Sadhana - a daily spiritual practice

Sadhana means a daily spiritual practice. Sadhana is a self-discipline that allows one to express the Infinite within one's self.

When we practice Sadhana we give ourselves a time each day to notice the patterns that distract us from our higher consciousness and to grow past or to transcend those patterns. When we work through these patterns in our Sadhana our subconsciousness clears the way for new patterns to be created. This happens with every aspect of our lives whether its our afternoon sugar/caffeine craving, answering our phone to taking a pause before answering a person that normally agitates us.

Do you have something you want to see a change with in your daily life? Some of you may have a list of things that you know right off the bat or you may be a little confused, like most people, where we could improve. We know we want to change but it is hard to see ourselves as a 3rd person. Most people go about their daily life and it doesn't seem 'all that bad' until we hit a wall and feel completely overwhelmed. I invite all of you to take a look at your day and make a mental note (or for those that are more aggressive write it down) of where you wish to see a change in your daily patterns. Writing in a journal is a great way to remind ourselves of our progress. Those benefits are numerous and I will write about that subject later. But now back to the business at hand, Sadhana and how to start one.

If you are new to the word Sadhana and or Kundalini Yoga this may seem like learning a foreign language and living in a whole new shell of YOU. So lets start with some of the basics of the language. Do not worry about knowing all of this, when you attend a Kundalini Yoga class you get all of this in a flow that is easy to follow and you do not need to be an expert to feel the change within yourself!

Amrit Vela - early morning hours. Ideally 2.5 hours before the sun rises. So about 4 - 7 am.
Tuning in with the Adi Mantra - chant Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo at least 3 times to tune into the Golden Chain
Golden Chain - the flow of Infinite knowledge from our teachers and Gurus
Sat Nam - Truth is my identity, Truth is my name. This mantra awakens the soul and gives you your destiny
Kriya - action, a sequence of postures, breath and sound that lead to a complete manifestation
prana - inhalation of breath
Apana - exhalation of breath
Mantra - science of sound and energy structure through words
Mudra - hand positions, seals the energetic flow and reflexes between the map of the body on the hands and our brians
Relaxation - moves prana, opens up the parasympathetic nervous system and glandular created by the Kriya.
Meditation - works on developing the neutral mind
40 days - it is suggested to have a practice that lasts a minimum of 40 days. This is to break a habit
90 days - when you have a practice of 90 days you create a habit
120 day - at 120 day your practice becomes a part of who you are
1000 day - you will achieve mastery with your practice

Now to get physical! This is the part of yoga that most people are attracted to. Often I hear "I need a good workout". Don't worry you'll get one, even if it feels like you barely moved! With Kundalini Yoga sets you are getting a complete workout on the mind, spirit and soul. You are able to work certain areas of your body physically. For example there is a set that specifically works on the bowels. Sound good? For some its exactly what's needed while for others working on their lymph system to help out with a hyper or under-active thyroid is a better choice. We do not need to feel completely depleted at the end of a Kundalini Yoga class to have it work for us. Sometimes the effects are so subtle that we only notice it in our actions throughout the rest of the day and our choices in food that we eat and our mood. Most often we can feel a High from the set and meditation.

How do I choose my set? There are a few different ways to do this. If you are new to Kundalini Yoga it is best to attend a Kundalini Yoga class. Most teachers will give you a copy of the set they just taught. You can also get a DVD to follow along with. This is a great tool for those that travel a lot or are unable to leave the house because of small children, etc. There are also several books with Kriyas and meditations you can purchase at your local studio or online at www.a-healing.com. Which is also a great resource for music. What you want to remember is to pick a set that is not going to injure you. Yes, you will gain more flexibility over time but remember that the cells in your body totally change every 72 hours. Always listen to your body!

I have heard many people comment on the activity of their brain, that they cannot shut it off so they don't meditate. Well, we cannot shut off the brain, but by working the body we physically become tired and are then able to 'let go' or 'hang loose' during the deep relaxation at the end of the set. By changing the flow of prana and apana in the exercise we are breaking the mental patterns of chaos that we create. For many it is the only way to get to a state of deep relaxation. This also prepares the body and mind for meditation. Relaxation is such an integral part that most sets have small relaxations in-between each exercise to help facilitate the magnitude of the energy shift you just created. Deep relaxation takes that energetic shift to much deeper levels of our subconscious.

Which brings us to meditation. There are Kundalini Yoga meditations that focus only on the breath. Others have mudra to go along with a mantra to chant or sing. You may choose to do a prosperity meditation to boost your business. Some Kriyas have suggested meditations that are designed specifically to enhance the set. You may have a physical aliment and want to do a healing meditation. You may even choose to have 3 meditations that you do every day. If you're anything like me, you'll fall in love with so many that it'll be difficult to choose. What's important to keep in mind is that you're changing your consciousness! What ever meditation you do, you will benefit!!!

If you are creating a Sadhana practice at home don't forget to tune in to the golden chain with the Adi Mantra, Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo, at least 3 times and close with 3 long Sat Nam's!

Many Kundalini Yoga centers have an Aquarian Sadhana in the Amrit Vela (early morning) that you are welcome to join. There are many benefits to doing a group Sadhana and the more people that are there the stronger the groups aura will become. When we wake up early many of us are still clearing the mind of our dreams and for some their brain is already at the office. When we practice in a group our consciousness clears and we balance out one another. A rainbow aura will be created when a group is well tuned into the Infinite. At the end of the Sadhana when the individual energies are merged together as a group aura communications throughout the day will be a lot smoother. You will experience fewer and fewer misunderstandings the more that you practice in a group.

Having a good Sadhana practice is great for mercury retrograde when a lot of us experience communication problems. So why not create a daily spiritual practice that will help maintain a higher level of understanding and communication all throughout the year and not just when we hit a wall and find ourselves in crisis mode!!

I teach a class on Sundays that helps my students with building their own 40 day Sadhana practice. I believe that having a group to check-in with helps create the drive to continue. On the first Sunday I introduce a set that is great for both beginners and those that have been practicing for a while. Each person is encouraged to continue with the set for 40 days. Each Sunday during that 40 days we will get together and each person will have an opportunity to share his/her experience throughout the week. Even if we miss a day, its great to still come and check-in at a group level. This helps with the "keep up and you will be kept up" mentality that Yogi Bhajan shared with his students.
I would love to see you in class! :-) Space is limited so please let me know if you are interested in joining in!

See you in the Amrit Vela hours!