Several hundred years ago, when the West was first being exposed to the philosophies of the East, many of the key concepts were simplified, or miscommunicated. Orientalists at the time, in doing their research on advanced topics, unskillfully questioned the common folk instead of adepts better suited to answer questions dealing with the intricacies of the subtle world.
Imagine asking a rice farmer about molecular biology. Undoubtedly their response would be lacking in both accuracy and depth. The same thing happened with Tantric philosophy. Complex questions were asked, yet very basic answers were given. We can clearly see this demonstrated with the concept of Rudra, the Howler.
The Layman’s understanding is that this primal version of Lord Shiva is so fierce and violent that he causes us to howl in fear and cry out in terror. Yet nothing could be further from the truth. Rudra is howling out of deep compassion and love for humanity, seeing our deep pain and anguish, having separated ourselves from Him.
So then who, or what is Rudra?
Rudra is that primal force that breathes life into everything, causing life to thrive. The word Rudra is a composite of two root-sounds. RUD means ‘that which lifts us up’ and DRA translates to ‘that which calls forth’. Rudra is about calling forth the power within us that lifts us up out of darkness, out of fear and worry. Rudra is determination and will, the inner motivating force that protects us from sloth, laziness, procrastination and inertia – the inner drive within all beings to fight in favor of life!
On the grandest level, Rudra is the energy that ensures that all of life, nature and the cosmic order continue to exist in symbiotic harmony. Biologically within us, Rudra is the governing force behind our breath, our heartbeat, our lungs, the metabolism within the cells, the fire that breaks down and assimilates the food we eat. Rudra is that which fills us with energy and vibrancy.
In short, Rudra is Kundalini Shakti Herself. Forget about gender here, folks. Personified expressions of Deities are nice, but from Tantra’s lofty perspective, they are for knuckleheads who lack the subtle sensitivity required to register pure, vibratory truth. The reality of God is beyond all divisions and all form. Rudra is both our heavenly Mother and Father, existing eternally inside of us and all around us, as the spark of life within all things – the sacred Fire at the source of all creation.
The connection between Kundalini, Rudra, the sacred Fire and our own human excellence is the central most theme, or pillar of Tantra.
It is therefore a great calamity that the concept of Kundalini, along with its complimentary fire-based practices, have been so widely misunderstood, or ignored by modern Yoga.
Today, Kundalini is considered, for the most part, a myth, or at the very least, an inaccessible aspect of the Yoga tradition, particularly for regular, daily practitioners like us. It isn’t. Nothing could be further from the truth. Kundalini is VERY accessible under the right circumstances and EXACTLY for people like us.
Here’s why –
Our gross and subtle bodies are designed specifically to be conduits of activated Kundalini energy. Why do you think you came equipped into this life with a more advanced nervous system and Nadi system than all other creatures in God’s grand and vast creation? Did nature make a mistake?
Nature does not make mistakes. We are living shrines to Rudra, the life-force power that guides and governs all creation and as humans, our primary directive in life, is to yoke ourselves so completely to this sacred Fire, to Rudra, to Kundalini Shakti that we illuminate every space we enter and positively activate everything we touch. Therefore, the practices that connect us to Kundalini Shakti were designed precisely for people like us.
Tantra says that the very reason there is so much darkness, forgetfulness, anger and corruption in the world today, is because we have renounced the idea that each person is a living Kundalini shrine.
As a result of this, we no longer live in ways that are aligned to Kundalini’s power and glory – which is OUR true power and glory – and we continue, against our own best interest, to neglect the practices designed to remedy the situation.
It’s time to end this madness, born of inner spiritual poverty and absolute confusion about who we are. It’s time for humanity to reclaim its rightful throne as sovereign protectors, healers and guides for all of life’s creatures and to embrace the hidden power buried deep within us. And this all starts with practice.
Tantra invites us to ignite the sacred Fire through the time-tested, complimentary sciences of Hatha Yoga and Rudra Yaga (Tantric Fire ritual). These methods, when performed accurately and with the right intention, are how we slowly, safely and systematically empower ourselves to move beyond all fear, doubt and disease and regain the fundamental trust in ourselves and in life necessary to lead a truly exceptional inner and outer existence. Everything else, in regard to practice, is a distraction.
Any practice that doesn’t address Kundalini, simply isn’t real Yoga. It is a fake, plastic log-fire pretending to burn, giving off artificial light and only pseudo-comfort. Do not believe the lie that you are not worthy of Kundalini, or are unable to reach Her. She is your Mother. He is your Father. It is the source of your own true being, calling out to you – Howling.
Yogi, Yogini, I’m talking to you right now. Renounce the modern Yoga lie that Kundalini is a far off dream, only fit for Sages in caves. This idea is nonsense and it is destroying Yoga. It is destroying us, one fear, one doubt, one unhelpful reaction at a time.
Practice is about one thing and one thing only – providing practitioners with the precise tools and means required to become a living embodiment of the sacred Fire, the force of Rudra – the most vibrant, energetic, determined and valiant expression of Kundalini Shakti. So strike the match, Yogi. Stoke the flames, Yogini. Offer up for sacrifice everything that is holding you back from stepping into your power and then do what you were designed to do – Ignite the whole world with your brilliance.
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