Wager of Ambrosia

Chapter 8

Awakening the Kundalini

The sixth chapter of the Gita begins with a description of the Sannyasin-Yogin who, though engaged in action, is without the expectation of returns from it. He desires no fruit and is not like men hankering after rewards and trophies. Certainly, he is not like those who never light the sacrificial fire and make no offerings to it. As a matter of fact, the real meaning of Sannyasa is to remove the desire that binds the doer of the works with work. The purpose of asceticism and renunciation is only to get rid of the bondage of the lower nature, so that the enlightened will can have its free play in him. By overcoming the sway of the lower nature and subduing the ego-sense does he prepare himself to make progress on the spiritual path. By action does the Yogin climb the difficult Hill of Yoga and acquire self-mastery. “By the self thou shouldst deliver the self,”—says the Gita. All that is gross and crude and degrading has to be rejected and replaced by what is subtle and fine, noble and elevating. When the Yogin has self-mastery and self-possession, then indeed the Self becomes his friend and from him disappear all conflicts and dualities, dualities of heat and cold, pain and pleasure, love and hatred, honour and dishonour, life and death. In all circumstances he remains calm, standing aloof and unperturbed, standing above these thousand distracting and troubling demands of the world. Established in the Knowledge of the Self or atmajnana he sees everything with an equal eye and, even as he recognises the essential truth of things and objects in their intrinsic nature, all superficialities and differences vanish from his vision. He is simply given to the moods and modes of the spirit in its wide-ranging splendour of manifestation.

But how to get this siddhi, acquire the true merit that comes by doing yogic action alone? The Gita in just a few verses, as usual brief and terse in their character, expounds the Science of the Yoga of Meditation, Dhyan Yoga, as follows:

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(The Gita: 6.10-19)

Let the Yogin practise continually union with the Self sitting apart and alone, with all desire and idea of possession banished from his mind, self-controlled in his whole being and consciousness. He should set in a pure spot his firm seat, neither too high, nor yet too low, covered with a cloth, with a deer skin, with sacred grass, and there seated with a concentrated mind and with the workings of the mental consciousness and the senses under control, he should practise Yoga for self-purification. Holding the body, head and neck erect, motionless, the vision drawn in and fixed between the eyebrows, not regarding the regions, the mind kept calm and free from fear, and the vow of Brahmacharya observed, the whole controlled mentality turned to Me, he must

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be firm in Yoga, wholly given up to Me. Thus always putting himself in Yoga by control of his mind, the Yogin attains the supreme peace of Nirvana which has its foundation in Me. Verily this Yoga is not for him who eats too much or sleeps too much, even as it is not for him who gives up sleep and food, O Arjuna. Yoga destroys all sorrow for him in whom the sleep and waking, the food, the play, the putting forth of effort in works are all yukta. When all mental consciousness is perfectly controlled and liberated from desire and remains still in the self, then it is said, “he is in Yoga.” Motionless like the light of a lamp in a windless place is the controlled consciousness of the Yogin who practises union with the Self.

(The Message of the Gita, pp. 98-100)

This way, without wavering from the path, steady like a flame and fixed ever in the Self of Knowledge, proceeds the Yogin. He grows in the awareness that the supreme Self is present everywhere and he sees all in it and is never lost to it, nor does it lose him; he lives and acts in it. Such a Yogin is dear to the Lord of Yoga, Yogeshwara, and in it is his entire fulfilment. “He is greater than the doers of askesis, greater than the men of knowledge, greater than the men of works; become then the Yogin.” That is how the Teacher of the Gita exhorts his disciple facing the harsh and difficult battle of life. In it he triumphs over all obstacles.

Become the Yogin,—such is the imperative. But how to become so? What are the prerequisites or stipulations for the seeker of Knowledge of the Self to proceed forth?

Jnaneshwar comments upon the relevant verses of the Scripture in considerable detail. Utilising this occasion he also gives a fairly long description of the traditional Hathayogic-Rajayogic sadhana. It is a spiritual discipline that leads to the awakening of the dormant life-force, the occult-vital energy, pranic shakti, lying coiled up and asleep in us, the power of Kundalini. One who is jitendriya, has conquered the senses, and who makes no distinction between the big and the

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small, between a tiny speck of dust and a huge quantity of gold heaped like a mountain, of the size of the mythical Mt. Meru,—he is to be recognised as the Yogin. In him never arises the feeling of jealousy or passionate friendship; for him there is none as a foe or an expectant guest and friend; nor is he deceived by outward appearances. He is one who is firmly established in the idea that this whole universe is like a single piece of cloth woven from one length of a thread, the Brahman. Indeed, he is a sacred ford, tirtha, a bath in which washes all our sins; his presence arouses in us benign reverent happiness; association with him leads us to the realisation of the Self; his speech is a confirmation of the possibility of living a life of truthful conduct; on him attend the great riches and gains, the exceptional yogic riddhis and siddhis; he always inspires in us the spirit of the Perfect. The Sun of Knowledge never sets on this Adwaitin, the knower of the One. He himself becomes full of knowledge.

About the greatness of such a Yogin Jnaneshwar says:

He is the father-king of the knowers of knowledge, and of the sight of the seers he is the flame-vision; it is by his resolve that into existence comes the order of the worlds. Even a full length of the cloth made from the yarn of the great creative-expressive Word will fall short if his glorious majesty is to be wrapped around. It is because of the brilliance embodied by him that there runs the commerce of the sun’s and the moon’s brilliance; without it the transactions of the universe will come to a standstill, or be reduced to nought. Oh the wonder! In that name’s marvellous infinity even the vastness of a blue sky appears no bigger than just the size of a small patch. Indeed, his innumerable qualities escape all our comprehension.

(Jnaneshwari: 6.108-111)

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In these owis dealing with yogic sadhana we first get a good authentic account of the kind of ascetic life a seeker of the Knowledge of the Self is enjoined to follow. It also corroborates the scriptural stipulation as to how the inner being of the doers of askesis is purified by the Yoga of Renunciation, sannyasayogad shuddham. (Mundaka Upanishad, 3.2.6, The Upanishads, SABCL, Vol. 12, p. 285) We are then told that while proceeding on the Path of Yoga wherever does such a seeker put his step, there opens out for him the rich mine of liberation. In the worst case if he should encounter an obstacle and fail to attain the goal, even then is assured for him the happiness of heaven. Go he may towards the east or towards the west, in whichever direction be the journey taken by him in calm steadfastness, faltering in the least, for him the fruition of effort is always there. Truly, when he approaches the village of his destination, that village moves towards him and presents itself to him, becomes him.

The poetry as we have in these owis is pure gold, bearing the mintmark of what Sri Aurobindo calls as the sheer overhead. But, then, immediately following it is a singsong description, most probably inserted later into the text by some lesser composers or copiers of Jnaneshwari. Such interpolations are not infrequent and a proper editing of the work still remains undone. One of the methods could be to go by the stylistic coherence of the composition itself, though it may appear to be somewhat subjective and hence dangerous. More importantly, an appeal more to the spiritual character of poetry, the overhead inspiration, than to the doubtful nature of the substance or the metaphysical details could prove to be profitable in several respects. It may, in spite of the hazard of such a procedure, turn out to be the only satisfactory way to approach the otherwise intractable issue. At the moment, however, we shall restrict ourselves only to the aspect of the yogic discipline Jnaneshwari is expounding in the immediate context of the Gita’s verses.

It has been firmly held by every spiritual discipline that the yogic path can prove beneficial to the seeker of the knowledge of the Self only by constant study and practice, abhyasa. However, in order to

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set oneself on the path and commence the journey first a certain preparation is necessary. But how should one get ready for it? The answer as given by Jnaneshwari is along the traditional lines, recommending the ascetic method of meditation and awakening the Kundalini Shakti, the occult-vital energy lying asleep at the base of the spine in the subtle-physical. To briefly paraphrase Jnaneshwari:

The seeker of the Self should first select a quiet and lonely place proper for meditation. It should inspire in him feelings of detachment from the things of the world, vairagya. It should be a cloistered dwelling which will further strengthen his resolve and bring to him more of tranquil happiness. In such a lonely place the practice of Yoga will become spontaneous and in its beautiful surroundings the spiritual experience will flow unimpeded. Even an agnostic or a heretic or a nonbeliever, should he chance to go by this place, would get attracted towards it and engage himself in askesis. While there, in that holiness, in that spotlessness, in the company of the seekers of the Self, intuitive sight will reveal to the aspirant that such a place, adhishthan, is indeed like the Abode of the Supreme himself.

In selecting the place care should be first taken that throughout the year the trees bear rich and sweet nectarine fruits; that at easily approachable distances there are flowing springs of crystalline water; that the sun is always mild and the low gentle breeze is fresh; and that it ever brings coolness. It should be a thick forest difficult for wild beasts to prowl or move around, a deep recess where is heard no disturbing sound nor any voice. Only at times may visit there, by the waters, swans or female cranes or, with an occasional lonely cry, cuckoo-birds. But if the peacocks should prefer to come and stay in the vicinity, it may be quite all right and acceptable. Somewhere there, hidden and cloistered, may exist an anchorite’s small shelter or a little fane of Shiva. In these surroundings the aspirant should select a good comfortable spot where the mind can easily fall silent. Always in that solitude must he remain, unmoved and unperturbed. There

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he should prepare for himself a proper seat, first by spreading criss-cross, and in an even careful way, soft holy grass; then on it he should put folds of a suitable white cloth and a clean and shining deerskin. The seat should be neither too high nor too low and it must be sufficiently firm and convenient for a continued steady meditation.

Having thus established the yogic asana in a secure and resolute manner the seeker of the Self, by meditating upon his preceptor, should gather his faculties inward. When the mind becomes calm and the sense of ego and all the outward-going movements cease, in that state of concentration as the body remains motionless, the life-breaths hold themselves together. Taking the firm posture of mulabandha, by pressing the heels between the anus and the testicles, control over the lower breath is obtained. As the meditation proceeds, eyes remain half-open and sight settles on the tip of the nose. In this deep self-absorbed Hathayogic state all mental and bodily perceptions disappear and the Kundalini Shakti awakens. Until now she lay there asleep, coiled up like a small female cobra, making three and a half turns. In this state she appears like a ring of lightning, or a rounded fold of fire, or a thick bar of pure shining gold rolled around. Under yogic pressure she presently stirs up and stands erect at the navel centre. But pushing her hood upward as she surges just then the mythical lake of the moon-nectar, chandramrutache tale, tilts a little and pours a bit of itself in her mouth. At this stage even the outward appearance of the Yogin undergoes a very a perceptible change. His limbs begin to shine like pure saffron, gleaming with its own lustre; or they seem like the seeds of jewels that have struck roots and sprouted; or else we may say that they could have been formed from the pleasing innumerable shades and hues of the setting sun. It is more likely that this emblematic figure of splendour could have been made from some intense and blazing inner flame, yogagni. The Yogin’s body appears filled with lustrous vermilion; or it could have been a thing cast from the very essence of his yogic attainment and perfection;

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or it could be that some calm and shining icon of tranquillity had been sculpted out in this figure of him. Imagine several pigments and colours used for making a picture of personified bliss, or a bright form that holds the greatness of joy, or a well-cared sapling of happy contentment,—and indeed all these steady themselves in his person. Or he could be a bud of the golden champa flower, or a solid statue of ambrosia, or a lush flourishing field of plantation. We may say that he is the disc of the moon moistened by the autumn; or else, seated on the asana, he may look like an image carved from the substance of brilliance itself.

Such a Yogin soon gets distant sight and he begins to see things that are far away, even beyond the other shore of the sea; he can hear the subtle sounds that arise in the sky, as much as he can know the intent and inner thoughts of even an ant. He rides the wind, taking it like a horse; and he walks on water without ever getting his feet wet, and many such siddhis or supernatural powers does he acquire.

That Kundalini, the Mother of the Worlds, is the imperial greatness and glow, the  majesty of the Lord of Consciousness himself. She is the one who takes care of the shoot that has sprung up from the little seed, the seed that bears within itself the whole cosmos. She is the body of the creative Non-Existence; she becomes a casket to hold the Great Self that is Shiva; manifestly, she is the birthplace of the expressive Word.

As the Yogin advances on the path his gross physicality also starts slowly disappearing. His limbs present an appearance as if they have been made from the sky itself; indeed, he moves in the sky in complete freedom. In him the subtle elemental constituents of earth, water, fire and air successively turn into higher  grades and finally merge in the last, the ethereal substance. At this point Kundalini loses her name as Kundalini and she is simply called Maruti or Vayu, Wind. However, she yet remains

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apart as Shakti, without the union with Shiva,— until such time when she will attain complete oneness with her Lord. But, then, crossing the stage of pashyanti vak or vision-speech she surges upward in her yogic ascent. Presently, she has the experience of That am I, so’hamasmi, and even as she embraces the Supreme Begetter, paramatmalinga, she becomes one with him. The earlier sense of two-ness or duality disappears in the ineffability of such an identity. We may quite well say that she has moved past the town of all description. When the sky fails to find any place for itself in the deep of that great void, mahashunyache dohi, then speech is bound to fall short in describing it.

Words return baffled; the will has no sway and it exercises no power any more; the wind cannot penetrate it; thought gets dumbstruck. That excellence of absorption, that state of in-drawn silent mind, is where the Yogin now arrives. Yet beyond this state is the ever-youthful fourth state, turiya, beauteous and charming, originless and incomprehensible, the supreme essence of everything. To that which is the province of forms and figures and shapes, where is the happy solitude of liberation, and where subside or are absorbed the beginning and the end, who is the root of the universe, the fruit of the tree of Yoga, the delight of conscious existence, who is the seed of the great elements, and who is the bounteous lustre of lustres,—it is to that extraordinariness does he come.

( Jnaneshwari: 6.319-323)

But exceptional are the souls who practise this arduous discipline. It is not a path which is easily accessible to each and every one.

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There is a definite preliminary requirement to be fulfilled, a certain fitness, a certain capacity and a capability, a certain qualification needed to turn towards this Yoga, an endurance that can bear the demands of its hardship. A long preparation in the nature of control over senses, detachment from things worldly, non-indulgence, regulated habits including control over sleep, control over eating, control over action are all necessary. When these initial conditions are strictly followed can then open out the easy way of Yoga. This indeed leads the Yogin to oneness with Yoga; he remains engaged or yoked to it ever, becomes yogayukta. Thus in all states, in every circumstance, he will be in Yoga with the Supreme. This union we can call a happy confluence of holy rivers, kshetrasannyasa, a place of utter renunciation where mind steadies and from there departs not. And of this oneness with Yoga what are the gains? When Lady Fortune smiles upon a person engaged in great commerce or activity, she walks with all her excellent gifts of prosperity into his house. Likewise are bestowed upon him the gifts of the spirit when with full determination and steadfastness he pursues the path of Yoga. He becomes a Siddha.

Jnaneshwar has well utilised the opportunity of the Gita’s brief mention of the Yoga of Meditation to elaborate in considerable detail the process of awakening the Kundalini Shakti lying otherwise asleep at the base of the subtle-physical. These few shlokas of the Scripture are taken up by him and expanded into a description of some two hundred owis. He himself says that it would not have been possible, quite obviously, for the Teacher of the Gita to speak about all these details on the battlefield; but he maintains that the main purport of the reference is sufficiently well hinted even in these quick statements.

It is also asserted that it is actually the quintessence of the Yoga as propounded and followed by the practitioners of the Nath Sampradaya. However, if both the spiritual and historical considerations are to be taken note of then this assertion becomes some what arguable. But this may as well be connected with the fact that Jnaneshwar’s

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elder brother and guru Nivritti belonged to the Nath Sampradaya; just a few years earlier at Trimbakeshwara he was initiated into the discipline by Gahininath. As an expression of gratitude and respect for his preceptor Jnaneshwar might have added this note also.

But what is perhaps more likely is that this particular owi (6:291) was added later by some ardent follower of the Sect, the Nath Sampradaya. In fact, a suspicion to this effect does arise at a number of places and one wonders if the present version of Jnaneshwari was not heavily interpolated during subsequent transcriptions over centuries, particularly during the long Muslim domination when its study was generally carried out privately. Even from the point of view of poetry, there is a certain unevenness which can well strengthen such a suspicion. Not that unevenness is uncommon in a work of this magnitude; but the quality of expression can well betray another hand entering into the composition. Notwithstanding the fact that occultly glowing phrases charged with an exceptional power are present everywhere in this Kundalini-description—such as gagani gagan laya jaye (sky getting dissolved in the sky), shabdacha divo malawala (the lamp or day of the word has set), mahashunyache dohi (in the deep of the great void), antarjyotiche linga (the creative organ of the inner fire),  ratnabija nighale kombh ( the sprouting of the seeds of jewels), amrutacha putala ( the image made of ambrosia)—we have a good deal of mixed stuff also; very often this stuff does not come up to the expectation of Jnaneshwar’s composition. In fact, at a number of places the description about the awakening of the Kundalini Shakti looks more like a practitioner’s manual than a literary creation belonging to the province of yogic poetry.

But, at the same time, we must admit that the manual is authentic and perfect in details. We must also remember that Jnaneshwar himself was a master of the arduous and difficult discipline and had acquired its several merits or siddhis. Not that this acknowledgement or certification from the contemporary Yogis and Siddhas or Commentators is needed for him. He had at his command great occult

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powers and had control over things material and psychic. There are any number of legends, current even today, about the performance of ‘miracles’ by him. It is said that he was chased and solicited everywhere for worldly boons by the common mass faced with the problems of daily life. His obliging them would have led to his own yogic downfall and therefore he had decided to take early Samadhi, at the age of twenty-one, by leaving his body in a yogic manner. This could not have happened without complete understanding and practice of the Kundalini Yoga. Yet the soul of Jnaneshwar was the soul of a Jnani-Bhakta, filled with knowledge and devotion. In fact, this element stands out more prominently in him than the element of Hathyogic-Rajayogic sadhana which was perhaps only a preparatory means towards the Sunlit Path of Yoga.

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