KUNDALINI YOGA FAQ

What is Kundalini Yoga?

Kundalini Yoga is a somatic and holistic practice that works on the body, mind and soul. Somatic refers to methods or therapies that incorporate the use of the body to address and heal issues in the body and mind, as a totality focus on the whole person—body, mind and spirit. Holistic means addressing the whole person, including a person's physical, emotional, mental, social, spiritual, and financial well-being. In this way Kundalini Yoga is a practice that can be used to improve conditions in all areas of a person’s life.

Kundalini Yoga is often referred to as a yogic science or a system, and is also a spiritual practice, with a lineage. A recognized science it may not be, but its practices are rooted in ancient to new traditions, texts, and was (and still is) passed on via a lineage from master to students. It is considered a tantric practice and part of a tantric lineage.

Kundalini Yoga acknowledges a Ten Bodies system and the chakra system, and has many similar roots to yoga as we know and practice it in the western world. Where it differs is that it was transferred to the public, without being significantly altered or modified to fit western mentality.

Many yogis traveled from India to the US is the 1900s, and in order to reach practitioners and students, they centered the practice around what they deemed relevant, and in some cases modified the practices to better fit with a western mind—or so we’ve been told. Kundalini Yoga was directly transmitted from Yogi Bhajan (the yogic master who brought the practice to the western world) to his students, in, according to him, a pure and unaltered form. This makes the practice significantly different from what we know as “classic yoga” (for example Hatha or Vinyasa which are the types that most people are familiar with). It also makes it enormously effective and transformative (this we know from thousands of anecdotes and personal experiences from people who has applied it to their lives).

Kundalini Yoga uses many different disciplines, from physical postures, to mental focus and chanting of mantras, and there are literally thousands of Kriyas (yoga sets and yogic practices) and meditations within this system.

Yogi Bhajan also taught about holistic health and yogic lifestyle, and Kundalini Yoga therefore incorporates teachings and practices for all areas of life, from religion to how to dress, how to eat, conception, child raising, pregnancy, sex, communication and business. Yogi Bhajan called these groups of yogic teachings Humanology.

In this way Kundalini Yoga is a total system—a spiritual practice—that can be applied to all areas of a persons life. Or it can simply be an enjoyable practice that works on specific areas like mind clarity, focus and improvement of over-all health and to get the body in shape.

What is meant by Yogic Science?

Kundalini Yoga is not a medical or curative system, and although we refer to it as a yogic science, it is not a recognized science by the western scientific world.

Studies have been done on Kundalini Yoga and its benefits are positive. A study was done at UCLA with the meditation Kirtan Kriya, and showed significant improvement in memory functions and cognitive executive functions. Two other studies on stress were done, and found that Kundalini Yoga had an immediate effect on salivary cortisol, and significantly decreased the perception of stress in the study group. The other study related to occupational stress showed significant changes in stress after a 24 weeks Kundalini Yoga program. Another qualitative study of women with eating disorders showed an improvement in body image, a greater appreciation of self, an opening up to the experience of new emotions and sensations, aid of development of psychological capabilities, and positive changes in the recovery process, after incorporating practices of Kundalini Yoga in the recovery process (view more Kundalini Yoga studies here, or contact Nam Satya for references). New research on Kundalini Yoga is currently being carried out through the Chopra Foundation with Sadhana Works (Palma de Mallorca) at San Diego University and London Collage University.

How does it work?

Through the use of the body and mind and via postures—sometimes still, sometimes moving and sometimes free moving, like dance, sometimes via a mental focus, sometimes silence—changes start to happen in the body, mind and the energetic field of the person. Some people report to feel in greater contact with “something higher”—their soul, the Universal consciousness (God force), the people around them etc. Different people would describe the practice and its benefits in many different ways. It often depends on the focus, and what changes a person is looking to create in their life, mind, body or circumstances.

Kundalini Yoga strengthens the muscular system, the nervous system, and improves bodily functions like digestion and metabolism, and regulates levels of cortisol which can reduce stress. It also helps to regulate and govern the hormonal and glandular system. The glands are responsible for secreting hormones which are the messengers of the body, and therefore when the glands are healthy and regulated, the effect can be an improvement of all over bodily health. This makes a person feel better, and from there can give a surplus of energy, and a feeling of clarity which can create positive changes in all areas of a person’s life.

On a more esoteric level, Kundalini Yoga is said to work on the energetic bodies (see The Ten bodies). The mantras used are activating different facets of existence that can help a person to move into a space of better alignment, with positive and high frequency energy, and give someone the results they are trying to achieve. Kundalini Yoga is a transportation vehicle, that can move you out of the place where you are stuck, and into the place where you want to be—whether you are stuck in a space of limitations through illness (physical and psychological), financial difficulties, low self-worth, boredom, overwhelm, anxiety, fear, lack of creativity, lack of passion, lack of connection with Self and spirit, etc.

The best thing (or maybe just interesting fact) about Kundalini Yoga is that, we don’t really have to now or understand exactly how or why it works, in order to get the effects. It is not a cognitive practice in the sense that in order to get results you need to study or understand the methodology. Through thousands of testaments, anecdotal stories—and some research, see above—we know that people, without a fail, gets positive results from the practice when they properly apply it and give it a fair chance. In this regard Kundalini Yoga has quite a bright future ahead of it self, as research and scientific discoveries generally support the claims that Kundalini Yoga makes. An example is that Yogi Bhajan gave a guideline of practicing any Kundalini meditation for a minimum of 40 days to get integrated results, and now science has discovered that it takes 40 days for the grey matter of the brain to permanently change.

Kundalini Yoga is said to be the fastest working form of yoga (and maybe therapy) that we know of, and is said to give the same results in only 90 days that 20 years of hatha yoga practice would yield. It is called a yoga for our modern times (The Age of Aquarius), and is meant to be practiced not by “cave yogis”, but “real people” (householders) with families, businesses and life engagements, and be on par with any monastic, spiritual or religious system.

Where does Kundalini Yoga come from?

Yogi Bhajan is the yogic master who brought Kundalini Yoga to the western world, when traveling in 1968 from India to Canada, and from there to Los Angeles, California, where he settled and lived until his death in 2004. He founded 3HO and KRI who are the governing bodies of Kundalini Yoga today (though his entire archive, including White Tantric Yoga, is bestowed to his archivist, Tej Kaur Khalsa of 9 Treasures Yoga in Los Angeles).

Yogi Bhajan was born into a rich Punjabi family, in the region of India which is now Pakistan. At the age of 6 he began his formal studies with the master Sant Hazara Singh, and at the age of 16 he was appointed by his teacher to be the Master of Kundalini Yoga. He never saw his teacher again after that meeting. He went on to work for the Indian government, namely in customs, simultaneously carrying out his continued study and research of yoga, by visiting yogis and remote teachers. In 1968 at the age of 39 he traveled to North America and settled in Los Angeles. Here he began teaching at the East West Cultural Center, and from there grew his … to include a center, an ashram, several institutes and a gurdwara. He published several books, and recorded around eight thousand lectures, about one third of which are available via The Library of Teachings.

Yogi Bhajan was a Sikh by birth and culture, and he was appointed the Siri Singh Sahib, the head of Sikhism in the West. Kundalini Yoga therefore also includes many parallels to Sikh religion and culture, but it is not considered to be a part of the Sikh religion in any way. Many of Yogi Bhajan’s students went on to convert to sikhism, and lead a Sikh religious based lifestyle, which also draw many parallels and similarities to Kundalini Yoga and the lifestyle found within it. Many of the mantras used in Kundalini Yoga are from the Siri Guru Granth, which is the holy scripture or book of the Sikhs. Yogi Bhajan was clear though that the mantras did not belong to the Sikhs but to anyone who used them. We will not go into a deeper discussion of what a religion is and isn’t or how Sikhism came to be, but by studying this subject and its central people (The Sikh Gurus) one will understand how the teachings given by the Gurus was an offering to all people, and the Gurus fought for religious freedom for all. The Gurdwaras can be attended by anyone, not just Sikhs, and anyone can receive prasad, and engage with services and chanting and playing of the mantras, shabads and songs.

In 1970 the title of Mahan Tantric was bestowed on Yogi Bhajan, and he began facilitating White Tantric Yoga, a type of tantric practice that is none sexual, and which can only be done in certain settings and under supervision of a White Tantric facilitator. The practice is still carried out, even after Yogi Bhajan’s passing—you can find more information about it here.

While Yogi Bhajan was the person who brought these teaching to the west, and actually out of hiding, as they are said to have not been taught publicly before, the teachings did not come from him, but was passed down through a linage. Yogi Bhajan himself named Guru Ram Das (the fourth Sikh Guru) as his root teacher. Where exactly each practice originates, we don’t know for sure. Sometimes descriptions are given, or a name of a meditation or kriya will suggest, but the majority of practices were just given as an experience to his students, reminding us that Kundalini Yoga is an experience based practice and not a philosophy, and that essentially it does not matter or change the effect of a practice. The kriyas and meditations were gathered by Yogi Bhajan through his studies with Sant Hazara Singh, and through his research work, and further more described by some of his students as “being pulled from the akashic records” by Yogi Bhajan.

In 2020 Yogi Bhajan came under scrutiny as accusations of sexual abuse began to roll in. A research group carried out an investigation, and found multiple accusations of sexual and emotional abuse from previous female students. The conclusion of “found guilty” was based on interviews and anecdotes, with no trials or further investigation into claims, and has been deemed by some Yogi Bhajan students as untrue and with lacking evidence. Other students, and KRI itself (who were the ones ordering the investigation) has concluded its accuracy, and has taken actions towards separating Yogi Bhajan from the future of Kundalini Yoga, by removing him from their website and from manuals and training books.

How is Kundalini Yoga taught?

Kundalini Yoga is classically taught through classes, where a teacher instructs students through typically the sequence of tune in, warm up exercises, pranayam, a kriya, relaxation (sometimes gong is played) and meditation. Kundalini Yoga is not just for class settings though. Many people practice it alone at home, as a daily practice called a sadhana. Sadhana is typically done in the early morning hours before the sun rises (at some point between 3 and 7am), as this earlier practice is said to have many benefits. Almost no spiritual or religious system is without this instruction of rising before the sun, so there is great reason for validity, and the effect is said to be 40x more powerful, when done at this hour. Kundalini Yoga can be practiced at any time of the day though, and you will receive an effect.

The individual meditations and practices can also be taught, without following the sequence of a classic class structure, and is used by teachers, coaches, therapists etc. in programs and 1:1 sessions.

TERMINOLOGY

The Age of Aquarius refers to the astrological age that we are in right now. The shift happened in 2012, when we moved out of the previous age, the Piscean Age. The ages have different values, and therefore influences how we live our lives. An age lasts about two thousand years, and moves opposite of the way the sun makes it way through the zodiac signs. The Aquarian Age is therefore a time that will be rooted in aquarian values, and it is likely that we will see changes like inclusivity, more community, expansion of the mind and how we think, advancements in technology, (even) more and easier access to information etc.

Kundalini Yoga is said to be a practice for this age, and to help us face the potential issues that we will be confronted with in this age.

The Chakras refers to wheels of energy that can be found and located throughout the body. These are energetic “vortexes” of spinning motion, and each one has a different quality and touch different areas of life, and arouse different emotions and responses within us. The 8 Chakras are: 1st Chakra/The Root Chakra, which is located at the base of the spine and the anus; 2nd Chakra/The Sacral Chakra, which is located at the sex organs; 3rd Chakra/The Solar Plexus, which is located at the navel point (a few cm below the belly button; 4th Chakra/The Heart Center, which is located at the heart, in the middle of the chest; 5th Chakra/The Throat which is located at the throat; 6th Chakra/The Third Eye, which is located between the eyebrows; 7th Chakra/The Crown which is located at the top of the head towards the back; and finally, Kundalini Yoga also includes the Aura, or electromagnetic field as the 8th Chakra. You can learn more about the chakras in The Chakra Series course.

The word Guru, consist of Gu which means darkness, and Ru which means light. Guru is then that which moves you from darkness/ignorance, into light/being able to see and perceive. When used within the Kundalini Yoga system, this is what is referred to—an energy field which helps to move you towards a life of greater awareness and consciousness. The Kundalini Yoga system does not refer to teachers as Gurus, although the word also means teacher when translated in various eastern languages. The only “Gurus” as people that are referred to in Kundalini Yoga, are the 11 Sikh Gurus. When used in a spiritual name, “Guru” doesn’t refer to a status but is part of the given spiritual name.

‘Householder’ means someone who is actively partaking in life, as opposed to other spiritual traditions where it is common to find seclusion and part of the practice might include isolation from the world (like a monastic system for example). Kundalini Yoga can be approached as a spiritual practice on par with other religious and spiritual systems, but it is not customary for practitioners to live a life cut off from society, so to speak. In Kundalini Yoga we are encouraged to live as householders, and engage in business, family life and be contributing members to society. Celibacy is also not encouraged in this system (neither is promiscuity), because it is considered part of a full and spiritual life to also engage in conscious partnerships and conscious sexual relationships.

Humanology is the study and science of being a human. Yogi Bhajan used this phrase to refer to a collection of teaching, around how to live life as a successful human being.

Kriya means “action”. In Kundalini Yoga the yoga sets are kriyas, complete action. This means that in order to get the desired effect, one cannot change the sets, they have to be done exactly as described (with the only variation being shortening the time, and modifying postures is someone is pregnant, has an injury, or if inflexibility prohibits the person from doing the prescribed posture). Some postures are considered kriyas on their own and these can be practiced separately, and be put together as well to make a personal set or practice, fx cat/cow, life nerve stretch, frog pose, camel pose etc. For this reason you will often see a Kundalini Yoga teacher with a manual or a write up (on their computer fx) in front of them. This is not because the teacher doesn’t know the set, but because of the importance of accuracy, and teaching from memory is generally discouraged in Kundalini Yoga.

Kundalini is a term for energy, and is the type of energy that is generated from within. It is said that the kundalini energy is generated at the navel point, but can lie dormant at the base of the spine, until it is awakened, in what is referred to as a “kundalini rising”. When that happens the energy moves up the spine and on its way balances all the chakras, and releases blockages from the body. Some people experience a very noticeable kundalini rising, while others might feel a more subtle release of this energy. With the kundalini energy awakened, one generally feel very energized, and there might be less of a need for much sleep, because one is sustained by this energy. The word kundalini comes from kundal which means a coil, or a lock (like a lock of hair), but is also often described as the snake, or serpent energy. In mythology the snake is often a metaphor for a kundalini energy awakening.

Mantra consist of the two words Man, which means mind, and Trang which means wave. A mantra is a wave of the mind. Mantras are sound currents that are put together in a specific and intentional way to create a desired effect, or state within the person. The mantras found within the Kundalini Yoga system often times comes from the language—or alphabet as it is more correct to refer to it as—Gurmukhi. Not all of the mantras used in Kundalini Yoga are in the Gurmukhi alphabet though. They mostly come from the Siri Guru Granth Sahib, which is considered a part of the Guru lineage, and which holds the same consciousness as the enlightened masters, that we refer to as the Sikh Gurus.

Reciting mantras affects the mind, and the minds state and projection, by effecting the brain and the glands in the head, and the meridian points in the mouth. It is a total science in and of itself. The mantras are said to be able to carry you to your desired destination, and there are mantras for many different purposes and to invoke desired outcomes in Kundalini Yoga.

Meditation is a state of one pointed focus. In Kundalini Yoga meditation is not only done in silence, or by sitting still—there are many moving meditations, meditations where one chants or recite a mantra + walking meditations. When you lock the optical nerve though, you are stilling the mind, and therefor Kundalini Yoga meditations, even when moving, are still considered to be a state of one pointed focus. The meditations helps to invoke the neutral mind, from where better decision making can heppens, plus they help to clear the subconscious mind.

Pranayam refers to an exercise that uses control of the breath. Also known as breath work.

Sadhana means practice, and in Kundalini Yoga refers to the daily early morning practice done in the ‘Amrit Vela’, the two hours before the sun rises (some time between 3-7am). Having a daily practice, meant that you are repeating the same meditation or kundalini yoga kriya for at least 40 days to see the effect. Repeating a meditation daily for 40 days has scientifically been proven to permanently change the grey matter of the brain. Yogi Bhajan put it this way: practicing for 40 days means you break the habit, 90 days you install the new habit, 120 days you become the habit, and 1000 days you master the habit (habit=meditation or kriya).

Tantra is referring to many different practices, and it is a widely used term. There are many types of tantric practice stemming from red tantra which aims to awaken the sexual energy, usually through practices involving sex or the sexual organs, to black tantra which refers to practices that manipulates and exploits other people, with an ill intensions. Kundalini Yoga is a tantric lineage that was passed down by tantric masters. Tantra comprise of the words tan + trang. Tan means to weave, and trang means a wave (or a frequency, a sound), so Tantra literally means to weave with sound, and a tantric master is someone who is a master at combining and weaving the sounds. As everything is made out of waves—of vibration and sound—a tantric master is someone who is adapt at moving everything in life, and has knowledge of and masters sound.

The Subconscious Mind is where your mind stores any sensory impression that isn’t processed by the conscious mind. With each blink of an eye a thousand thought are downloaded to your mind through you crown chakra. Of these thousand thoughts only one can be hold in the conscious mind at a time. All the unprocessed thoughts go to the subconscious mind. Your subconscious mind is said to be “8 million miles in all directions”. What is in your subconscious mind, influences everything from your dreams, to your unconscious habits and how you view the world, including what you believe about yourself and others. One of the aims of Kundalini Yoga is to help clear the subconscious mind so that you can live more free and more in resonance with your consciousness. Kundalini Yoga can even help to program your subconscious mind so that your response to certain situations improve and becomes automatically more neutral or positive. Working with the subconscious mind is truly one of the fascinating aspects of Kundalini Yoga and it is why this form of yoga can give you so fast results.

In Kundalini Yoga we work with a ten body system, meaning that we don’t just consider our physiology to be limited to the physical body. The ten bodies are: The Soul, The Negative Mind, The Positive Mind, The Neutral Mind, The Physical Body, The Arcline, The Aura, The Panic Body, The Subtle Body and The Radiant Body. Kundalini Yoga works on all of the ten bodies all at the same time. But there are kriyas and meditations that work more specifically with each body too.

A system that works with the Ten Bodies is the tantric numerology system, where you can calculate, by using your birthday, which body is linked to your soul, karma, gift, experience and path number. This is a great way to go deeper into the understanding of how to practice using a focus on one of the ten bodies. Nam Satya offers readings in Tantric Numerology, you can book with her here (email).

We begin and end each Kundalini Yoga class by tuning in and out. This is done with specific mantras. We tune in by chanting ‘Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo’, three times. And we tune out by chanting three times ‘Saaaaaat Nam’ (also known as long Sat Nam). So, why do we do this? As previously mentioned, Kundalini Yoga is part of a lineage. When we use the tune in we connect with this energy field or lineage, and it energetically protects both the teacher and the students, should anything in the class be taught incorrectly or an energy field enter that is unwanted. With the mantras one ensures that the “field” stays clear. When one practice on their own, fx when doing sadhana it is also advised to tune in and out, to connect with the energy field of the teachings and the lineage of teachers.

White Tantric Yoga is not Kundalini Yoga, but the practices are related in the sense that they were both brought forth by Yogi Bhajan. White Tantric Yoga is a specific type of tantric practice that can only be done in a particular setting, unlike Kundalini Yoga which can be practiced at any time. It is said that one day of practicing White Tantric Yoga is equivalent to meditating for 10 years (none stop). It is very deeply clearing for the subconscious mind, and people have reported taking really big “quantum leaps” by practicing it. It is one of the most powerful meditation tools on the planet—but it can and should only be done at a White Tantric Yoga event. A tantric facilitator needs to be present, and the setting right (people sit in rows across from a partner, and everyone wears white + a white head cover). The videos of Yogi Bhajan who is still, as we know it, the Mahan Tantric are shown for instructions. White Tantric Yoga is best explained when experienced. You can find a White Tantric Yoga event near you here on their website.

Yoga means union, and more precisely “to yoke” (attache / join). Yoga is the union of consciousness when the finite (a human) realizes their infinite identity. Yoga is also a method of learning and experiencing this process, and has been perfected and practiced by yogis for thousands of years. The yogic teachings has their root in ancient scriptures like the Upanishads, The Rig Vedas, The Bhagavad Gita and many more. They were refined in the Asthang by Patanjali as ‘The 8 Limbs of Yoga’, a collection of sutras that guides the person towards a more conscious and refined state of living. There are now many yogic branches, styles and masters, and yoga now includes the understanding of anything from performing a handstand to devotional practices, and reading scriptures and reciting mantras.

Please note that all above information is rooted in the yogic teachings of Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan. Nam Satya is not responsible or liable for accuracy or scientific backing of any of the statements or claims made. Nam Satya is not a licensed medical professional and does not give medical advice. Read this sites terms and liability here, and disclaimer here.