Practice 3: Chaturtha pranayama

Here is a practice that combines breathing, mantra and chakra awareness. Although it is not widely taught, it is a powerful technique that is both a pranayama and a meditation. Ghaturtha pranayama means, ‘pranayama of the fourth state’, or a transcendental state where words and definitions fail to reach. This practice will lead to deeper awareness and knowledge of the chakras. It is also a preparatory technique for kriya yoga as it develops sensitivity to both the psychic spinal passage and the chakras.

Technique

Sit in any comfortable meditative posture. Hold the spine erect and close the eyes. Breathe deeply. Let the breath become deeper and more subtle. Fix your awareness on the rhythmical flow of the breath. Continue for a number of rounds. Mentally synchronize the mantra Оm with the breath. The sound “O” should arise with inhalation. The sound ’m-m-m-m-m’ should arise with exhalation. This sound should only be mental. Breathe through the nose, keeping the mouth closed. Continue in this manner with awareness of the flow of breath and the mantra. Now fix your attention at the eyebrow center. Feel that you are breathing in through that center with the mental sound “O”. Feel you are breathing out through that center, mentally chanting ’m-m-m-m-m’. Continue with awareness of the breath, mantra and psychic center. Focus your attention on mooladhara. With inhalation and the sound “O-o-o-o-o”, feel the breath passing up through the spine, piercing all the chakras - mooladhara, swadhisthana, manipura, anahata, vishuddhi, ajna, sahasrara. With exhalation and the sound “m-m-m-m-m”, feel the breath and sound moving down the spine, piercing all the chakras - sahasrara, ajna, vishuddhi, anahata, manipura, swadhisthana, mooladhara.

Continue for a number of rounds. Again fix your attention at the eyebrow center. Continue the mental repetition of Оm synchronized with the breath, but do not be aware of the breath. Only be aware of the mantra and the psychic center. Feel the “O” and the “m-m-m-m-m” sound. Continue in this manner for as long as possible.

Practice 4: Chakra yoga nidra

Yoga nidra can be used very effectively to develop your awareness of the chakras. Here is an example of a yoga nidra/relaxation session which includes visualization and rotation of awareness through the psychic centers. Teachers can adopt this practice directly for their classes. For personal use, someone can lead you through the practice, or you can put the instructions onto a tape. Stage 1: Preparation Place a folded blanket on the floor and lie on it in shavasana. Loosen your clothing so you feel perfectly comfortable. If necessary, cover yourself with a blanket to keep warm, or put a sheet over you to keep insects away. The mouth and eyes should remain closed throughout the practice. Make sure that the spinal column is straight, in line with the head and neck, and that the hips and shoulders are fully relaxed. Keep the feet and legs slightly apart. The arms should be beside your body but not touching, and the palms should be facing up. Adjust your position so that you feel perfectly comfortable. Tell yourself firmly that you will not move your body throughout the practice. Stage 2: Sinking of the body Look at the space in front of your closed eyes. Imagine that the space surrounds your whole body. Your body is immersed in that space. Simultaneously be aware of your body. It feels very light, as light as a leaf falling from a tree. Imagine that your body is slowly sinking into the space that you see in front of your closed eyes, like a falling leaf. Your body is slowly sinking into the infinite space. Be aware of this feeling. Continue in this manner for a few minutes. Stage 3: Rhythmical breath awareness Become aware of your breathing. Awareness of the rise and fall of the navel with each breath. As you breathe in, imagine that you are sucking in air through the navel. As you breathe out, imagine that you are pushing air out from the navel. It is a rhythmical process. Do not alter the natural breath in any way, just become aware of it.

Stage 4: Sankalpa

Repeat your sankalpa in a short positive sentence. It should be the crystallization of your spiritual aspiration and you should not change it. Repeat it with feeling, from the heart, not the lips. Repeat your sankalpa at least 3 times.

Stage 5: Visualization - body awareness

Try to visualize your own body. Imagine that you are viewing it from outside. Feel that your perception is outside and your body is an object of study. You may find visualization difficult - do not worry, just do your best. If you wish, you can imagine that there is a large mirror suspended over your body and that your body is reflected in it. Look at your own reflection. See your whole body: feet, knees, thighs, abdomen, chest, both hands, arms, shoulders, neck, head, mouth, nose, ears, eyes, eyebrow center, your whole face and your whole body. Combine your rotation of awareness with visualization of that part. Continue in this manner for a few minutes.

Stage 6: Psychic centers - rotation of awareness

You have to discover the location of the chakras. You have to develop awareness of each psychic center in the body. Start from the base of the spine and move your awareness upward. First become aware of mooladhara. In the male body it is situated in the perineum, between the anus and genitals, and in the female body it is located at the cervix - the mouth of the womb. Try to feel the sensation at mooladhara. It is a very specific point which you are trying to isolate. When you have found it, repeat mentally, ‘mooladhara, mooladhara, mooladhara’. Now move on to the second chakra, swadhisthana. It is located at the base of the spine, in the coccyx. Be aware of the sensation at that point and repeat mentally, ‘swadhisthana, swadhisthana, swadhisthana’. The third chakra is manipura. It is located in the spine in line with the navel. Feel this point and mentally repeat, ‘manipura, manipura, manipura’. Then become aware of anahata chakra, located in the spine, directly behind the center of the chest. Try to locate that point exactly and mentally repeat, ‘anahata, anahata, anahata’. Now bring your awareness to vishuddhi chakra, situated in the spine, directly behind the throat pit. Feel the sensations arising at that point and mentally repeat, ‘vishuddhi, vishuddhi, vishuddhi’. The next chakra is ajna. It is located at the very top of the spine in the region of the pineal gland, directly behind the eyebrow center. Fix your awareness on that area and mentally repeat, ‘ajna, ajna, ajna’. Now bring your awareness to bindu, at the top back portion of the head. Feel that tiny point as precisely as possible, and repeat mentally, ‘bindu, bindu, bindu’. Finally, become aware of sahasrara, at the crown of the head, and repeat mentally, ‘sahasrara, sahasrara, sahasrara’. Now repeat this process, slowly descending through the chakras in reverse order: sahasrara, bindu, ajna, vishuddhi, anahata, manipura, swadhisthana and mooladhara. This is one complete round of chakra rotation.

Start a second round: mooladhara, swadhisthana, manipura, anahata, vishuddhi, ajna, bindu, sahasrara; sahasrara, bindu, ajna, vishuddhi, anahata, manipura, swadhisthana, mooladhara. This completes the second round. Begin a third round, this time a little faster. As you fix your attention at each point, try to feel a slight vibration there, a tiny pulsation. If you wish, you can chant Оm mentally as you locate each point in turn. Practise at least 5 rounds and as many more as time permits.

Stage 7: Psychic centers - visualization

Now try to visualize the symbols of each chakra. This is not easy, but try. You can use your own personal system of psychic symbols or the traditional chakra symbols as follows. As each chakra is named, try to feel that point being lightly pressed by the thumb, and simultaneously visualize the symbol. The psychic symbol for mooladhara is a deep red, four-petalled totus. Inside there is a smoky lingam around which a snake is coiled three and a half times with its head facing upward.Try to visualize this symbol to the best of your ability and associate it with that particular location in the body.Then proceed to swadhisthana chakra. The symbol is a six-petalled vermilion lotus, within which is depicted a starry night above the sea. The main focal point is the crescent moon.

Try to visualize this symbol. Move to manipura chakra. It is symbolized by a ten- petalled yellow lotus, and in the center is a blazing fire. Visualize this symbol, imagining that the lotus is actually growing from manipura chakra. Proceed to anahata chakra, represented by a twelve-petalled blue lotus. In the center is a solitary flame burning in the darkness. Try to visualize this symbol while feeling the exact position in the body. Move to vishuddhi chakra, symbolized by a sixteen-petalled purple lotus. In the middle there is a pure white drop of nectar. Visualize this location in the body. Then proceed to ajna chakra which is symbolized by a two-petalled silver-grey lotus. On the left hand petal is the full moon and on the right hand petal, a glowing sun. In the center is a black lingarn and an Оm sign. Create a mental image of this symbol and its exact location. Move on to bindu. It is symbolized by a tiny white drop of nectar. Visualize this symbol at the top back of the head. Finally, move to sahasrara, the fountainhead of all the chakras. It is represented by a thousand-petalied lotus. In the center is a white lingam. Visualize this symbol at the crown of the head. Now visualize all these symbols in the reverse order: sahasrara, bindu, ajna, vishuddhi, anahata, manipura, swadhisthana and mooladhara. This is the end of one round. Spend a few seconds visualizing each center. Do a few more rounds according to the amount of time available. Stage 8: Eyebrow center awareness Fix your attention at the eyebrow center. Feel your pulse at this point. Become aware of its continuous rhythmical beat. Mentally synchronize repetition of the mantra Оm with this pulse. Continue for a few minutes. Stage 9: Sankalpa and close Repeat your sankalpa 3 times with full emphasis and feeling. Become aware of your natural breath. Become aware of your whole physical body. Become aware of the outer sense perceptions. Slowly begin to move your body. When you are fully retuned to the external world, slowly sit up and open your eyes.

Practice 5 : Unmani mudra

The word unmani means, ’no mind’ or ’thoughtlessness’, and refers to the state which arises during meditation. Therefore, unmani mudra means, ’the gesture of thoughtlessness’.

Unmani mudra is an excellent practice for developing awareness of the chakras in the spine, from bindu down to mooladhara. lt is also an integral part of many of the kriya yoga practices (nada, pawan and shabda sanchalana, maha mudra and maha bheda mudra), and therefore it should be mastered before attempting to learn and practise these techniques.

Unmani mudra is easy to learn, but not so easy to perfect. The technique is as follows: Sit in any comfortable pose, with the back straight. Open the eyes wide, without focusing on anything external. First of all, fix your awareness at bindu. Breathe in deeply. Then as you breathe out, imagine your breath going down the spine. Simultaneously, let your awareness descend the spine, passing through all the chakras : ajna, vishuddhi, atiahata, manipura, swadhisthana, mooladhara, one after the other. At the same time, the eyes should close slowly synchronized with the breath and the descent of awareness. Though your eyes are open during the practice, your attention should be internalized on the chakras and breath; that is, the eyes are open, but you are looking inside. The eyes should have closed at the end of exhalation and by the time your awareness reaches mooladhara chakra. This is one round. Breathe in and start the second round. Do 11 rounds. Note: While practising, you should not try too hard. Let it happen spontaneously. The practice is more mental than physical. Though the eyelids are slowly closed, the important thing is to feel the process mentally, and when the eyes are open, you should not perceive anything outside. Practice 6: Bija mantra sanchalana The word bija means “seed”, mantra means “mystic sound” and sanchalana means “conduction”. Therefore, this practice can be called “the conduction of the seed sound”. It is one of the techniques of kriya yoga, but is not normally one of the twenty kriyas that we teach. The practice is concerned with mentally repeating the bija mantra of each kshetram and chakra, one after the other, whilst simultaneously moving the awareness through each.

Psychic passages

In the following kriya, bija mantra sanchalana, as well as in a number of practices of kriya yoga, you will be required to move your awareness through two psychic passages called arohan and awarohan. The path of these passages is as follows : Arohan, the ascending passage, goes from mooladhara chakra, forward to swadhisthana kshetram in the pubic area, then follows the curve of the belly to manipura kshetram, upward to anahata kshetram and vishuddhi kshetram in the front of the throat, then in a straight line to bindu at the top back of the head. There is also another pathway for the arohan psychic passage that has been taught by tradition throughout the ages. On the ascent from mooladhara, swadhisthana kshetram and onwards, the awareness is taken from vishuddhi kshetram to lalana chakra in the palate, then to the nosetip, to the eyebrow center, and following the curvature of the skull through sahasrara at the top of the head, to bindu at the back of the crown, where there is a little whorl of hair. In this book we will refer to the arohan passage as connecting vishuddhi kshetram directly to bindu, however, you can experiment with both passages and use whichever one suits you best.

Awarohan is the descending passage which starts at bindu, travels forward to ajna chakra, then down through sushumna in the spine, passing through all the chakras in turn to finally terminate at mooladhara. In the following practice you will have to familiarize yourself with these two psychic passages, and this will also be useful as a preparation for the kundalini kriyas.

Bija mantras

The bija mantras for each kshetram and chakra are as follows: mooladhara lam swadhisthana vam mianipura ram anahata yam vishuddhi ham ajna оm bindu оm Technique

Sit in any comfortable position, preferably siddhasana. Keep your back straight and eyes closed. Throughout the practice there is no physical movement; the kriya is done mentally. Bring your attention to mooladhara chakra. Repeat the mantra lam mentally, once, and try to feel the vibration at mooladhara chakra. Then ascend through arohan. Let your attention jump to swadhisthana kshetram and repeat the mantra vam, feeling the vibration at that point. Jump to manipura kshetram and repeat the mantra ram. At anahata kshetram, yam. At vishuddhi kshetram, ham. At bindu, Оm. Then descend through awarohan. Repeat Оm at ajna, in the center of the head. Repeat ham at vishuddhi chakra in the spine. At anahata chakra, yam. At manipura chakra, ram. At swadhisthana, vam. Then return to the starting point, mooladhara, and begin the next round by repeating the mantra lam.Your awareness should jump from one center to the next. Do 9 rounds, or more if you have time.

Note: This is an excellent preparatory practice for kriya yoga sadhana. You may also practise by spending some time (e.g. 5 minutes) at each kshetram or chakra, chanting the mantra aloud on a low key and feeling it vibrating at the chakra.

Practice 7: Drawing the chakras

Drawing of mandalas, such as the chakras, is an important part of tantra. Many of the practices require that the correct mandalas be constructed first of all. The creation of a chakra diagram should be done with absolute awareness and concentration, and its measurements and dimensions must be exact. You should try to ensure that you will be undisturbed for at least an hour, and approach the exercise as you do meditation. In some Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, mandalas are drawn and painted as part of the daily sadhana, as is the practice in several Greek Orthodox monasteries, where icons are painted in minute detail as daily meditation.

Make sure you have all the necessary materials; pencils, pens, rubbers, ruler, compass, colors or paints, so that you will not have to disturb your concentration once you have started. If you have a sadhana room, then that is the best place to create your mandalas.A good size for drawing the chakras on art paper is about 9" square, as this size is most useful for visual display and concentration practices. Larger and smaller sized chakras can be made for other purposes.

By first using only a black pen, one can plainly see the simple yet subtle lines and formations, and discover the hidden symbology as it becomes visually clearer in the mind. The next step is to color it, according to the traditional colors described in the text. In this way, mandalas of each of the seven chakras can be completed over seven or more sessions.

This practice is very relaxing and enjoyable. You may like to create more subjective and artistic impressions of the chakras, with your own colors and symbols, as you come to understand them in a personal way. This expands your awareness to the many possibilities of experiencing not only the chakras, but life itself. The chakras should not be interpreted on just one or two levels, but in many dimensions. After drawing and painting the chakras successfully, you can then take the next step and create the chakras in a three-dimensional form. For this you can use any number of materials such as clay, plasticine, wire, fiberglass, copper or stone. You must remember, however, that the traditional drawings are as subjective as your feelings and experiences of the chakra. Therefore, use these experiences to express your deeper and inner spiritual aspects on paper, in clay or stone. Through this you will find a clarity of vision arising out of what once seemed a confused and blurred picture of life.

Practise

You will not have time to do all the practices given in this chapter. Therefore we suggest that you practise the following for one month: Chakra meditation, chaturtha pranayama, chakra yoga nidra, immani mudra and bija mantra sanchalana daily. Musical chakra meditation and drawing the chakras, can be done if you have the time and the inclination. They can be omitted without any detriment to arousing kundalini. Practices for each individual chakra can be done as follows:

ajna - shambhavi mudra mooladhara - moola bandha and nasikagra mudra swadhisthana - vajroli (or sahajoli) manipura - uddiyana bandha anahata - ajapa japa vishuddhi - jalandhara bandha and vipareeta karani asana bindu - yoni mudra.

Then after one month you can start to learn kriya yoga, having first of all taken the advice of an experienced yoga teacher, or by writing to Bihar School of Yoga, Munger, Bihar, India.