Yoga, like other ancient disciplines, contemplates the human constitution as a network of centers and channels through which vital energy circulates. The purpose of yoga practices is to get this energy to circulate freely and ascend.

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Kundalini and nadis in yoga

The physical and subtle bodies are composed of an important network of nadis, which is where the breath or energy circulates, and which includes veins and nerves. It has been mentioned above that some texts cite hundreds of thousands, although the most significant would be between 10 and 14.

The nadis that play the main roles in yoga, but not exclusive, are reduced to three: Ida, Pingala, and Susumna. They are related to the awakening and ascent of the kundalini. These three nadis are represented as a central rod, which would be Susumna, by which two lateral lines intersect, one begins its path at the right base and the other at the left. The crossing point of the three nadis corresponds to the situation of the main chakras, with which they connect. The image is the same as the Caduceus of Hermes.

Ida and Pingala bring both breaths and energy to the subtle body. The nostrils, each belonging to one of these two nadis, regulate all the activity of the body and mind. Normally breathing predominates in one of them depending on the time of day. Ida and Pingala carry the air, but different schools have attributed to the various ways of doing so. It is commonly said that the inspired Air will descend one way to the trunk to exhale through Pingala. When the flow of respiration is equalized in one way and Pingala, the activity between the hemispheres is harmonized, allowing Susumna its activation and the significant contribution of energy to the brain that this entails.

Susumna is the path of enlightenment, the path of in between, it is the death of the self upon entering samadhi, while Ida and Pingala are the life and therefore the trap. It is neutral, neither male nor female has its origin in the Muladhara Chakra, the meeting place of the three nadis, ascends through the spinal cord to the palate, and finally joins Sahasrara Chakra.

Kundalini is the snake curled into Muladhara Chakra. It is the goddess, the energy, it is the door of liberation of the Yogi. Its activation begins with the arrival of prana through Ida and Pingala. This enlivens the fire that awakens the serpent and the two nadis Ida and Pingala cease all activity, the ascension of the kundalini begins, thanks to the force of prana, through a thin conduit in Susumna, passing through one by one the chakras. For the kundalini to rise, it is necessary to practice asanas. During the elevation, the kumbhaka, the Yogi has to keep it inside the Susumna and make it go up to the crown, performing in each chakra a subtle meditation, while completely stopping the breath. This is a difficult technique given the requirement of the kumbhaka.

When the kundalini Awakens, intense heat occurs where it passes, that is, throughout the spine, while the rest of the body, which provides all its energy, becomes cold. According to some schools, the process can be accelerated by certain sexual practices. Kundalini will wake up when there is a significant stopping of breathing or seminal emission. Awakening the snake represents a great effort, and different texts warn of the danger of getting it without being prepared for it.

Relationship with the chakras

The kundalini has to make its ascent step by step, passing through each of the seven main chakras, without skipping any, and the awakening of the snake occurs during the kumbaya. But for this journey to occur, the chakras must be in a harmonic state. Therefore, it is necessary to be freed beforehand from all impurities and blockages, which act as obstacles. We can divide these obstacles into two groups: those that are the product of accumulation during the life of the adept, or those that are implicit in the human condition called granthis or psychic knots.

Long before the Kundalini is elevated by Susumna, the practitioner must work conscientiously on his psychic centers, which will entail changes in all areas of his life. The task begins with the base chakra, Muladhara. In it, apart from the personal, is one of the psychic knots, the Brahma Granthi. Man feels separated, disconnected from the Earth, this produces fear and leads him to instrumentalize the world around him and to cling to the pleasure of the material to possess it.

In Svadhistana Chakra we find the blocks that the subject has been able to acquire during his life, linked to sexual desire and guilt. Manipura Chakra has to do with the construction of the ego, where anger dwells. Another psychic knot is found in Anahata Chakra, element air. It is the Visnu Granthi and is closely linked to the inordinate need to be loved and attachment to one's own emotions, which the subject is unwilling to give up; this can lead to the search for a passion-centered life. The main difficulty of Vishuddha Chakra lies in the use of words to manipulate reality, either towards oneself with self-deception or towards others with lies.

The last psychic knot is found in Ajna Chakra. It is the Rudra Granthi and is related to the attachment to one's individual consciousness, to the world of one's own ideas, to Maya. About the last stretch of the Kundalini, Sahasrara Chakra, no residues are attributed to it because it no longer belongs to the individual consciousness. In this last step, the adept must focus on transcending the individual consciousness to strengthen the connection with the ultimate reality. Thus, when the serpent arrives, the perfect union between Shiva, the masculine principle, and Shakti, the feminine principle can be realized.