Kundalini - Western Interpretation

Western Interpretation

Kundalini is considered an interaction of the subtle body along with chakra energy centers and nadis channels. Each chakra is said to contain special characteristics and with proper training, moving kundalini energy 'through' these chakras can help express or open these characteristics.

Sir John Woodroffe (pen name Arthur Avalon) was one of the first to bring the notion of kundalini to the West. As High Court Judge in Calcutta, he became interested in Shaktism and Hindu Tantra. His translation of and commentary on two key texts was published as The Serpent Power. Woodroffe rendered kundalini as "Serpent Power" for lack of a better term in the English language but "kundala" in Sanskrit means "coiled".

Western awareness of the idea of kundalini was strengthened by the Theosophical Society and the interest of the psychoanalyst Carl Jung (1875–1961). "Jung's seminar on kundalini yoga, presented to the Psychological Club in Zurich in 1932, has been widely regarded as a milestone in the psychological understanding of Eastern thought. Kundalini yoga presented Jung with a model for the development of higher consciousness, and he interpreted its symbols in terms of the process of individuation".

The founder of the Aetherius Society George King describes the concept of Kundalini throughout works and claimed to have experienced this energy many times throughout his life while in a 'positive samadhic yogic trance state'. According to King, It should always be remembered that despite appearances to the contrary, the complete control of Kundalini through the spinal column is man's only reason for being on Earth, for when this is accomplished, the lessons in this classroom and the mystical examination is passed. In his lecture entitled The Psychic Centers - Their Significance and Development he describes the theory behind the raising of Kundalini and how this might be done safely in the context of a balanced life devoted to selfless service.

Sri Aurobindo was the other great authority scholar on Kundalini parallel to Sir John Woodroffe, with a somewhat different viewpoint, according to Mary Scott (who is herself a later day scholar on Kundalini and its physical basis) and was a member of the Theosophical Society.

Another populariser of the concept of kundalini among Western readers was Gopi Krishna. His autobiography is entitled Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man. According to one writer his writings influenced Western interest in kundalini yoga.

In the early 1930s two Italian scholars, Tommaso Palamidessi and Julius Evola, published several books with the intent of re-interpreting alchemy with reference to yoga. Those works had an impact on modern interpretations of Alchemy as a mystical science. In those works, kundalini is called an Igneous Power or Serpentine Fire.

Other well-known spiritual teachers who have made use of the idea of kundalini include Swami Rudrananda (Rudi), Yogi Bhajan, Osho, George Gurdjieff, Paramahansa Yogananda, Swami Sivananda Radha who produced an English language guide of Kundalini Yoga methods, Swami Muktananda, Bhagawan Nityananda, Nirmala Srivastava (Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi),and Samael Aun Weor.