Planning Bliss - Avoiding Untimely Sensitivity & Destabilization

Earlier in my kundalini process, I didn’t understand that the influx of shakti (or expansion of consciousness) could be gently guided. I naively thought that I was fully at the mercy of its mystery. I’ve now come to understand that while the kundalini process is complex and can certainly have unexpected turns, there are ways that we can create guidelines for the safe stabilization of higher consciousness. There are also ways that we can cause more issues and destabilization throughout our kundalini process. 



One of the ways that we can hinder or help our process is through our spiritual practice, the intensity of it (based on the kind of practice and how it affects us), as well as the frequency of it. Spiritual practice can refer to anything that connects us more deeply with our true essence (yoga, meditation, kirtan, spiritual texts, devotional services…etc.)



Fanning Shakti - My Blissful Nightmare
 


Earlier in my process, the illiteracy of what fanned kundalinis flames had some painful and discouraging consequences, leading to frequent isolation experiences and severe sensitivity. I wound up having inconvenient influxes of Shakti when I couldn’t handle them fully and integrate or stabilize them in a safe container. This meant that I would experience lots of bliss during spiritual practice, only to crash into a deep sea of emotional turmoil in the days following.
 


For instance, one time, I cried my eyes out on the car drive to my niece’s dance recital due to a massive influx of shakti. I could hardly concentrate throughout the recital because of the immensity of my kundalini symptoms. I could hardly speak to anyone without a bubbling brew of unconscious material seeping from my heart. When the lights went down for the recital to begin, the tears I’d held back upon arrival flowed and flowed..and flowed. I couldn’t hold back the flashbacks and trauma pouring from me the entire day. I left the recital feeling exhausted, confused, and discouraged about my kundalini journey. 
 


Thankfully, after seeking guidance from various kundalini therapists, I came to find out that the influx of shakti as a result of spiritual practice brings about unconscious material, increased sensitivity to inner experiences, and can potentially result in feelings of destabilization (depending on where we are at in our process, and the intensity of our practice.) This means that any time we experience bliss, we are likely to become a tad or a lot more sensitive afterward, depending on how much bliss we experience (Normally, unconscious material can surface for a few hours, a few days, or a week at most.)
 


This is why, as we learn to integrate and stabilize higher states of consciousness throughout the kundalini process, it’s useful to be mindful of how we respond to our spiritual practice and how well we stabilize higher states of consciousness.
 


The goal is to become good at letting go of, or experiencing less of our old unhealthy patterns/thinking, as we experience more wisdom and compassion and stabilize higher states of consciousness. This takes time and requires lots of self-love and patience.



Mindful Planning - Intensity and Frequency of Spiritual Practice

I have found it useful to plan more intense spiritual practice around life responsibilities so that increased sensitivity isn’t untimely and so that unconscious material can surface in a safe container.

You can think of it like training. You could ask yourself if you would scale Mt. Kilimanjaro when you huff and puff after six flights of stairs? :)
Probably not, right?

For everyone going through a kundalini process, this planning will look different. Some people will be able to meditate for three hours or do mantras frequently without any issues. Others will have to do lighter practices for months or even years as they stabilize higher states of consciousness. It is important not to be discouraged or compare yourself to another person’s journey.



“So what does it mean to stabilize higher states of consciousness?”



The deepening of integrity in all aspects of life stabilizes higher states of consciousness. All aspects of your life and how you live it with kindness, compassion, and wisdom are important in the kundalini process. Not just spiritual practice alone. Like the great saint, Neem Karoli Baba said, “If you want to raise kundalini, serve people.” In other words, our spiritual practice is best seen as ongoing after we lift our booty from our meditation cushion and put down our prayer beads. It encompasses all areas of our lives.



This goes with saying that cultivating integrity in all aspects of one’s life will look different for everyone. It will be a personal experience and an intimate journey for each person. Kundalini will allow the person to access deep wisdom in their connection with the divine to help guide them in understanding what needs to be cultivated and what requires letting go of in terms of love and power (or happiness). A more embodied sense of loving power will emerge for every individual in the kundalini process.



Planning the Increase of Shakti



The following could be an example of planning an influx of kundalini and monitoring the kundalini process wisely:
 


You have had a regular spiritual practice for about a month or two that you know doesn’t fan kundalinis flames excessively. You have felt quite stable emotionally and mentally during this time.
 


It is healthy to say, at this point, that you may be able to add a bit more to your spiritual practice, or you can plan to allow more kundalini in your system for a day or two.


With your schedule/responsibilities in mind, you plan to increase your practice or add something to your practice during a time that provides a safe container for unconscious material to surface after a period of bliss (a few hours, days, or a week depending on the influx). This means that you don’t plan this attempt before any important dates or occasions or at a time that could keep you from being able to be aware or more sensitive to how this increase might affect you. (such as family trips, interviews, work or familial responsibilities, or times when you will be around people you wouldn’t feel comfortable or safe being extra sensitive around.)

In summary, this kind of planning and conscientiousness can benefit the Kundalini process. It can help to provide a balanced approach as we learn to connect more deeply to our strength, compassion, and wisdom in all areas of our life. Rather than experiencing incredibly intense highs and lows, we can find balance throughout our kundalini journey and experience more beneficial aspects of kundalini as a result.



It can also be helpful to remember that while we cannot control kundalini entirely, we can learn to navigate all aspects of the journey with more love, wisdom, gratitude, and strength. 



Summary of Quick Tips



-Get to know your process personally. Note when you have bliss and then notice the unconscious material/emotional sensitivity resulting from that bliss for the coming hours/days. How much is there on a scale of 1-10, if any? It can be helpful to journal your practice and experiences following, especially if you have a lot of unconscious material coming up.



-If there is too much emotional sensitivity/kundalini symptoms, then pause spiritual practice, or do a gentle spiritual practice (gentle natural breathing with eyes open), lots of emotional self-connection and care, or grounding practices (going for a walk outside, eating heavier foods, or hara meditation).



-Once you understand how a certain kind of practice or level of intensity affects you, take note of it, and only try more when you know you can hold space for yourself for some hours or days.
 


Best wishes and lots of love to you and your process,

Morgan