Kundalini Yoga [Paperback]

Shakta Kaur Khalsa (Author)

Book Description

Series: Whole Way Library | Publication Date: December 1, 2000

The first complete and fully illustrated guide to Kundalini available!

Kundalini comes from the Indian word kundal, which means "lock of hair from the beloved." The uncoiling of this "hair" is the awakening of the kundalini, the creative potential that already exists in every human. The yoga in this book is a sampling of the vast wealth called Kundalini Yoga. Here you learn about the branch of yoga based on the teachings of Yogi Bhajan, Ph.D., who brought Kundalini Yoga from India to the West in 1969. Master yoga teacher and author Shakta Kaur Khalsa demonstrates how Kundalini Yoga works for everyday life and every person. You are not required to be in perfect physical shape or share any particular belief system. Kundalini Yoga works for you if you can breathe and move your body! In this type of yoga, the most important thing is experience. Your experience goes right to your heart, your core. These ancient teachings are designed to give you a hands-on approach to experiencing your deepest emotions and highest consciousness. By approaching Kundalini Yoga with openness and respect, and by following the steps included in this book, you can change and enrich your life.

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

If I were to name one thing that has done the most to change my health, my outlook, and my life for the better, without hesitation I would say Kundalini Yoga. Enjoy the book with my best regards, and be sure to check out the Music and Mantra Companion CD that I produced as the perfect complement to the Kundalini Yoga book.

About the Author

Shakta Kaur Khalsa has practiced and taught yoga since 1975. She is a certified Kundalini Yoga instructor and an AMS-certified Montessori educator. She is the author of Fly Like a Butterfly: Yoga for Children and The Five-Fingered Family and has written numerous articles about yoga and healthful living for many publications, including Mothering Magazine and Washington Parents. She lives in Virginia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT; 1st edition (December 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789467704
• ISBN-13: 978-0789467706
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,846 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Illustrated Visual Instructional Book on Kundalini Yoga, March 8, 2001

By 

Donna Venuchekov (Oakton, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kundalini Yoga (Paperback)

I found this book to be just what excerpt on the back cover of the book states, it is an illustrated instructional book on Kundalini Yoga. This is not a book on yogic philosophy and lifestyle. Shakta Kaur Khalsa has written a great visual guide book on what Kundalini Yoga is, showing real people performing Kundalini Yoga. These photographs depict what you would do if you attended a Kundalini Yoga class. I found that these pictures give the reader excellent visual instructions on the specific nuances of how the Kundalini Yoga breathing, Mudras, and Kriyas are performed. This Kundalini Yoga book serves the following purposes, it gives the reader a clear picture of what they would be doing if they attended a Kundalini Yoga class. It also serves as a cheat sheet to help the Kundalini Yoga student who attends class to review the postures and be able to do them at home on their own, without the Yoga teacher, and it also serves as a guide to share with a spouse, children, or friends who may want to join you in doing Kundalini Yoga. If the readers is interested in finding out what Kundalini Yoga is about, or if they would like to have a visual reference for what is done in a Kundalini Yoga class, or a book of photographs which demonstrate Kundalini Yoga Kriyas, I would highly recommend this book. If the reader is looking to read about the Kundalini Yogic philosophy and lifestyle I would recommend they purchase, "Kundalini Yoga The Flow of Eternal Power" by Shakti Parwha Kaur Khalsa. "Kundalini Yoga The Flow of Eternal Power" covers Kundalini Yogic philosophy and lifestyle in great detail. "Kundalini Yoga" by Shakta Kaur Khalsa is just what the book states it is, a visual instructional book on what Kundalini Yoga is and how Kundalini Yoga is performed.

58 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars excellent introduction to kundalini yoga, June 12, 2006

By 

Nicholas Van Borst (new york) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kundalini Yoga (Paperback)

I was very satisfied with this book. I own a lot of different introductory books about hatha yoga, and this is definitely one of the best. in addition to the exercises, it contains excellent explanations of the underlying concepts and foundational techniques, it doesn't just contain a bunch of poses or a few sets, but gives you a wide variety of exercise sets and meditations a long with descriptions of the benefits and purpose of each one. the book provides a great deal of flexibility and room for experimentation, which is extremely rare in a "beginner's text." the photographs and instructions are clear and of high quality, and the book provides a good introduction to the practices and lifestyle of Yogi Bhajan's devotees.

some points of clarification may be warranted from the reviews of the other readers. first of all, "kundalini yoga" as referred to her is the name given by Yogi Bhajan to the style of yoga he developed. it is not the same as the various forms of yogi developed within hinduism expressly oriented around the development of divinity through the cultivation of kundalini. this form of "kundalini yoga" is modern, and bears a much stronger resemblance to hatha yoga than it does hindu kundalini yogis, which are primarily meditative. like hatha yoga, as taught by Swami Sivananda and the Ashtanga lineage and others, Kundalini Yoga represents a fully developed spiritual system and set of lifestyles practices. however, unlike other popular forms of hatha yoga, kundalini yoga is not grounded in Hindusm. also, whereas other types of yoga are some times taught with an emphasis placed on the exercise aspects, with the spiritual and lifestyle aspects deemphasized, Kundalini Yoga is always taught as a complete system.

a great deal of controversy surrounds Kundalini Yoga, 3HO and Yogi Bhajan. as one other reviwer wrote, a number of scandals have occurred within the community over the last thirty years, and these are chronicled on Rick Ross's website. however, a self-proclaimed deprogrammer and cult investigator, Rick Ross himself is a controversial figure and has been investigated and sued on a number of occasions. none of the actions following from Yogi Bhajan's alleged misconduct ever resulted in a conviction.

finally, Yogi Bhajan's credentials as a yogi teacher have been called into question, as has his claim to be the spiritual representative of the Sikhs in the Western hemisphere. these allegations are more or less true. Yogi Bhajan's lineage is completely unknown and many of his teachings violate the basic tenets of Sikhism. to my knowledge, Sikhs do not practice hatha yoga, and many of the beliefs and techniques in Yogi Bhajan's system were clearly borrowed from Hinduism.

all that said, I and many people I know have practiced Yogi Bhajan's Kundalini Yoga for years and have found it to be healthy and emotionally and spiritually uplifting. on that grounds, I recommend this book to anyone interested in yoga, spirituality and mind-body exercise. with regard to the other issues, I suggest you draw your own conclusions about 3HO and Yogi Bhajan, without being overly swayed either by his devotees or his critics.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book!!, July 3, 2001

By 

scott heiple (norman, OK USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kundalini Yoga (Paperback)

Having started Kundalini Yoga in Feb. of this year (2001), I was anxious to "bring home" my practice of Kundalini Yoga. My teacher is wonderful and recommend this book because I wanted to find or learn some thing so that I could do my exercies at home. Kundalini Yoga, by Shakta Kaur Khalsa, was my answer. This book is the very very best at introducing, explaining and depicting exercies, mudras and medidations relating to Kundalini Yoga, the Yoga of Awareness. The pictures are colorful, clear and the directions are precise and easy to read. I, we, are all lucky to have such an author to give us such great work and allow us to bring home our daily practice of Kundalini Yoga. My hat is off to this book and its context. Thank you.

Sat Nam

Scott Heiple Norman, Oklahoma