Shambhavi Kriya

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Shambhavi Kriya

 

Introduction

 

Shambhavi Kriya is a powerful technique that brings you the

Self-realization. It awakens Ajna chakra quickly. Shambhavi means

" pertaining to Shiva " . Lord Shiva himself remains absorbed in this

kriya. The greatness of this kriya cannot be explained in words.

 

Technique

 

* Sit in any meditative posture with your spine and head erect

* Close your eyes and relax the whole body

* Now focus your awareness and inner vision at the region between eyebrows i.e.

the region of Ajna chakra

* Visualize a bright Om there

* See the Om sparkling bright light

* Mentally start chanting Om

* Try to make the Om visualization as vivid as possible

* Maintain Om chanting along with visualization for as much time as you can

* When visualization starts fading away stop chanting and slowly come out of the

kriya

 

Beginners should do this practice for 15 minutes gradually increasing

the duration.

 

Instead of closing the eyes altogether you may adopt the following

variations:

 

* Let the eyes be half closed. You will see downwards instead of in

the front.

* Let the eyes be half closed and try to see the tip of the nose. This is

difficult and may put undue strain on your eyes.

 

As an alternative to the Om chanting and visualization you can adopt the

following variations:

 

* Visualize bright light or a bunch of light particles at the region

of Ajna

* Visualize brilliant white lotus radiating divine rays at the region of Ajna

* Visualize image of your idol (deity) at the region of Ajna

 

Signs of correct practice

 

* Deep meditative state results

* Feeling of bliss and joy after the practice

* You become eager to do this kriya. Whole day you may think about doing this

kriya.

* Light is seen at Ajna

* A tingling sensation can be felt at Ajna

* You may receive divine guidance

 

Signs of erroneous practice

 

* Pain in the eyes

* Wandering mind even after prolonged practice

* No deep meditation results

* Feeling of boredom

* Feeling sleepy

* Visualization of Om fades away too quickly

 

Scriptural references

 

The above technique is mentioned directly or indirectly in the following Yogic

texts:

 

* Hatha Yoga Pradipika

* Gheranda Samhita

* Shiva Samhita