createempowerment:

mindovermatterzine:

With mental health, it’s not as simple as “It gets better”: Sure, it gets better, but it gets worse again, and better again, and worse… You just have to keep the belief that enjoyment of the good days is worth battling through the dark days for. 

Saw this segment from mindovermatterzine and had to re-blog it. Even the most enlightened and inspiring people still have their demons to contend with. This post reminds me of a time when I was sitting in during a lecture on mythology, and the instructor went over the serpent that stood for the Kundalini energy spiral in the human body. As a young student minoring in psychology and literature at the time, I had learned some bits about the Kundalini serpent and energy. Symbolized by a coiling snake that starts at the base of the spine, or root chakra, the coiling energy travels up to the crown chakra imparting wisdom.

I was under the impression that once the serpent got to the crown chakra it remained there. Like Siddhartha Gautama sitting under the Bodhi tree until he reached full enlightenment, I figured the Kundalini hitting crown was a permanent thing, something few could attain. However, I was incorrect. 

Because many psychologists delve into archetypal and mythological concepts, we were simultaneously studying Carl Jung. Jung studied the idea of the Kundalini serpent.

The Kundalini serpent is coiled quiescently at the base of the spine. When this energy is aroused in the practice of Kundalini Yoga, it uncoils and rises up the spine through six successive chakras, or centers of consciousness. This is what John Woodroffe (also known as Arthur Avalon) calls the “serpent power” (1973). There is, Jung notes, “in Tantric Yoga or Kundalini Yoga an attempt to reach the condition where Shiva is in eternal union with Shakti.” He says that Shiva “is encircled by the female principle, Shakti, in the form of a serpent” (CW 18: 120, par. 263).”
http://www.jungiantherapy.com/emergserp.shtml

Jung on Kundalini (video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMr3X_60h_Q

Something I hadn’t  learned yet, that my instructor stated, was that the serpent rises, but also falls back to the base.

In fact, many (even Jung) cautioned those that sought meditation and Kundalini awakening to be wary, since if one was not accustomed to activating the energy, it could lead to a crash afterwards often called “meditation sickness” or mental, physical, and spiritual turmoil akin to a ‘dark night of the soul’.

Yet, this coiling serpent explains not just some metaphysical burst of enlightenment, but our day to day ascending and descending, struggling to rise again every day through every situation. 

This surge and decline of energy continues throughout a life. Giving us a view of our inner worlds, the serpent-like energy is a part of the collective archetypal symbolism and makeup that inspires our spiritual and mental selves. Some days are easy, and other days, we struggle. Very few can continue at full enlightenment; and if you think on it, how practical is that for growth, if we humans are forever learning?

Even an individual who has gone through many trials and has grown from the experiences knows that there are some days when the old ghosts come back with their boxing gloves to try their best at beating the walls of the psyche.

What I’ve learned from these experiences is, eventually, you become more prepared for the battle. Each time your demons will attempt to beat you down, (and they may even succeed for that moment); but through every experience and every challenge you grow a little more. You learn a little more. You become better able to deal with your circumstances and inner life. Eventually, instead of running from your demons, you learn to dance with them. You learn to interpret them. You learn from them.They become the angels that lead you onward.

The Kundalini energy that hides in the pit is the same energy that hides in the third eye.

In the long run you gain wisdom from your experiences. Some days will be great, and some days will be harder still. The serpent will rise to bring you the wisdom you will need the next time it retreats back to its base and the going gets tough. Every time, you will learn something new, and the combined wisdom from those experiences will in turn define you, and possibly assist others as well.

The night may be long, but the sun will rise tomorrow. What will you reveal in the light that you found while fighting in the dark?

Sources:

Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion (Google Books - Portion Online)

Jung on Kundalini (video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMr3X_60h_Q

Other links on the subject:

http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/k/kundalini.html

The Oxford Handbook of Psychology and Spirituality (Google Books - Portion Online)

Thank you for this interesting and educational post! Is anyone reading this Hindu or from a Hindu background and would like to contribute?!

Notes

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    And the dark days can really shake your resolve and leave you wondering.
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