Sat nam Ardas Singh,
I want to thank you for this post. It means so much - I have felt this and
experienced what you are saying to be true and have not yet heard anyone
acknowledge this aspect of the practice. I started a 40 day practice of 31
minutes of the SDK under the suggestion of a teacher. This was after several
years of practice and AFTER completing a 40-day set of the nahbi kriya. Up
until that point the yoga was helping me break through many blocks and open up
in new ways and this was very, very challenging to me - my life seemed like it
was falling apart, but I felt like the things that were happening were necessary
for growth. Then, when I began the SDK practice and really amping up my
sadhana, I really felt like I began to go haywire. My energy was so
disorganized and ungrounded and it was wrecking havoc with my emotions. I was
so depressed thinking "why does everyone else get such great results and I am
freaking out here?" I kept going thinking this was a block I needed to break
through. Things were really bad for me and the teacher who recommended the
practice to me said something like - "in my experience this is not the outcome
of the practice."
I met a holistic doctor who began to help me and I immediately stopped my
practice and all the classes I was teaching. For 9 months I have been healing,
regrouping, and grounding. I said I would never do the yoga again and never
teach again because I saw what it did to me.
My heart is open and people are drawn to me who are hurting and are at their
end. A few months ago I decided to start practicing and teaching again because
I do feel that gentle, basic practices can help people tremendously. I have
been feeling more and more than people are STARVING for this and I must do my
part. What most people DON'T need is the intensity that something like the SDK
brings. What is needed is a loving, supportive community for spiritual
expression and growth.
I thank you again for saying what you said. I comes at a time when I needed to
hear that most. I truly have been waiting for years to hear someone say this.
Your words validate my experience. And I can have more confidence in what I
feel I need to do, thanks to you.
God bless you,
Stephanie
________________________________
From: Ezekiel <spikycork@yahoo.com>
To: Kundaliniyoga@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sat, July 10, 2010 6:24:53 PM
Subject: [Kundalini Yoga] Re: Sodarchan Chakra Kriya
Lily,
Great question. I have a pretty strong opinion on this, based on what I've
experienced, read and observed in others. . .
First of all, if you read the classic hatha yoga texts, when they talk about
pranayama, they say it is important to train the breath very slowly. That
working with the breath is like taming a wild tiger, one must be cautious.
I believe that Sodarshan Chakra Kriya falls under the category of one of the
very secret, "advanced" practices that Yogi Bhajan taught openly for the first
time. He was generous to share many of these with us, because he thought we
needed powerful tools - but we still need to respect the more advanced practices
and be very mindful of the messages our body and psyche are sending us when we
engage in these. Just because a gifted ky teacher gave you a kriya, does not
mean that it's actually right for you. I read once (don't know the source, if it
came from YB or not, sorry) that it's recommended to do 6 months of nabhi kriya
before engaging in sodarshan chakra kriya! Having done both these as a sadhana
(and not in that recommended sequence, btw) this makes total sense to me.
When you do prolonged breath retention (esp with pumping, as in sck) WITHOUT the
proper preparation, what tends to happen is that we create tension in certain
areas - this does not facilitate liberation, and if certain chakras are
particularly clogged, the breath retention CAN make it worse. Hence the logic in
preparing with something like nabhi kriya, which balances all the lower chakras
and even opens the heart.
I have noticed that in kundalini yoga, people tend to be rather cavalier about
jumping into what would traditionally have been advanced practices without
thorough preparation. for example, you go to a yoga class, you've never done
yoga before, and the teacher's guiding you through "one-minute breath", telling
you to hold as long as you can, etc - all without building up your prana
mechanism over time first. oftentimes this causes people to get high very
quickly, but at times, and especially over time, it can start to derange the
prana. Unless you are very sensitive to what's going on in your body/psyche, you
may not even realize that this is happening, until months later.
we are often encouraged to "keep up," and I think it's equally important to
check in with yourself and respect limitations that arise. just because you're
dreading doing SCK does not mean it's simply bitter medicine for you!
having said all that, I don't want to discourage you from practicing sck if you
feel it would be beneficial. Here's how I would go about it:
start with long deep breathing, until you feel at ease.
then start to inhale through left, hold (keep chest, throat and jaw relaxed) and
exhale through right. you can mentally say "wahe guru" rhythmically without
pumping.
after you've done a few breaths like this, add the pumps gently, and don't start
out with 48 pumps. maybe start with 6 or 12. over time you can build up. You
want it to be a joyful experience. yes, at times it will bring unpleasant stuff
up, and it's important to maintain a neutral mind and let the practice take you
where it will. but you want your yoga practice to help you to process stress,
not add more stress to your day (I.e. "dreading" practice)!
What do you think?
sat nam,
Ardas Singh
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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