What is Kundalini?

Kundalini is a term from the yogic tradition for the power of the Divine. It is Kundalini who creates the universe and knows Its Self as Creator. Kundalini has been called “the face of God.” Just as we recognize someone by his or her face we recognize the Divine by Its power of Consciousness, Kundalini. It is Kundalini that clothes the formless in form, that gives the Absolute a face to adore, a presence to inspire, traditions to revere and a body of wisdom to serve and guide. She is the esoteric goal of all yogas, the awakened mind of the thatagatas and the transcendent vision of saints and sages. By knowing Her, all is known and life becomes suffused with ananda – sublime joy. The source of that joy is our very own Self, forever present, nearer than our breath, waiting in Stillness to be revealed. Drown the ordinary ego-mind in Stillness if you truly want to know the Knower.

The Eastern traditions revere Kundalini as a Goddess, the Great Mother who gives birth to all that is. She is seen as taking on limitations, contracting and condensing to form the material world. She is the essential energy, more fundamental than nuclear power, that is the basis of who we are and all that we experience. When our limited mind is infused with Her transcendent power of Consciousness we know directly the truth of our unity with the Divine and all Its creation. Every spiritual tradition has its name for Kundalini – Holy Spirit, Grace, Shekhinah, Anima, Chi, Bodhicitta- and every saint and mystic has known Her blessing. Seekers on all paths need Her grace to succeed on their journeys. For this reason shamans, yogis, monks, priests, nuns and aspirants of all types approach Her as suppliants. Being the Great Mother, the Great Lover, She’s willing to take whatever shape and bare whatever name Her children wish to use as they bow to Her.