Awakening Kundalini: The Path to Radical Freedom

by Lawrence Edwards

The universal force known as Kundalini has been shrouded in mystery for centuries, yet it influences our every breath, thought, and emotion. With Awakening Kundalini, one of the West s most respected teachers and researchers in the field explores this spiritual principle in unprecedented depth, with detailed guidance for discovering and working with it directly.
In India s spiritual teachings, Kundalini is known as the principle within that compels us to evolve and grow. Traditions across the globe have described it as a force that lies dormant within us and, when awakened, connects us to the energy of creation and profoundly elevates consciousness.
With his unique expertise in modern psychology, neuroscience, meditation training, and spiritual traditions, Lawrence Edwards clarifies for readers the many dimensions of Kundalini awakening, including practices and meditations for recognizing its manifestations and preparing the body and mind to enter its expansive, empowering flow.
When experienced skillfully, Kundalini can be the most profoundly transformative experience of our lives. Awakening Kundalini makes available a complete and practical resource for tapping into this transformative force, and realizing our ability to live radically free.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction

296 pages, Paperback

First published April 28, 2012

Reviews

[Sujata Sahni]

Carl Jung, the great Swiss psychiatrist talked about the shadow as the dark side of ourselves, the split-off and disowned aspects of ourselves that we are often unconscious of because they reside in the shadows of unawareness. The process of spiritual growth and integration - what he called the individuation process included being able to shed light on one's shadow, illuminating the shadow in order to free energy that's bound up. The dark side isn't all negative; it's dark in that which is unknown. There are also positive aspects, hidden talents and unrealised potentials in the shadow that can be brought into light to blossom. Our psyche has many parts that may need transformation, freedom, redemption or reclamation. The shadow is the most hidden aspect of those parts. We also have wounded parts, creative parts, wise parts, childish parts, perfectionist parts, rebellious parts, etc. often we project our shadow onto others. A quick way to start seeing your shadow is to look at people whom you have an immediate negative reaction to, often before you know them at all. Shadow work often happens automatically in the process of Kundalini unfolding. Our life is shaped by our minds, we become what we think. What are the thoughts that you give attention to? By giving your attention to them, you're giving them their power to create reality.

[Efthimios Nasiopoulos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started this book last year and completely read it from an egoic perspective. It was reaffirming my persona and a false sense of self. Although light years away from remotely integrating Kundalini Shakti, sobriety and a lifestyle congruent with the yamas and niyamas has given a better platform to explore the contents of this book and see all that can be illuminated in oneself.

While healing through a Jungian approach, I found the teachings of Kundalini heavily inspired Jung and can see Jung’s influence on the writer of this book.

This is a great read and I really felt it and look forward from incorporating the mantras and maintaining a vigilant observance on the ego. It’s amazing to see, when one peels back from the extroverted world, how ferociously the instincts and ego attempt to deride and deviate and continue its reign.

[Katja Vartiainen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book. I found it emphasizing not only the more integrated side of non-dual spirituality, but also portraying the different aspects of spiritual seeking. With the education of the author he is perfect for the job of the holistic approach.
I started getting into this topic through advaita vedanta. It gives one a clear structure of the basics involved. That is maybe what I didn't find so much in the book. There are some new terms for me- from Kasmir Saivism, I guess, the tradition this book is based on seems more like a synthesis of the author's personal path. The vedanta path and Kasmir Saivism lead to pretty much same end, as I have understood it. And the book for sure gives general directions of the importance of discrimination and mediation practice, for example, with exercises to do. But I maybe found it a bit confusing of lumping together so many traditions- also buddhist. Also the importance of the guru is stated many times, so that kind of pushes the reader into safe(hopefully!) territory. And what I find lacking in vedanta( yeah yeah, maybe I didn't 'get it'), is to be found here. The importance of being useful in the world out of balance, the acceptance of emotions, the emphasis on the Goddess tradition, which for me means awakening of love, and accepting that true compassion exists.
There is a bit too much repetition, and for me the experiences of other peoples epiphanies to help on one's own path, don't really do anything, even though they are interesting otherwise.
I really liked the part about the challenges and the shadow side.

[Prakash Murthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of details and not enough details at the same time. Important concepts are repeated multiple times to drive home the point. Easy read, but leaves one with an experience of not gaining anything from the book.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I both loved and hated this book. Much that was presented was true to my experience and my perception on where we go from here. But, often, the language used was so much "hippie" jargon that I doubted whether Edwards knew what he was talking about at all. Having had the experience, I found the "foo-foo" language inadequate at best and, at worst, patronizing and pandering to the psuedognostic.

[Jason Baldauf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately I didn't get much from this book. While some of the information is good, it seemed disjointed and skirted around the subject. Kundalini Awakening is a better general treatise on the subject and is a shorter read.

[Kitt Batts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book but...

I liked the book but it tended to talk more about the person's experiences than what is kundalini and how to reach it.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of interesting material, but to be taken with a grain of salt.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well-written and much easier to understand than other titles I've attempted on the same subject.

[Lokendra Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a good read.






Was expecting some information on what you feel when each stage kundalini activates and how do we really come to know.

[Diana Silva Couto · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting subject but the language is excessive esoterical. About similar subjects, I prefer to read Krishnamurti or Nisargadatta Maharaj.

[Jana · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book had a lot of details that I was aware of, but only because I did my research previously and I still felt confused about concepts which seemed very academically written.

Kundalini is a Sanskrit yogic term for the unimpeded power of wisdom, transformation, and revelation inherent to us all. It is the power of universal, unbounded

For thousands of years, there were no fortifications or evidence of war. However, over time, a new form of consciousness began to develop in what Eisler calls the dominator mode. The dominator mode was associated with patriarchal forms of religion and approaches to the Divine, which continue to persist to this day. The dominator mode also coincides with a shift in human culture where fortifications, battles, and wars between groups developed. That’s what Eisler is referring to in the title of her book. She writes about the difference between the chalice and the blade. The chalice is a symbol of the Divine Feminine, the consciousness that holds and contains, that nurtures, that actualizes, versus the blade that cuts and severs, that differentiates, penetrates, and dominates. From my perspective, both are part of the full expression of Consciousness and forms that Shakti creates to express the complete spectrum of Consciousness. The pendulum has swung to an extreme and now is moving back to a center that integrates both modes of consciousness. Eisler explains that as the dominator mode developed, there was a shift in understanding that was expressed in changes in religious traditions as well as other cultural and political structures. It radically changed the approach to the Divine Feminine. As the patriarchal dominator mode of consciousness began to flower, the Divine Feminine became more and more suppressed, so much so that in time, in some Middle Eastern cultures, the Goddess became known as the “abomination.” Furthermore, priestesses of the Goddess traditions went from being the high priestesses, revered and loved for their wisdom (such as Goddess Sophia), to being suppressed and distrusted for their power. They were thought of as witches. Some were hunted down because they had powers that weren’t under the control of whatever the dominant patriarchal religious tradition came to be.

JOURNEY BEYOND THE MIND Through my own experiences and those shared by many people who are deeply engaged in spiritual practices, it is clear that each one of us is on a journey in this life — a journey in which we are propelled toward the further evolution of consciousness, expanding love and compassion, and at a certain stage, Kundalini awakening. In some lives, we might inch forward, and in other lives we might make great leaps. Through the course of my sadhana it became clear to me that as a part of our journey, awakened Kundalini gives us the opportunity to experience all the realms of human existence with extraordinary clarity. We can then recognize their limitations and move on. As Kundalini moves through the chakras, we may be given experiences of them in various bound and constricted states, as well as in purified and expanded states. Kundalini gives each person the experiences they need as they move toward greater and greater freedom.

As I’ve mentioned, the power of Kundalini is fully present in everyone, but in most people it lies inactive, dormant, until the great awakening that marks the most sacred event in the soul’s journey back to its source. Kundalini is often symbolically depicted in yogic texts as a coiled serpent lying asleep within us, a serpent whose mighty powers become manifest as it awakens and uncoils. In meditation, one might even see the archetypal form of a coiled snake that gives Kundalini its name. The ancient symbol of the snake, a symbol of the Divine Feminine, and the lingam, a symbol of the Divine Masculine, around which the snake is wrapped, are visual forms that the Infinite as Shakti/Shiva takes on in the base chakra, the muladhara. The snake and the lingam depict the divine union of feminine and masculine, Holy Mother and Holy Father, as fully present throughout creation — from the infinitely expanded formless, transcendent realm of the sahasrara (crown chakra) to the earth realm of bound forms in the muladhara. All of this lies within you right now.

In descending order the seven major chakras are: the sahasrara at the crown of the head, the ajna chakra between the eyes, the vishuddha chakra in the throat, the anahata chakra near the heart, the manipura chakra at about the level of the solar plexus, the svadhishthana chakra at the root of the sexual organs, and the muladhara chakra at the base of the pelvis. The involution of consciousness from the transcendent realm of the sahasrara on down to the muladhara is in part symbolized in the progressive order of the elements that each chakra represents. Involution is a process of consciousness coalescing, becoming grosser, denser, and more limited.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came across this book by fate when I was in the midst of a spiritual crisis. The meditative practices give the reader great tools to further awaken the inner self, and Edward's explanation of the path and journey of the self illuminates the core concepts that make up the true heart of all timeless spiritual traditions. His words shed light into the darkness of our selves, and we are invited to listen to what those shadowy corners of the soul have to say.

[Dobbs John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid basic introduction to Kundalini, this audiobook gave a basic grasp of what Kundalini while raising a desire to pursue it. Will need to study this subject further. May re-listen or read another book on the subject. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a basic explanation of Kundalini.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhh...ommm....