Why Most People Misunderstand Kundalini Awakening
A word is so popular in meditation retreats, Ig reels, and spiritual workshops across the globe. It’s seen as a mystical shortcut to bliss, power, or "instant enlightenment." But if you ask any true practitioners, especially from the Indian yogic and tantric traditions, they will tell you:
Most people have no idea what they’re dealing with.
it is Most Marketed Spiritual word
In the West, Kundalini has become a commodity. Something you can apparently buy through in a workshop, a retreat, or a weekend course. There are even certification programs claiming to "activate" your Kundalini in five sessions or 3 days.
This illusion is getting dangerous.
Kundalini is not just a breathing technique. It is not just energy. It is the coiled, primal Shakti, the Divine Feminine energy resting at the base of your spine. When she awakens, she doesn’t just rise gently through your chakras. She burns through your illusions, your traumas, your karma, your false identities. What she doesn’t do is cater to your ego’s wishlist.
The Trap of Siddhis (Superpowers)
Many modern teachings project Kundalini as a way to acquire siddhis, supernatural abilities like clairvoyance, astral travel, or instant healing. This projection comes with a subtle warning that gets ignored: these powers are major distractions.
In ancient texts like the Yoga Sutras and Tantras, siddhis are described as byproducts, not goals. If you chase Kundalini for powers, it may reveal your deepest ego instead. And the fall from that illusion can be painful.
No Guru, No Guidance, Big Problems
Another major problem people try to awaken Kundalini without even a Guru.
Would you perform open-heart surgery on yourself after watching a few YouTube videos? Then why try to awaken the most potent force in your subtle body without any mentor?
In authentic lineages, Kundalini awakening is guided step by step, with grounding, mantra, and purification practices. It’s not a switch you flip. It's a fire you slowly and reverently tend.
Without proper support, premature Kundalini awakening can lead to:
Emotional turbulence
Panic attacks or depression
Psychosomatic issues
Ego inflation or delusion
Energetic imbalance
In traditional Indian tantra, it’s well understood: you must build a strong vessel before you channel sacred fire.
We’ve all seen the flashy images six chakras in rainbow colours, people meditating in perfect posture with a golden serpent coiled beneath them. But what they don’t show is:
The years of discipline and purification before true awakening
The body pain and energetic shifts that feel like inner earthquakes
The isolation that can come when no one around you understands
The utter surrender required to move beyond personal will
Kundalini isn’t about aesthetics. It’s about transformation.
So What Is Kundalini Really?
Kundalini is Shakti the creative, feminine force of the universe, dormant in the muladhara chakra (root). She is your primal blueprint, coiled in sleep, waiting for the moment you are ready to wake up.
When she rises, she doesn't give you what you want. She gives you what you needto burn away falsehood, heal trauma, and reveal the soul beneath personality.
She’s not safe. But she is sacred.
Don’t Chase Her. Prepare for Her.
If you’re truly drawn to Kundalini, begin not with ego or ambition, but with humility.
Start with daily sadhana. Ground yourself. Serve others. Purify your diet, thoughts, and emotional baggage. Recite mantras, build strength in your nadis (energy channels), and above all, find a true guru rooted in lineage.
- By Sharan kumar Shisya of Gurudev Shri Praveen Radhakrishnan