opening of one’s deep creativity and reverence for all that is.

Every class starts with a grounding series of stretches and breath-coordinated movements, warming up the body in preparation for the expression of ‘Shakti’. Music used in a Shakti Dance class centers around devotional music of various styles and beats featuring mantras of various traditions to uplift and ‘activate’ the dancer.

As in a kundalini yoga class, the navel plays a big part in a Shakti Dance class. The navel is the centre of you, and being located in the third chakra, i.e. solar plexus it’s your fire for creating and combusting all facets of your life, your willpower and sense of self in the world.

Yogi Bhajan has this to say on power of the navel area: Kundalini Yoga activates its dormant potentials in the brain. It needs to tap the reserve energy that is stored near your Navel Point. There is a pure source of energy at the navel area that is known, perceived, and understood by the yogis. It is that pure energy that guides and develops your shape and connects you to this Earth. That connection and that pure energy are still there. It is part of your subtle structure as a human being. All you have to do is uncoil that energy and make a functional connection with your pineal gland. Once that master gland, the channel of the soul, has started secreting, it will give you the power to reach your self-realization in relationship to the total universal awareness. 

Kundalini Yoga and Shakti Dance are complementary to one another. Together they culminate your energy and give you a sacred way to express it thru the Dance. In addition as you become more articulate in the way you move it affects your yoga practice in the most positive of ways, giving you a fluidity and flexibility in your limbs that wasn’t there pre-Dance. You’re more aware of your body and thus your mind. It’s like a confident boost of the physical, mental and spiritual self. Shakti Dance does that for a person. The benefits are endless.

When you dance you invite opportunity into your life. I know, I’ve experienced it firsthand. I used to dance every day and the vibe of pure playfulness, beauty, resplendence, femininity and sanctity that pervaded my being was amazing. Possibility surrounded me like the scent of honeysuckle in the spring.

Dancing also gives you more range within your physical self, a skip in your step yes, but beyond that it gives you an eloquence of movement. Just watch anyone that dances for a living, or teaches dance. They have a grace about them, a deep-seated grace and awareness. It’s a beautiful thing.

Written by Vita Marguin

“Chakras” are energy centers which asorb life force or ‘prana’ from the Universe and distribute it through the NADIS (energy channels) to the nervous system, endocrine glands and circulatory system.

The first 3 chakras 1, 2 & 3 are known as the lower triangle and chakra’s 5, 6 & 7 are known as the upper triangle. The fourth chakra (heart) is the balance between the two triangles, where the shift happens from ME to WE (Individual to Universal).

If you imagine the body as a tree, the lower half of the body, (navel down) are the trunk and roots, the upper half (navel upwards) are the branches/leaves.  The lower triangle focuses on elimination and are balanced by the upper triangle, which accumulate, create and refine.  So like the tree, if the root system is functioning properly then the leaves begin to grow and flourish.

By opening and balancing the chakras it is possible to connect to a larger source of energy,from which we come and to which we return.

The first five Chakras are associated with the elements (Tattvas) EARTH, WATER, FIRE, AIR and ETHER and the upper three Chakras correspond to the subtle realm.

Each Chakra resonates to a different frequency and a different refraction of the Infinite Light.