What differentiates Kundalini from traditional spiritual awakening?

Just found the results of a research study "Spontaneous Spiritual Awakenings: Phenomenology, Altered States, Individual Differences, and Well-Being". Very interesting.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8417526/#:~:text=Given%20the%20prominence%20of%20anecdotal,also%20more%20likely%20to%20produce

Hi Sid,

My own (still in development) understanding having had several KA's over the past 20 years is that the difference appears to be physical. One of the reasons I have found this space is I have struggled with people in the wider spiritual discourse talking about KA's, but then no mention of physical experiences around the root chakra and the body.

My experience has been the shooting energy up the spine, starting with the root chakra, leading to a powerful pressure and force on the lumber, which then ignites and shoots up the spine. This can lead to body contortions heightened states of consciousness including non-dual experiences that have no grounding in the 'all bliss and love' states that I see others have had. Yes, there is bliss, but ultimately there is the void/the divine - no good/bad - everything is emerging from the One.

This, for me, has left a form of nihilism at times, until I am able to sink back into duality, which has been difficult. It is also difficult knowing this is all just emergent, and yet one has to live in it! I learnt what was happening through old tantra books my grandparents left me, but while I understood the divinity of the process (my god -reading scripture in the expanded state reveals the ‘hidden’ language), the process did not fit. The books are really specific: kundalini is a dormant energy nestled in the root chakra, with very specific techniques to work with it, and a very specific structure, and warnings of the perils of not following the techniques!

Plant medicine and linking to my own cultures Celtic consciousness has been a way for me to build a framework, because the ancient teachings do not appear to be able to provide support and advice for those of us who have had this experience back to front (without the years of dedicated work to ensure strong physical, ethical and energetic bodies).

So, still on a journey, but my understanding is kundalini is specific to the creative divine energy that lies dormant in the root chakra, until activated, and then coils up the spine to various degrees depending on how activated it is. The spiritual awakenings that impact the heart or crown chakra for me are a different kettle of fish…

I think it's a difference between a sheep and a lion. Traditional awakening is that suddenly your life philosophy becomes smooth and you get many relaxing and eye-opening feelings; you start to feel that there is a rhythym about life and the higher truth is guiding you. But this is all quite peaceful journey, and in many cases looks more like your life philosophy is slowly progressing upwards.

Kundalini Awakening, it's a sudden force, which takes you like a storm, causes many events, which are good and bad, but both in extreme, and the whole process sometimes it seems does not care about you very much, in a sense; sure it has deep meanings, but the storms are real storms and the moments of seeing the Truth, well it's a scarily forceful and active truth, not a calm port, where your soul reaches to relax and take a deep breath.

I think in traditional awakening, you end up somewhere in the farm enjoying the nature, but Kundalini rather takes you into the wild life and moves everything around with huge power, all the things from physical to spiritual - so instead of riding there with a horse, you start going with a modern, high-speed train, and instead of getting the very clear picture, you also go through confusing and crazy times.

In my case, it took me to the Heaven - but, it also took me to the Hell. Here I can burn and hopefully become some kind of phoenix, finally. I think the traditional awakening, it can take a lot of patience and waiting, but it does not take you directly to Hell, to do it's thing. I think I had to reconceptualize, as I saw this thing.

But otherwise, I think the enlightened beings tend to be wise beings, and the "normal" enlightening indeed leads people to wise lives.

BTW. for me they happened in order - when I was younger, I got more or less enlightened in normal way, tough my resulting stage is not perfect; but years later, the Kundalini process started. This way, it looks like going upwards on the stairway and maybe, for some people the relaxed journey simply is not enough. But you cannot say that people with normal awakening are not going to inspire you - as I said, they are wise people and you can find a lots of important pieces of wisdom in their work, you can perfectly use where they reached with their philosophy, you can take their understanding of life quite seriously and thus, it's not completely right to say that they are lower. But I think they might lack some storms, some burning and melting the Steel. Finally, I think, both processes lead to some Heavens and Higher Lives, and they remove the qualities of personality, which are the most disturbing - so in culture, when you meet a normal, enlightened person, they are not leaving the scars to Kundalini awakened person, whereas common people, when they manage to change your life - they make you being hurt and broken. So, in this sense, awakening is awakening and probably we work all in union to bring this "Heaven to Earth", or to go there, or whatever follows - normal awakened people are quite tricky as well, and come up with surprising manifestations of Truth far from what one could expect. But they are less likely to be seen as crazy, they tend to calm down, whereas Kundaliny tends to charge you up :) In the end - every experience is personal and we constantly find some new words about things we are experiencing; with every new awakening experience I have, someone is going to teach me some new words in Sanskrit and always the old concept seems to be limiting - Buddha also told that when you are completely awakened in terms of Buddhism, then in higher Heavens, you find new similar conceptions, instead of Buddhism, you learn another path, which is going to lead you even higher, so (for I'm a Buddhist, but Christ also said that who follows him, will be higher than him) there will be next teacher instead of Buddha, and they are teaching you next thing instead of Buddhism, and once again you cree that may all the beings become this or that, even if they are all there already.

I have posted several comments on the Quora site relating to Kundalini Awakening. There are many contributors to this site who have valuable observations about Kundalini activation and rising. Here is one of those responses that resonated with me:

Rajbeer

Mystic , Healer & Kundalini guide

What is the difference between kundalini awakening and spiritual awakening? Which one is more beneficial to have in life?

I will keep this as simple as possible .

Spiritual awakening - Shift in perspective and awareness (Mind) , sudden deep sense of calm and inner peace, closeness to the Divine is felt within . It often begins after a long period of despair , depression , longing for a god or solution for suffering and or a traumatic event - overall a tough karmic cycle (People also term this phase as dark night of the soul) .

Kundalini Awakening - Is a physical process which begins in your body - Prana or life force energy starts to move in the body and physical sensation are felt at various chakra centers . Mostly , physical sensations , vibrations , heat - and or movement of energy can now actually be felt by the person inside the body and can begin to be felt in the root chakra , crown chakra or Ajna chakra depends where it starts for the person . This process can begin spontaneously or via energy transfer (shaktipat) or with ones own will - by doing kriya or sadhana/Kundalini yoga.

Which one is more beneficial to have in life?

Spiritual awakening is often the start when one begins to embrace the spiritual side of life and embraces his own inclination to transformation , healing and seeking the truth . It is often followed by Kundalini awakening if it is in Divine timing and right soul evolution/ soul maturity for one to experience it . This Divine energy does a deep healing and clears blockage's, which leads one to heal ancestral karma, break generational patterns, clear karmic debts , traumas , raising ones vibration , climbing higher in ones own divinity and leads one to ultimate spiritual transformation and liberation (Moksha) .

Love & Light

Namaste .

I've been reading "Cosmic Consciousness" by Richard Maurice Bucke, M.D., published in 1901. He appears to have had a kundalini awakening, but he did not know the experience by that name. Here is his description of that event and some of its effects. (Note: the author writes about himself in the third person.)

"His mind, deeply under the influence of the ideas, images and emotions called up by the reading and talk of the evening, was calm and peaceful. He was in a state of quiet, almost passive enjoyment. All at once, without warning of any kind, he found himself wrapped around as it were by a flame-colored cloud. For an instant he thought of fire, some sudden conflagration in the great city; the next, he knew that the light was within himself. Directly afterwards came upon him a sense of exultation, of immense joyousness accompanied or immediately followed by an intellectual illumination quite impossible to describe. Into his brain streamed one momentary lightning-flash of the Brahmic Splendor which has ever since lightened his life; upon his heart fell one drop of Brahmic Bliss, leaving thenceforward for always an aftertaste of heaven. Among other things he did not come to believe, he saw and knew that the Cosmos is not dead matter but a living Presence, that the soul of man is immortal, that the universe is so built and ordered that without any peradventure all things work together for the good of each and all, that the foundation principle of the world is what we call love and that the happiness of every one is in the long run absolutely certain. He claims that he learned more within the few seconds during which the illumination lasted than in previous months or even years of study, and that he learned much that no study could ever have taught. The illumination itself continued not more than a few moments, but its effects proved ineffaceable; it was impossible for him ever to forget what he at that time saw and knew; neither did he, or could he, ever doubt the truth of what was then presented to his mind. There was no return, that night or at any other time, of the experience.

The supreme occurrence of that night was his real and sole initiation to the new and higher order of ideas. But it was only an initiation. He saw the light but had no more idea whence it came and what it meant than had the first creature that saw the light of the sun."

To discuss how a kundalini awakening differs from other spiritual awakenings, one must first have a consensus on the after effects following each type of awakening. It's been over 45 years since my complete kundalini awakening and I have yet to be successful in adequately describing the resulting change in consciousness. My latest thinking is that when the kundalini energy (Shakti) enters the seventh chakra (Shiva), there is an immediate, but temporary, state of unitive bliss. This is the period of being immersed in a brilliant white light. When one returns to the normal waking state of awareness, ego consciousness has been "divinely infused". A portal to divine consciousness has been opened. Calling this transformation a "Spiritual Rebirth" seems appropriate.

I found the following explanation on the internet:

"Shiva resides in the Sahasrāra Chakra and Shakti in the Mūlādhāra Chakra. When Prakriti and Purusha unite in the Sahasrāra Chakra, knowledge, knower and the object of knowledge become one. Once we have experienced this no desires remain within us because we realise unequivocally that everything we have ever yearned for is carried within us. In this state of absolute consciousness there are no polarities and therefore no more sorrows; there is only everlasting joy, unconditional love, unlimited compassion and total understanding for all living beings.

For as long as consciousness is connected to the physical body it is unable to remain constantly in the Sahasrāra Chakra and so returns to the residence of the Ātmā in the Heart Centre (Anāhata Chakra). A realised person always thinks, feels and acts from the heart. Embedded in eternal love and eternal happiness, that person is always conscious of the immortal Ātmā, the ocean of bliss, and their consciousness is forever connected to the divine consciousness."

www.chakras.net

Consciousness and Energy

Hi Sid,

I see k awakenings as a fast- track in that the contents of our pysche are kicked up dramatically for us to deal with in this lifetime. Plus we get the energy/ rewiring side too which is very physical. It seems those who have not had a k awakening maybe get less or no energetic stuff and might not have to work thru as much emotional stuff. K feels like a very intense gift.

Hi Sid,

In my view the specific nature of Kundalini is the energetic side; the activating of the Kundalini "life force" energy that then works with her own intelligence to give people the opportunity to work towards spiritual awakening.. ..which I see to be centrally about dis-identifying with the constructed self and becoming one with the Self/oneness/universal consciousness.

People can also clearly spiritually awaken through other means/experience so the journey itself whether triggered by kundalini or not can be seen to be very similar/the same. Hope these thoughts are helpful.