Kundalini is the divine energy within each person. It is the energy that gives us life--the same energy that gives life to the universe. It is represented as a "coiled serpent" in the chakra at the base of the spine in each human-the serpentine divinity who sleeps within each individual until awakened. The three coils of the serpent represent prana-kundalini--the energy that gives the physical body life, chitta-kundalini--the energy of our mind/emotions, and para-kundalini--the energy of our spiritual self. As the energy that lies dormant in each person is released it moves up the spine, activating the physic mechanism (chakras or energy/awareness centers).
Deeper awareness and consciousness is experienced in the unfolding of and flow between those chakras. It is the rising of the kundalini, piercing and releasing the awareness within each chakra, that cuts through our tensions, blocks, ignorance, and ego. Ultimately, the kundalini moves up through all of the major chakras and rests in the chakra at the top of head, called the sahasrara chakra. This is the Sacred Space where we become completely aware of our total unity with the Divine.
Shaktipat means the descent of grace, or transmission of energy, and it is a vitally important presence in the awakening of the kundalini. Shaktipat can be received from the teacher in four primary ways -- through the look, touch, thought, and word. In the tantric tradition shaktipat is understood to be the highest form of spiritual initiation, providing the initiate with immediate access to the divine energy dwelling within them. It is the fire that ignites and sustains the release and rising of the kundalini.
Shaktipat initiates the process by which a human being recognizes the intrinsic unbounded love that already dwells within their own heart ˜ it is that love that ultimately reveals the secrets of our existence and our experience of the unity in all of life.
Kundalini is the energy of life, or the Divine, as it is experienced in the individual. Shaktipat is that same energy, transmitted from the teacher, that awakens that awareness within the student. Kundalini is the power of life, shaktipat is the switch that turns it on.
When the kundalini is awakened through shaktipat from the teacher a process of cooperation, surrender, and union with the divine reality begins.
Source: http://www.sacredspaceyogasanctuary.com/kunda.html
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