Meaning “coiled snake” in Sanskrit, kundalini is innate energy found at the base of your spine. It is a great source of internal power and is a type of life-force energy that everyone has. Essentially, the kundalini is your consciousness. Monique Rebelle, the author of Transcendence Calling, describes it as “everything that you are, you think, you remember, that you can visualize- anything- that’s your consciousness. That’s Kundalini.” It is also sometimes known as “Kundalini Shakti,” “The Inner Woman,” “. It is a feminine kind of energy.
This coiled energy, which is dormant most of the time, can cause interesting experiences once it is awakened or risen. Though everyone has kundalini, not all of us have it awakened. In order to awaken your kundalini, your chakras have to be 100% open and free from blockages. Traditionally described as a wound-up snake with heads at each end, the kundalini can be thought of as a “plug point” that hasn’t yet to find its energy socket.
The kundalini is essentially our inner fire, our power to become creative, and our innate feminine energy of the divine sort. Once activated, this snake-like energy uncoils and slithers up from the spine, makings its way into your gut before moving to your heart and head. During this journey, the kundalini takes a trip through all of your chakras, boosting them and resulting in a state of consciousness that is expanded.
A kundalini awakening has a bevy of benefits, so it’s no wonder people try so hard to awaken their kundalini! It inspires positive change in the long term and is often considered to be a life-changing event thanks to the incredible upgrade in energy your body goes through. Some benefits include feelings of bliss, increased creativity and spiritual connections, a boost in empathy and compassion, and strengthened psychic abilities.
But how exactly do you awaken your kundalini? Awakening the kundalini can be either intentional or unintentional.
Intentional kundalini awakening can be achieved by an array of sacred practices that trace their roots to Hinduism: yoga, prayer, meditation, or pranayama. Even so, it can take years and lots of preparation. For example, Indian yogis often put years of work into cleansing and preparing themselves for a kundalini awakening. Still, one has no control over if or when their kundalini awakens.
You can try awakening your kundalini by practicing tantra, dancing, energy work, doing yoga, meditation, or prayer, breath control exercises, pranayama, regular meditation, and living with an open heart that projects gratitude out into the world.
Unintentional kundalini awakening can also happen abruptly, with no warning signs. It can strike anybody, too, even if they aren’t trained or aware of what kundalini is.
You can tell you are going through a kundalini awakening in a variety of ways. You may feel a sudden sense of euphoric peace, of freedom from the ego and the material realm. You’ll realize you can shape your reality consciously by transcending the mind’s dual nature. You feel blossoming love for all things, knowing your place in it all. Your mind does away with distractions, allowing you to place your focus on each thought, one at a time.