What does everyone think of this guys thoughts?

[pluto8]

This quote below is a response to a question on quora asking, "What am I supposed to focus on in the breath during meditation?"

"I always advise against trying to teach oneself to meditate. Why? Because as the great meditation master Mel Brooks tells us, we should “Hope for the best; expect the worst.”

An example of “the worst” - your meditations are so effective that, as in the case of Gopi Krishna, you suddenly and unexpectedly experience Kundalini arousal. But instead of rising through the Brahma Nadi as it would in a trained Tantric, it rises due to inexperience through the Ida or Pingala, causing ten years or more of discomfort and anxiety.

Such mishaps in meditation are not common but they’re not unknown either. Reason enough to learn in person from an authentic, qualified teacher. Without in any way challenging the motives of John Yates (Dharma name Culadasa), author of “The Mind Illuminated,” He does make the perilous attempt in his book to teach meditation at second hand. Further, his qualifications pale beside those of neurologist and Zen master James Austin, emeritus professor of neurology at University of Colorado Medical School and student of the Rinzai Roshi Kobori Nanrei Sohaku.

Notwithstanding his status as author of six important books on Zen and Zazen meditation, Dr. Austin does not attempt to teach meditation in his books, although he discusses it in great detail from the viewpoints both of neurology and mediation.

I urge you not to attempt meditation in this unproven, idiosyncratic way. Learn in person from a teacher who can instruct you in detail according to your personal experiences, not necessarily a Zen teacher but one trained in a recognized lineage." -Bill Phillips

https://www.quora.com/What-am-I-supposed-to-focus-on-in-the-breath-during-meditation

 

 

I had heard about people going through some rough kundalini experiences in the past. Some of those people had never even heard of kundalini before.

After reading what this guy has to say and connecting that to the fact that you actually can go on youtube or something and find all sorts of stuff related to negative kundalini symptoms I feel like what he said should have some truth to it. Am I missing something or is that the truth?

 

Thanks for reading :),

-Ray

[pluto8]

I never knew it was caused by the kundalini rising through the Ida or Pingala because of inexperience, rather than rising through the Brahma Nadi. I don't know what any of those things are lol, but still, my point remains xD.

[PsiloPutty]

I have to believe that the chances of something drastically negative like that happening are extremely small. It's not like a meditation teacher can get inside your head and see exactly what you're doing or having trouble with. For learning basic meditation, I don't see a whole lot of difference between learning in person or learning from a book or a YouTube video, as long as it's accurate information. He mentioned The Mind Illuminated, for instance, which is widely considered to be one of the most informative, instructive and comprehensive books written on meditation in recent years, and covers a lot more than most teachers would ever verbally cover.