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Kundalini And Destiny

A spiritual discourse on Kundalini energy, destiny, and the principles of deśa and kāla.

"Kundalini is the Śakti, the power which directs our life. It is the dormant energy within our consciousness."

"Destiny is the product of your own actions. No one is there to be blamed. You are only responsible for your destiny."

The lecturer delivers a talk explaining Kundalini as the serpent power governing destiny, which is shaped by past karma. He emphasizes the importance of acting with awareness of deśa (place) and kāla (time, also meaning death) to create harmony and navigate life's situations. The discourse covers the nature of emotions, the rarity of a human birth with spiritual inclination, and how awakening Kundalini leads to enlightenment beyond destiny's control.

Filming location: Kranj, SLO.

DVD 197

Kundalini Yoga is deeply connected with our destiny. Kundalini is the Śakti, the power which directs our life. It is the dormant energy within our consciousness, connected to certain physical and physiological centers in the body. In these centers, a kind of force is formed, like a generator that produces energy. If it stops, it will not produce the energy. The energy is there, but in dormant form. Kundalini is there within our consciousness, but in hidden form, in dormant form. The Kuṇḍalinī is understood and a little bit translated as a serpent power. In Indian mythology, the snake has a great significance as a symbol. First, you can say that the snake is the beginning of life. It has no limbs like us, such as hands and legs. It belongs to the reptiles. Though it is an undeveloped creature, it has immense power. The snake we call Kāla. And Kāla has many meanings. Kāla means time: Bhūtakāla (past time), Vartamāna (present), and Bhaviṣya (future). Deśa and Kāla are two things very, very important in our life. The person who acts according to the deśa and kāla will have little problems in life and will be successful. Deśa and kāla are very important for our everyday life. Often people ask me a question: how to maintain or realize in life harmony and happiness? Harmony with friends, with colleagues, with a partner, with the family. There is only one way: be aware of the deśa and kāla. "Deśa" means the place—the country, but here it means the place. Where are you? In which country? In which place? And kāla means the time. Act according to the time and place. Whoever can adjust himself or herself in this time and situation, whoever knows how to successfully place himself in time and space, will be successful. You could call that positive spiritual diplomacy. We say that someone is very diplomatic. Yes, you have to be diplomatic to come through certain circumstances. When you are in Slovenia, you should respect the Slovenian law, and when you are in Croatia, you have to respect the Croatian law. And when you are in Bosnia, you have to respect the Bosnian law. If you will not respect, you will have a problem. So, in whose house you are, with whom you are talking, you have to use your viveka, the intellect, the logic, deśa, and kāla. So, if you want to have harmony in your life, and happy and good relations with others, then be aware of the deśa and kāla. And there, control your emotions. Emotion has many sides, many colors. Anger is an emotion. Hate is an emotion. Restlessness is an emotion. Fear is an emotion. Sadness is an emotion. Nervousness is an emotion. To run away is an emotion. Screaming is emotion. Expressing your opinion without awareness of this and that is also emotion. And that emotion will cause the problem. Emotion will create a problem. In each cakra, there are hidden different kinds of strength and emotion. Kāla is time. Kāla means death. Death comes to take someone away, not dying, but the death. Death is the messenger that is also called Yama. Yama is the king of death. That's called Yamarāja. And the messenger of the Yamarāja, you can call him Yama or Kāla. Now, our life is accompanied by two. Constantly, one side of us is walking with us: our destiny, or viveka. Someone said jñāna, the knowledge. So one side is knowledge, and the other side is Kāla. The knowledge which leads us constantly, Kāla will stop our life and kill us. Constantly, Kāla is moving with us like the shadow of our body. You cannot run away from the shadow of your body. Similarly, the jñāna is also running with you. If there is light, there is shade. And if there is no light, there is only darkness. So whenever the jñāna awakes, the shadow is there. The kāla is there. So kāla is looking for the chance to take you away. It can happen by accident or through illness. Sooner or later, we have to become the victim of the Kāla. And therefore, you should always greet and make praṇām to the Kāla. And tell, please wait. Kāla means death. Kāla means black, darkness, ignorance. Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya. Lead us from the darkness to the light. Because where there is darkness, there is suffering. There is ignorance. There is pain. There is misunderstanding, there is doubt, duality, and where there is duality and doubt, there is separation and suffering. Where there is knowledge, there is unity, love, oneness, clarity, and trust. Confidence, faith, love. So, develop the love. Don't tell anyone, "I hate you." Tell, "I love you." Maybe someone will misunderstand you, but still love. And hate means the call of death. So, "kāla" means also darkness, ignorance. Suffering, and snake, which are producing poison. Poison means kāla. Poison means death. When the snake bites you, it's not the snake that is biting you. Kāla has bitten you. But there is also help. Not only that, one always dies. No, no, not only that, one dies. There is help. So we are all bitten by that car of ignorance. We are in the mouth of the car. Only the Brahmaniṣṭha Śrotriya Gurudeva can free us from the mouth of the car. Poison can kill us. Poison can also save our lives. Snake means this reptile, when it's moving, has no legs and no hands, but at a very quick speed, you cannot catch that one. It's quicker than you. A human cannot run as quickly as a snake runs. But when he is running, he is making curves. So, the serpent energy, the attitude of the central nervous system, Iḍā, Piṅgalā, Suṣumṇā, is going like a serpentine, the path, the curves. That's why the name is given, Kuṇḍalinī. Kund is a deep water place. And whatever you throw into the tank, or into that deep water, everything goes to the bottom. After some time, it's rotten. And it loses its form, and it just remains like dust down. Similarly, from many, many lives, our destiny, our karma is dormant, very deep in our subconscious and unconsciousness. Consciousness is masculine. Energy is feminine. And so, because the energy dormant in our consciousness, that energy is representing a feminine power. And therefore, it's given as kuṇḍalinī. Kundal means the ring, especially the ring which you are hanging in your earrings, ears, or sometimes you see around the moon. Our full moon, our moon is nearly going to be full, you see a circle around the moon, different kind of circles. One circle, which is significant of the strong wind or the storm. There is another circle which is significant, a sign for us: the flood. And the third is the rain. So, this is an indication. So, there is a kuṇḍal, we call it kuṇḍal. Kuṇḍalinī is masculine, but when the energy is connected to it, that's why it's called Kuṇḍalinī Śakti. The energy of kuṇḍalinī, and that Śakti is awakened within the consciousness. If you remember from last year's lecture, I said the first is the endless universe, which is Mother, Cosmic Mother. Within that universe is a consciousness, the cosmic consciousness. That is masculine, and within the consciousness, again, dormant energy, which is feminine. So, always together, there is no separation. They are always together; there is no duplication. These layers, male and female, are constantly passing through. That is why we call this kuṇḍalinī. When the kuṇḍalinī awakens, this is of the past life that takes place. And therefore, it's very important to know what the destiny is. And how can we be free from destiny? Now, about destiny, I told you many times, but very short, I will repeat once more. Destiny is the product of your own actions. No one is there to be blamed. You are only responsible for your destiny. You have caused the destiny. I give many times example. For example, you have a stone in your hand. As long as you have it in your hand, it's in your hand. You can decide if you want to throw it away or if you want to keep it. But as soon as you will throw away, is gone that stone out of your hand? Is gone from your hand, and that stone will hit that target which you made the target to throw this stone. Now, that target which you made to hit through stone, suddenly someone appears—maybe your child, your parents, your brother or sister, or some animals. And now you say, "No, no, I don't want this." No, whether you want it or not, the stone will hit that person. And you cannot run behind that stone to catch it back. You were the cause of that accident that happened. Because you threw the stone. If you had kept this in your hand, it would not have happened. Though you have a good intention, it ended with a bad intention. So, whatever we do through the five karma indriyas, that which is done becomes our destiny. And that destiny is preparing our nest for the next life. The nest means the next life. Into which body will you enter again? We do not have the power to say and enter again into the human body. No. Only your destiny can give you again human life. Therefore, Śaṅkarācārya said in his book Vivekacūḍāmaṇi, a very beautiful book, the rare for the soul is to be born in the human body. And if, then in such an educated spiritual family, you are born as a human, but still you have not such a family which can educate you—free education, spiritual education. Third, you may have a spiritual family, but you do not have a spiritual interest yourself. So blessed are they, or rare are they; there are rare who have the spiritual interest. And finally, to have spiritual guidance, the Master, the Guru. So blessed are they who have the guidance of the Gurudeva. If these four things happen in life, liberation is there. Which are the four? First, the human body. Second, the spiritual parents. Third, having one's own spiritual interest, and fourth, a spiritual master. Parents are spiritual, but children have such a bad society, they don't listen. Parents can give you only the birth. Parents cannot give you destiny. In one family, there were three children born. One became king, the second became a hunter, and the fourth became a saint. You see the destiny? All three of them were born from the same mother, from the same mother's womb. But destiny is different; karma is different. So this is karma which you earned in a past life. This is your credit now, what you are receiving. We will see how much you have in reserve. How much have you deposited? And how much interest are you getting? That's it. Therefore, a great saint Kabīrdāsa said, Kabīrdāsa said, the whole world is poor, no one is rich. The rich are those who have knowledge and bhakti. Bogati su oni koji imaju znanje i bhakti, predanost. This bhakti, the devotion. Bhakti, devotion, surrender. The richness of the devotion, through that positive viveka knowledge, will go with you for many, many lives. So the destiny is our own product from the past life. And whatever is happening is happening according to the past life. You met me; it's your destiny. I don't know if you take it as good or bad. Are you happy? It's a fishing compliment. But it is like this. Mīrā dāsī janam janam kī hari tumāre pās. Mirabai said, "Mira is your servant, O Lord, in many, many lives, with you all the time." And that's how the Master and the disciples are moving through the whole universe. We are born here to play in one theater, you know. So one is playing as a master in the theater, and others are playing as disciples. And when the theater is finished, again we are all one. And so, when this theater of this life is finished, again, the master and disciple will be one in oneness. But it has to be the disciple, a good follower, not fall over. So many are followers, and some are the followers, and they are like flowers, even hanging in the neck of the Master. So destiny, so no one is to be blamed for your destiny. Where you are born, how you are born, who your parents are, who your brothers and sisters are, who your partner and children are, and how your colleagues are, all is your destiny. You can't run away from this. Because if you try to run away, destiny will go with you like your shadow. Other worlds will again manifest with you. I know some people who immigrated from Europe to America. He had a problem with his wife, and he studied and became a lawyer there. But he had a problem with his wife there, a new other wife. He escaped from there and came to Australia, to be alone, completely finished with all problems. He left everything back behind in America, and he married in Melbourne. It was the same problem. So he got divorced there, and he got married in Bangkok, and all his wives, they are disciples. He said, "Swamiji, I am a good disciple, at least all my ex-wives are your good disciples." And now he divorced there also, and now he is thinking to marry in Singapore. So, it's not a mistake of those ladies. It's destiny. Your quality. Change the quality. With deśa and kāla. Deśa and kāla, the situation. Even you are with your wife in one room. You should understand the situation. You should understand his or her feelings. And what to speak and what not to speak. Don't always fight only for your rights. Learn to maintain your life with others. Learn to maintain your life with others in the time and place where you are. Similarly, try to learn to be with yourself. If you are searching for happiness, it is not in a husband or a wife. Not in money or children. Happiness is within thyself. You have to realize that happiness is within you. And so, destiny is what is putting you in different situations. God protect us from our negative destiny, and we get, before everything happens, the self-realization. Then destiny has no power over you. Before it happens, we are free. That's it. Kundalini awakening is the awakening of the wisdom, the knowledge, the light of knowledge in your consciousness. That's called enlightenment. Enlightenment means not like this physical light. Not that with closed eyes you see the light inside. If you want to see the light, then don't close your eyes; open your eyes and see. But that is a light of wisdom, love, and clarity, and every station, the kuṇḍalinī, has a different color and a different attitude. So tomorrow will be Svādhiṣṭhāna Cakra, and we will see what Svādhiṣṭhāna Cakra is doing with us. It is a most beautiful Cakra. It is a Cakra which gives us many, many lessons in life. It brings us many lessons in life. If it is not good, God will not give it to us. Whatever God has given us is very good. Now, if we misuse it or misunderstand, that's our problem. We should deal with everything with love. Deśa and Kāla, tomorrow will be there again. Different, Deśa and Kāla will be tomorrow. In the dream, it is also different, Deśa and Kāla. Though in the dream, what you are dreaming, you are not causing any karmas. But that dream can become the cause of some karmas. Because the dream inspires you. And then, after the dream, you try to do something. And in this way, even the dream can cause the karmas. So the Kuṇḍalinī is the Śakti which is changing the situation in our consciousness, in our attitude, in our life, in our emotion. When some borders are over, then everything is purified. Now, there is a kuṇḍalinī constantly awakening in us. But this is only going up and down. We want to have stability. Without changing, so when your mood is changing, your temptation is changing, your attitude is changing, your words are changing, your opinion is changing, then your kuṇḍalinī is confused. So, remain strong, solid. Even the moon and sun can change direction, but my decision will not change. That is it. The mighty Himalaya can say, "Move," but my confidence, my decision will not say. Even the powers of the Himalayas can be shaken, but my decision and my stance will not be shaken. Mahāprabhujī said in one bhajan, it is said, the solid, strong like a mountain. In one of his bhajans, Mahāprabhujī sang, Mahāprabhujī said.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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