Q: What is Khechari Mudra ?

A: ‘Kham’ means sky and ‘Char’ means to move. ‘Khechari’ thus means to move in the sky. The sky may be an outside one or the one that is inside human body. It is said that a
yogi who has mastered Khechari Mudra can move anywhere in the sky. That’s why it is given the name ‘Khechari Mudra’.

It sounds similar to Hui Yin that involves touching the tongue to the hard palate. There's two governing meridians that terminate there. Same purpose to spark an
energy conduit. It's to condense energy that can be focused where ever you want it.

"Khechari Mudra technique is another secret for using silent mantras. A mantra can take you into an altered state of consciousness, but if you wish to use a mantra in your daily life, keep your
tongou touching the roof of your mouth. Roll the tongou tip back as far as possible without straining.

using a mantra will keep you serene, as long as you remember to contain the energy. Khechari Mudra activates the anal sphincter muscle and keeps your energy from being released and
depletedso the vibration wells up in you and keeps you focused and energized. By activating the anal sphincter, khechari Mudra helps to stimulate and awaken [iwev]Kundalini Shakti[/iwev].

Khechari mudra is helpful in quieting the mind. As the mind chatters, your tongue says the words silently in micro-movements. Immobilizing the tongue stops the chatter.

To stick your tongue back in your throat is considered in the Hindu tradition to be the worship of Ganesh, the elephant God. The tongue symbolites the penis, so you are making love to
yourself.

There are pressure points and glands in the palate, which control many functions of the body.Khechari Mudra is very beneficial to health. The practice creates a pressure at the back of the
throat that stimulates the medulla. The medulla oblongata is one of the master points in acupressure.(It is said that this is where the breath of God enters the body.) Stimulating this point
gives the body an all-over energy boost. As you release the tongue you will feel a vibration at the back of your neck that produces a wave of relaxation.

The tip of the tongue is the end of the energy channel, and so it is a switch, a control mechanism. In opening the Third Eye, the psychic bridge must be joined, that is, a direct connection from
the medulla to the Ajna Center. The tongue tip, touching the roof of the mouth, in the hollow about an inch behind the teeth, completes that connection and stimulates the pituitary. When the
tongue touches the roof of the mouth it stimulates the crown chakra. When the tongue goes way back so the tip touches the soft palate, it stimulates the pineal gland.

The awakened pineal gland secretes hormones that start dripping down through the system to revitalize the body. When you perfect this technique, you will experience the sweet honey-like
tast of the "Divine Nectar" or the "living water". Its tast is most delightful and gives you a feeling of well-being. The nectar includes serotonin, which is the precursor to endorphins, the body's
natural opiate. Used together with other practices Khechari Mudra can create psychedelic effects.

The nectar removes the feeling of hunger and thirst and eventually removes the need to eat. This has been used successfully as a way to loose weight.. This practice allows yogis to stay in
suspended animation without food or drink for long periods of time.

If, during the exercise, you taste something bitter, that may be harmful, and the practice should be discontinued. It probably means that some chemical, like residual LSD, is stored in the
brain.

In the Taoist tradition, the tongue connection is used to complete the Microcosmic orbit of energy. In the Tantra practice it is used primarily to quiet the mind; when you feel the Kundalini
energy moving up and down the spine you have a sense of control.

The tongue plays a very crucial part in the Tantric experience. When making love, at orgasm we use a certain mantra as we release Khechari Mudra and the whole body is flooded with energy.
This is part of the Cobra Breath Technique.

The effect of Khechari Mudra is enhanced when done in conjunction with a breathing technique called Psychic breath. Lif the glottis and breathe so it feels like you are breathing through throat
instead of your nose. This produces a gentle snore like the sound of a sleeping baby."

October 31st, 2005: Kavindra On Kechari Mudra (clipped from Google groups)
It is interesting to me to suddenly see discussion of kechari mudra appear on this NG at this time. I have occasionally deliberated whether or not to bring the subject
up myself, and was fascinated to see that such a discussion appeared simultaneously with my own posting in reference to it to Keutzer. It is a relief to me to write
about it, since kechari mudra is at the center of the main challenge I have been facing in my sadhana over the last couple of years.

Both my Guru, Swami sri Krpalvananda, and his designated successor, Swami sri Rajarshi Muni, have experienced this mudra. I know that the descriptions of it have
puzzled (and probably horrified) many people when they have come across them in the Yoga Shastras.

For those who are interested in reading the Shastric writings on kechari mudra, brief (and very cryptic) references can be found to it in the Siva Samhita, Hathayoga
Pradipika, and Gherandha Samhita. A more extensive description can be found in the Yogakundali Upanishad.

KIDS: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!! Those writings are intended for those who have had initiation into the specific kind of Yoga they address. Without the “secret
keys” of this initiation, these books cannot be fully understood. Attempting to cut the tongue with a knife, pull it with pliers, and insert it into the sinus cavity will not
bring the effects these Shastras describe. Although they utilize these symbolic terms to represent what occurs spontaneously when one progresses far enough into
surrender to shakti, anyone who tries to take them as literal instructions will destroy their chances of attaining Samadhi.

I myself was on the verge of making this terrible mistake when I first discovered the writings of Swami Krpalvananda. I had spent several years attempting to practice
Yoga without the guidance of a Guru. I was under the misconception that the “secret” of Yoga was something I could deduce by reading and cross-referencing all the
ancient texts I could get my hands on, and experimenting with what I thought were the instructions they gave. I thought that I was being intelligent by doing this, thus
avoiding the Guru-disciple relationship, which appeared to me to be submissive and exploitative. I thought I was being smart, but I was almost too stupid to live.

My self-directed approach yielded many powerful experiences, but after a while I became aware that there was another level to which I was unable to attain. I tried to
think of something (besides initiation) which would enable me to break through to this level. The only viable candidate which seemed to carry this possibility was kecari
mudra, which I had avoided experimenting with for obvious reasons. I bought myself some tumeric and sea salt, and took a knife to the tendon beneath my tongue.
Frightened of the pain, I managed to make only the slightest nick in the tendon after about an hour of anxiety and wincing. In spite of the pain, I was feeling pretty
proud of myself for that little scratch when I was done.

I can only attribute it to the Grace of God that I acquired a book (now out of print) entitled “Krpalupanishad.” This was a translation of some of the more technical
writings by Swami Krpalvananda, compiled and edited by one of his disciples. I got it later that very same day. I happened to have the opportunity to stop through an
ashram some distance from where I lived, and wanted to buy a new book on Yoga since I had read & studied all the ones I had collected up until that point. The trouble
was that the many books by various spiritual teachers were too expensive for my limited income. Krpalupanishad was on a “sale” rack, as its publication was being
discontinued- most people find it to be far too technical to understand.

Which was largely the case for me. However, the sections that I did comprehend were able to immediately answer a number of questions I had been harboring- and
most importantly, explained why one should never attempt to produce khecari mudra by willfully cutting themselves.

I will emphasize here that my personal experience of kechari mudra is limited. I have experienced the beginning of the process, up to and including the spontaneous
(but in my case, partial) tearing of the froenulum. Because my life circumstances demand that I place limitations on the intensity of my sadhana at this time, I
generally “put the brakes on” when prana begins to advance this process. What follows is a recapitulation of what the Masters in my lineage have described in regards
to it.

There are ten mudras which develop in a specific sequence that are integral to the process or raising the awakened kundalini. They begin to occur when the currents of
prana which normally progress downwards and outwards reverse their direction and begin to flow upwards along the shushumna. Khecari mudra is fifth in the
sequence, following mulabandhamudra, uddiyanabandhamudra, jalandharabandhamudra, and shakticalalamudra in that order.

Khecari mudra specifically is preceded by three processes: Jhivana kriya, dolana kriya, and nabho mudra. Jhivana kriya are those spontaneous movements which cause
the tendon under the tongue to become separated. The initial cut usually occurs when the tongue extends itself as to its limit, and moves back and forth across the
lower front teeth in a sawing motion. When this began to occur to me, I was struck by how much this movement resembled movements made by psychiatric patients
suffering from the neurological disorder called Tardive Dyskenesia (I have been employed in a number of different psychiatric settings over the years, which gives me
some perspective on what may be happening on the neurological level with these processes).

I must again emphasized that these movements occur without any volition at all. When they begin, it is tempting to try to “help” the process along willfully, which is a
disaster. Inventing exercises to strengthen the tongue may help, but are not necessary (there is some debate as to whether or not doing this will be a hindrance in
meditation later on).

The fingers may form into a pincer-shape and further widen the initial incision. How such an operation can occur without the individual intending it may be a puzzle to
some readers, so I will cite a parallel again from neuropathology: Certain types of Obsessive-Compulsive disorder in which the individual experiences a strong
compulsion to pluck at or pick at a specific spot on the body. This urge develops out of a state of inner tension, which is then relieved by the compulsive behavior. What
happens in the meditation of surrender to shakti is similar- with the exception, of course, that it can be controlled at any time, and does not have the compulsive
quality once the meditation session has ended. It is fascinating, though, how the sensation of pain is experienced as a sensation of relief when the tendon is being cut;
it is as if a vague itch is being scratched. Of course, the sense of relief is no longer there when meditation is concluded for the day, and the person may be quite
uncomfortable the rest of the time.

Nabho mudra consists of curling the tongue towards the back of the mouth in a way that stretches the tendon. This minor mudra can occur as a part of other
processes; here it of course occurs in order to further enlarge the incision.

When jhivana kriya frees the tongue from the bottom of the mouth, dolana kriya can then really begin to achieve its purpose: The lengthening and strengthening of the
tongue to an extraordinary degree. Under the operations of prana, this is done in such a way that the connective tissues, tendons, etc. are kept strong and intact as
they elongate. When people attempt to stretch it out willfully, these connective tissues are damaged. The consequence is that a tongue mutilated in such a way will
never be able to complete khecari mudra.

Khecari mudra itself begins when the transformed tongue curls back as in nabho mudra, but is now able to slide its way up behind the soft palate. At this point, it
locates a juncture of bone on the underside of the skull. This is referred to as the “Gate of Brahma” in the Yogakundali Upanishad, and it is said that “even the Devas
(Gods) are unable to open it.” In other texts it is referred to as the “tenth gate.”

What now happens is that the elongated and strengthened tongue begins to apply extreme pressure to this juncture, and literally breaks it open. When this occurs, the
tongue is then able to slide up into the cranial cavity and actually begin to apply direct pressure upon various parts of the brain.
Upon completion of khecari mudra, there follows a process called “melana” or “maithuna” which is one of the most closely kept secrets of Yoga, along with
shaktichalanamudra (the means by which awakened kundalini is made to ascend). The tongue is metaphorically described as a phallus (lingam), while the cranial cavity
is described as a womb (yoni).

This is more than just a metaphor, though. Sigmund Freud postulated that a newborn infant’s suckling reflex was essentially an erotically driven operation, and that the
erotic sensation gradually descends to the genitals with development. There is a nadi which links the tongue with the swadhisthana chakra, or sex center. I have
experienced the transference of erotic energy from the swadhisthana region to the tongue, and it is definitely what drives the tongue to make such powerful
movements. Honestly, I don’t think I would have been able to overcome the fear and pain involved if it weren’t so intensely gratifying at the same time.

The fact that sexual metaphors have been utilized in various Shastras to describe kechari mudra and the processes that develop from it has had some unpleasant
consequences. People who read these passages without understanding what they are really meant to be describing get the mistaken impression that they describe
some sort of modified/ritualized sex act. Experimentation with this misconception has resulted in some pretty mind-blowing ways of having sex, which are then
mistaken for awakening kundalini, samadhi, etc. Consequently, lineages of “Tantric Sexual Yoga” have been perpetuated that have obvious “marketing” advantages
over those that understand & practice brahmacharya.

As Muniji describes it, the flesh of the soft palate actually turns into a sphinctre-like structure which closes up when the tongue comes down again. It is my own
speculation that the tough, protective membrane called the dura mater remains intact, and sheathes the tongue when it protrudes upwards.

The region affected by this pressure is the center of the underside of the brain- the area known as the limbic system. Rajarshi Muni described how the tongue pressed
upon what he called a “bundle of nerves” with the result that sensory experience was cut off completely. Due to it’s location and function, I believe this “bundle” that
Muniji described was the upper section of a structure called the Reticular Activating System, through which all sensory information travels to get to the higher brain
centers. This is the final and complete form of pratyahara- perfect sensory isolation. The full forms of dhyana and samadhi, with the subsequent effects described in the
Shastras, are wholly dependent upon the completion of this process in its spontaneous form.
Note that the activity of kechari mudra on the pineal and pituitary glands has some very profound effects on the whole body- a kind of “reversal of puberty,” it would
seem- part of the process of becoming an urdhvaretas Yogi. It should be noted that the “tasting of nectar” has something to do with this. Most people seem to think
that “nectar” or “sweetness means the taste of snot from having the tongue in the sinus cavity. This is not amrta!

October 30th, 2005: “While practicing Kriya, when the mind becomes enchanted in listening to nada, the sound of Aum, a divine nectar-like current flows from the
sahasrara. Through the performance of Kechari Mudra, touching the tip of the tongue to the uvula or “little tongue,” (or placing it in the nasal cavity behind the uvula),
that divine life-current draws the prana from the senses into the spine and directs it up through the chakras to Vaishvanara (Universal Spirit), uniting the consciousness
with Spirit. The entire body is thereby spiritualized and energized. As a result, a perceptible glow may emanate from the body.” — Paramahansa Yogananda

Lifted from the book entitled, “Mejda”, page 279

Here is a nice story:

Ahh what a blessing to see interest here at tribe about the divine practice of Kechari Mudra. I have a beautiful story about my initiation into Kechari with the Tribe.

Some time in early 2000 I went seeking higher teachings of yoga, convinced that my enthusiasm for perfecting asana yoga was leading me closer to auditions for the
Cirque de Solei than to true illumination. Soon thereafter I was led to a teacher named Jon Peck in southern California who shared with me the path of the kundalina
tantra. He shared with me the practices of udiyana bhanda, nauli, and related practices to activate manipura chakra. About nine months later after completing a four
month winter retreat in an old growth forest in up in British Columbia, I finally began to develop the necessary internal abdominal muscle control to activate manipura
and gained mastery of the practices.
I wondered what the further practices along the path awaited me and recalled Jon’s words that when I was ready the teachings would appear. And they did!

Late one evening as the drum circle at the 2001 Canadian rainbow gathering was dwindling, I entered a deep meditation. I emerged to meet the gaze of an Australian
yogi who later introduced himself as Eric. He sat down and proceeded to relate the following story to me.

“There is an advanced yoga practice called kechari mudra. It is historically only taught directly from guru to disciple, but I am sharing this with you because I see that
you are ready for to receive it. There will come a day when there will be a great battle, a conflagration across the land. Some will fight, some will flee and others will
simply ascend. This practice will help prepare you for that day.”
He then proceeded to instruct me in the practice of Kechari mudra. Before he left he also told me that it would probably take nine months to a year to master the
mudra.

I never saw the yogi again, but I began stretching my tongue and even nipped the frenulum to help increase tongue flexibility. A month or two went by and I was truly
beginning to doubt the practice. I had told several yogis about the practice and they each grimaced or laughed. Then one day while driving up to the Little Slocan valley
to a little cabin where my brother Desitino and I were heading to do a fasting retreat for the fall, I voiced, “ Wow I really wish I would meet that brother again to verify
the teachings. A few minutes later we arrived at the cabin, I found in an old stack of books a small manual called, “The Kundalini Tantra” by the Bihar School of Yoga. I
opened the book to page 72 and saw “Kechari Mudra” the secret of the ambrosial fluid.

I dove into the text, landed at the feet of the master, cried and gave thanks. My prayers had been answered almost immediately. According to the text, Kechari mudra
had several stages. The first being to put the tongue on the roof of the mouth directly behind the front teeth, what Taoists would call completing the microcosmic
circuit. The second stage is to press the tongue on the soft pallet and stretch it upwards, thus stimulating the many nerve endings. The third stage is to slip the tongue
behind ‘the dangly thing’ and up the nasal pharanyx. Which stimulates nerve endings that lead to the frontal cortex, the part of the brain that scientists tell us we rarely
use. The fourth stage was to stretch the tongue upwards and press on the underside of the pineal gland to help reactivate this sleepy organ.

It all made such perfect sense to me. Suddenly a flash of memory returned to me from my childhood when in the second grade in South Carolina, the school principal
came to our class, warned us about stretching our tongues back into our mouths and told us a harrowing tale of a youth who had suffocated after swallowing his
tongue. Of course, the reptilians were using scare tactics to prevent kids form discovering the path towards bliss.

I shared with my brother Destino the text on Kechari and we both began practicing.
According to the Bihar School of Yoga, once Kechari mudra has been mastered, it activates Bindu Visarga, (the sixth and a half Chakra located at the back of the head
where the Krisnas leave their long braid) to produce ambrosial fluid, the elixer of life. The ambrosial fluid travels up from Bindu Visarga to the seventh chakra
Sushumna and then drips down the throat enabling the yogi to enter samadhi and sustain breathless life. The book also stated, however, if Kechari mudra is attempted
before the lower chakras are purified, rather than ambrosial fluid a poison will be secreted.
Kechari became a part of our daily practice and for the next couple of months we were on a mission to purify and cleanse through a diet of only sprouts, wheat grass
and our own urin. (look for the Urin or You’re Out Tribe) As the weeks went by my progress in Kechari seemed dismally slow while Destino made rapid strides towards
mastery. Then one day I returned from town to find him face down on his mat and deathly pale. He rolled over with barely enough energy to speak told me that the
night before he had done Kechari mudra. He felt an electrifying sensation through his body when his tongue slipped up into the nasal pharanyx, a feeling that he was
beginning to levitate, and then a terrible nauseating feeling that swept over him. For the next five days he laid in bed with barely the strength to stand up.
So I continued practicing Kechari on my own for the next half a year until I arrived down in Costa Rica where I wanted to do a 21 day breatharian fast and meditate in
the jungle. I was invited to a magical community called Dolphin Quest and was given the opportunity to sit alone in a small house in the jungle while I fasted. For the
first seven days I fasted on air, no food and no water. And on day three, finally I felt my tongue slip past the dangly thing in the back of my throat and slip into my
nasal pharanyx. Sitting in meditation my entire being erupted in ecstatic waves of sensual excitement. I felt like a young virgin being penetrated for the first time by a
lover. A light in my third eye illuminated like I was staring at the mid day sun. Along with the electrifying sensations in my forehead came waves of fear that my tongue
would get stuck and I would suffocate. I struggled to overcome the fear and soon found that if I pressed my tongue forward that I could even breath! Riveted by a
million new sensations in a part of my body that I had never even been aware of I sank into the bliss of kechari mudra…. Stage 3.

During those 21 days I practiced Kechari Stage 3 every day and each time my meditation turned instantly lucid and heightened. In addition to the explosive sensations
I felt in my forehead I soon began to feel my pineal gland pulsing. The veil between my waking life, meditations and dream world started to lift and I began to catch
glimpses of my true galactic identity.
Returning to life after my fast, I found that I could only do Kechari mudra when my body was empty and my mind was still, otherwise I would gag instantly. I vowed to
continue practicing and could only imagine what Stage 4 of Kechari mudra might reveal. For that I had to wait almost another year until I entered a 20 day darkness
retreat in Mexico. To read about my experience with kechari Mudra in the cave, please look for the new Heart of Darkness Tribe.

I in pursuit of eternal truths, love and infinite wisdom

Tenasi

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Kechari Mudra is practiced by placing the tongue in the nasal cavity. The gold line symbolizes the nadi going through the center of the tongue. Kechari mudra is
achieved by practicing talavya kriya. Students are advised against cutting the frenulum. Kechari can be achieved through dedicated practice of talavya kriya which
brings about kechari naturally. Energy radiates through the tongue to stimulate the Ajna center and the 3rd ventricle of the brain. This kriya is taught in the original
kriya of Babaji in the Lahiri Mahasaya Lineage. Some organizations omit this kriya, and Nabhi kriya in their instruction of 1st Kriya to their students. However, kechari
mudra must be achieved for the higher kriyas taught in the Lahiri Mahasaya Lineage to be effective. Without the practice of talavya kriya or one similar to it, kechari
mudra can not be achieved in a natural manner.

Some misguided practitioners of kriya yoga feel that kechari mudra is an unnecessary practice. But they are mistaken in their thinking. Even enlightened masters
outside of the kriya yoga lineages have acknowledged that there is a gap between the top of the spine and the medulla oblongata (also known as the alta major center)
which connects the spine with the brain. The Tibetan Master DK has stated the following:

“When the fires of matter have passed (united) still further along the etheric spinal channel they contact the fire of manas as it radiates from the throat center.
……………….The other fire of matter (the dual fire) is attracted upward, and merges with the fire of mind through a junction effected at the alta major center. This center
is situated at the base of the skull, and there is a slight gap between this center and the point at which the fires of matter issue from the spinal channel. Part of the
work the man who is developing thought power has to do, is to build a temporary channel in etheric matter to bridge the gap. This channel is the reflection in physical
matter of the antahkarana that the Ego has to build in order to bridge the gap between the lower and higher mental, between the causal vehicle on the third subplane
of the mental plane, and the manasic permanent atom on the first subplane. This is the work that all advanced thinkers are unconsciously doing now. When the gap is
[138] completely bridged, man’s body becomes coordinated with the mental body and the fires of mind and of matter are blended.” Cosmic Fire, p. 138
The practice of kechari mudra bridges that gap. And it has other functions as well.

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Kechari Mudra

32. The Kechari Mudra is accomplished by thrusting the tongue into the gullet, by turning it over itself, and keeping the eyesight in the middle

33. To accomplish this, the tongue is lengthened by cutting the fraenum linguae, moving, and pulling it. When it can touch the space between the eyebrows, then the
Kechari can be accomplished.

34. Taking a sharp, smooth and clean instrument, of the shape of a cactus leaf, the frenulum of the tongue should be cut a little (as much as a hairs thickness), at a
time.

35. Then rock salt and yellow myrobalan (both powdered) should be rubbed in. On the 7th day, it should again be cut a hair’s breadth.

36. One should go on doing thus, regularly for six months. At the end of six months, the freanum of the tongue will be completely cut.

37. Turning the tongue upwards, it is fixed on three ways (esophagus, windpipe and palate). Thus it makes the Khachari Mudra, and is called the Vyoma Chakra.

38. The Yogi who sits for a minute turning his tongue upwards, is saved from poisons, diseases, death, old age, etc.

39. He who knows the Kechari Mudra is not afflicted with disease, death, sloth, sleep, hunger, thirst, and swooning.

40. He who knows the Kechari Mudra, is not troubled by diseases, is not stained with karmas, and is not snared by time.

41. The Siddhas have devised this Kechari Mudra from the fact that the mind and the tongue reach akasa by its practice.

42. If the hole behind the palate be stopped with Kechari by turning the tongue upwards, then bindu cannot leave its place even if a women were embraced.
43. If the Yogi drinks Somarasa (juice) by sitting with the tongue turned backwards and mind concentrated, there is no doubt he conquers death within 15 days.

44. If the Yogi, whose body is full of Somarasa, were bitten by Takshaka (snake), its poison cannot permeate his body.

45. As fire is inseparably connected with the wood and light is connected with the wick and oil, so does the soul not leave the body full of nectar exuding from the
Soma.

(Note.–Soma (Chandra) is described later on located in the thousand-petalled lotus in the human brain, and is the same as is seen on Sivas’ head in pictures, and from
which a sort of juice exudes. It is the restraining of this exudation which makes one immortal.)

46. Those who eat the flesh of the cow and drink the immortal liquor daily, are regarded by me men of noble family. Others are but a disgrace to their families.

(Note. Translation: Fortunate are the parents and blessed is the country and the family where a Yogi is born. Anything given to such a Yogi, becomes immortal. One,
who discriminates between Purusa and Prakriti, purges the sins of a million incarnations, by seeing, speaking, and touching such men (i.e. Yogi).

A Yogi far exceeds a thousand householders, a hundred vanapraasthas, and a thousand Brahmacharis.

Who can know the reality of the Raja Yoga? That country is very sacred where resides a man who knows it. By seeing and honoring him, generations of ignorant men
get moksa, what to speak of those who are actually engaged in it. He knows internal and external yoga, deserves adoration from you and me, what if he is adored by
the rest of mankind!

Those who engage in the great yoga, once or thrice daily, are to be known as masters of great wealth (mabeshwaras) or Lords.)

47. The word (râsana[?]) means tongue; eating it is thrusting it in the gullet which destroys great sins.

48. Immortal liquor is the nectar exuding from the moon (Chandra situated on the left side of the space between the eyebrows). It is produced by the fire which is
generated by thrusting the tongue.

49. If the tongue can touch with its end the hole from which falls the rasa (juice) which is saltish, bitter, sour, milky and similar to ghee and honey, one can drive away
disease, destroy old age, can evade an attack of arms, become immortal in eight ways and can attract fairies.

50. He who drinks the clear stream of liquor of the moon (soma) falling from the brain to the sixteen-petalled lotus (in the heart), obtained by means of Prana by
applying the tongue to the hole of the pendant in the palate, and by meditating on the great power (Kundalini), becomes free from disease and tender in body, like the
stalk of a lotus, and the Yogi lives a very long life.

51. On the top of the Meru (vertabral column), concealed in a hole, is the Somarasa (nectar of Chandra); the wise, whose intellect is not over-powered by Raja and
Tamas gunas, but in whom Satwa guna is predominant, say there is the (universal spirit) atma in it. It is the source of the down-going Ida, Pingala and Susumna
Nadis, which are the Ganges, the Yamuna and the Sarasvati. From that Chandra is shed the essence of the body which causes death of men. It should, therefore, be
stopped from shedding. This (Khechari Mudra) is a very good instrument for this purpose. There is no other means of achieving this end.

52. This hole is the generator of knowledge and is the source of the five streams (Ida, Pingala, &c.). In that colorless vacuum, Khechari Mudra should be established.

53. There is only one seed germinating the whole universe from it; and there is only one Mudra, called Khachari. There is only one deva (god) without any one’s
support, and there is one condition called Manonmani.

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Some western occultists have also discovered the benefit of kechari mudra. Frater DPAL, a member of a western occult school made the following comment on kechari
mudra:

“The Kechari Mudra is the “king of all yogic mudras.” This is done thusly—Take the tongue and move it up to the roof of the mouth and back until it slips behind the
soft palate. Push it further as it slips behind the nasopharynx. If you can accomplish this feat you can close off either nostril with the tongue from the inside!! As you
push on up with the tip of the tongue, you will reach a bone protrusion that is just under the pituitary gland. The force which is rising upward flows off the end of the
tongue, like flames under a pot on the stove. It is here that the final connection is made. By exciting the pituitary gland, the pineal
gland begins to vibrate, and the two forces are magnetically drawn to unite in the region of the Spiritual eye. This exercise requires some practice as it is not easy, but
lights are experienced and a one-ness is felt—Ananda! ”

Editor Comment on Frater DPAL kechari mudra quote: A couple of points may shed light on the above quote. First, it is important to realize that the physical body
consists of two parts, the gross physical body and its underlying energy body called by some the etheric double, vital body or pranamaya kosha. The energy body or
pranamaya kosha is the principal and determinative component of the physical body. The gross physical body is an automaton that merely reflects in physical form the
changes that have occurred in its energy body (pranamaya kosha). The vital body can be changed by thought. Most readers are familiar with the phrase energy follows
thought. It is this principle that makes kriya, chi quong, acupuncture, Reiki, pranic healing, etc. effective. Eventually, when the medical world can measure the energy
body, it will revolutionize medicine. The kriya yogi focuses his attention entirely in the pranamaya kosha and its network of channels known as nadis. The nadis are the
channels in the energy body through which prana flows. Where 21 of these channels intersect, one of the major 7 chakras are found. Since the 7 glands are physical
correspondents to the 7 chakras, when the kriya yogi, focused in the pranamaya kosha stimulates a chakra, the physical gland corresponding to that chakra will
automatically be stimulated. In the case of kechari mudra, the energy flowing through the nadi of the tongue is directly stimulating the Ajna chakra and this stimulation
is reflected in increased activity of its corresponding gland, the pituitary. The important point that I want to make is that at no time does the kriya yogi focus on the
glands of the gross physical body, his focus is in the energy body and its chakras.

Now, the fact that the pituitary gland is stimulated has vast implications for the rejuvenation of the body. One of the secrets of the Gorakhnath yogi’s, who emphasized
the importance of the practice of kechari mudra, was kaya siddhi, extreme physical longevity. The pituitary gland is called the “master gland” of the body because it
controls the secretion of hormones. These substances have a dramatic and broad range of effects on metabolism, growth and maturation, sexuality and reproduction
and other important bodily functions. As we age, we secrete less hormones. In the elderly, human growth human is reduced to trace amounts. Perhaps the Gorakhnath
yogi’s ability to rejuvenate the body and extend longevity lies in their ability to stimulate the pituitary gland through the practice of kechari mudra. Today, many older
people are attempting to rejuvenate the body by taking supplements to stimulate the secretion of human growth hormone or are using human growth hormone
replacement therapy.

There is also another aspect to kechari mudra. We have been taught as above, so below. If dramatic changes can occur in the physical body as a result of the
stimulation of the pituitary gland through kechari mudra, then you can be sure that equally dramatic changes are also occurring in the pranamaya kosha (subtle body)
and the circulation of the pranas because the physical body only reflects changes in the subtle body. In fact, one the benefits of practicing kechari mudra is that the
mind is quieted and it is easier to concentrate. In short, kechari mudra causes changes in the flow of prana, your consciousness, and your physical body. Through its
practice, one may experience the elixir of life, amrita.

Listed below are the specific hormones produced by the pituitary:

Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) - As the name implies, TSH stimulates the thyroid gland to release thyroid hormones. Thyroid hormones control basal metabolic
rate and play an important role in growth and maturation. Thyroid hormones affect almost every organ in the body.

Growth Hormone (GH) - This is the principal hormone that, among many other functions, regulates growth and metabolism.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH) - ACTH triggers the adrenals to release the hormone cortisol. This hormone, in turn, regulates carbohydrate, fat, and protein
metabolism.

Antidiuretic Hormone (ADH), which increases reabsorbtion of water into the blood by the kidneys and therefore decreases urine production.

Luteinizing Hormone (LH) and Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) - These hormones control the production of sex hormones (estrogen and testosterone) as well as
sperm and egg maturation and release.

Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormone (MSH) - Controls darkening of the skin.

Oxytocin - Stimulates contractions of the uterus during labor and the ejection of milk during breast-feeding.

Prolactin (PRL) - This hormone stimulates secretion of breast milk.

Vasopressin - Also called anti-diuretic hormone (ADH)- This hormone serves to allow the water to be reabsorbed by the kidneys.

Advanced yogis and yoginis use kechari continuously throughout their sitting practices, and often during the day when not engaged in conversation. In other words,
kechari is home for the advanced yogi and yogini. We do not even know that they are in kechari. Only the subtle glow of divine light gives them away. Inside, they are
in the constant play of divine lovemaking.

We will cover four stages of kechari here (see Image for sketches), all pertaining to the location of the tip of the tongue:

Stage 1 – To the point on the roof of the mouth where the hard and soft palates meet. This is the line of demarcation that must be crossed before stage 2 can be
entertained.

Stage 2 – Behind the soft palate and up to the nasal septum. It is a short trip, but a momentous one. Initially this is done with help from a finger pushing back under
the tongue, going to the left or right side of the soft palate where entry is easiest. This may require “breaking the hymen” of the membrane under the tongue. See
below for more on this.

Stage 3 – Gradually working to the top of the nasal pharynx and septum. This takes us to the bony structure containing the pituitary gland.

Stage 4 – Entering the nasal passages from inside and moving upward beyond the top of the pharynx toward the point between the eyebrows. It is not as far for the
tongue to go as it seems. Put you thumb on the hinge of your jaw and put your index finger at the tip of your tongue extended straight out. Then pivot the fixed length
to your index finger up on your thumb to the point between your eyebrows. See? It is not so far for the tongue to go straight up from its root.

Many years may pass between stage 1 and stage 4. Kechari is a long- term evolution, not an
overnight event, though it certainly has its dramatic moments of transition, especially between
stages 1&2 and stages 3&4. Now let’s look at the four stages in more detail.
Stage 1 puts us in contact with the bottom of the septum through the roof of our mouth. This has already been suggested as a goal to work toward in the lesson on
yoni mudra kumbhaka. Some ecstatic response can be felt at the point where the hard and soft palates meet if the nervous system is rising in purity. Stage one is not
easy, as it takes some effort for most people to keep the tongue on the roof of the mouth and
work it gradually back over time. A habit gradually develops. Once the tip of the tongue passes the
point where the hard and soft palates meet, and the soft palate can be pushed up with the tongue,
then stage 2 is close at hand.

Stage 2 is very dramatic. The tongue is pushed back with a finger to the left or right side of the
soft palate. These are the shortest pathways leading behind the soft palate. One of these will be
shorter than the other. At some point you will experiment and see for yourself. The long way in is
up the middle. The soft palate has an
elastic tendon running across the back edge. When the tip of the tongue gets behind it for the first
time, the elastic tendon can slip quickly around the bottom of the tongue as though grabbing it.
Then the tongue is suddenly in the nasal pharynx and touching the edge of the nasal septum for
the first time.

The first reaction is surprise, and the tongue will probably come out quickly. It is easy to pull out.
No finger help is needed. It is also easy to breathe through the nose with the tongue in the nasal
pharynx. On the first entry, the eyes and nose may water, there could be sneezing, there could be
sexual arousal, and strong emotions. All of these things are temporary reactions to the event of
entering stage 2 kechari for the first time. Upon repeated entries, things settle down. In time, the
finger will no longer be needed to get behind the soft palate. The elastic tendon across the edge of
the soft palate stretches out and stage 2 kechari becomes quite
comfortable. In fact, it is easier to stay in stage 2 kechari than to stay in stage 1 kechari. The
tongue rests very easily in the nasal pharynx with no effort at all, making it simple to use during
pranayama and meditation. The tongue is obviously
designed to rest blissfully in the nasal pharynx.

There are two practical matters to consider once in

stage 2 kechari. First is lubrication in the pharynx.
Second is the accumulation of saliva in the mouth.

The pharynx can be a little fickle. Usually, it is naturally moist and well lubricated for the tongue. Occasionally it is dry and
not so well lubricated. In the former situation, kechari can be practiced practically indefinitely. In the latter situation, only
sparingly. When the pharynx is dry there can be a stinging sensation when the tongue is in there. So, this is not the time to
do kechari. We just go to stage 1 when that happens. Interestingly, the pharynx will almost always be moist during
practices. But there is no telling for sure. We just go in when we are welcome, which is most of the time. And when we are
not welcome, we honor the situation and refrain. Like
that.

When we are up in stage 2 kechari, saliva will accumulate in the mouth down below. Since we can’t swallow what is in our
mouth with our tongue going up into the nasal pharynx, and we don’t want to drool, then we come out of kechari as
necessary to swallow the saliva in our mouth. In the early adjustment period to stage 2 kechari there can be a lot of saliva,
so we will have to swallow more often. In time, the saliva goes back to normal levels, and coming out of kechari to swallow
will become infrequent.

So, in stage 2 kechari, we are just letting our tongue rest easily on the edge of the nasal pharynx, and that sets spiritual
processes in motion everywhere in our body.

In the beginning of stage 2 kechari we will be curious. We are in a new place and want to find out what is in the pharynx.
There is the sensitive septum, the “altar of bliss.” We have no problem finding that, and realizing that the best way to do
pranayama and meditation is with our tongue resting on the septum. It is like having a
powerful siddhasana working simultaneously on the other end of the spinal nerve, awakening our entire nervous system
from the top end. When we are not enjoying bliss at the septum, we will no doubt explore, finding the prominent “trumpets” of the eustachian tubes on either side of
the nasal passages. We also can’t miss the entrances to the nasal passages on either side of the septum, and quickly find the extremely sensitive erectile tissues inside
them. Too much. Better stay away from those for a while. So, we go up the septum on our journey to the top of the pharynx, to stage 3. For some this is a short
journey. For others, it can take a long time. In going there we expose the full length of the edge of the septum to our tongue, and prepare ourselves to eventually
enter the nasal passages and go higher.

A practice that can help as we go beyond stage 2 kechari is the so- called “milking of the tongue.” It consists of gently pulling on the tongue with the fingers of both
hands, alternating hands, as though milking a cow. A good time to do this is for a few minutes while standing in the shower each day. That way you can get the benefit
of
it without slobbering all over your clothes. Over time, the tongue can be lengthened by this method. This is not a very useful practice for getting into stage 2. Dealing
with the frenum is most important for that, as discussed below. Milking the tongue is helpful for
going beyond stage 2 kechari, especially in stage 4.

Stage 4 is another dramatic step. It could be years away from stage 2&3. Everyone will be
different in approaching it. There is a trick to it. The nasal passages are tall and narrow and the
tongue is narrow and wide, so the tongue can only go into the nasal passages by turning on its
side. But which side? One way works better than the other. The tongue can naturally be turned
with the top to the center by following the channel on top of the trumpet of each eustachian tube
into its adjacent nasal passage. This naturally turns the top of
the tongue to the center and allows it to slide up the side of the septum into the nasal passage.
Turning the tongue inward to the center is the way up into the passages. Entering stage 4 is as
dramatic as entering stage 2, because the tissues in the nasal passages are extremely sensitive,
and connecting with them in the way
described takes the nervous system to yet a higher level. Stage 4 provides extensive stimulation
of the upper ends of the sushumna, ida, and pingala, and this has huge effects throughout the
nervous system, especially when combined with our pranayama and its associated bandhas and
mudras.
Going to stage 4 is natural once stages 2&3 have been mastered and become second nature. Before then we are not much attracted due to the sensitivity in the nasal
passages. Our opening nervous system and rising bhakti take us to stage 4 when we are ready.

Once the nasal passages have been entered, the tongue can be used to do “alternate passage” breathing during pranayama and yoni mudra kumbhaka. This provides
alternating stimulation in the nasal passages, which produces additional purifying effects in the sushumna, ida, and pingala. Our pranayama and kumbhaka become
supercharged in stage 4 kechari.

The four stages of kechari foster major neurological openings in the head, and throughout the entire nervous system. Kechari is one of the most pleasurable and far-
reaching of all the advanced yoga practices. Kechari represents a major transition in our advanced yoga practices to a much higher level.

Now let’s talk about the membrane/tendon under the tongue called the “frenum.”

For most of us, the frenum will be the limiting factor in moving through the stages of kechari. There is debate on whether the frenum should be trimmed or not. Some
say that we are deserving or not deserving of kechari according to what kind of frenum we have under our tongue, and that the only way into kechari is by stretching
the frenum. If we can’t stretch it far enough to get into kechari, it is “God’s will.”

In these lessons, we don’t subscribe to that limited point of view. The view here is that, “God helps those who help themselves.”

In these lessons we view the frenum as a tether to be trimmed back when the time is right. It keeps us out of kechari until we are ready. When we are ready, and each
of us knows when that is, the frenum can be trimmed. It is like a “hymen.” When a woman is ready for sexual intercourse, the hymen goes. Until then it serves to
provide protection. This breaking of the hymen can be a stressful and painful event if it is forced. Sooner or later the frenum will be forced open too, because going into
kechari is as natural as going
into sexual intercourse. It is biologically preordained. It happens when the nervous system is mature enough. Advanced yoga practices bring us closer to the transition
with each day of daily practices.

Kechari results from a second puberty in us – our spiritual puberty. As our nervous system becomes pure, our bhakti increases. More than anything else it is bhakti that
sends us into kechari. When every fiber of our being wants God, then we will go there. The tongue will roll back and go up. Like that.

Once our bhakti is hurling our tongue back into kechari, breaking the hymen of the frenum does not have to be stressful and painful. It can be very easy and gentle.
Above all, it can and should be gradual. It is done with very tiny snips. Tiny snips, each as small as a hair or a very thin string. A sterilized, sharp cuticle snipper (like a
small wire cutter) can be used to do the job, bit by bit. When we lift our tongue up, we can see right away where the point of greatest stress on the frenum is. If we
take a tiny snip there, not bigger than a
hair, it probably won’t even bleed. Maybe one drop. If more than one drop, we did too much. The tiny snip will heal in a day or two. The tissues of the mouth heal very
quickly. Then maybe in a week or a month, whatever we are comfortable with, we will be ready to do it again. And then, in another week or more, do it again. If we are
sensitive, a little ice can be used to numb the edge of the frenum, and we won’t even feel a little pinch when we snip. Don’t use ice to take a big snip though. That is
too much, and brings in some risk of
infection. We should not snip if we have any kind of infection in the body. With tiny snips, the frenum will be allowing the tongue to go further back in no time, and
before we know it we will be using our finger to push our tongue behind our soft palate.

We can continue with the tiny snips once we are in stage 2 kechari, and this will help us move on to stage 3. Then we can continue with the tiny snips once we have
gotten to the top of the nasal pharynx,
and this will help us move on through stage 4. It will take years. There is no rush. We may go for many months, or even years, with no snipping at all, content to enjoy
the level of kechari we have attained so far, and the steady spiritual growth that comes with it. Then we may become inspired to continue going up with the tongue,
and do some more snipping.

As the snipping progresses past stage 2 kechari, it becomes very easy to do it. As the frenum gives way slowly, the edge it presents when stretched becomes like a
callus. There is no pain snipping it, and no blood. It is not difficult to trim it back so the tongue can go further up into more advanced stages of kechari. It is a long
journey in time, and a fulfilling one. It can take decades to complete stages 1 through 4. There is no rush. The nervous system knows what must happen. When it
knows, we know through our bhakti.

Everyone’s frenum is different. A few will enter kechari with no snipping necessary. Others will need a lot of snipping. The rest of us will fall somewhere in-between.
Whatever the case many be, we will know what to do when our bhakti comes up. No one else can tell us what to do when. Everything in this lesson is offered as
information so you will have a better idea on what your options are as your bhakti comes up.

Some will have medical concerns about snipping the frenum. Most doctors will not be for it. Is there risk? There is always some risk when we undertake new things.
That is life. The practice of trimming the frenum for kechari has been around for thousands of years – at least as long as circumcision, body piercing and tattooing. Not
that any of these other types of body alterations are in the same class as kechari. They are not. Kechari is one of the most advanced yoga practices on the planet.
When we know we are ready for it, we will be
willing to accept whatever risk may be associated with entering it. We each choose our own path according to the feelings rising in our heart.

This lesson is not to promote stage 2 kechari and beyond for everyone. It is to provide useful information for those who are experiencing kechari symptoms and finding
themselves stretching naturally past stage 1. What you do with the information here is your choice. Remember to always pace yourself according to your capacity and
experiences.

http://www.curebum.com/37/how-to-master-kechari-mudra-technique/

Kechari Mudra
32. The Kechari Mudra is accomplished by thrusting the tongue into the gullet, by turning it over itself, and keeping the eyesight in the middle
33. To accomplish this, the tongue is lengthened by cutting the fraenum linguae, moving, and pulling it. When it can touch the space between the eyebrows, then the Kechari can be
accomplished.

34. Taking a sharp, smooth and clean instrument, of the shape of a cactus leaf, the frenulum of the tongue should be cut a little (as much as a hairs thickness), at a time.

35. Then rock salt and yellow myrobalan (both powdered) should be rubbed in. On the 7th day, it should again be cut a hair's breadth.

36. One should go on doing thus, regularly for six months. At the end of six months, the freanum of the tongue will be completely cut.

37. Turning the tongue upwards, it is fixed on three ways (esophagus, windpipe and palate). Thus it makes the Khachari Mudra, and is called the Vyoma Chakra.

38. The Yogi who sits for a minute turning his tongue upwards, is saved from poisons, diseases, death, old age, etc.

39. He who knows the Kechari Mudra is not afflicted with disease, death, sloth, sleep, hunger, thirst, and swooning.

40. He who knows the Kechari Mudra, is not troubled by diseases, is not stained with karmas, and is not snared by time.

41. The Siddhas have devised this Kechari Mudra from the fact that the mind and the tongue reach akasa by its practice.

42. If the hole behind the palate be stopped with Kechari by turning the tongue upwards, then bindu cannot leave its place even if a women were embraced.

43. If the Yogi drinks Somarasa (juice) by sitting with the tongue turned backwards and mind concentrated, there is no doubt he conquers death within 15 days.

44. If the Yogi, whose body is full of Somarasa, were bitten by Takshaka (snake), its poison cannot permeate his body.

45. As fire is inseparably connected with the wood and light is connected with the wick and oil, so does the soul not leave the body full of nectar exuding from the Soma.

(Note.--Soma (Chandra) is described later on located in the thousand-petalled lotus in the human brain, and is the same as is seen on Sivas' head in pictures, and from which a sort of
juice exudes. It is the restraining of this exudation which makes one immortal.)

46. Those who eat the flesh of the cow and drink the immortal liquor daily, are regarded by me men of noble family. Others are but a disgrace to their families.

(Note. Translation: Fortunate are the parents and blessed is the country and the family where a Yogi is born. Anything given to such a Yogi, becomes immortal. One, who discriminates
between Purusa and Prakriti, purges the sins of a million incarnations, by seeing, speaking, and touching such men (i.e. Yogi).

A Yogi far exceeds a thousand householders, a hundred vanapraasthas, and a thousand Brahmacharis.

Who can know the reality of the Raja Yoga? That country is very sacred where resides a man who knows it. By seeing and honoring him, generations of ignorant men get moksa, what
to speak of those who are actually engaged in it. He knows internal and external yoga, deserves adoration from you and me, what if he is adored by the rest of mankind!

Those who engage in the great yoga, once or thrice daily, are to be known as masters of great wealth (mabeshwaras) or Lords.)

47. The word (r�sana[?]) means tongue; eating it is thrusting it in the gullet which destroys great sins.

48. Immortal liquor is the nectar exuding from the moon (Chandra situated on the left side of the space between the eyebrows). It is produced by the fire which is generated by
thrusting the tongue.

49. If the tongue can touch with its end the hole from which falls the rasa (juice) which is saltish, bitter, sour, milky and similar to ghee and honey, one can drive away disease, destroy
old age, can evade an attack of arms, become immortal in eight ways and can attract fairies.

50. He who drinks the clear stream of liquor of the moon (soma) falling from the brain to the sixteen-petalled lotus (in the heart), obtained by means of Prana by applying the tongue to
the hole of the pendant in the palate, and by meditating on the great power (Kundalini), becomes free from disease and tender in body, like the stalk of a lotus, and the Yogi lives a
very long life.

51. On the top of the Meru (vertabral column), concealed in a hole, is the Somarasa (nectar of Chandra); the wise, whose intellect is not over-powered by Raja and Tamas gunas, but in
whom Satwa guna is predominant, say there is the (universal spirit) atma in it. It is the source of the down-going Ida, Pingala and Susumna Nadis, which are the Ganges, the Yamuna
and the Sarasvati. From that Chandra is shed the essence of the body which causes death of men. It should, therefore, be stopped from shedding. This (Khechari Mudra) is a very good
instrument for this purpose. There is no other means of achieving this end.

52. This hole is the generator of knowledge and is the source of the five streams (Ida, Pingala, &c.). In that colorless vacuum, Khechari Mudra should be established.

53. There is only one seed germinating the whole universe from it; and there is only one Mudra, called Khachari. There is only one deva (god) without any one's support, and there is
one condition called Manonmani.

http://www.santosha.com/philosophy/hathayoga-pradipika-chapter3.html
What is kechari mudra? Let's put it in terms that we can easily relate to. A centimeter or two above the roof of our mouth is located one of the
most ecstatically sensitive organs in our whole body. It can be reached relatively easily with our tongue. It is located on the back edge of our
nasal septum, and when the nervous system is purified enough through advanced yoga practices, our tongue will roll back and go up into the
cavity of our nasal pharynx to find the sensitive edge of our septum. When this happens, it is like a master switch is closed in our nervous system,
and all of our advanced yoga practices and experiences begin to function on a much higher level. When kechari is entered naturally, we come on
to the fast track of yoga. It is the major league of yoga, if you will.

Ramakrishna said, "When the divine goddess comes up, the tongue rolls back."

Many have experienced this natural phenomenon at times in their yoga practices. When the nervous system is ready, it just happens. The tongue
wants to go back. But few are able to follow though, and this is just a matter of education. If strong bhakti is there and the tongue is rolling back,
it is a short trip to make the connection in the pharynx to a higher level of spiritual experience.

Not many people on earth today have made this important transition in yoga. However, it is likely that the number of people entering kechari will
increase dramatically in the coming years. As this happens, it will be a giant leap forward for humankind, for it will mark humanity's shift to a
predominantly spiritual mode of functioning of the nervous system. This will bring with it the many benefits of rising enlightenment spreading
out through our modern society. Kechari is that significant, that powerful, and that indicative of where the human race is heading. Only a few
yogis and yoginis in kechari can have a huge affect on the spiritual energies in everyone. They radiate energy that quickens the rise of the
enlightenment process in all. So, while kechari is an individual phenomenon on the road to human spiritual transformation, it has global
implications, as do all of our advanced yoga practices. As Jesus said, "You are the light of the world."

But enough about the spiritual destiny of the human race. What about each of us, and our relationship with kechari?

Since kechari was first mentioned in the lessons some time ago, several have written about having the early symptoms of it, wondering what to
do. "Should I stop the tongue from rolling back?" "Should I proceed? And, if so, how?" These are the questions that have been asked.

If the tongue is rolling back and we feel we are getting ahead of ourselves, there is no rush. If we have doubts or excessive kundalini experiences,
it may be best to wait. It is the application of self-pacing, you know. Only you can know when the time is right. No one can tell you when it is
time to go for kechari, or for any other advanced yoga practice. Your experiences and your bhakti will be your guides.

Even though we are talking about a journey of a couple of centimeters, kechari is a big undertaking. Not so much physically, though there is some
physical challenge, but more so in the psyche and the emotions. Kechari is a big deal. It goes to the core of our spiritual identity. Are we ready to
close a neurological switch that will transport us to a higher plane of existence? It is not that we are changed instantly and forever. It is not like
that. The day after we enter kechari for the first time, we are still the same person. We may even stop doing kechari if we entered prematurely. No
harm done. Kechari has its "clunky" stage, just as all advanced yoga practices do. It takes some determination to get through the awkward
beginnings of kechari.

We are not instantly a different person the minute we start kechari. Only in time with daily practice are we changed, and this will be a substantial
change. In a real way, we have become a different person before we enter kechari. The decision to do it is the crossover as much as the act is. In
this sense, kechari is more than a physical act. Deciding to do kechari is a recognition of the nervous system being ready for the next level. The
nervous system tells us when it is ready. We have become kechari even before we enter it. Isn't this true with all advanced yoga practices we
undertake? We feel ready. We begin the practice. If we are in tune with our nervous system, the practice will stick. If we are premature, there will
be roughness and we will have to back off. This is okay. It is how we test and find our openings to move forward in yoga. Kechari is like that too.
Only with kechari, we are doing a bit more to get into it, and the experience is pretty dramatic, so it requires strong motivation to do it – strong
bhakti.

Kechari means, "To fly through inner space."

This sounds poetic and dramatic. Yet, kechari is much more that that. It is much more personal than that. Regular practice of kechari takes us into
a permanent lovemaking of polarities within us. The effects of kechari exceed those of tantric sexual relations as discussed in the tantra group.
This is amazing because kechari involves no external sexual activity at all. Kechari is one of the great secrets of enlightened celibates. Not that
celibacy and kechari have to go together. Anyone can do kechari and continue in normal sexual relations. But if one chooses a path of celibacy,
then kechari, along with other advanced yoga practices, will provide more than enough cultivation of sexual energy upward in the nervous
system. It is a
natural internal process that comes up in us.

With kechari do we "fly though inner space?" The greatest part of the kechari experience is the rise of ecstatic bliss. The senses are naturally
drawn in and it is like we are flying inside. Our inner dimensions are vast, and we soar through them in a constant reverie.

The connection we make near the top of the sushumna, ida, and pingala in kechari is an ecstatic one that brings ecstatic conductivity up in the
nervous system more than any other practice. Every other advanced yoga practice then becomes increasingly effective at doing the same thing –
raising ecstatic conductivity. So kechari is an ecstatic connection that illuminates our entire nervous system. The sensitive edge of the nasal
septum is an altar of bliss. The more time we spend there, the more bliss we experience. Kechari is the perfect companion for sambhavi. The two
practices complement each other. Together, sambhavi and kechari draw divine ecstasy up, filling us with divine light.

Advanced yogis and yoginis use kechari continuously throughout their sitting practices, and often during the day when not engaged in
conversation. In other words, kechari is home for the advanced yogi and yogini. We do not even know that they are in kechari. Only the subtle
glow of divine light gives them away. Inside, they are in the constant play of divine lovemaking.

We will cover four stages of kechari here (see Image for sketches), all pertaining to the location of the tip of the tongue:
Stage 1 – To the point on the roof of the mouth where the hard and soft palates meet. This is the line of demarcation that must be crossed before
stage 2 can be entertained.

Stage 2 – Behind the soft palate and up to the nasal septum. It is a short trip, but a momentous one. Initially this is done with help from a finger
pushing back under the tongue, going to the left or right side of the soft palate where entry is easiest. This may require "breaking the hymen" of
the membrane under the tongue. See below for more on this.

Stage 3 – Gradually working to the top of the nasal pharynx and septum. This takes us to the bony structure containing the pituitary gland.

Stage 4 – Entering the nasal passages from inside and moving upward beyond the top of the pharynx toward the point between the eyebrows. It is
not as far for the tongue to go as it seems. Put your thumb on the hinge of your jaw and put your index finger at the tip of your tongue extended
straight out. Then pivot the fixed length to your index finger up on your thumb to the point between your eyebrows. See? It is not so far for the
tongue to go straight up from its root.

Many years may pass between stage 1 and stage 4. Kechari is a long-term evolution, not an overnight event, though it certainly has its dramatic
moments of transition, especially between stages 1&2 and stages 3&4. Now let's look at the four stages in more detail.

Stage 1 puts us in contact with the bottom of the septum through the roof of our mouth. This has already been suggested as a goal to work toward
in the lesson on yoni mudra kumbhaka. Some ecstatic response can be felt at the point where the hard and soft palates meet if the nervous system
is rising in purity. Stage one is not easy, as it takes some effort for most people to keep the tongue on the roof of the mouth and work it gradually
back over time. A habit gradually develops. Once the tip of the tongue passes the point where the hard and soft palates meet, and the soft palate
can be pushed up with the tongue, then stage 2 is close at hand.

Stage 2 is very dramatic. The tongue is pushed back with a finger to the left or right side of the soft palate. These are the shortest pathways
leading behind the soft palate. One of these will be shorter than the other. At some point you will experiment and see for yourself. The long way
in is up the middle. The soft palate has an elastic tendon running across the back edge. When the tip of the tongue gets behind it for the first time,
the elastic tendon can slip quickly around the bottom of the tongue as though grabbing it. Then the tongue is suddenly in the nasal pharynx and
touching the edge of the nasal septum for the first time.

The first reaction is surprise, and the tongue will probably come out quickly. It is easy to pull out. No finger help is needed. It is also easy to
breathe through the nose with the tongue in the nasal pharynx. On the first entry, the eyes and nose may water, there could be sneezing, there
could be sexual arousal, and strong emotions. All of these things are temporary reactions to the event of entering stage 2 kechari for the first time.
Upon repeated entries, things settle down. In time, the finger will no longer be needed to get behind the soft palate. The elastic tendon across the
edge of the soft palate stretches out and stage 2 kechari becomes quite comfortable. In fact, it is easier to stay in stage 2 kechari than to stay in
stage 1 kechari. The tongue rests very easily in the nasal pharynx with no effort at all, making it simple to use during pranayama and meditation.
The tongue is obviously designed to rest blissfully in the nasal pharynx.

There are two practical matters to consider once in stage 2 kechari. First is lubrication in the pharynx. Second is the accumulation of saliva in the
mouth.

The pharynx can be a little fickle. Usually, it is naturally moist and well lubricated for the tongue. Occasionally it is dry and not so well
lubricated. In the former situation, kechari can be practiced practically indefinitely. In the latter situation, only sparingly. When the pharynx is dry
there can be a stinging sensation when the tongue is in there. So, this is not the time to do kechari. We just go to stage 1 when that happens.
Interestingly, the pharynx will almost always be moist during practices. But there is no telling for sure. We just go in when we are welcome,
which is most of the time. And when we are not welcome, we honor the situation and refrain. Like that.

When we are up in stage 2 kechari, saliva will accumulate in the mouth down below. Since we can't swallow what is in our mouth with our
tongue going up into the nasal pharynx, and we don't want to drool, then we come out of kechari as necessary to swallow the saliva in our mouth.
In the early adjustment period to stage 2 kechari there can be a lot of saliva, so we will have to swallow more often. In time, the saliva goes back
to normal levels, and coming out of kechari to swallow will become infrequent.

So, in stage 2 kechari, we are just letting our tongue rest easily on the edge of the nasal pharynx, and that sets spiritual processes in motion
everywhere in our body.

In the beginning of stage 2 kechari we will be curious. We are in a new place and want to find out what is in the pharynx. There is the sensitive
septum, the "altar of bliss." We have no problem finding that, and realizing that the best way to do pranayama and meditation is with our tongue
resting on the septum. It is like having a powerful siddhasana working simultaneously on the other end of the spinal nerve, awakening our entire
nervous system from the top end. When we are not enjoying bliss at the septum, we will no doubt explore, finding the prominent "trumpets" of
the eustachian tubes on either side of the nasal passages. We also can't miss the entrances to the nasal passages on either side of the septum, and
quickly find the extremely sensitive erectile tissues inside them. Too much. Better stay away from those for a while. So, we go up the septum on
our journey to the top of the pharynx, to stage 3. For some this is a short journey. For others, it can take a long time. In going there we expose the
full length of the edge of the septum to our tongue, and prepare ourselves to eventually enter the nasal passages and go higher.

A practice that can help as we go beyond stage 2 kechari is the so-called "milking of the tongue." It consists of gently pulling on the tongue with
the fingers of both hands, alternating hands, as though milking a cow. A good time to do this is for a few minutes while standing in the shower
each day. That way you can get the benefit of it without slobbering all over your clothes. Over time, the tongue can be lengthened by this method.
This is not a very useful practice for getting into stage 2. Dealing with the frenum is most important for that, as discussed below. Milking the
tongue is helpful for going beyond stage 2 kechari, especially in stage 4.
Stage 4 is another dramatic step. It could be years away from stage 2&3. Everyone will be different in approaching it. There is a trick to it. The
nasal passages are tall and narrow and the tongue is narrow and wide, so the tongue can only go into the nasal passages by turning on its side. But
which side? One way works better than the other. The tongue can naturally be turned with the top to the center by following the channel on top of
the trumpet of each eustachian tube into its adjacent nasal passage. This naturally turns the top of the tongue to the center and allows it to slide up
the side of the septum into the nasal passage. Turning the tongue inward to the center is the way up into the passages. Entering stage 4 is as
dramatic as entering stage 2, because the tissues in the nasal passages are extremely sensitive, and connecting with them in the way described
takes the nervous system to yet a higher level. Stage 4 provides extensive stimulation of the upper ends of the sushumna, ida, and pingala, and
this has huge effects throughout the nervous system, especially when combined with our pranayama and its associated bandhas and mudras.

Going to stage 4 is natural once stages 2&3 have been mastered and become second nature. Before then we are not much attracted due to the
sensitivity in the nasal passages. Our opening nervous system and rising bhakti take us to stage 4 when we are ready.

Once the nasal passages have been entered, the tongue can be used to do "alternate passage" breathing during pranayama and yoni mudra
kumbhaka. This provides alternating stimulation in the nasal passages, which produces additional purifying effects in the sushumna, ida, and
pingala. Our pranayama and kumbhaka become supercharged in stage 4 kechari.

The four stages of kechari foster major neurological openings in the head, and throughout the entire nervous system. Kechari is one of the most
pleasurable and far-reaching of all the advanced yoga practices. Kechari represents a major transition in our advanced yoga practices to a much
higher level.

Now let's talk about the membrane/tendon under the tongue called the "frenum."

For most of us, the frenum will be the limiting factor in moving through the stages of kechari. There is debate on whether the frenum should be
trimmed or not. Some say that we are deserving or not deserving of kechari according to what kind of frenum we have under our tongue, and that
the only way into kechari is by stretching the frenum. If we can't stretch it far enough to get into kechari, it is "God's will."

In these lessons, we don't subscribe to that limited point of view. The view here is that, "God helps those who help themselves."

In these lessons we view the frenum as a tether to be trimmed back when the time is right. It keeps us out of kechari until we are ready. When we
are ready, and each of us knows when that is, the frenum can be trimmed. It is like a "hymen." When a woman is ready for sexual intercourse, the
hymen goes. Until then it serves to provide protection. This breaking of the hymen can be a stressful and painful event if it is forced. Sooner or
later the frenum will be forced open too, because going into kechari is as natural as going into sexual intercourse. It is biologically preordained. It
happens when the nervous system is mature enough. Advanced yoga practices bring us closer to the transition with each day of daily practices.

Kechari results from a second puberty in us – our spiritual puberty. As our nervous system becomes pure, our bhakti increases. More than
anything else it is bhakti that sends us into kechari. When every fiber of our being wants God, then we will go there. The tongue will roll back
and go up. Like that.

Once our bhakti is hurling our tongue back into kechari, breaking the hymen of the frenum does not have to be stressful and painful. It can be
very easy and gentle. Above all, it can and should be gradual. It is done with very tiny snips. Tiny snips, each as small as a hair or a very thin
string. A sterilized, sharp cuticle snipper (like a small wire cutter) can be used to do the job, bit by bit. When we lift our tongue up, we can see
right away where the point of greatest stress on the frenum is. If we take a tiny snip there, not bigger than a hair, it probably won't even bleed.
Maybe one drop. If more than one drop, we did too much. The tiny snip will heal in a day or two. The tissues of the mouth heal very quickly.
Then maybe in a week or a month, whatever we are comfortable with, we will be ready to do it again. And then, in another week or more, do it
again. If we are sensitive, a little ice can be used to numb the edge of the frenum, and we won't even feel a little pinch when we snip. Don't use
ice to take a big snip though. That is too much, and brings in some risk of infection. We should not snip if we have any kind of infection in the
body. With tiny snips, the frenum will be allowing the tongue to go further back in no time, and before we know it we will be using our finger to
push our tongue behind our soft palate.

We can continue with the tiny snips once we are in stage 2 kechari, and this will help us move on to stage 3. Then we can continue with the tiny
snips once we have gotten to the top of the nasal pharynx, and this will help us move on through stage 4. It will take years. There is no rush. We
may go for many months, or even years, with no snipping at all, content to enjoy the level of kechari we have attained so far, and the steady
spiritual growth that comes with it. Then we may become inspired to continue going up with the tongue, and do some more snipping.

As the snipping progresses past stage 2 kechari, it becomes very easy to do it. As the frenum gives way slowly, the edge it presents when
stretched becomes like a callus. There is no pain snipping it, and no blood. It is not difficult to trim it back so the tongue can go further up into
more advanced stages of kechari. It is a long journey in time, and a fulfilling one. It can take decades to complete stages 1 through 4. There is no
rush. The nervous system knows what must happen. When it knows, we know through our bhakti.

Everyone's frenum is different. A few will enter kechari with no snipping necessary. Others will need a lot of snipping. The rest of us will fall
somewhere in-between. Whatever the case many be, we will know what to do when our bhakti comes up. No one else can tell us what to do
when. Everything in this lesson is offered as information so you will have a better idea on what your options are as your bhakti comes up.

Some will have medical concerns about snipping the frenum. Most doctors will not be for it. Is there risk? There is always some risk when we
undertake new things. That is life. The practice of trimming the frenum for kechari has been around for thousands of years – at least as long as
circumcision, body piercing and tattooing. Not that any of these other types of body alterations are in the same class as kechari. They are not.
Kechari is one of the most advanced yoga practices on the planet. When we know we are ready for it, we will be willing to accept whatever risk
may be associated with entering it. We each choose our own path according to the feelings rising in our heart.

This lesson is not to promote stage 2 kechari and beyond for everyone. It is to provide useful information for those who are experiencing kechari
symptoms and finding themselves stretching naturally past stage 1. What you do with the information here is your choice. Remember to always
pace yourself according to your capacity and experiences.

The guru is in you.

http://www.aypsite.org/108.html
Q: Which other siddhis can one obtain besides moving in the sky with the practice of ‘Khechari Mudra’ ?

A: With Khechari Mudra, a yogi can be blessed with some other siddhis such as knowledge of the past, present and future; ‘doordarshan’ (ability to perceivethings far-off) and
‘doorshravan’ (ability to hear sound far-off) as well as Nirvikalpa Samadhi (The highest spiritual state in which all thoughts, attributes and description subsides).

Q: How does one perform Khechari Mudra ?

A: First, one has to lengthen one’s tongue and for that one has to resort to friction or ‘dohan’. After the tongue has been elongated by such practices, one has toinvert the tongue
upside down and touch the top of the mouth known as ‘talu pradesh’ (nasal cavity at the base of the palate). In this position the mind becomes easily focused and one loses body
consciousness and ultimately enters into the Samadhi.
The process of lengthening the tongue is an extremely painful process so I do not advise all the aspirants to perform Khechari Mudra. The concentration of mind, the state of
losing body consciousness and ultimately entering into Samadhi can be achieved by other means as well. Meditation, japa or other methods are less difficult or painful so a
spiritual aspirant should take recourse to such methods.

Q: What should an aspirant with a long tongue do in order to progress on the path of Yoga?

A: An aspirant, who is blessed with a long tongue should thank god and try wholeheartedly for the attainment of Samadhi by means of Khechari Mudra. He should regularly sit in
meditation and perform Khechari Mudra primarily to achieve the ultimate goal of life.

Kechari Mudra

The Hatha Yoga Pradipika states in 3.32-36, that Khechari mudra is turning the tongue backwards into the cavity of the cranium and turning the eyes towards the eyebrow center. Yogis go
to the extent of making the tongue flexible (they cut the frenum gradually over a period of time) to gain the best effect of the mudra. We don't have to go through that process. All you
need to do is turn the tongue inwards and press the under surface till it touches the upper back portion of the soft palate. While other descriptions state that the tip of the tongue needs to

press the soft palate, the HYP states the tip should reaches the nasal orifice at the back of the throat. You will
need to release the tongue if it tires, but with practice you can hold longer. This mudra is practiced with other techniques such as Ujjayi or meditation.

Verse 3.38-39 states (literally) that the yogi who remains with the tongue upwards for even half a second is freed from toxins, disease, old age, hunger, thirst or unconsciousness.

In this mudra the pineal gland located at the center of the brain and ajna chakra are stimulated. The psychic center, Bindu visarga, at the top of back of the head, is also influenced by the
mudra. Bindu, when it is full, releases its nectar down to the entire body. It is easy to see from the picture, the proximity of the center of the brain to the inside of the ajna chakra (space
between the eyebrows).

Khechari mudra controls/influences the network of endocrine glands throughout the body. This is done by regulating the powerful secretions in the brain. The glands influenced are
thyroid, mammary, thymus, adrenal and reproductive glands. The practice of the mudra influences the centers in hypothalamus and brain stem which control autonomic breathing, heart
rate, emotional expression, digestion, etc.

practices of udiyana bhanda, nauli, and related practices to activate manipura chakra.

According to the text, Kechari mudra had several stages. The first being to put the tongue on the roof of the mouth directly behind the front teeth, what Taoists would call completing the
microcosmic circuit. The second stage is to press the tongue on the soft pallet and stretch it upwards, thus stimulating the many nerve endings. The third stage is to slip the tongue behind 'the
dangly thing' and up the nasal pharanyx. Which stimulates nerve endings that lead to the frontal cortex, the part of the brain that scientists tell us we rarely use. The fourth stage was to stretch
the tongue upwards and press on the underside of the pineal gland to help reactivate this sleepy organ.

According to the Bihar School of Yoga, once Kechari mudra has been mastered, it activates Bindu Visarga, (the sixth and a half Chakra located at the back of the head where the Krisnas leave
their long braid) to produce ambrosial fluid, the elixer of life. The ambrosial fluid travels up from Bindu Visarga to the seventh chakra Sushumna and then drips down the throat enabling the yogi
to enter samadhi and sustain breathless life. The book also stated, however, if Kechari mudra is attempted before the lower chakras are purified, rather than ambrosial fluid a poison will be
secreted.
Khecari-mudra:

Khecari-mudra ("space-walking seal"): the Tantric practice of curling the tongue back against the upper palate in order to seal the life energy (prana); see also mudra

Khecari mudra: Yogic puberty of the tongue. Advanced stage of urdhva-reta in which the tongue
spontaneously moves back toward the palatial cavity of the head, as the body seeks its own source.

The tongue is effectively one big muscle but it has got different sets of firbres which are often seen as
seperate muscles; the two (Superior and Inferior) Longitudonal fibres, the Transverse fibres and the
Vertical fibres. The Genioglossus is never agreed upon whether it is part of the tongue or not but it sits
directly underneath it at any rate. Anything (muslces, vessels or nerves) that are related to the tongue
have the term Glossus in some form in their name. This is the old latin name for the tongue but
nowadays you will not often hear it as just calling it the tonue is far more prevelant.

Tricks with the tip of the tongue!

Disclaimer:
 No. I am not responsible if you have come to this blog with any "different
ideas" after reading the headline .
 Connecting the tip of the tongue to the roof of the mouth or palate of the mouth is
a well kept secret in Yoga, meditation and martial arts schools. I came across this
technique while reading about Tai-Chi secrets and got it well corroborated during
thePranic healing classes. Lets discuss why this should be done.
 Again I would like to highlight that this not written from a position of authority but
certainly is shared as a practitioner who has experienced the benefits first hand.

You need to have basics on meridians as described in Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).
This roots back to Indian scriptures but Chinese medicine has developed this into
multiple areas in a much matured way like acupressure, acupuncture, applications in
martial arts like Dim mak etc. Let me try to explain this as easily as possible.

First lets see how to connect this. Take the tip of the tongue to one inch behind your
upper teeth inside the roof of your mouth and without pressing hard just touch it softly
and let it settle down there. Saliva may secrete and you can swallow the same. It should
settle down quickly.

It is told that new born kids by default have their tongue connected to the palate even
when it is sleeping. Now lets go through the reason.
o Energy channels that carry Prana / Chi are called as meridians in Chinese
and "nadis" in the Indian system.There are 72000 nadis in human body which are the
energy channels and there are 12 major organs. There are 12 main meridians that
energize our major organ systems.
o Two meridians are known as the Master Meridians – they are in charge of all
the rest.They are called the Conception or Central Vessel (CV) and the Governing Vessel
(GV).
o The very fact they are called “vessels” gives us a clue. A meridian is a line
of energy; a vessel is some sort of container. These two meridians, the Master Meridians,
are important because they “contain” the secret of energy and vitality.
o Both of these meridians begin at the perineum – that part of the body
between the genitals and the anus. The Central Vessel travels up the front - through the
Chest, soft tissues of the body, bisecting the belly button - and ends at the tip of the
tongue.
o The Governing Vessel (governs our movement) travels up the spine - through
the hard bony tissues of the vertebrae, over the bones of the cranium - and ends at the
roof of the mouth.
o To keep the tip of the tongue at the roof of the mouth completes the
“microcosmic circuit” and allows the energy to flow.
o Doing Mula Bandha (You can google if you want to know more) helps this
circuit to close at the perineum. This is the lower lock and connecting the tongue is the
upper lock. Actually doing Jalandhara bandha should provide the upper lock but I have
not seen or read any text highlighting this.

With this circuit closed we can tap the energy where we want.
 When we tap the sternum, we direct this flowing energy to the thymus gland,
stimulating its function – producing T-cells, thereby enhancing the immune response.
 We can also tap over the right lower rib cage to stimulate the liver, the cranium to
stimulate the brain, etc.
 The other advantages include feeling more energetic, noticing that ones aura
expands as we do it. I have read some reports that it helps in improving the overall speed
of recuperation.

If one has heard about "Kechari Mudra" it is similar but an advanced form. The tongue is
taken further back and inserted into the hollow area of the nasal pathway from the top of
the throat. It is believed that amrut from bindu flows down and is collected at a point
called Lalana chakralocated some where between the throat and nose.

So what is the use of knowing this? You can connect your tongue to your palate if required
all the times except when it is not possible like eating, talking etc. Don't connect the
tongue to the palate when you are excreting / urinating.

It is certainly recommended that you connect the tongue to the palate during your Yoga
classes, pranayama practice or during meditation.

I am sure you would find this useful if you are a regular practitioner!

Happy reading :)

PS:
1. Yes. This is the best you can do with your tongue when you are all alone. :).
2. If you are a chronic smoker, alcoholic or a non-vegetarian, please do not bother
yourself with this since it does more harm to you than good.
3. Due regards and gratitude to people who helped me understand this.

Source: http://ragsgopalan.blogspot.com/2010/06/tricks-with-tip-of-tongue.html

[W]hen a person is on the verge of death by suffocation, it is believed that the kundalini mechanism can activate and send a potent stream of prana and ojas to the
brain, nourishing it and protecting it from the deadly effects of oxygen deprivation. The activated kundalini stimulates the brahma randhra, and the experiencer enters
a paranormal or mystical state of consciousness.

That this belief has long been held in the yoga tradition is evinced by an arcane, dangerous yoga technique called khechari-mudra. In it the yogi, over a number of
years, bit by bit, cut the frenulum—the flap of skin that attaches the tongue to the bottom of the mouth—to enable him to bend his tongue further and further back.
The yogi’s goal was, eventually, to deliberately block off his air passage with his tongue, and, with this asphyxiation, trigger a kundalini awakening. His years of yoga
would then—he hoped—provide him with enough disciple to manage to remove his tongue while he was in the midst of a profound mystical experience. This is a
dangerous practice and one that I would never recommend; many yogis are said to have died while attempting it.

Catalepsy
Sunday, July 19th, 2009

A reader by the name of Dave recently left this fantastic comment:

It’s interesting you start with shamanism because i recently found links between it and yoga practices myself. What i want to ask you is if you will explain the kriya

yoga techniques in your book, not specifically kriya yoga—which stems from hatha yoga principally—and the facts of human hibernation. Catalepsy is a real condition

and i think that the kriya yoga techniques enable this state to be entered, chiefly through kechari mudra [in which the tip of the tongue is arched backward to touch the

uvula]. I could be wrong about this and would invite you to shed some light on it. However, considering all the nerves and arteries in the neck which are manipulated

by kechari and fasting (shamanic torture technique which reduces metabolism) all have specific effects on the physiology of the body, i believe a trance state of

catalepsy is indeed possible.

The only previous clue I had come across that was at all related to this was for jyoti mudra. There, in pressing on one’s eyes with the little fingers, one unintentionally

invokes the oculocardiac reflex, which measurably slows the heart and respiratory rate even in adults (and can kill infants). But when you look into catalepsy at all, it’s

intriguing how closely it matches Yogananda’s description of the suspended-animation state of sabikalpa samadhi:

My body became immovably rooted; breath was drawn out of my lungs as if by some huge magnet…. The flesh was as though dead, yet in my intense awareness I

knew that never before had I been fully alive.

From Wikipedia:

Symptoms [of catalepsy] include: rigid body, rigid limbs, limbs staying in same position when moved (waxy flexibility), no response, loss of muscle control,

and slowing down of bodily functions, such as breathing.

From The Catalepsy Test: Its Ups and Downs:

[C]atalepsy can be induced [in mice] by neck and, to a lesser extent, tail-pinch… These environmental stimuli may potentiate catalepsy by triggering the animal’s

natural defense mechanisms. In fact, morphine catalepsy itself may be an “artifically” magnified defense mechanism, that is, “playing

dead”….
The closest (vestigial) thing we human mammals have to a tail is the coccyx or tailbone. And the lotus posture, with each foot placed atop the thigh of the opposite leg,

often while sitting on a cushion (or soil, or slanted rock) to arch the pelvis forward, places significant pressure on one’s coccyx, and on the nerves in it. If one were

looking to effect a “tail pinch” on our species, one could hardly do better than that.

Interestingly, “catalepsy can be measured without any apparatus, by simply placing the rat or mouse in an unusual position on a flat surface or in the home cage. The

experimenter can place the rat into a ‘buddha’ position (by crossing the limbs) and measure the latency until the posture is changed.” That’s not (AFAIK) for there

being any relation between the assumption of lotus-like postures and the induction of catalepsy, but is rather just because lotus-like postures are the “worst” way you

can twist up a body, to then see how long it takes to untwist it.

However all of that turns out in the biology and neurology, Dave’s comment is exactly the sort of thing, and exactly the sort of delightfully “reductionistic” thinking, I

was hoping to solicit when I opened comments here. Catalepsy is indeed a neurologically and biochemically real state; and wouldn’t it be amazing if various “neck and

tail pinches” in yoga and meditation were unknowingly invoking that state, with that then being mistaken for the outward signs of divine communion via the

“withdrawal of life-force into the spine”?

And then, geek that I am, I remembered the real, physiological basis for the Vulcan nerve-pinch:

It is possible to lose consciousness when pressure is applied to thevagus nerve in the neck. This can occur through internal stimulation such as vomiting, or can be an

on-the-field treatment for people who have tachycardia. Since the vagus nerve directly influences the heart, a massage on it does slowly decrease the

heartbeat rhythm. However violent hits to the vagus nerve can cause (in weaker hearts) heart failure completely.

Similarly, the subclavian nerve pinch is known in certain Asian martial arts. Properly applied, it can render a human unconscious for several minutes.

Just as shocking, monkeys too are susceptible to pinch-induced catalepsy:

[L]earned helplessness has been studied in Rhesus Macaques using inescapable shock, evoked through stress situations like forced swimming, behavioral despair tasks,

tails suspension and pinch induced catalepsy; situations that render the monkey incapable of controlling the environment.

As to whether humans, too, are then susceptible to the same manipulation, to some significant degree: If you’re a betting man….

First Technique, The Light : As explained in the Indian Scriptures.

Second Technique, The Sound, Inner Music, Harmony : As explained in Hinduism, and taught in Radhasoami.
Third Technique, Holy Name, The Word, etc : As explained by Donna Farhi in 'The Breathing Book', and in Hinduism.
Fourth Technique, The Nectar : As explained in the Indian Scriptures.
Yoni Mudra : The most important one according to the Scriptures, and not taught by Maharaji.

The Light is described in Gherand Samhita, section on Mudras, as Shambhavi Mudra, stanza 59:

'Direct your eyes toward the middle of the eyebrows and meditate upon your own self. It is Shambhavi Mudra, the most secret practice of all the Tantra scriptures.'
In the tantric scripture Sochanda Tantra, stanza 13, is said:

'Touching eyeballs as a feather, lightness between them opens into the heart and there permeates the cosmos.'

The Sound technique is referred to as Bhramari Kumbhak. The Sound is referred to as Nada. The practice is therefore also called Nada Yoga. Quote from Gherand Samhita and its
praises of the Sound technique, in the section on Pranayama, stanzas 77-81:

'At midnight when not a single sound is heard, close your ears with both hands and do Purak Pranayama. Listen to the sounds in your right ear which are very pleasant. The first sound
that you will hear is of a pine bird, the second of a flute, third of a cloud, fourth of a dragon bee, the fifth of a ringing bell and then of a gong of metal. Sounds of trumpet, drum etc. are
also heard. Besides these, many other sounds are heard if it is practiced daily. These sounds are Anahata (unproduced) and come on their own accord. Nada is related to light. Light is
related to mind, so mind gets itself merged in a sound which is the seat of the Lord. Therefore, practice of Bhramari gives Siddhi of Samadhi (i.e., makes Samadhi possible).
Mind gets eightfold more pleasure in the act of meditation than Japa (repeating God's name), eightfold more interest in Tapas (penance) than the meditation, and eightfold more
interest in music or sound than the Tapas. There is nothing greater than music.'

This technique is well-known, and a favorite among the Radhasoamis. In order to keep the hands in position for an extended period of time, a beragon is suggested, like the one Shiva
usually is pictured with. In Yogananda's Self-Realization Fellowship, beragons are used. In Northern India, they are well-known tools in all yoga schools. In the beginning of DLM's
history in the West, beragons were also used.

The 'Holy Word', in the classic yoga literature, is referred to as Kewali Kumbhak. The Word is often referred to as Shabda Brahman, or God in the form of word/sound. This name, in its
Hindi form (Shabd Brahm), is used among M's followers in India nowadays.

Quote, from Gherand Samhita, section on Pranayama (breathing exercises), stanza 84:

'With every exhalation the soul recites 'Ham' and with every inhalation it recites 'So'. Thus every soul counts the mantra of Soham (So plus Ham) twenty-one thousand and six-hundred
times every day and night.'

A commentary to the text, by Parivrajika Ma Yogashakti, says:

'It is most easy and yet most powerful of all pranayamas. Although this technique is grouped under pranayamas in fact it is a very powerful spiritual practice known to man. Kewali
Kumbhak is very simple yet most dynamic. /-/ Kewali Kumbhak makes one aware of one's existence every minute.'

Other variations suggest just focusing on the breath, not the Soham (or, Hansa, or Hamsa: meaning both 'swan' and 'soul'; also the sound of one's own breath - accordingly, the name
of Maharaji's father, Sri HANS Ji Maharaj). For instance, in Sochanda Tantra, stanza #2, it says:

'As breath turns from down to up, and again as breath curves from up to down, through both these turns, the realization.'
'BABY PRANAYAMA'

'Hamsa or the method popularly known as Baby Pranayama is the easiest and safest method [of meditation] of all. /...../
Hamsa literally means swan--the beautiful white birds that swim in silent lakes. In Hinduism, the swan also symbolizes purity and tranquility. In this method, one indirectly chants the
Mantra 'Sah-Aham', meaning 'He is I'. It is also worth noticing that when a man inhales he makes the noise 'Ham' or 'Aham'. When a man exhales he makes the noise 'Sa' or 'Sah'.

Now coming back to the main point, the Hamsa method is the method of watching the incoming and outgoing breaths (inhalation and exhalation) without interfering with the rhythm of
the breathing. The method is very simple. You may sit or stand or lie down in whatever position you like. You can do it at any time of the day or night. You can do it at any place. You
can do it for as long as you like. Prior to following this method, if it helps, then you may do deep breathing exercises to induce 'rhythmic breathing' in your system for five to ten
minutes.

Now let me elaborate on the actual Hamsa method: Just watch your inhalation and exhalation without interfering with the process of breathing, without even trying to control chest or
nostril movements. Do not even try to change the rhythm of the breathing.

Excerpts from Ed Viswanathan (1999): Am I a Hindu? The Hinduism Primer. New Delhi: Rupa & Co. pp. 187- 188. (also published by Halo Books, San Francisco, 1992)

Mindfulness Practice (by Donna Farhi)

Sit in any position you find comfortable. Lying down is usually not a good idea as your level of attentiveness is much diminished when you are supine. Close your eyes and let the
weight of your buttocks settle into the cushion or chair. Notice if you are leaning forward anticipating the next moment, or if you are leaning back reclining into the past. Center the
weight on your sitting bones so that you organize yourself to be present in the moment. Allow the contents of your belly to relax and begin to bring your awareness to your breathing.
It's this simple. Notice your breathing coming and going. Notice when the breath enters you and when it leaves you. Also, pay attention to the pauses between the inhalation and the
exhalation. As you sense and feel your breathing, thoughts, feelings and sensations will inevitably arise. This mental activity is not a sign of failure. Note the feelings and sensations that
arise in your body and heart. Detect sadness, excitement, or boredom. Be aware of the sensations arising in your body. You may feel certain areas become tense or heavy, you may
notice your stomach gurgle or your heart beating. Simply note all this without analysing, judging, correcting, or solving.... Can you let your breathing just be what it is? Without making
it bigger, better, or different can you simply let the breath breathe you? How much can you disengage from effort and let the breath enter and leave on its own accord? Don't get
caught up in a struggle with your mind. All thoughts, feelings, and sensations change. Simply allow yourself to be a sky for these drifting thoughts, returning over and over again to the
steady rhythm of your breathing.

('The Breathing Book' by Donna Farhi - From page 185)

The so called Nectar technique is really named Khechari Mudra. It is mentioned in the section on Mudras (all Mudras being so called Kundalini-awakening techniques), in Stanzas #s 23-
27 of the Gherand Samhita. It is there suggested that, in order to succeed with getting the tongue in the correct position, one should cut under the nerve of the tongue.:shocked: Quote
from (Gherand Samhita, Section on Mudras, stanzas 23-27):

'Cut under the nerve of the tongue and move it frequently. Massage it daily like the process of milking with the help of butter. Also pull it daily with an iron-tongue. Practice it daily for a
long time till the tongue is elongated to such an extent that it touches the middle of the eyebrows, and becomes fit for Khechari. Then turn the and make it pass through the upper
cavity of the palate slowly. Now gaze at the middle of the eyebrows. This is Khechari Mudra.

One who practices Khechari does not suffer from hunger, thirst, tiredness or languor. Neither illness nor death nor decay come near to him and his body becomes divine. Fire cannot
burn, wind cannot dry, water cannot wet and snake can never bite the man practicing Khechari Mudra.'

The following description on how to practice Khechari Mudra is from Hatha-Yoga Pradipika. It is very similar. Quote, from Chapter 3, stanzas 32-37:

'Khechari Mudra is turning the tongue backwards into the cavity of the cranium and turning the eyes inwards toward the eyebrow center. The tongue should be exercised and milked
and the underneath part cut in small degrees. Indeed khechari is perfected when the tongue touches the eyebrow center.

With a clean thin blade, gently cut away the membrane under the tongue. Cut it by a fine hair's breadth each time. Then rub in a mixture of powdered rock salt and turmeric. After
seven days, again cut a hair's breadth. One should do this regularly for six months, then the membrane at the root of the tongue will be completely severed. Having turned the tongue
back, the three channels of ida, pingala and sushumna are controlled. This is khechari mudra and it is called the center of ether.'

Hatha-yoga Pradipika then goes on praising the benefits of this practice. It is worth noticing the most people CANNOT accomplish Khechari Mudra without cutting underneath the
tongue. This was never told in the Knowledge sessions. Many are able to do this mudra without cutting, but most people can't. If you can't get the tongue into the cavity, there is no
point in doing the mudra.

NOTE: We don't advise your here IN ANY WAY, to try to practice this mudra, nor do we advise you to cut away the membrane under the tongue!

Finally, in a practice called Yoni Mudra, all techniques are practiced simultaneously. Quote, from Gherand Samhita, section on Mudras, stanzas 32-33:
'Sit in Siddhasana (lotus position). Close ears, eyes, nose and mouth with thumbs, forefingers middle fingers, ring fingers and others. Inhale Prana (air) and unite it with Apana (i.e.
already inhaled air) with the lower region, and meditate on the six chakras one by one. Exhale the air with 'Hum' and 'Hamsa' sound. This is the way in which the learned and wise
Munis meditate.'

For this practice, a beragon is usually required.

Paravrajita Ma Yogashakti, in her commentary, says that, I quote: 'Yoni Mudra is the most important and secret of all practices. Although all the secret practices of yoga are mentioned
in the yogic literature, people do not pay heed to them.'

How great value is attached to this practice is explained in stanzas 37-38 (these are quite funny):

'Yoni Mudra is the most secret and is unapproachable even to Devas. It is advantageous even if it is practiced only once a day. Samadhi is attained by him who practices and masters it
well.

Sin does not stain him who practices Yoni Mudra, even if he be a murderer of a Brahmin, destroyer of a baby in a womb, intoxicator or has indulged with his Guru's wife.'

link: http://www.ex-premie.org/papers/medtech.htm

In the tantric scripture Sochanda Tantra, stanza 13, is said:

'Touching eyeballs as a feather, lightness between them opens into the heart and there permeates the
cosmos.'

This is very true and is the basis of all yogas (unions). "Who am I?" continually asked while focusing the
attention between the eyebrows opens the heart chakra and awakens the kundalini. "Who am I?" destroys
the false ego-sense and allows one to separate from the "mask of personality". It was the only practice
really advocated by Bhagavan Maharshi.

Meditating in this manner causes a great turning about in one's life - a great awakening. Just like the first
time one awakens while dreaming and realizes, "I am dreaming and all this comes from me" so too does
focusing between the brow and meditating on self-nature cause lucid experience.

Over time, distinction between self and other disappears. One realizes there is no difference between waking
and dream states and one begins living in a lucid waking state. This is ultimately why Naropa advocated
"dream yoga" as one of his techniques.

To stimulate this exercise, I do recommend the yoni mudra chakra meditation or performing some hatha
yoga asanas before sitting to do self-inquiry meditation as the yoni mudra or hatha yoga awakens the
centers along the spine.

Most importantly, in regards to this post... Despite what the yogis in india and elsewhere may say about the
necessity to insert the tongue into the cranial cavity behind the soft palette, it is not necessary. Here's
why...

psychologists found that a person can learn to play the piano without physically playing it, they need only
visualize the act in their heads and the brain wires itself along the same lines as if the physical act was
done. I had a Tai Chi sifu that used to instruct us to meditate upon the form through the act of visualization
to improve our technique.

To make the nectar flow out of the head, direct the attention to the sinus cavity behind the soft palette while
holding the inhaled breath. The inhaled breath should be done starting in the area below the naval (sex
center) so that the energy is lifted to the hollow of the throat. One can then imagine passing the tongue
upwards into the nasal cavity and then toward the brow chakra. As one does this, with attention focused
between the brow and with breath retained, do self-inquiry "Who am I?" meditation. This effectively
stimulates nectar production with no need to slice the tendon under the tongue or practice iron tongue
technique.

When doing the in-breath there should be a feeling like a little balloon 4 finger widths below the naval and in
the center of the body being slightly squeezed. The breath should originate here and as it is lifted up, the
hollow between the collarbone should be felt to "cave in" slightly from the outside and a feeling of
enlargement from the inside. This breath retention technique stimulates the ability to visualize and
concentrate (located in the cerebellum at the back of the head, near the etheric gap between the brain and
the sushumna).
One can then pass into the brow chakra and feel the center of the head open up as if an etheric tongue has
snaked its way up from the throat, to the center of the head, thus connecting the 3 major head centers of
crown, brow and base of brain (which is like the substation for the lower 5 chakras).

When this accomplished. One may then begin breathing not from the center 4 finger breadths below the
navel, but begin breathing from the moool-da-hara (root chakra). with attention focused between the
eyebrows and the sex center aligned with the throat center, one can now feel and breathe the entire length
of the spine, unimpeded by the cherubim that stands guard at the gate at the East of Eden. This is why
bramachari (celibacy) is advocated in yoga. Of course, you dont need to be celibate, just quit indulging in
animal orgasm, besides it sucks compared to the higher form of orgasm which is initiated by lifting the
sexual energy to the throat and thence to the temple in the center of the brain, thus "transmuting the elixir"
to borrow a Taoist term.

If practiced properly, this will unify all the techniques mentioned in this post into one fluid movement. All the
chakras will align with the breath and the attention will naturally fall into its proper place. In doing so, one
may enter into samadhi in one breath.

This is the great deliverer from sorrows. One does not need initiation from a guru. One's self is one's guru.
There is only One Guru and only One pupil. Thou art that. OM TAT SAT.

In archeology

Lingam-yonis have been recovered from the archeological sites at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, part of the Indus Valley Civilization. There is strong evidence to support cultural continuation

from the Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan; Indus-Sarasvati) to Vedic and modern Hindu practices.[2]

[edit]Other uses

Yoni mudra used in Yoga practice.

 Yoni Mudra is a principle in meditation used to reduce distraction during the beginning of yoga practice.

 In the Thai language the sharp corner of the eye closest to the nose is referred to as "Yoni Tha" where "Tha" means the eye.

 Yoni is the vagina in texts such as the Kama Sutra.

 A child is born from a yoni of stars - constellations that prevailed during the child birth. The Aryans had identified some 50,000 astrological yonis that favour a child's birth.

 The Aryans used the term yoni in agriculture. A 'fertile yoni' meant a good harvest of crops.

 "Yoni" is also a nickname for the Hebrew name Yonatan, Yonadev, or Yehonatan.

[1] Shunmukhi or Yoni Mudra or Closing-six doors of perception:

 There are various titles for this Mudra. This technique of Tantra is related with
six doors of perception. The shun means six which implies here the two eyes,
two nostrils (considered to be one), two ears and mouth. These are senses
through which we establish knowledge of external world. Direct knowledge of the
seen world is only through these outlets in our body.

Awareness is externalized only by these doors. We close these sensory outlets

for internalizing the awareness for higher spiritual proposes. This technique is
from Tantra which is also called as BADDH YONI ASANA. Here term BADDH
denotes shutting off the six doors of perception.

All the benefits of meditation whatsoever; are achieved by diligent practice of

this MUDRA. It is very easy to perform this practice. It is remarkably effective in
divulging inner treasures.

[2] Shankh Mudra or conch-gesture:

Click Image to see full view

This word “SHANKH” derives form world’s oldest language Sanskrit. It means in
English the conch. The sound that comes from blowing the conch is called in
Bible LOGOS. It is a cosmic vibratory echo which is omnipresent. VEDAS call
this sound as OUM. Lord Krishna declares in Bhagvad Gita “Pranavah
serv vedanam” which means I am the OUM in all the Vedic hymns.

Shankh or conch has received much significance in religion. Hindu deities such
as Lord Vishnu, Laksmi, and Shiva are depicted with conch in their hands.
Tritons in ancient European civilization would use conch as declaration of victory.
Conch’s sound is present in subtle form inside us; it signifies an internal divine
cosmic articulate utterance.

[3] Bhuchari Mudra: Gesture of Emptiness:

 Click Image to see full view

This is a very simple Mudra which can be practiced quietly even in a crowd. It is
one of simplest, superb and effective practices. One can do it at home, office or
even at play ground but if you are doing at home it is better to do it facing to a
wall.

This practice helps achieve concentration and overcome anger. Whenever you
find yourself in stressing circumstances you undergo this practice you will
experience prompt positive effect.

[4] Mahayoni Mudra or Superb psychic-gesture:

Click Image to see full view

This Mudra technique is broadly practiced by TANTRIKS. The word MAHA

means superb or great and YOANI means womb, origin or root. This Mudra
deciphers the intrinsic union of human consciousness with cosmic
consciousness. It is not a mere symbol but its regular practice can bring about
tremendous change.

[5] Vajroli Mudra – Vajra Naadi-gesture:

This term VAJROLI indicates a specific Naadi which called a Vajra Naadi. This
Naadi connects brain and genital organ. This Nadi is also a path of
consciousness which is associated with SUSHUMNA NADI. This is directly linked
 with spiritual development. This Mudra helps convert sex power into PRANA and
achieve higher goals in life. It is one of very subtle Mudra and should be learnt
only from certified yoga teacher.

[6] Bhairav Mudra Shiva’s-gesture:

Bhairav is one of many forms of Lord Shiva. This form of Shiva is considered to
be terrible and invincible. In this regard His counterpart is called Bhairavi who is
known to be an important power of existence.

Tantra system lays a distinct path that worships this form of Shiva. There is a
scripture known as BHAIRAV TANTRA. This Mudra is mainly practiced for
meditation practices. This is a most comfortable Mudra to practice.

[7] Nabho Mudra or Khechari Mudra:

This Mudra is an inseparable part of Kriya Yoga. Kriya Yoga is a unique system
which was launched by great Guru Shri Lahiri Mahasaya. Khechari is a very
powerful and vitalizing Mudra.

People who practice this everyday become much focused self controlled and
strong mentally. Its history is unknown. A sect of Yogis which is known as Hath
Yogis, they practice this Mudra for controlling the breath.

It is a famous Yogic saying “control of breath is control of death”. Person who

has become master of his breath has overcome the fear of death. Life in womb
exists without breath because fetus’s tongue by nature remains in KHECAHARI
MUDRA. When he is born first time his tongue comes out from this Mudra and he
immediately needs breathing. He is no more self sufficient.

In the two sides of our throat there exist two organs they are called Carotid
sinuses. They are situated slightly below our jaws. They control the flow and
pressure of blood in the brain. If the blood pressure somehow goes lower then
these two organs immediately inform the brain centers. The brain then increases
contraction rate of heart beat and arterioles and consequently blood pressure
goes up. Likewise if the blood pressure goes up then these organs act just
opposite and reduce the pressure.

This Mudra exerts pressure in the throat consequently pressure on Carotid

Sinuses also increases. The word KHE means space and CHARI means move.
This means moving into space. In our head there is an empty space behind and
above our palate this is known as KAPAL KUHAR. We learn to roll our tongue to
enter this empty space. “KAPAL KUHARE JIHWA PRAVISTA VIPRITA GA” This
verse is from Hath Yoga Pradipika. It means Khechari Mudra is in which tongue
is taken back to the space behind palate.
[8] Ashwini Mudra or horse-gesture

The Aswini means ‘horse’. You can understand the relevance of this term if you
have seen the horse’s rectum. The horse keeps practicing this Mudra quiet often.

He contracts and expands his rectum repeatedly and rhythmically. Many people
have feeble muscles in the rectum which is often due to constipation and piles.

Aswini Mudra promotes the peristalsis of our intestine and hence helps to
alleviate these problems. It is much more effective if done in combination with
Shoulder Stand.

[9] Gyan Mudra or gesture of knowledge:

It is one of Hand Mudras. Recent studies of Indus valley civilization have

claimed to have found some images which are depicted with “Gyan Mudra”. This
indicates that this Mudra was common and in practice at least 3000 years ago.

This is one of Hand Mudras which should be adopted while doing meditation.
Though in starting it may not seem that important but from ancient times Rishis
and Yogis have emphasized hand positions during meditation and it brings
marked difference which could be realized when performed.

Hand Mudras help one awaken hidden inherent powers. The vital energy flows
out of the body through our finger tips. Hand Mudras are created to help PRANA
flow inwards and stop from flowing outwards. The outflow of PRANA stops by
uniting hands and fingers with the knees and it starts to flow inside the body and
gets condensed.

[10] Agochari and Shambhavi Mudra or nose tip and eyebrow center gazing.

Click Images to see full view

 The AGOCHARI means unknown. This word belongs to Sanskrit language which
signifies beyond sense perception. In another words this Mudra leads the
awareness traverse the ordinary limited sphere of awareness.

In the 6th chapter of Bhagvad Gita Lord Krishna teaches this Mudra to Arjuna for
obtaining steadfastness of mind. This Mudra also strengthens eye muscles and
helps remarkably eradicate eye disorders, however children below eight years of
age should not attempt this Mudra without expert guidance.

Written by Dr. Rakesh Kumar Singh [Yoga teacher]

http://www.yogarakesh.com/mudras.htm

Meditation - Getting Started with Meditation

Meditation is one of the Five Principles of Yoga. It is the practice by which there is constant observation of the mind. It requires you to focus your mind at one point and stilling the
mind in order to perceive the self. Through the practice of Meditation you will achieve a greater sense of purpose and strength of will. It also helps you achieve a clearer mind, improve
your concentration, and discover the wisdom and tranquility within you.

In the long tradition of Meditation, there is a great variety of different techniques - some using the power of sound and others using visual symbols of breathing. But all have a common
aim: to focus the scattered rays of the mind on a single point so as to lead the you to a state of self-realization. The most common used practice is japa - repeating a mantra. However
for beginners, we would like to introduce two other methods:

Yoni Mudra
Yoni Mudra is an exercise in pratyahara or withdrawal of the senses. The blocking of your ears, eyes, nose and mouth brings you to a retreat inside yourself. During the day, the mind is
constantly bombarded with information or stimuli from the five senses. Only when the senses are brought under control and the mind is no longer pulled constantly outward, can you
hope to be able to concentrate.

The Yoni Mudra Technique:

Close your ears with your thumbs. Cover you eyes with your index fingers, then close your nostrils with your middle fingers and press your lips together with your
remaining fingers. Release the middle fingers gently to inhale and exhale while you Meditate.

Category Concentration
As a Beginner, you may have some hard time keeping your attention focused on one object in the beginner of your practice. To train yourself to pay attention,
you can try narrowing your field of concentration to a category of objects first, where your mind still has a little of freedom of movement. Practicing Category
Concentration Exercise will hone your mind down to a finer focus and teach you the principle of one-pointed concentration.

The Category Concentration Technique:

With eyes closed, imagine a garden with a different flower in each corner. Start by exploring the qualities of one flower. Then, when your mind grows restless,
shift your focus to the flower in the next corner and so on. You should visualize each one clearly. By focusing on several objects, your mind is still given some
freedom of movement. Gradually, you can train yourm mind to rest for longer periods of time on a single object.

9. Khechari Mudra

‘Kha’ means Akasa and ‘Chari’ means to move. The Yogi moves in the Akasa. The
tongue and the mind remain in the Akasa. Hence this is known as Khechari Mudra.

This Mudra can be performed by a man, only if he has undergone the preliminary
exercise under the direct guidance of a Guru, who is practising Khechari Mudra. The
preliminary portion of this Mudra is in making the tongue so long that the tip of the
tongue might touch the space between the two eyebrows. The Guru will cut the
lower tendon of the tongue with a bright, clean knife little by little every week. By
sprinkling salt and turmeric powder, the cut edges may not join together again.
Cutting the lower tendon of the tongue should be done regularly, once a week, for a
period of six months. Rub the tongue with fresh butter and draw it out. Take hold of
the tongue with the fingers and move it to and fro. Milking the tongue means taking
hold of it and drawing it as the milkman does the udder of a cow during milking. By
 all these means you can lengthen the tongue to reach the forehead. This is the
preliminary portion of Khechari Mudra.

Then turn the tongue upwards and backwards by sitting in Siddhasana so as to touch
the palate and close the posterior nasal openings with the reversed tongue and fix
the gaze on the space between the two eye-brows. Now leaving the Ida and Pingala,
Prana will move in the Sushumna Nadi. The respiration will stop. The tongue is on
the mouth of the well of nectar. This is Khechari Mudra.

By the practice of this Mudra the Yogi is free from fainting, hunger, thirst and
laziness. He is free from diseases, decay, old age and death. This Mudra makes one
an Oordhvaretas. As the body of the Yogi is filled with nectar, he will not die even by
virulent poison. This Mudra gives Siddhis to Yogins. Khechari is the best of all
Mudras.

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 81

Ha...ha....ha....

Madhya Jihve Spharitasye Madhye Nikshipya Chetanam|

Hoccharam Manasa Kurvaha Tatah Shante Praleeyate||

Placing the tip of the tongue on the upper palate, in the mouth opens up the passage of energychannels that run through the Agnya Chakra (between the eyebrows) and the Sahasrara

(Crown centre of the head). Staying in this mudra, which is similar to the Kechari and chanting 'Ha' with the exhalation that follows a deep inhalation, the mind attains to peace.

- Swahilya Shambhavi

Fix your gaze on an object

Sthoola Rupasya Bhavasya Sthabdham Drishtim Nipathyacha|
Achirena Niraadharam Manah Krithva Shiva Vrajeth||
Take up a gross material object. Sit in front of it or place it before you. Steady your gaze and fix it on
the object. Very soon, your awareness merges with the object. The mind thus fixed, attunes to the
state of Shiva or the spiritual essence beyond matter. - Swahilya Shambhavi (In Pic. SS focussing on
the camera on way up Kali Shila, Himalayas)

Meditate on the space within a circle

Upavishyasane Samyak Baahu Krithwardha Kunchithau|
Kakshavyomni Manah Kurvan Shamamaayati Tallayath||
By sitting in the correct posture of keeping the body, neck and head centred and in a straight line, stretching the arms out to form a circle, focus on the circular space formed by the
hands. The mind merges in this formation and attains to peace. - Swahilya Shambhavi (Pic. Chaturagiri.)

Vignana Bhairava Tantra - 78

Seated in a relaxed posture

Mridvasane Sphijaikena Hasta Padau Nirashrayam|

Nidhaya Tatprasangena Para Poorna Matir Bhaveth||

Seated on a soft textured mat on one buttock, raising the other, relaxing the hands and legs, if one places the body in this manner at that moment, the intellect becomes united with the

Supreme completeness. Here a specific asana or posture is mentioned where you sit with the right leg folded and the left leg placed on the ground, over and away from the right thigh.

There are many such yogic postures when practiced in a state of relaxation for long periods of time, can take the being into deeper awareness and experience the complete supreme

essence. - (In Pic. baby Anushka takes her big toe to the mouth. Relaxation comes naturally to babies and hence hatha yoga postures too! - Text and Pic. Swahilya Shambhavi.)

Karankinya Krodhanaya Bhairavya Lelihanaya|

Kecharya Drishtikalecha Paraavaptih Prakashate||
Five Mudras of the Tantric practice are mentioned here. Mudras are postures of the body and mind.
They are to be practised only under the guidance of a Guru. Seated in a mudra and focussing one's
attention on it, the Supreme truth is revealed. - Swahilya Shambhavi.
Focus on the space around light
Tejasa Surya Deepaade Aakashe Shabalee Krite|
Drishtirniveshya Tatraiva Swatmarupam Prakashate||
The rays of te sun distributes many patterns in the empty space of the sky. By gazing at that empty space, or the space within the rays of a lamp that lightens up a dark room, you begin to

realise the presence of your self - the Awareness within. - Swahilya Shambhavi (Pic. Swasham, Sunrise at the
Marina Beach.)

Just before you sleep

Anaagatayam Nidrayam Pranashte Bahya Gochare|
Savastha Manasa Gamya Para Devi Prakashate||
Just at the moment when you are slipping into sleep and your mind is shutting off its association with the external sense objects just as the eyes close, and it is yet to fully fall asleep, take

(Pix. and text: Swahilya

your attention to the awareness that is present in the intervening period of transition. The Supreme Goddess shines there.

Shambhavi. Pix. A dusk-time view of a minaret in the distance on a Chennai

evening.)

http://vignanabhairavatantra.blogspot.com/

SEXUAL ENERGY CONTROL TECHNIQUES

FOR MEN

Sexual continence involves a total aware control of the sexual function during
lovemaking. This implies the total experience of the love fusion having the
possibility of reaching manyorgasms by the two lovers. This kind of love fusion
doesn't end with ejaculation for man or with an explosive discharge of the erotic,
sexual fluids for woman.
This technique is also known as coitus rezervatus (refraining the ejaculation)
or karezza.
Both lovers, changed between them the sexual energies, but they totally refrains
themselves from the orgasm with discharging of sexual energy. The man admits to
have the orgasm with ejaculation only when both lovers want to have a baby.

This kind of sexual fusion was named by Dr. Stockham "coitus rezervatus" or
"sublimated coitus".
Karezza recommend also taking total breaks during the moments of intense erotic
pleasure. During these breaks the erectile penis should remain immobile in the
woman's vagina, while the lovers are enjoying the mutual transfer of the erotic
energetic fluids.
Dr. Stockham stated that by this technique it is achieved the youth and life
prolongation. Also the vitality increases.

For women, the control of sexual energy is often spontaneously and implies in very
rarely cases a minimum training.
For men, the sexual energy control and the stopping of the ejaculation for long
periods (weeks, months, years) implies a gradually and perseverant training.

Attention!
The stopping of the sexual energy discharge, by the retaining within the body of the
sexual fluids of both lovers doesn't lead to the impossibility of procreation. The man
can have the orgasm with ejaculation when they want to have a baby. The
researches proved even that in the case of the couple that have practiced the
continence the babies are more health and vigorous.

What is happened with the spermatic liquid of the man that practices the sexual
continence?

Usually, this is the most frequent question raised by a man when hears
about the sexual continence for the first time.
Far being harmful, a long timeseminal retention leads to the
biological transmutation of the sperm and make possible thesublimation of
the huge resulted energy in the superior levels of the human being. This is
happened moreover if the retention is accompanied by adequate techniques
of raising energy in the superior levels of the human being such
as yoga exercises, intense intellectual efforts etc.
Therefore, by transmutation, the sperm is transformed in energy and it is
not stock leading to the somatic disturbers.

The benefic effects that accompany the practicing of the sexual continence
are felt different according to the power centre (chakra) that was awaken
and harmonized through sublimation of the sexual energy.
SEXUAL ENERGY CONTROL TECHNIQUES FOR MEN

 ASWINI MUDRA
 INTERMITTENT URINATE
 SLOW PENETRATION

Usually the men tend useless to cling to the feeble pleasure that they feel during
the orgasm with ejaculation. Even if they understood intellectually the necessity of
the sexual continence, they prefer to follow this instinctual way. This fact is caused
by the laziness, commodity, or simply by the less of their spiritual mobilization that
can draw them out of this morass of animalic sexuality.

To justify in any way his inferior tendency he will try to find various external
pretexts. In fact, the reason is only the animal tendency that comes from the
subconscious mental. For this reason, it is necessary, for those that are still
confronting with such inferior tendencies, a hard training, and an adequate inner
discipline.

In this sense, the yoga practice could offer the necessary and sufficient conditions
to successfully practice the sexual continence.

ASWINI MUDRA
One of the most efficient methods to avoid the discharging of the sexual potential is
to practice ASWINI MUDRA for long time periods. ASWINI MUDRA means the strong
contraction of the anus muscles and maintaining this contraction as long as
possible. This technique, which is extremely simple can be easily done in the "dead"
times during a day (during bus or car traveling, etc). Though it seems to be
something extremely simple, yet ASWINI MUDRA has amazing effects in obtaining a
very good control of the sexual energy if this technique is sufficiently practiced.

INTERMITTENT URINATE
This process implies the successively contraction and the relaxation of the urinary
sphincters during the micturate. The process permits to get the skill of control the
sexual mechanisms and to have the consciousness of some process occurred during
the discharging. It permits also to anticipate and to avoid the climax, to experiment
the orgasm without wasting the sexual energy.

Do not confuse the states of unsatisfying or impotence, when the man doesn't feel
erotic pleasure, with orgasm without sexual energy discharge, which it is strongly
euphoric and regenerating.
SLOW PENETRATION
To obtain a perfect sexual continence you have to start the intercourse having
a transfiguration vision of the erotic attraction between a man and a woman and
keep this transfiguration during lovemaking. Both lovers have to understand that
the sexual attraction has its roots in the primordial attraction between the
masculine principle and the feminine one; these two principles govern the entire
creation. That is why the lovemaking with sexual continence is a spiritual path
through which the lovers can immerse themselves into the primordial love that
springs from the fusion between masculine and feminine principle. Thus the
lovemaking with sexual continence is a way of rediscovering the UNITY.

Practical advices:
Do not rush and take sufficient time and a lot of patience and love.
For the beginning you have to learn to penetrate your lover very slowly and to be
aware of the pleasure states that occurs.

If you feel that the excitation increases very much, you have to slowly withdraw the
penis so only 1-2 cm of it remain in the vagina. Stay motionlessly in this position.
(In the case that you feel the ejaculation impends, quickly withdraw the penis, with
a suddenly move).

Inspire deeply, hold your breath; contract the pelvic muscles (the anal sphincter
muscles and PC muscles).
Simultaneously focus your mind over the sperm retention. Imagine your sperm
retention. Imagine that an inner alchemy force transforms your sperm in energy.
This will help you to avoid ejaculation.

Then focus your mind in order to sublimate the enormous energy that is contained
in the sperm. Sublimate it in psychic, mental and spiritual energies by letting the
energy of love to suffuse you.

After this short break, that can last 10-50 sec or more depending on your
necessity, you can gradually and cautiously resume the penetration movements. If
you feel that the excitation is still very intense, you can do many times the above-
mentioned method.

The method is also valid for your lover having an increased efficacy if both of you
practice it simultaneously (even in the case that one of them hasn't reached the
preorgastic level).

Attention!

 At the beginning you have to prove a huge will and tenacity.

  At the beginning it is better to practice the above-mentioned technique
sooner the preorgastic level than latter, when there are less
possibilities to successfully stop the ejaculation process.

http://sivasakti.net/articles/tantra/sexercises-art19.html

SEXUAL ENERGY CONTROL TECHNIQUES

FOR WOMEN

SEXUAL ENERGY CONTROL TECHNIQUES

For successfully practicing of the sexualcontinence it is absolutely necessary
to have a perfect control over the inferior instincts which pushes many
people, because of their weak will and of the absence of their profound
understanding, to be attracted by the temptations and in this way to waste
themselves being involved in a primitive sexuality practice.

For this reason, the practice of some special techniques is extremely useful
both for women and for men. Here it is a group of techniques easily to be
practiced, which can represent an important step in continence practice:

CONTROL TECHNIQUES FOR WOMEN

 ASWINI MUDRA
 INTERMITTENT URINATE
 URINARY ORGASM

In many cases, the sexual continence practice is spontaneously for women,

many of them practicing the continence without knowing this and testing
delightful pleasures of the multiples orgasms, without sexual energy
discharges, not exactly understanding what is happen. From this point of
view, the women are confronted with fewer problems concerning the
continence.

The woman can have multiple orgasms during lovemaking with continence.
Some women which are exceptionally gifted and very much erotically
awaked can reach hundreds orgasms in only one erotic fusion. Each times
the amplitude and the profoundness of these orgasms differs and in the end
the woman isn't anymore exhausted, but she is full of effervescence and
vitality. She has also an extraordinary inner availability to restart the
intercourse with an increased energy.
ASWINI MUDRA
One of the most efficient methods to avoid the discharging of the sexual
potential is to do, for long time periods, what in yoga terminology is
namedASWINI MUDRA, the strong contraction of the anus muscles and
maintaining as long as possible this contraction. This technique, which is
extremely simple can be easily done in the "dead" times during a day
(during our bus or car traveling, etc). Though it seems to be something
extremely simple, yet ASWINI MUDRA has amazing effects in obtaining a
very good control of the sexual energy when this technique is sufficiently
practiced in time.

INTERMITTENT URINATE
This process implies the successively contraction and the relaxation of the
urinary sphincters during the micturate. The process permits to get the skill
of control the sexual mechanisms and to have the consciousness of some
process occurred during the discharging. It permits also to anticipate and to
avoid in this way the climax, to experiment the orgasm without wasting the
sexual energy.

Do not confuse the states of unsatisfying or frigidity, when the woman

doesn't feel erotic pleasure with orgasm without sexual energy discharge,
which it is strongly euphoric and regenerating.

URINARY ORGASM
The reaching of the orgasm for a woman, even in many frigidity cases, can be
easily got if it would be consumed more liquids before the lovemaking than usually.
During the intercourse the woman should relax totally the urinary sphincters, like
for urinate. There mustn't be any worries or fears, because even in the case of a
very good sphincters relaxation, the micturate doesn't occur, but instead there
occur very substantial states of energize and set in the orgasm mechanism, so
contributing, in a short time, at the living of the ineffable orgasm state without
discharge. Thus, you can reach a very special type of orgasm, the Urinary
Orgasm.

Links in this section:

 Strengthen your sexual muscles!
 Fragmented Urination - One Of The Secret Method Of Controlling The
Sexual Energy
 Squeezing - A secret to avoid ejaculation
 Sexual Energy Control Techniques For Women
 Sexual Energy Control Techniques For Men

Top 9 Yogasana to boost your sexual health!!!

*SIDDHASANA:
Posture:Sit on the ground with the heel of the left foot placed against the anus and the right heel
against the testicles along the seevani nadi.
Benefits: Strengthens pelvic floor muscles awakens kundalini.

*BHADRASANA:
Posture:Kneel with the heels touching together beneath the testicles and under the buttocks, hands
placed on thigh.
Benefits: Strengthens pelvic diaphragm, thighs, knees and legs.

*MUKTASANA:
Posture:Sit with the heel of the left foot near the anus and the right foot placed on the left foot in
such a manner that it’s heel remains beneath the testicles.
Benefits:Strengthens pelvic diaphragm, tones up the lower abdominal muscles.

*VAJARASANA:
Posture:squat on the toes, placing heels beneath the anus and hands placed on the thighs with the
trunk and neck erect.
Benefits:speeds up digestion, strengthens the body, supports pelvic diaphragm which plays a vital role
during sexual intercourse.

*SIMHASANA:
Posture:squat on the ground on the toes with feet and heels together under the arms, with hands on
the knees.
Benefits:the body developes power and virility which means your sexual organs become more efficient
and more powerful.

*GUPTASANA:
Posture:sit on the ground with the left heel in contact with anus. then by lifting the buttocks, place
the right foot on top of the left so that the toes are concealed under the thigh of left leg, with hands
extended beyond the knees.
Benefits:cures seminal incontinence(low sperm count), improves circulation to genitals, cures ailments
of anus and genitals.

*UTKATASANA:
Posture: squat on the toes with heels joined together and raised under the anus, elbows placed on the
knees, while interocking the fingers.
Benefits: tones up pelvic diaphragm, strenghtens lower abdomen.

*KURMASANA:
Posture: squat on the ground with the heels on either side of the buttocks with toes touching each
other, elbows placed against the navel and hands clenched.
Benefits:develops abdominal muscles and pelvic muscles.

*BHAGASANA:
Posture: sit on the ground with knees bent as wide as possible, join the heels and bring them near the
testicles with the toes turned down and placed on the ground and heels joined and kept upwards.
Benefits:tones up pelvic muscles, lower abdomen and stretches thighs.
CAUTION: these asanas should be learnt/practiced under supervision of an expert only.
http://wellbeingconsultant.blogspot.com/2011/02/top-9-yogasana-to-boost-your-sexual.html

http://www.yogaforums.com/forums/f16/what-to-do-with-the-heat-generated-by-merging-prana-and-
apana-6289.html

Hi everyone,

I've learnt how to merge prana and apana at the navel to generate heat. I've also read that
this heat can awaken Kundalini.

Do I have to take this heat down to muladhara somehow? Or should I just remain at
manipura trying to feel more and more heat until it reaches muladhara on its own? Is it
even necessary for the heat to reach muladhara directly?

I've generally been taking the heat down to muladhara, and applying mulabandha to draw
the energy up my spine, but haven't found a way of getting the heat down there that I'm
quite happy with yet. If this is the right thing to do, I'd like to hear any pointers you may
have - specifically the route you use to take it down (e..g straight down from the navel,
down the spine via swadisthana, down the front of the body).

Thanks a lot,
Harry

In this instance Its not the action of the heat that directly awakens the so called Kundalini
Shakti.

Its the resultant condition of the body by using the heat that lays the stable ground so to
speak for the eventual "FULL BLOWN GET UP AND GO"

If your trying to move the fire around I'd study up on the subtle channel system, and
practice body scan to get a feel for how the prana travels.

it is the prana that moves the fire around.

Prana follows mind.

The Fire can get stuck.

You should be very familiar with the locks and the actions of the mudras.

And Very skilled at the finer points of inhalation, retention, and exhalation.

It is both a science and an art.

Hello Harry & Welcome to the forum,Thanks for posting,

Quote:
Do I have to take this heat down to muladhara somehow? Or should I just remain at
manipura trying to feel more and more heat until it reaches muladhara on its own? Is it
even necessary for the heat to reach muladhara directly?
I'm curious Where you get or got this idea of bringing heat down to muladhara? Intuition
perhaps? Excess heat pooling in one point or area perhaps?

What i do is generally-speaking is aim to open up the chakaras in asccending order and

balance the channels.

Burn away and dissolve impurities in agni,open up and purify the nadis.

I think the Kundalini can be a bit like a roman candle when & if you are ready to go
off,especially when manipura gets involved in on the act.. It is exciting stuff for sure.

Thanks for your reply.

I know how to move prana, etc, and am reasonably skilled at the other things you mention.

Do you know where I need to take the heat/how to "use it" as you say?

Thanks

I've been reading "Serpent Power" by Sir John Woodroffe. It's not clear (hence my question)
whether the heat is to be taken to muladhara:

Quote:
The natural course of the Apana is downwards, but by contraction at the Muladhara it is
made to go upwards through the Susumna when it meets Prana. When the latter Vayu
(Prana) reaches the region of fire below the navel, the fire becomes bright and strong, being
fanned by Apana. The heat in the body then becomes very powerful, and Kundalini, feeling
it, awakes from Her sleep. [...] Then it enters Susumna.
But Yogi Bhajan (not allowed to post the URL - google for the quote below to find the
source) suggests it does descend:

Quote:
After one inhales the prana deep (down to the navel point) and pulls the apana with root
lock (up to the navel point), prana and apana mix at the navel centre. This is known as
Nabhi Chakra or Fourth Vertebra. Heat is felt during the Kundalini awakening and that heat
is the filament of the Sushumana or central spinal channel being lit by the joining of prana
and apana. Below the Nabhi chakra, the energy leaves the navel and goes to the rectum (or
lower centre) and then it rises. This is called Reserve Channels. It relates to your Astral
Body.

The belly fire has nothing to do with the actual process of awakening the Kundalini SHakti in
the Zip. Get and Go Fashion.

Belly fire will help to purify...

You don't need to do mulabandha or Jalandhara Bhanda to stoke the fire.

Ashwini mudra. Concentration. Proper breath. will do it just as well and easily.

There are people who write things without really understanding them. Or they write them as
a ruse - to the uninitated. or they write them with alterior motives.

Well i've been working on the manipura chakra myself lately. I did'nt know it was the fourth
vertebrae.

Yes i have that book in question.

Apana & prana merging at the navel point on a deep inhale followed by kumbhaka along the
front channels of body is one of the techniques i'm familiar with to awaken manipura.

The heat often sounds like often to me like the burning away of impurites to me mainly as a
result of agni,digestive fire.As a result the nadis and prana can flow more freely. The mind
is clearer and so on. The quotes you have posted certainly do support each other.I have'nt
really given that book any serious study as there's a lot in it but it doess seem to talk about
laya yoga alot.

That's interesting you say that.I've experienced belly fire after agnisara kriya.I do think you
can use very subtle practices though to get things moving,& make the connections.Less is
often more.

Some techniques rather than every possible kind.

I generate this heat you talk about quite effortlessly by breathing into the abdomen and
then applying mulabhanda and lifting the energy into the abodmen.

Now my question is what is it for?

I find that for my first session of the day mulabandha and jalandhara bandha help to make
the initial connection. After that has happened I can ease off and apply a light mulabandha
or ashwini mudra along with correct concentration and breathing, and I can feel the heat at
will.

I have followed some Taoist practices, and they place a large emphasise on the union of
prana and apana and the resultant heat (Lesser Kan & Li as they call it). Unfortunately the
way I was taught, this was the practice - it wasn't taught as a precursor to meditation. As a
result I think I place a little too much emphasise on pranayama, and not enough on
meditation itself.

So would a reasonable approach be to circulate the heat for 10-20 minutes before
meditating for say half an hour?

Thanks for all the replies so far...

Try it just with ashwini mudra instead of mulabhanda. and use your concentration. Breath
into the lower abdomen keep mind in the lower abdomen. without using muscles...

its easier.

By using more force ( a combination of factors ) . . . perhaps . . . you can really get it
roaring!!!

Everyone and I mean everyone can do this. Everyone has the little digestive fire going.
Everybody.

You bring more "AIR" to the fire and it will get bigger and Hotter. A H LA LA !!!

The heat is part of the meditation is it not? You breathe during the meditation do you not?
Your meditation is the pranayama so to speak.

What are you doing this for?

To awaken kundalini?

Won't work for that but . . . it will purify....laying the stable ground. So yes, I guess in a
sense it can awaken Kundalini. But the Action of the heat itself is not the method to get her
up like Zip boom Bam.

no i will not give out the method...

When the time is correct it will come to all who are ready.

If you would like to be a block headed fool please by all means - go right ahead. But you'll
be sorry.

ala gopi krishna

whos book i haven't read . . .

That's fair enough. I just want to make sure I'm heading down the right path.

Thanks

THERE IS NO PATH.

IF I HEAR PATH, FINDING YOUR PATH, RIGHT PATH. CHOOSING MY PATH.

SOUNDS YOUR ON THE RIGHT PATH!@!!!

CHECK OUT MY PATH. I"M ON THIS PATH!!!

LOL

ONE MORE TIME

I don't what I'll do.

It so CLICHE!!!!

No path.

other ones...

Heart centered... ah flowers and rainbows. Yay...

Good Energy...

Lessons from the Mat.

and so on...

Uvula Exercise:

http://www.raysender.com/blog-1.html - to be viewed

http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=370

The hypothesis I'm testing goes like this: every night when we sleep, we enter
Nirvana - we merge with our higher selves or whatever you wish to call it. The only
thing is that we are not conscious to appreciate this
absorption into bliss. As a father and grandfather, I have noted how
babies 'sleep-nurse' -- make the mouth movements in their sleep, and
thought I would try it out. Over the past few years, I have tried to use this nursing
on the soft palette exercise the moment I awaken in the morning, and have written
it up on my website various times. This is the latest version that I placed on my
blog:
This morning I managed to start my waking-up nursing exercise earlier than usual.
That is, I began sucking on my soft palette and uvula while still half-asleep -- the
'sleep-nursing' that babies do. About twenty of these 'pulls' and I dissolved into the
sleep-bliss state but still remained conscious. Oh-my-gosh, what ecstasy! I went on
to do about two hundred more, ignoring the signals that I had reached my 'bliss
tolerance ceiling' (more about that another time) and by then my whole body was
in an indescribable state of flowing energies. I am not kidding you! And I am not
exaggerating.

One definition of stupidity must be to keep searching for something you already
have in your hand. That is exactly what I've been doing. I've been holding onto this
priceless gem of an exercise, 'polishing' it a little every morning (maybe up to about
100 'pulls' at most), but then dropping it when I hit my 'bliss tolerance level' and
starting my normal morning routine. I must be truly crazy. Here I am, sitting on at
least this one exercise that easily achieves a bliss state so intense that I have to
STOP before I melt into a puddle, and do I concentrate on it? No, I start wondering
what to have for breakfast, where the car is parked, etc. Insanity is to keep looking
for ways to enlightenment when I already have discovered at least two that trigger
my definition of Nirvana - that incredible bliss we experience every night while
asleep but we are not conscious to enjoy.

Anyway, I'm going to toot my horn again (I already have written about this several
times on my website). Perhaps I can convince at least a few folks to try this and let
me know if it works for them too. If not, then I'm just one very lucky guy that God
has taken under Her soft and downy wing. (By the way, if you are suffering from
any sort of heart condition, please check with your physician before trying this. It
really is a very potent exercise.)

When your heart chakra beams lusciously in all directions from this exercise,
whatever the head decides to do is not at all bothersome! My goal is to keep the
nursing-on-the-palette going all day today and see where I am by the end of the
day! I need to put some sort of reminder on myself -- maybe a rubber band around
my thumb? I'll report back tomorrow. No more dropping back down into everyday
humdrum-hood. I'm going for the gold this time! And I'm going to start setting my
alarm clock so I can repeat this morning's better connection from deep sleep to
nursing more easily.

P.S. From some feedback questions I received, perhaps I haven't described the
exercise adequately. Here's more, with an added variation:

I recently read that the pineal gland in the fetus forms not from brain tissue but
from the soft palette tissue of the growing mouth. This is very interesting, because
it suggests a connection between the two areas. Thus 'nursing' on the soft palette
may give the pineal a long-distance massage -- or at least a 'message'.
A SMILE helps this one along too.
Place the tongue behind the upper teeth comfortably, and then create a vacuum
between the tongue and the palette and suck rhythmically, allowing the vacuum
area to widen backwards towards the soft area and the uvula, that little fleshy thing
hanging from the back of your throat. Sometimes I first become very still until I can
feel my heartbeat in my chest, and then I suck in time with my heartbeat.
I think of the tongue as the uppermost petal of the petals of the heart flower.

Don't try this while driving or operating dangerous equipment. It can be really
powerful!

have thought before about the connection between nursing (sucking) and Kechari,
and I think that Kechari may exploit the important psychological, neural
mechanisms involved in the sucking of nursing. So none of what you say sounds
odd to me --- on the contrary, it is intriguing.

I am interested in exploring this stuff when I get a chance.

There is more --- the connection between meditation and nursing may be deeper
and more general. I've also considered that the effects of mantra may also exploit
such mechanisms. This is not quite as obvious, but sucking is rhtyhmic, and some
infants make a sound while sucking; the mantra may be a subtle nursing-suck in a
way.

Thanks so much for your feedback, David! All you say makes great sense to me. I
myself see a connection between meditation and regressive states where we move
back more and more towards that point where we entered the womb - the White
Light moment of incarnation.

I've had some feedback from others via e-mail, and I thought I'd post some of my
replies here as well, as they may help clear up some confusions. These replies also
are posted to my blog unde the title:

Further Along on the Nursing Exercise

I've begun to get more e-mails from folks trying the nursing exercise. One person
claimed that his cheeks and neck area became sore. I explained that he was doing
the nursing much too forcefully, and to back off and copy the ways babies suckle at
the breast.

Another claims to get cramps from the sucking action. I have occasionally
experienced a cramp under my chin, but not from this particular nursing exercise.
Once again, gentle and easy does it.

This morning I was able once again to move from deep sleep to sucking on my
palette/uvula directly. I found myself also drawing up on my anal sphincter in the
traditional mulabandha squeeze that yogani describes (same as the Kegel exercise
now popular for strengthening the pelvic muscles). I also placed all the action on
the inhale, so it felt like I was beginning the inhale from my rear end. This triggered
a pulling-in on the diaphragm and the raising of the chest. All in all, a kind of full-
body 'inhale/nurse.' Of course on the exhale I relaxed everything -- with a long
sigh. Ten of these proved quite rewarding, and then I went back to my usual
nursing exercise.

Also one correction: tongue tip placement should be behind the LOWER teeth.
i.e.
Place the tongue tip behind lower teeth comfortably, raise the middle of the tongue
to create a vacuum between the tongue and the back palette and suck
rhythmically, allowing the vacuum area to widen backwards towards the soft area
and the uvula, that little fleshy thing hanging from the back of your throat.
Sometimes I first become very still until I can feel my heartbeat in my chest, and
then I suck in time with my heartbeat. It can make a soft clucking sound in the
throat.

Again, don't try this while driving or operating dangerous equipment. It can be
really powerful!

I did get a chance to try some of this 'sleep-nursing' in the morning. One thing that
is happening for me is that I am getting into full Kechari, so it is hard to separate
the effects of the (new) sleep-nursing and the (new) full Kechari.

But my conclusion is that it does have a positive effect. It can make the sleep that
you do fall into better and deeper. The Kechari is having a lot of positive effects too
so I'm not sure which causes what.

I hope more people try it --- it would be interesting to see how it goes on the
average.

-David

Rajneesh used to encourage this too. I believe some people used pacifiers! The connection
made with nursing is obvious. I should imagine that most people carry a body memory of
great happiness from that, oneness with the mother etc which would naturally make one
feel good now if you can access that memory. This is probably also why men have the
breast obsession.

Stimulating the uvula is considered a way of restraining the mind.

Yes, the nursing connection is very much there -- I'm purposefully copying infantile
behavior (now there's a loaded phrase!) because infants are reported to stay in
theta wave state until they grow into alpha at three or four years old. And as I may
have mentioned earlier, I see a connection between deeper meditation and
regressive states.
I guess I'm going to have to read reports similar to Ruth Benedict's "Coming of Age
in Samoa" (haven't read it since my teens!).

I'm right with you on all that stuff about theta wave states and so on.

I'd like to say a bit about enlightenment and 'regressive states' -- I think that
children have, in a sense, an access to a sort of, shall we say, 'psychic kidney'
which eliminates psychic impurities, and it can be deeply connected to the nursing
state, perhaps theta waves, deep rest in general and so on.

Really, it is re-accessing this 'psychic kidney' that will help in enlightenment. I don't
agree though with people who claim children are generally 'enlightened', until
'society' essentially knocks it out of them, which I think is an enormous
simplification. But you will encounter that claim a lot. It's a sentimental, romantic
over-simplification. It's quite a mistake, because I think it is important for us to
understand that we simply inherit a lot of traits that are unenlightened and
destructive. This comes out pretty clear in scientific studies of young children. It's a
topic that people have enormous sensitivity on, and I can imagine I am raising
some hackles in saying this.

I recommend the book 'The Blank Slate' by Stephen Pinker, which deals heavily
with the nature of our inherited traits, and the historical resistence to the facts of
them.

What children have, that we need to become enlightened, is this 'psychic kidney'
which will purify us and help our growth --- it will allow us to continue a growth
process with myriad aspects, some of which simply stopped at some point in
childhood. There is nothing of real 'regression' in going back to continue learning
where you stopped (I know you are not saying that there is btw).

>> I guess I'm going to have to read reports similar to Ruth Benedict's "Coming of
Age in Samoa" (haven't read it since my teens!).

I think you mean 'Margaret Mead'. Margaret Mead's work has been discredited as
being simply totally inaccurate, so I'd stay away from that!

More power to you on your path to finding all you can of that psychic kidney and
that pure, innocent state.

Hi David_o - thanks for your last posting above. I'll check out the book. You're
right, of course, that we tend of over-romanticize childhood, but can utilize the
innate psychic connection we all had as infants. I thought I wrote more about this
in my last response than what actually got posted (I'm still learning the
eccentricities of this particular format), mostly about the weaning process we all
undergo and how it must trigger a deep sense of loss when we lose that connection
to the source of oceanic bliss that nursing/suckling triggers. I wonder if some of the
negative behaviors we see in toddlers (the so-called 'terrible two's) and even older
children are triggered by a deep sense of abandonment -- and also being 'shamed'
out of suckling substitutes such as pacifiers and thumb-sucking. ("Don't be such a
baby, etc."). I thought I wrote all this earlier, before I referenced "Coming of Age in
Samoa" (thanks for the correction) and my intention to look into how other cultures
might deal with weaning in a less-traumatic way, or at least what workable
'oceanic' subsitutes might be offered. It would be interesting to find a society that
allows the growing child to keep the original connection to the Source while still
learning all appropriate social skills. I imagine a very different adult might emerge.

append this quote from your earlier posting because today, in the second day of a
two-day enlightenment intensive with David Spero, I combined early-stage kechari
with the soft palette nursing I've been doing. Well, actually it turned into nursing on
my reversed tongue in rhythm with my pulse on the exhale while doing the
mulabandha and diaphragm-lift (udiyana bandha) on the inhale. Doesn't exactly
sound relaxed, but it felt quite natural, actually. The results were very encouraging,
to the point that I'm going to see how much of the time when I'm not talking I can
just park myself in this tongue-nursing position. If nothing else, the energy flow is
quite ecstatic and perhaps it will encourage my tongue to lengthen to the point that
I can begin to move it beyond the uvula. Again, many thanks!

Sorry not to have been here for a while, but I've been very otherwise occupied, although
still faithfully using the spinal breath as well as the simple exercise I posted here. Uvula-
nursing upon first awakening is still a heart-chakra-softening thrill. And the purr-groan
resonating of the trachea also works very well for me. I have something new to discuss, the
voluntary eye blink, but I think I'll open a new topic in the 'Other Systems' forum here.
Hope you all are thriving and achieving! And as always, many thanks to Yogani for his
efforts on our behalf!

Thanks for reviving this thread; I read the whole thing before seeing your post.
Brilliant.

I recently saw the film “Thumb Sucker.” It is about a high-school senior who sucks
his thumb. There is a great scene where his dentist/hypnotherapist apologizes for
shaming him: “I’ve done some research on thumb sucking,” he says, lighting a
cigarette, “and I’ve learned that it is harmless.”

During the film I found the thought of sucking my thumb repulsive. I wanted to try
it, but could not. After reading the thread and especially your sharing, I did it. No
movement, I just sucked gently (taking care not to press against teeth). I’m in
bliss.

Much gratitude. So much to learn.

Just study an infant sucking on a pacifier or nursing at the breast,

and tell me they're not experiencing samadhi.

from The Vigyan Bhairava Tantra

in Osho's edition:

suck and become the sucking # 52-D

OR SUCK SOMETHING AND

BECOME THE SUCKING.

in the "Zen Flesh Zen Bones" version:

52.
A.Lie down as dead. Enraged in wrath, stay so.
B. Or stare without moving an eyelash.
C. Or suck something and become the sucking.

Anandamides

Important quote:
How Anandamides Work

Anandamides are produced by our brains and bodies to achieve a sort of yin-yang biochemical
balance, and do not produce the extreme "high" of marijuana, Mechoulam says.

"They're completely different, from a chemical point of view, from THC," he said. "But they
combine in the receptor sites the same way." Anandamides are quickly broken down by the body
after they have served their intended purpose, and do not last as long as THC metabolites, which
remain in the body for weeks.

"The body, the way I see it, is made of compounds which enhance (biochemical) reactions and
compounds which reduce reactions," Mechoulam says. "Anandamide is basically a compound
that reduces activity; for example, it reduces the formation of many neurotransmitters that are
stimulatory."

Anandamides play a survival role for young mammals-their instinctive suckling behavior seems
integrally tied to the presence of anandamides. "If we block the system (from receiving
anandamides), there is no suckling," Mechoulam explains.

How did you discover this method? Was it by mere chance, by refining some yoga
technique or somth else altogether? I have tried it a bit and it seems to work. I
would call this method the true pranayama as it is so closely linked with our natural
body processes like nursing and snoring.

Bliss, I don't remember how I first found this method (embarrassed smile). I
recently found a one-pager I wrote in the mid-seventies abour purring -- I
was living in the country with a family of cats. But I filed the purr away and
did not resurrect it for some 20+ years (sigh, I wonder how many of these
insights have gone itno the file drawer).
As for nursing on the uvula, that came a few years ago when I remembered
the 'sleep-nursing' mouth movement I had observed in my children. I wrote
a little poem about it at that time:

“To seek enlightenment by separating from this world

Is as absurd as to search for a rabbit's horn.”
Hui Neng, The Last Patriarch

Hymn IV Her or Finding The Rabbit’s Horn

O Ma, who manifests first from the Unborn,

Your hungry children, lost in Lethe’s maze,
Wander caverns of the mirror worlds
In search for their forgotten infant bliss.
Obscured under moldering piles of sacred texts.
They cannot find the source, nuzzling your flank,
Or recognize your sacred musky scent.
Great Isis ('Eesees'), Mother, Ray Cow. Vak!

O Aditi, galaxy-creator, guide them

To your endlessly pouring font of soma juice,
Love-nectar that bursts open empty hearts.
Your nurturing compassion placed your nipple
Permanently within each groping mouth,
Yet no one reaches it except in sleep.
The rabbit's horn that Patriarch Hui-Neng scorned
Exists! Nurse on your uvula-teat -- awake!

The funny thing is that I found some photos of 'horned rabbits' at about the
same time.
For poem with horned rabbit photo included, see:
http://www.raysender.com/rabbit.html

I've been re-reading Wilhelm Reich, discovered of the orgone, for a second
time after a 40+-
year lapse. I won't go into why on this topic, but did find a quote in his book
"The Cancer
Biopathy" that seems a propo:

quote:

" At the age of two weeks, the infant experienced his first orgastic excitation of the mouth. (Reich's emphasis). It
happened while he was sucking: the eyeballs turned upwards and sideways, the mouth began to tremble, the tongue
quivered. Then the contraction spread over the whole face. After about ten seconds, they subsided and the musculature of
the face relaxed. This excitation seemed perfectly natural to the parents, but we know from experience that many parents
become alarmed when their child experiences oral orgasm. In the following four weeks, these convulsive movements
occurred several times."

(Don't run out to buy the book. The major part of it is taken up with
somewhat tedious experiments to prove the orgone particle's existence.)

If we accept the regression theory -- or david_o's 'psychic kidney,' then

much of this facial/mouth reawakening seems to hearken back to our
youngest moments on the planet.
I must confess that the 'nursing on the tongue' I mentioned earlier sort of
fell away and I remain with the uvula sleep-nursing gesture as well as the
trachea-resonating snore. On the inhale: HONNNGGGG (resonating from the
septum to as low on the trachea as you can 'reach'). On the exhale:
KREEEEEEE
with a good French gargled "R" -- maybe called a 'uvular trill' in phonetics.
(The human voice is so amazing - check, for
example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fricative_consonant

I've been practicing the nursing on the Uvula /soft palatte exercise and It's just
lovely... it's one of my favourite exercises along with mahamudra. I noticed that the
exercise is very good for insomnia as it shortens the 'falling asleep time'. I also
noticed that the effects get stronger if we are almost asleep. In short, I think you
made a great discovery and I certainly will pass the message...

I have a question though:

I can nurse on the soft palatte but I don't feel the uvula at all, can you give some
tips regarding this?

I could see how this is possible. During my meditations there were times when I
drew energy down from my head into my mouth, which at this time my mouth
started this pumping action. It felt like I was suckling my tongue which was pressed
up against my teeth. It was such a strong feeling that I took it that I was, as the
energy in my mouth seemed to flow downward with each rythmic suckle.

My three basic exercises -- no, four -- remain the same:

1) Nursing on the soft palate (as described in this topic)
2) The 'resonant breath' (snore-purr) http://www.raysender.com/snore.html
I also posted a three-minute video demo
here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvyW3-2QSeQ
3) The voluntary blink http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic....TOPIC_ID=518
and one that I don't think I've mentioned before on AYP:
4) Stimulating what science calls the non-myenlinated afferent nerves of the face
or the hairy parts of the hands and lower arms) by touching them VERY lightly with
something other than my own fingertips (actually fingertips work, but not as well
for the same reason that you cannot tickle yourself.) The corner edge of a sheet of
paper works well. When I first discovered this, it took me back to 5th grade when
I'd
use a pencil tip to trigger shivers by touching the edge of my nostrils. Ah, kids...!
What this particular touch does is light up the acupuncture meridian (nadi)
associated
with that particular nerve. And I do mean LIGHT UP - to the point that I literally
writhe in ecstasy. Wiggling my toes helps me control the overwhelming desire to
tweak
my nose, or something similar. I feel that I'm utilizing a 'tamed' tickle response to
trigger these ecstatic energies that truthfully I can only describe as a full body
(non-genital) orgasm that can bring me to tears of delight. More about this here:
http://www.raysender.com/thwizzler.html

And more about the umbrella OBEATA Project (Oceanic Bliss Easily Available To all)
here:
http://www.raysender.com/obeata.html

I should also mention A Planetary Sojourn, a recently published collection of essays

and stories:
http://www.amazon.com/Planetary-Soj...21302&sr=1-1

I pwomise to keep checking back, but meanwhile, Wishing all you illusory self-
refreshing pristine awareness embodiments-emanations a festive absorption into
the light!
(I found that phrase in the book "Buddhahood Without Meditation" by Dudjom
Lingpa and love it.)
While still planetside, that is. And if you're already absorbed, wishing you a double-
scoop
of your favorite flavor. I'm having mine today on an amrita cone! Why scramble for
crumbs
if you can sit in the solar paradise with all the buddhas and bodhisattvas, purring
and
thwishing your tail in delight?

Source: http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=370

vaginal weight lifting

Fri, December 31, 2004 - 10:15 AM

have you heard of jade eggs? it is an ancient chinese practice of exercising the vaginal muscles using an egg made
of jade that weights can be added to over time and with practice or sometimes several eggs can be used together

If you are looking to strengthen your pelvic floor due to a bladder issue then there are much more effective methods.
If your goal is increased tightness in the vaginal walls for more satisfing sex...nothing beat kegels and good old
fashioned sit ups (believe it or not). There is another item and I just can't remember what it's called where there are
two small balls that are connected and you insert them, and as you move, they basically hum....the movement causes
you to instinctively bear down. I will look it up. As far a weights go...again, without understanding your goal, if you are
interested as a palor trick...well, they are a great gimmick

There is a book called The Sexual Teachings of the White Tigress by Hsi Lai which I think covers this. I take classes
from the Chi Nei Tsang institute in Berkeley and they sell the jade eggs. Good Vibrations also has a vaginal barbell
and considering that my plumbing is on the outside that's as much as I can help.

I took the Jade Goddess tantra weekend with Saida Desilets in October. It's great practice. But i wouldn't call it weight
lifting. I haven't added any weight to the egg, but i could i suppose, since there holes to put unwaxed dental floss
through.
Check out her website, jadegoddess.com

. vaginal weight lifting

Thu, January 20, 2005 - 8:30 PM

I have a male body, not one of those high powered female bodies. But I know women who have done the weight
lifting, and I have done (and occasionally still do) the male equivalent.

The goal is not muscle strength, it is to pull the sexual energy (and possibly sexual hormones) into the blood stream
where they can be directed into the bones to cause bone marrow regrowth and calcium (re) deposition. The classical
name for this is "washing the marrow", some folks call it 'the golden bell'

Typically women start lifting an ounce or couple of ounces - you put a clean string thru a jade egg and tie a cloth bag
on the other end of the string ans put a few pennies in the bag for weight. There is obviously a whole lot of cleaning &
sanitation.

There are other practices using jade eggs for other purposes.

The small balls that someone else mentioned are often called "ben-wa" balls.

I got my jade egg at the Berkeley institute. I have used it only a couple of times. I don't recall anything about the
weight lifting aside from what George said.

Lifting aside, there are practices you can do with the egg in the vaginal canal that strengthens female sexual energy.

i hear that ben wa balls are good for long drives.

they are good for laerning to isolate muscles etc.

i'm not falimiar with the tools you mentioned, but an exercise was taught to me that was suppose to streanghten the
viganal walls for labour and after. it did work fantastically.

it's pretty basic in a physical sense, you just squeeze the muscles, hold and relax...or squeeze, bare down,
squeeze,etc.

good exercise to practice when you're sitting in front of the monitor,long bus rides, line ups.etc. i also found that as
good as it feels doing it during sex, it's a bit challenging for the man to be squeezed while retaining!

Ahh the ol' Keigel excercises. I think that Vaginal weight lifting is along those same lines and the same muscles are
used. Yes, that's a very useful practice.
so the question remains... what are the varied ways of doing so? i have heard of tribes that exercise labia. even by
bearing weight there must be muscles created to do so. I've also read and experienced lateral movement depending
on the heat let's say that moves the entire vulva upwards closer to the frontal body or lower towards those beautiful
cheeks we all know and love so much. There must be isolation capabilities there as well. There has to be more to it
than the ol'Keigel exercises...

Some of you Berkely folk may care to share more info wether i'm right or wrong, at a quantum level there must be an
association.

Have you read Cultivating female sexual energy by Mantak Chia. They have a chapter about it in there. I haven't tried
it, it seems a bit extreme, but it certainly is interesting.

I know a number of women who've done it, I've done the male equivalent, I learned it from Mantak Chia.

It works.

It takes a lot of time & regular practice.

I have done this practice.

I studied with Sifu Mcneil at Nine little Heavens: www.littlenineheavens.com
Big commitment, meditations, excersises, one being the jade egg.
dental floss is strung through the hole in the egg. starting with small weights, over time larger. there are patterns
It really requires good muscle tone!
followed by beating yourself down with a heavy metal wisk like tool.
It is an excellent practice,
I think Mantrak Chia teaches something similar, in the same lineage.
There is also a school in Austin Texas.
it is Jin Gui Chi Gong
U have to make alot of levels before U get to the bridge( or energy training as they cal it)
don't know for sure if they do the egg excersises.

What a great conversation gals and guys! Thanks, I'm learning a lot. I teach penatal and post partum yoga, so we do
keigels in class, but I'm deepening my own pelvic floor lift practice for other reasons, and it's great work.
thanks again - what a great tribe.

After reading Mantak and Maneewan Chia's book, "Cultivating Female Sexual Energy". I began doing the prescribed
breathing, visualizations and jade egg exercises. The book indicates that in over a year and with increased strength,
the practitioner should be able to begin using weights- gradually increasing increments. Much to my suprise, I was
able to literally lift and swing weights attached to my jade egg (with dental floss) during the first week! So, yes, it can
be done. Based on some of the previous posts and my personal experience, I gather that women have varying
degrees of natural (vaginal) muscular strength.

My daily practice includes vaginal weight lifting. My formal use of vaginal strengthening started in March of 2003 and
I've been working with my vaginal muscles everyday since. The exercises keep me constantly in a state of creativity
and orgasmic arousal. My practice has evolved to include breath work, visualization, the use of seed sounds, and the
circulation of my energy.

Prior to 2003, my only awareness of strengthening the pelvic floor came from my yoga asanas and using mula
bhanda in yogic breathing. In 2003, I learned specific exercises for the anal sphincter (aswini mudra), the clitoris
(vajroli mudra), and the pelvic floor, (mulabhanda). This practice allowed me to become efficient at identifying and
isolating each area. This is great for body awareness. I started to use a marble egg and learned to move and
manipulate it while it was in my vagina. This is an excellent exercise to do in preparation for being with a partner
during long periods of sacred sexual union while both are plugged-in (so to speak). The refined technique of
manipulating the marble egg is beneficial for the male while in this plugged-in state; the strong muscles and precise
movement of Shakti can milk the Shiva Lingham during these long extended periods of cosmic connection.

I maintained a solo practice of isolating these three areas, using my breath and visualization. When I had a regular
practice partner, he also had his own solo practice for activating all of muladahara (1st chakra) energy points. We
each had our own way of developing these practices to bring awareness into our body and to follow (with awareness)
our own separate electrical charges during our solo explorations. When we were together, we consciously studied the
movements of the anal, vaginal, and vajroli with each other. The combined practice was extremely academic. We
spent hours with eachother exploring the various muscles that were being used. We added breathwork to circulate
our energies. We had many specific exercises that helped us to understand where our energies were separate and
where our energies came together; and then reclaiming our own energy. Always though, the source of energy came
through intention and the excruciating minute awareness of the lift of the pelvic floor and our breath.

Obviously a routine like this takes dedication and a willingness to be open to just about anything that surfaces. This
type of work also makes one a strong container for the energy that enters from both heaven and earth. With this
practice, we become human conductors of energy, much like becoming a transformer. And indeed, we are
transformers! That is why the use of an egg for activating the sexual energy is the beginning of transformation.

I would like to add that there are times when I've come together with various males (who were not a regular partner),
for the occasion of specific sacred ritual. Even though we may never have previously worked together or met prior to
the ritual setting, because of our combined strong and dedicated solo and/or prior partnered practices, we worked
together beautifully. This is truly a Divine Affair.

So this is likely to be more information than anyone asked for. I just wanted to give an example of where an
intentional practice can take a person.

I'll make another posting with a lighter almost humorous note.

On a lighter note: blowing out the egg!

At a gathering of sacred sexual intimates, I had my egg tucked into my vagina so I could play with twirling it around
during the lecture portion of the program. When we finally had a little intermission, several participants gathered in the
hallway to discuss the content of the lecture. Since the lecture was too serious, one of my friends started to lighten up
the mood by cracking jokes using voice impersonation. Soon, he had several of us Shaktis laughing. Having several
women laughing around him inspired him to continue to make humorous comments about the content of the lecture.
We laughed more. Finally, my laughing became forceful and my egg blew right out of my vagina and landed about
twelve feet away from our little group. We all looked at it; there was a moment of mental processing and then
everyone come to realize that someone just lost their vaginal egg.

Needless to say, we were all almost peeing while laughing. Good thing we all had strong vaginal muscles!

i heard it makes them control the orgasm better, bring it upon better, increased pleasure for them and their partner.

I assume by "fertility awareness" you mean the "rhythm method" -- avoiding sex
during ovulation. That is one we have not seen mentioned here. Thanks much for
adding it.

Thanks also for bringing up the Taoist deer exercise for women. I was not aware
that it could play a significant role in birth control (see article below, dug up from
the web).

As with most things yogic, it takes an effective integration of methods to achieve

the desired result. Male vasectomy (or female tube tying), while certainly effective
for birth control, may not be panaceas. It is a matter of choice, yes? The more
information available for consideration the better.

All the best!

The guru is in you.

--------------------

Note: The below is not an AYP endorsement. Just "Grist for the mill," and plenty of
it too.

Deer Exercise for women and men,

from: http://iamthegoddess.tribe.net/thre...3f2983911e1e (see post by Jeremiah
on date shown)

Birth Control and The Deer Exercise for WomenTue, February 28, 2006 - 4:22 AM
I noticed that no one has mentioned the Taoist Deer Exercise as a method of birth
control. I recommend this exercise to healers as a method of self-healing in the
lower chakra and to allow them to hold more chi or kundalini or sehkem. Some
have reported that it has regulated their cycles, eliminated PMS and in some cases
actually turn back the blood. Please check it out and know that this is a daily
discipline, usually done skyclad and occassionally with a partner. There is a similar
exercise for men which you should read as well.. I'll paste it after the one for
women.
Blessed Be,
Jeremiah

The Deer Exercise for Women

As you do the two steps of this exercise, "feel" the fire or energy generated in your
sexual glands and feel it rise upward along the spine into the breasts and the head.
(Never try to use visualization to help the energy rise.) Linking mind and body is a
prerequisite for the harmonious and powerful functioning of vital energy. Bringing
this energy to the pineal gland in the head is the Divine purpose.

First Stage
1. Sit so that you can press the heel of one foot against the opening of the vagina.
You will want a steady and fairly firm pressure against the clitoris. If it is not
possible to place your foot in this position, then place a fairly hard, round object,
such as one of the steel balls commonly sold in boxed sets in Chinese shops,
against the vaginal opening. (You may experience a pleasurable sensation due to
the stimulation of the genital area and the subsequent release of sexual energy.)
2. Rub your hands together vigorously. This will cause heat in your hands by
bringing the energy of your body into your palms and fingers.
3. Place your hands on your breasts to that you feel the heat from your hands enter
into the skin.
4. Rub your breasts slowly in outward, circular motions. Your right hand will turn
counter-clockwise; your left, clockwise.
5. Rub in this circular manner for a minimum of thirty-six times or a maximum of
360 times up to two times a day. It will not be necessary to do 360 hand rotations
once a woman has succeeded in stopping her period. Less than 100 rotations, twice
a day, will suffice to maintain a suspension of menstruation once it has stopped. A
woman is the best judge of when she should suspend or resume menstruation.
Resumption occurs after cessation of the exercise.)

Second Stage This exercise can be done sitting or lying down.

1. First, tighten the muscles of the vagina and anus as if you were trying to close
both openings, and then try to draw the rectum upward inside the body, further
contracting the anal muscles. When done properly this will feel as though air is
being drawn up into the rectum and vagina. Hold these muscles tight for as long as
you can comfortably.
2. Relax and repeat the anal and vaginal contractions. Do this as many times as
you wish.
NOTE A You may insert a finger into the vagina when you do the contractions, to
determine the strength of your contractions.
NOTE B The lips of the vagina are sensitive and must be massaged and stimulated
during the Deer Exercise. Sitting on the heel of a foot or a ball serves this purpose.
Finger pressure also serves this purpose, but if finger pressure is used on the
vaginal lips, it is important to rub the lips and press each of the twelve pressure
points surrounding the opening in a clockwise motion. Alternatively, your partner
can rub the vagina. This is very beneficial because the energy that flows through
the hands of one partner flows into the body of the other. (In the man's Deer
Exercise, the woman can do the rubbing and holding of the testicles.)

If a woman finds it tiring to use both hands at once to do the breast rubbing, she
can use one hand on the opposite breast while the other hand rests. Or, the free
hand can be used to stimulate the vaginal opening in place of the heel. Another
method is that the man rubs both breasts while the woman rubs or presses her
vagina with her hand. As you can see, this is very flexible exercise which can be
adapted to individual preference.

The first few anal and vaginal contractions may be hard to do. Eventually, though,
you will be able to increase the number of times you can do it as well as the length
of time you are able to hold the contractions. When done properly, a pleasant
feeling will travel from the base of anus through the spinal column to the top of the
head. This is caused by the build-up of sexual energy and its movement up through
the glandular system to the pineal gland at the top of the head.'

The outward rubbing of the breasts is called "dispersion," and it helps prevent
lumps and cancer of the breast. It will also decrease the size of breasts that are too
large and flabby. Reversing this direction to an inward motion, so that the right
hand circles clockwise and the left hand circles counter-clockwise, is called
"stimulation" and its effect is to enlarge undersized breasts.

Do this exercise in the morning upon arising and at night before retiring.
When you practice the Deer Exercise, try to avoid touching the nipples. A woman's
nipples are very sensitive and easily over-stimulated.

If the exercise is done correctly, a woman will notice an increased sensitivity in her
nipples.

Menstruation

A woman's sexual organ system consists of four inter-related parts: the vagina, the
uterus, the ovaries, and the breasts. Their inter-relationship can be observed during
the course of pregnancy, childbirth, and nursing. Menstruation ceases during these
events, and the blood that would be lost during menstruation goes to nourish the
baby. After the child is born, the energy is converted to milk for nursing.
Menstruation resumes only when nursing stops.

So, stimulating the breasts whether through nursing or massage, as in the Deer
Exercise, actually stimulates all the sexual organs. Most women find the exercise
very pleasurable, many even reaching orgasm with it.

The Deer Exercise stops menstruation for the same reason that nursing prevents it.
When the Deer Exercise is performed, the body reacts just as if a baby were
regularly sucking on the breast. The body rushes blood to the breasts rather than
the uterus. Taoists refer to this phenomenon as "turning back the blood" because it
reenergizes the entire body, expecially the sexual organs.

For thousands of years, the Deer Exercise was used as a technique of family
planning. But its main use was for maintaining a youthful countenance. Historical
records show that women famous for their beauty consistently use the technique
even after giving birth to many children.

The length of times required to stop the menstrual cycles varies by individual. Most
women accomplish this within two weeks to six months, but some require as long
as a year. All that can be said is that if you practice the exercise diligently, it will
happen.

Women should not perform the Deer during pregnancy. The energy generated by
the exercise combined with the accompanying increased stimulation of the sexual
gland might induce premature labor. Using the Deer Exercise during the menstrual
period is permissible., In fact, it usually brings almost immediate relief from
menstrual discomfort.

Doing this exercise will correct menstrual irregularities. It will eliminate menstrual
cramps and strengthen sexual ability. If you do the exercise with more than the
recommended minimum of thirty-six hand rotations twice a day, — as much as 360
times twice a day — you can stop menstruation totally. But on one condition. You
must not let your thoughts wander to other matters.
When doing the Deer Exercise, it is important to concentrate on the divine purpose,
as it is very easy to become sexually stimulated. If the menstrual period does not
stop, practice the Deer more frequently. Work at it a little harder and concentrate
on the Divine purpose, even when the body becomes stimulated.

The Deer Exercise will not prolong a woman's fertile period. Menopause will still
arrive on schedule at the time specified by the individual's biological clock.
However, the problems usually associated with menopause will not appear.

The biological aging process will stop at the point where the Deer Exercise begins to
work. If you stop your period at age twenty, you will never look older than twenty
years of age. So as you can see, the earlier you begin the Deer Exercise, the
younger and healthier you will be. (This also applies to men.)

Furthermore, many students used this method to assist family planning. There were
extremely satisfied with it because no chemicals, surgery, or side effects were
involved.

www.nine3.com/DeerWoman.html
======================

The Deer Exercise for Men

The Deer Exercise achieves four important objectives. First, it builds up the tissues
of the sexual organs. Second, it draws energy up through six of the Seven Glands
of the body into the pineal gland to elevate spirituality. (There is a hormone
pathway that leads from the prostate, connects with the adrenal glands, and
continues on to the other glands.) Concurrently, blood circulation in the abdominal
area is increased. This rush of blood helps transport the nutrients and energy of the
semen to the rest of the body.

When energy is brought up into the pineal gland, a chill or tingling sensation is felt
to ascend through the spine to reach the head. It feels a little like an orgasm. If
you feel a sensation in the area of the pineal gland, but do not feel the tingling
sensation in the middle of the back, do not worry. Your sensitivity will increase with
experience. If after some time you still cannot sense the progress of energy, certain
problems must be taken care of first.

Self-determination is the third benefit derived from the Deer Exercise. If one gland
in the Seven Gland system is functioning below par, the energy shooting up the
spine will stop there. A weakness is indicated, and special attention should be given
to that area. For example, if the thymus gland is functioning poorly, the energy will
stop there. The energy will continue to stop there until the thymus gland is healed.
When the thymus is again functioning normally, the energy will then move further
up along the spine towrad the pineal gland. If the energy moves all the way up to
your head during the Deer Exercise, it indicates that all the Seven Glands are
functioning well and that there is no energy blockage in the body,. If you do not
feel anything during the Deer Exercise, a blockage is indicated. The movement of
energy can be felt by everyone if no dysfunctions are encountered.

The fourth benefit of the Deer Exercise is that it builds up sexual ability and enables
the man to prolong sexual intercourse. During "ordinary" intercourse the prostate
swells with semen to maximum size before ejaculating. During ejaculation, the
prostate shoots out its contents in a series of contractions. Then, sexual intercourse
ends. With nothing left to ejaculate, induce contractions, or maintain an erection
(energy is lost during ejaculation), the man cannot continue to make love. But, if
he uses the Deer Exercise to pump semen out of the prostate in small doses,
pumping it in the other direction into the other glands and blood vessels, he can
prolong intercourse.

Under ordinary circumstances, when the Deer Exercise is not used during
intercourse, it will be harmful to interrupt orgasm or prolong intercourse by
ordinary means. Under ordinary means, the prostate remains expanded for a long
time, unrelieved by the pumping action of the ejaculation, until the semen is carried
away by the blood stream. But the prostate is somewhat like a rubber band: it
must be allowed to snap back to its original form, otherwise continuous extension
will bring about a loss of elasticity. When the prostate loses its elasticity, its
function is impaired and it is damaged. The Deer Exercise prolongs orgasm and
intercourse, but it protects the prostate by relieving it.

The Deer Exercise is a physical exercise as well as a mental and spiritual exercise.
It improves one's sexual abilities as it builds up the energy reserves within the
body. Over time, the mental processese are heightened as well, and the outcome is
often a glowing feeling of inner tranquility, which is a necessary prerequisite for the
unfolding of the golden flower. This exercise may be done standing, sitting, or lying
down.

First Stage — The purpose of the first stage is to encourage semen production

Rub the palms of your hands together vigorously. This creates heat in your hands
by bringing the energy of your body into your hands and palms.

With your right hand, cup your testicles so that the palm of your hand completely
covers them. (The exercise is best done without clothing.) Do not squeeze, but
apply a slight pressure, and be aware of the heat from your hand.

Place the palm of your left hand on the area of the pubis, one inch below the navel.

With a slight pressure so that a gentle warmth begins to build in the area of the
pubis, move your left hand in clockwise or counterclockwise circles eighty-one
times.

Rub your hands together vigorously again.

Reverse the position of your hands so that your hleft hand cups the testicles and
your right hand is on the pubis. Repeat the circular rubbing in the opposite direction
another eighty-one times. Concentrate on what you are doing, and feel the warmth
grow. For all Taoist exercises, it is very important — indeed, it is necessary — that
you concentrate on the purpose of the physical motions, for doing so will enhance
the results. It will unify the body and mind and bring full power to the purpose.
Never tro to use the mind to force the natural processes by imagining fires growing
in the public area, or any other area. This is dangerous.

Second Stage — Tighten the muscles around the anus and draw them up and in.
When done properly, it will feel as if air is being drawn up to your rectum, or as if
the entire anal area is being drawn in and upward. Tighten as hard as you can and
hold as long as you are able to do so comfortably.

Stop and relax a moment.

Repeat the anal contractions. Do this as many times as you can without feeling
discomfort.

As you do the second stage of the exercise, concentrate on feeling a tingling

sensation (similar to an electric shock) ascend along the pathway of the Seven
Glands. The sensation lasts for fractions of a second and results naturally. Do not
try to force this with mental images.

Some teachings suggest that thoughts should be used to help or guide energy flow.
Those who make these suggestions misunderstand the nature of energy. There are
six forms of energy: mechanical energy, heat energy, sound energy, radiant
energy, atomic energy, and electrical energy. We emit electrical energy. The
electrical energy in man differs drastically from that used to run a house, for
example. The electrical current in the average house fluctuates at 60 cycles per
second; in men, 49,000,000 cycles per second. The latter figure is about half that
of light, which travels at 186,000 miles per second. So when a man starts to think
or breathe, the electrical energy will have already reached its destination. Our
thoughts, breaths, etc. are too slow to guide the flow of electrical energy.

What occurs at the unconscious level was not meant to be subject to the control of
the conscious mind. If the conscious mind interfere with something it was not
evolved to control — helping or guiding electrical energy through visualization,
thoughts, etc., — it can cause a great deal of damage. Its interference with the
natural progress of energy can cause schizophrenia, brain damage, and a host of
other problems. Taoists call these calamities "Disintegration into Evil."

The Deer Exercise is extremely safe — provided, that is, it is not supplemented with
techniques of other teachings. For show, various incompatible techniques are often
thrown together to create spectacular techniques, but the results are often
disastrous. Lao-Tse said, "My way is simple and easy." And true Taoist methods
ARE simple and easy.

NOTE A At first you may find that you are able to hold the anal sphincter muscles
tight for only a few seconds. Please persist. After several weeks you will be able to
hold the muscles tight for quite awhile without experiencing weariness or strain.

NOTE B To determine whether the Deer Exercise is having an effect on the

prostrate gland, try this test: as you urinate, try to stop the stream of urine entirely
through anal muscle contractions. If you are able to do so, then the exercise is
effective.

NOTE C Pressure is being placed on the prostate gland as it is gently massaged by

the tightening action of the anal muscles. (The anus can be thought of as a little
motor which pumps the prostate gland.) Thus stimulated, the prostate begins to
secrete hormones, such as endorphins, etc., to produce a natural high. When the
prostate goes into spasms, a small orgasm is experienced. By alternately squeezing
and relaxing the anus during the Deer Exercise, a natural high is produced without
having to jog ten miles or endure the side-effects of running.

NOTE D Do this exercise in the morning upon rising and before retiring at night.
www.nine3.com/DeerMan.html

Note: It is possible that either of the exercises copied above may cause excessive kundalini
energy flows, especially if being added to an existing daily routine of yoga practices --
particularly one involving mudras, bandhas and advanced pranayama methods. There can
be a risk of overdoing whenever adding "same in class" practices. In AYP, we call it the
"doubling up" effect. So be mindful of the risk and always self-pace practices as necessary
to keep things on an even keel.

The guru is in you.

My period is reduced to almost nothing....the "fall of energy" that used to happen

every menses is not happening anymore. After the death of my mother this fall
(when the bleeding went on non-stop for several weeks), everything returned to
normal for a few months. I have always been like clockwork when it comes to my
period. Every 29 days on the dot. This winter the bleeding slowly reduced and now
it is almost gone....just traces. The funny thing is.....I am not in menopause. I can
tell, because the rest of the cycle is there. There is not a trace of "irregularity".....I
feel very, very healthy.

So.....is it common, that the "circle" i find myself in (as to Kundalini) eventually
....thins out..... the bleeding?

Hi Katrine:

So it has been said in quite a few writings on advancing spiritual development,

including in the above article on the Taoist Deer Exercise, which offers a "cause and
effect" (practice) for reducing menstruation. It seems logical that an awakened and
advancing kundalini, by whatever means, could have the same effect.

Your experience could be due to a combination of things, as is so often the case.

Obviously, the strong emotions associated with the loss of your mother have had
an effect, as have likely your dramatic inner energy developments (kundalini) in
recent years. Pre-menopause can't be entirely ruled out either.

I can't go too far with this, because I do not have the direct experience to support
any conclusions. The main thing is that you are feeling well and moving ahead in
life and in spirit.

Perhaps there are other ladies here who can add perspective on this?

All the best!

The guru is in you.

I don't know about many women, but I know something about Amma, the hugging
mother. She stopped bleeding in her early twenties. I don't know if you have ever
met her, but to give you some idea about the "circle" she is in, if I am within 20
feet of her, I can feel it.

I just have to tell you......that 20 min ago I was sitting in my sofa enjoying being
alone and silent, when I suddenly felt a strong pull. The pull told me to turn on my
lap top, enter You Tube and search for "Amma".
I have heard of Amma once before(through the Australian woman that told me to
"stay home")......but I have never met her, nor have I ....inquired about her.

Anyway.....what popped up was a video where you see Amma hugging (or I'd
rather call it 'pouring....radiating.... her love through touching........embracing
'another'). It was so........effortless. So joyous.....so compassionate. So very
simple. It makes you smile and your eyes become stars.

I sat still for a few moments afterwards. Then I clicked on the AYP Forum in my
Favorites......and up popped you, Christi. And your words on Amma

The call....the pull..... to continuously.......touch the ones in need is very deep felt.
How it will be done, I don't know. All i know is that it will be done with this body.
Although there is poetry, music, writings......these are.....secondary. Not in value,
but in.....fact. Since the 'instancy' of what is written is....lost....while as the very
fact of the shine is ....immediate information. The shine.....speaks....a silent
language. It can be transmitted. I am sure of it.

I pray to the shine........I keep asking it permission to.....do its work. It is all that
matters to me. I am here for my daughters, of course....this is very
important....this is indeed naturally any mothers....loving obligation.....not a
duty...just a natural outcome. This has - up until now - been my primary work. But
my daughters are almost grown. They are ready to share. And I am ready to
expand the field of......responsibility.

So thank you for bringing up Amma. Not for the importance of the stopping of the
bleeding; but for bringing her light to my attention. I will call her name.

I've been looking info on relationship between kundalini awakening and

menstruation thining or stopping through the sexual yoga my wife and myself
practice. This domain is not very well documented but our personal experience
confirms that left hand tantra changes menstruation patterns and ease a lot pre-
menopause syndrom.

Some schools even say that mastering menstruation can be an equivalent sign or
marker to mastering semen retention for a man. They even go deeper by saying
that menopause can be used as kundalini awakening system.

It is also interesting to use menstruation blood to deepen a spiritual bond with your
spouse which is a very powerful magick practice.

Vajroli Yoga Exercises

According to articles at AllGoodThings.com and the yoga section of Holisticcare.com, vajroli mudra, the
"thunderbolt posture" is a specific yoga posture that works the core muscles while strengthening the reproductive
and urinary systems. Used in the pranayama and tantra traditions, it is associated with reproductive health and sexual
prowess.

Abdominal Crunch

Develop your abdomen to be ready for the full vajroli exercise by starting with a simple abdominal crunch. Lie on
your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Although traditional yoga says to clasp your hands behind
your head, personal trainers including "Body for Life" author Bill Phillips recommend placing your hands flat on the
side of your head to avoid neck strain. Exhale as you lift your upper back off the floor. Inhale as you lower yourself
back to the floor.

Head-to-Knee Pose

Develop your core flexibility to the point that you can do the full vajroli by practicing the head-to-knee pose. Sit on
your bottom with one leg extended and the other bent, your foot touching your opposite leg just above the knee.
Inhale as you reach upward with your arms, to lengthen and open the spine. Let your hands drop to the sides of your
thigh of your extended leg. Lean forward from the hip, opening your spine and torso, as far as your body will let
you. Hold the pose for one to three minutes, and then contract your core muscles and inhale to return to an upright
seated position. Perform this sequence with each leg extended.
Full Vajroli Mudra

Begin lying on your back with your body aligned and relaxed. Rest your arms on either side of your body with your
palms flat on the floor. Focus on the core muscles in your abdomen. Inhale deeply. As you exhale, raise your
straight legs and straight upper body, balancing on your palms and sits bones. Hold the posture and your breath,
remaining as still as possible. Inhale as you relax back to the lying down position. Repeat the exercise five to six
times either as a discipline of its own or as part of a longer routine.