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Kundalini and
Christian experience of Holy Spirit
“But
what is kundalini? Is it the energy of the higher
spiritual bodies breaking through into the lower levels?
According to the yogic literature, it is at least that, and
much more. Kundalini is none other than Shakti, the female
consort of Shiva, who is one with Brahmin and Vishnu in the
Hindu trinity. Hence, kundalini is considered a divine
energy, and its awakening is interpreted as awakening to
the divine. Small wonder Hindu writers see this energy
as the counterpart to the Christian experience of the Holy
Spirit! About this matter we shall have much more to say
later in this work, but for now, let us examine more
closely the ideas on Hindu divinity described above.
In the Hindu trinity, Brahmin is usually considered the
creator and source of all that is. Vishnu is given the
attributes of preserver, as exemplified in his incarnations
as Krishna, Rama, and Buddha. Shiva, on the other hand, is
accorded many attributes, the most common of which are
destroyer, yogic ascetic, and pure consciousness. What
Shiva destroys, however, is not the really real, but all
that is false, illusory, and subject to corruption and
rebirth. The active energy by means of which Shiva
accomplishes this work is to be found in his wife, Shakti.
Like Shiva, she has two faces, one as destroyer, exemplified
in her work as Kali, and the other in her role as divine
mother and nurturer of the really real in all that is.
Kundalini, then, cannot be discussed apart from Shiva, for
the two are inseparable. The problem in most individuals,
however, is that they are separated. It is believed that
in the individual, Shiva resides in the seventh chakra as
pure consciousness itself. Shakti, on the other hand, lies
dormant in the first chakra. The divine consciousness of
Shiva is not known in the individual because it is alienated
from its active power or energy, which is
Shakti/kundalini. When the energy awakens and rises
through the chakras, Shakti unites with Shiva, and the
individual lives in the unitive embrace between the two.
The nature and power of their divine consciousness is known
by the individual, who realizes his or her Atman, or
spiritual soul. Atman is not separate from Brahmin;
indeed, it is none other than Brahmin itself, manifesting as
the individual soul. All illusions of duality and
separateness begin to fall away with this realization, and
the Atmanic condition called advaita (non- duality) begins
to grow.
The awakening of kundalini, then, is considered a very
special grace in Hinduism. It represents the beginning of
the realization of the life of the divine as the essence of
the soul itself. Nevertheless, the aspects of Shakti and
Shiva as destroyer also attest to the painful purifications
which accompany this awakening. Everything in
consciousness which is ignorant of the Atman will be burned
away-- especially the false notions of individuality. In
the end, however, the realization of the Atman as being,
knowledge, and bliss (sat chit ananda) will more than
compensate for the pain. Such is the hope which sustains
the Hindu.
Personal Reflections
I found all of the above most helpful in understanding the
meaning of the transformation process which had been
awakened in me. The account of the soul and its multiple,
interpenetrating bodies, chakras, and energies gave me a
new understanding of the manner in which spirit and matter
come together. The advaitic consciousness of the atmanic
state also validated my experience.
As reassuring as this validation was, it nonetheless left me
with many questions which I have found impossible to set
aside and irrelevant. What, for example, would be the
Christian equivalent to the Hindu explanation? Here are a
few related issues:
1. Does the Hindu experience of Shakti correspond to the
Christian idea and experience of the Holy Spirit?
2. Does the Hindu trinity correspond to the Christian
trinity?
3. How does Christian metaphysics or theology account for
the advaitic or enlightenment experience? Is this the same
kind of consciousness described by the Christian mystics?
If not, then how is it different?
4. Finally, and on a practical level: should Christians be
encouraged to pursue the kind of experience I had come upon?
It took centuries to integrate Christian theology and Greek
philosophy, and so I have little hope that this present work
will conclusively respond to the questions raised above. I
believe these issues to be among the most important facing
Christian spirituality today, for East and West are coming
together, and there is no reversing the process of
encounter.”
Kundalini and
Christian experience of the Holy Spirit
http://www.innerexplorations.com/ewtext/kun.htm
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