intro and interesting question

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam,

 

Hello, I am sort of new here. I was on this list a few years ago and was

quite active here for awhile. Then I left, and I re-d about a

month ago and have been lurking a bit. I have a question, so I suppose I

will make a new introduction first.

 

My name is Leslie, and my spiritual name is Guruchiter Kaur (one who holds

the image of the Guru in her mind). I have been practicing kundalini yoga

for 7 1/2 years- since I was 18. Many of those years- especially the early

ones, were very intensive practice. I received teacher training from Siri

Narayan Kaur Khalsa in Buffalo, NY, in 1996-97. I am married to Paul (the

fellow who introduced me to KY) and have three daughters: Radha, age 6;

Vrinda, almost 3; and Visakha, almost 1. We've moved around a lot, but I

have managed to start up teaching classes at three of our previous

locations. Wow, I guess I sound pretty busy. I stay at home and teach our

children and do other stuff. We currently reside in Pennsylvania and are

trying to buy a house.

 

So, my question lies here... I know kundalini yoga is presented as being a

practice that can be taken up by people of any religious affiliation. From

the start I have used kundalini in my life in a very spiritual way. It has

assisted me in many ways on my path. I feel that I should continue with its

practice to assist me further. However, I am finding some difficulty in

practicing daily from two traditions. My husband and I practice bhakti yoga

(Hare Krishna). Now, kundalini yoga itself samples from the bhakti yoga

tradition, so the two aren't as far from one another as they could be.

Recently in my life I have been running into various examples of people who

either had to choose between different paths or had that choice made

seemingly for them. For example, a clairvoyant was told she should choose

between that skill or being a healer. My own husband lost many of his

skills of physical yoga, like his ability to control his senses and do

various yogic stuff when he was basically converted to bhakti yoga by

Krishna. My own yoga teacher has expressed that one must choose between the

paths. Despite all of this I personally feel guided to continue practicing

kundalini yoga along with my devotional practices.

 

So, my question is are there devout Christians, Jews, Muslims, or Vaishnavas

(etc) out there who actually practice kundalini yoga in addition to their

other spiritual practices and how have they resolved the meeting of the two.

 

 

I'm not really worried about myself. I get a feeling that everything will

work out right if I stay sincere, but I thought this might be a good place

to get some input on how others have dealt with the same issues.

 

Sincerely,

Love Always,

Sat Siri Akal,

Jaya Radhe,

 

Guruchiter Kaur

[Guest guest]

You do indeed ask a very interesting question, and your life seems very

interesting and exciting. I do not profess to be an authority on the issue you

raise, but I have always thought about the "religion-different traditions"

aspect very simply. A religion is a set of beliefs. However, yoga is not so

much a set of beliefs as a set of experiences unique to each person, and taking

each person along their evolutionary path toward the same common goal for

everyone. Also, even though the different yogas (Hatha yoga, Kundalini Yoga,

Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Karma Yoga) may have some different starting

points, the goal for all is the same, and the paths for each have many

commonalities. I am not sure what others would have to say, however, I have

never encountered or felt that practising yoga in any form meant having to give

up/abandon or even think differently about the religion one had grown up with.

It seemed like yoga was much more inclusive and accomodating. You say you have

trouble practising from two different traditions, and you do not elaborate on

exactly how, but perhaps whichever appeals more to you is the way to go? Or

both if that is what you want? In the case of choosing between being a

clairvoyant and a healer, that is slightly different, since there one has to

choose between which skills to develop and refine more. I have friends who are

Jews and practice both kundalini yoga and Bhakti yoga and in addition reiki. I

have friends who are Christians and avid Buddhists.... I think you really

answered your question when you said, "I get a feeling that everything will

work out right if I stay sincere".Sat NamL

[Guest guest]

Hello Leslie,

 

I do completely understand where you're coming from. I'm a Muslim and i had

to think about the ways i can juggle my Faith and Beliefs with KY. I think

from my own experiences that KY can be used as a technology to enhance

whatever kind of belief system / religion you might already have, and it

doesn't have to contradict and conflict.

 

Having said that, i do occasionally have to make a choice. I do not hesitate

to recline from doing Mantras that contradict with what i believe, I

sometimes go further and replace the mantras with similar Vibratory Sacred

Verses from my own belief system.

 

I believe that every person has his own (Built-In) Guru, that is constantly

giving advice and never stops. We just have to calm down, stop thinking and

try to hear his faint cries of advice that echo's back from a relative

Future.

 

I do not integrate anything (That others would call belief) into me, until

after i am completely convinced by it and it makes sense to me. Once that is

established my goal becomes experiencing it which makes it knowledge and not

just a belief. When you know something, you cannot doubt it or else you

wouldn't know it to begin with. But a Belief could be right or wrong.

 

I guess what i'm trying to say is that i try to understand my beliefs until

(I experience them) until they become a knowledge. I also try to always

keep it in my mind that everyday things i take for knowledge are really

nothing more than beliefs. I hope that i haven't strayed to far away from

the subject by trying to explain and share my point of view.

 

Peace

-Al

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Al:Your message was extremely nice. I too look around many times and wonder why

we accept many of the everyday things even though they make no sense to us, and

furthermore, we do not give a second thought to the fact, that we are indeed

buying into the "belief system" of many ordinary (meetings that go on for more

than 2 hours with nothing accomplished) and not so ordinary things (death

penalty, war, etc); however, when it comes to the most important part of our

lives, our spiritual evolution, we wonder whether we are doing wrong to the

belief system we grew up with. There are always ways to be fair to yourself

first and foremost and then to everything that you yourself truly believe and

care about.Sat NamLyn

 

Al <alladinito wrote:But a Belief could be right or wrong.

 

I hope that i haven't strayed to far away from

the subject by trying to explain and share my point of view.

 

 

 

 

 

The New Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo.