Kriya Yoga Mega-Thread

[herghly]

Do you find the more KP's you do the less monkey mind you have during the day? Is it sustained?

[Leo Gura]

13 minutes ago, herghly said:

Do you find the more KP's you do the less monkey mind you have during the day? Is it sustained?

Be careful judging your results so directly.

The opposite might easily be the case. As kundalini activates you can get crazy monkey mind as the body/mind purifies itself. You must endure such things if you want serious results.

Peace of mind is a byproduct of deep purification. The purification process itself can be uncomfortable and agitated. That's actually a sign that it's working, not a sign of failure.

[herghly]

@Leo Gura  I've been. The backsliding from meditation retreats and psychedelics is almost putting me off from doing them.

I've been tripping consistently every month and doing kriya every day. However, recently I feel like my development is back to what it was like years ago. It's disheartening. 

[WisdomSeeker]

So, I am also reading the book and am starting on Talabya Kriya and the Khechari Mudra.   Just reading the book  and the Khechari Mudra, I already know I will need guidance.. So, I'm beginning to reach out to Yogis. n my area. I think I have an increased probability of success seeking out people who have more experience and are further along in their journey, than just depending on a book, forums and some youtube videos.  I also think it's helpful to join physical communities for accountability , to keep me motivated and  to streamline the learning process. 

[Kalki Avatar]

@Leo Gura Should kriya yoga not be mixed with other practices? 

Lets say im letting go of my will and surrendering completely and I start doing kriya which involves will, what would be the result? 

Edited December 1, 2019 by Kalki Avatar

[herghly]

@Kalki Avatar Letting go of will is involved in kriya.

 

After you finish your kriyas you drop all techniques.

 

Let go of everything

 

Witness

[Leo Gura]

On 11/28/2019 at 10:25 PM, herghly said:

@Leo Gura  I've been. The backsliding from meditation retreats and psychedelics is almost putting me off from doing them.

I've been tripping consistently every month and doing kriya every day. However, recently I feel like my development is back to what it was like years ago. It's disheartening. 

Make sure you don't undersell your progress. It's easy to forget how much we grow, especially if we grew a lot.

It's good to remind yourself once in a while how unconscious you used to be.

[Kalki Avatar]

@herghly Kriyas are like pranayamas that prepare and support your witnessing?

I thought I shouldnt mix this with meditation and contemplation. Can you explain a little more for me to see if its good to get more info of this and get the books? 

[herghly]

@Kalki Avatar Read the books on the book list.

[MountainCactus]

On 11/28/2019 at 3:16 AM, GreenWoods said:

@MountainCactus thanks a lot for your posts

So the proper Kriya techniques seem to be better for enlightenment. How is it in terms of health?

I have been doing the energetic versions by Gamana and feel the energy strongly in the physical body (but I don't have any of the typical negative kundalini symptoms). I am wondering whether this is healthy in the long-term. What do you think?

Sorry for the late response, with the holiday I was not online for a few days. Yes what you mention in the Gamana techniques, of the energy coming out of the subtle body into the physical body, is not what we want. We want to keep the energy in the subtle channels, and bring it up through there. All of the negative kundalini effects come from energy entering the physical body, where it does not belong. This can definitely have negative effects on health as well, a quick google search can show you some of the physical health symptoms that can come along with kundalini entering the physical body.

On 11/28/2019 at 6:48 PM, Leo Gura said:

The opposite might easily be the case. As kundalini activates you can get crazy monkey mind as the body/mind purifies itself. You must endure such things if you want serious results.

This is also a symptom of the undesired case of the energy going into the physical body. Kundalini awakening, in the optimal environment, does not do this. Kundalini awakening should slowly take consciousness out of the body, out of the senses, out of the mind, and into Consciousness itself. Like I mentioned a couple pages back, by strengthening the chakras with forceful energizing techniques you strengthen your ties to the body, the mind, and the ego. This backpedaling is caused through using improper energy techniques (or using proper techniques improperly...), it is absolutely not a general effect of kundalini. Kundalini should work for you, not against you. If it's working against you in Kriya, then you're doing something wrong. Kriya Yoga is the polar opposite of Kundalini Yoga, and people that try to shoehorn Kundalini Yoga into Kriya Yoga create a bastardized form of Kriya that is tamasic. This is also where having a real teacher/guru comes in handy. Kriya is a very subtle practice, and as I've said time and time again, one simply cannot master all the subtleties through a book, especially when said book has incorrect techniques to begin with... tamasic in is tamasic out...

22 hours ago, Kalki Avatar said:

@Leo Gura Should kriya yoga not be mixed with other practices? 

Lets say im letting go of my will and surrendering completely and I start doing kriya which involves will, what would be the result? 

It depends upon the practices. There are some practices that go really well when combined with Kriya. You really want synergy in all practices. Kriya is a complete system though, especially when you consider the higher Kriyas, so it doesn't need anything added. Time can also become a limiting factor. For example, if I'm practicing 1st-3rd Kriyas my sessions can easily go ~2 hours each... and then multiply that by 2x per day. It's hard to fit too much extra fluff in, when the necessities alone take up that much time. Though some other practices can help, if you have time. I was kind of shocked when my guru gave me Buddhist Jhana to practice in Paravastha (after Kriya at the end of the session). I was not expecting that at all from a yoga guru. But, I was having some difficulties with absorption and in that case Jhana can be a very helpful thing. So Jhanas are definitely something people could go for after Kriya if they want. Hatha Yoga is always good to mix in as well if/when you have time (just be careful about not overdoing gross bandhas). Self-Enquiry is always something worth adding to any practice. I would avoid mixing in things like TM which encourage mindlessness, or strong energy techniques like those Gamana recommends, as they conflict with the true purpose of Kriya as opposed to working synergistically with it.

 

12 hours ago, Kalki Avatar said:

@herghly Kriyas are like pranayamas that prepare and support your witnessing?

I thought I shouldnt mix this with meditation and contemplation. Can you explain a little more for me to see if its good to get more info of this and get the books? 

Kriya is the Battle of Kurukshetra, which is described in the Bhagavad Gita. The point of Kriya is to silence the chakras, which are the points that the subtle body knots itself to the physical body, and this releases your consciousness from the body/senses into the medulla (the heart of the subtle body). Then the idea is to then meditate from this deep state. It is a crime to do Kriya and then get up with no meditation practice after. Try to absorb yourself in the spiritual eye if you can see it, if you cannot see it try to absorb yourself in the astral sounds, if you cannot hear those try to practice complete open awareness of the whole. It is in doing these meditative techniques after where you can enter Dhyana and Samadhi, which is really where the magic happens. I would not practice any "contemplation" inside of seated meditation with Kriya. You can contemplate, practice Inquiry, or any other Jnana practice throughout the day. These are very good supporting practices, just don't waste your valuable seated time on them, imo.

Edited December 2, 2019 by MountainCactus

[WisdomSeeker]

Has anyone found any Kriya Yoga communities or instructors?  Reading books on techniques is helpful, but in order for me to be successful I will need more than that. 

[Leo Gura]

2 hours ago, WisdomSeeker said:

in order for me to be successful I will need more than that.

Or... you could just do the simple techniques and get the results.

Why are you making it complicated?

The books tell you exactly what to do. Yet you make excuses for not doing it.

This whole thing is way simpler than it seems.

[onacloudynight]

On 12/1/2019 at 11:33 PM, Leo Gura said:

Make sure you don't undersell your progress. It's easy to forget how much we grow, especially if we grew a lot.

It's good to remind yourself once in a while how unconscious you used to be.

Reminds me of a psychedelic trip I had where instead of entering into a state of higher consciousness, I actually became less conscious than what I was entering into it. I think it was trying to tell me something

Edited December 7, 2019 by onacloudynight

[herghly]

@onacloudynight @Leo Gura Thanks for the replies.

I had a frightening mushroom experience a few weeks again and since then many of my habits have been gone. It's the first time in years I using snooze on my alarm. But I understand that this is all apart of the process.

[Leo Gura]

25 minutes ago, herghly said:

It's the first time in years I using snooze on my alarm.

Sounds aweful. How will you live?

[Mada_]

On 07/12/2019 at 10:11 AM, Leo Gura said:

Or... you could just do the simple techniques and get the results

Then why does Sadghuru starkly demonise doing yoga without initiation?

[oMarcos]

35 minutes ago, Mada_ said:

Then why does Sadghuru starkly demonise doing yoga without initiation?

because he wants followers, not independent intelectuals

[Leo Gura]

1 hour ago, Mada_ said:

Then why does Sadghuru starkly demonise doing yoga without initiation?

There are certain dangers to activating kundalini without knowing what you're doing. Which is why you should study and learn how to do it and what the dangers are.

But also you should understand that just because you get initiation does not mean you will now avoid the potential dangers of kundalini. You can still have all the same problems even if Sadhguru himself initiates you.

[Nak Khid]

On 12/6/2019 at 6:11 PM, Leo Gura said:

Or... you could just do the simple techniques and get the results.

Why are you making it complicated?

The books tell you exactly what to do. Yet you make excuses for not doing it.

This whole thing is way simpler than it seems.

Somebody recently said you have stopped doing Kriya/Kundalini techniques on a regular basis. Is this true?

[herghly]

@Mada_ He's teaching yoga for the masses. You need to keep in mind the yoga he teaches is not strong.