Shakti as Drug - Food For Thought
Pendragon
Greetings to all. I'm working on an article for the web site and would
like some feedback. This article is in part an attempt to answer many
people who have written the site trying to figure out how someone like
Muktananda (the question is never about Chid) can have so much "spiritual
power" (and have such a positive effect on people spiritually) and yet
have done things that are harmful to people.
Pendragon
PS It's about 3/4's done, while I have some more thoughts for it, I
thought I'd post it now to give the newsgroup something other than Bhaskar
to focus on. It appears he may be accomplishing his goals - create a lot
of discussion that can't really go anywhere. Now why would he want to do
that?
Anyway here it is:
I am the first to admit that I am not a Sanskrit scholar nor have I read
all the books on Kundalini. I did participate in Siddha Yoga for many
years and have explored other spiritual groups, Hindu and non-Hindu. As a
result I do have some observations that have helped me make sense of some
of the allure of Siddha Yoga and spiritual communities in general. Here I
wish to discuss the concept of shakti as an intoxicant and like drugs can
cause problems in ones life if misused.
I will start this article with the following assumptions:
1. Shakti is a universal phenomena and most cultures have some sort of
relationship to it. It is called different things: Chi, Spiritual Energy,
Holy Spirit, etc. Some of the traditions that report use of shakti are
Christianity (especially Quakerism and Pentecostalism), Sufism, Qabalistic
mysticism, alchemy and magic.
2. Shakti is a natural phenomena, like fire, water, air, earth, etc.
3. It is neither "good" or "bad". Rather any value judgement placed upon
this energy or force should come from how it is used or misused.
4. Spiritual groups project upon this energy, it's own ideas of what this
energy is. Some groups consider the energy to be 'self-aware'. I do not.
5. Some individuals have developed the ability to transmit and / or
manipulate shakti or energy with others, with "good" and "bad" results.
6. Shakti comes in different 'degrees of purity'. In this sense, one's
ability to perceive, feel, transmit energy may differ based on how close
one can get to the source. Just as gold can be found in pure form or in
smaller amounts in rock. Gold can also be rated in the degree of gold
7. Seventh, shakti can be used to heal or to get 'high' and like a drug
can have positive effects and can be abused.
Shakti is an energy or a power. It is also considered an entity in the
Hindu theology, see the following definition:
Shakti (Sanskrit, "power"), in Hinduism, the power of a goddess. Every
male god is said to have his shakti, the embodiment of his own potencies,
expressed through his consort; and every human being has a shakti,
although women have more than men. The name Shakti is used for the supreme
goddess herself, said to have been created by the merging of all the
powers (shaktis) emitted by the male gods, who needed her to kill the
buffalo demon Mahisha. As the deity of Tantric Hinduism, Shakti is
worshiped at shrines said to have arisen from the parts of her dismembered
corpse.
For our purposes though, I proceed under the assumption that shakti is a
natural energy, neither good or evil, but like fire, can be used for
helpful or for destructive means. I also believe that shakti is very
similar to drugs. I do not believe that shakti is self-aware as Siddha
Yoga would have us believe. Rather, Siddha Yoga is self-aware and uses
shakti to it's own ends.
First a word about addiction. There are two general types of addictions,
substance and process. Substance addiction would include food, alcohol and
a multitude of drugs. Process addiction would include sex, co-dependency,
exercise, work-alholism, gambling, etc. Either substance or process
addictions have similarities. The major difference is that a process
addiction is about a specific activity. However, while there are no
specific substances related to process addictions, there are very real
chemical reactions in the brain that causes a real level of intoxication.
Their misuse and continued abuse cause the same results:
1. Lack of ability to deal with feelings and clear thinking
2. Use of denial and minimization to rationalize continued use
3. Harmful physical, emotional or mental effects
4. Continued use despite negative consequences
5. Concern from family and friends about the self-destructive behavior of
the abuser
Let's take opiates as an example. Opiates are natural occurring substances
that have also been synthesized by man. They release endorphins in the
brain causing euphoria. Endorphins are naturally occurring chemicals in
the body, that stop pain, emotional and physical, and cause euphoria, a
sense of well being. Some individuals become addicted to these
drugs/endorphins, needing more and more to get the same 'high'. People who
are truly ill can however take large doses of opiates and not become
addicted. Opiates clearly have their place in society. Some people use
opiates recreationally, and do not become addicted. Endorphins can also be
released by sex, eating chocolate and exercising. People can become
addicted to these processes just as easily as becoming addicted to these
substances.
Food addiction may be a better example. Assuming that shakti or chi is an
integral part of being alive, we all need some of it to be alive and
healthy, food plays a similar role. In the respect that food is a
necessary item, it is often considered the most difficult addiction. You
can stop using drugs, you can not stop eating. Overeating, for example,
causes an feeling of numbness and causes obvious health problems.
How many times have you said or heard someone say after a long chant or
meditation that they felt "stoned"? Referring to the '60's reference of
using drugs, there are many similarities between the two. At the same
time, the spiritual communities would have you believe that their 'high'
is safer and cleaner than drugs. I have serious doubts about that.
Shakti, as generated by chanting and meditating, easily moves a person
beyond 'uncomfortable' feelings. We are told that it is 'good' because we
are moving beyond those feelings, that we are 'purifying' them. And yet,
it never seems to stop. The 'feelings' keep coming back and we keep
chanting and meditating to purify them and to get high. I can remember
incredible ecstatic experiences that truly transformed me, for a time. The
interesting thing was that when I returned home after a visit at the
ashram, the normal range of feelings always returned. We were told to
attend the local center and do daily japa (another way of generating
shakti or a change in mood) to stay in touch. Mostly we are told to come
back, at a significant cost.
I am not against all chanting and meditation, but believe that if it is to
be used it should be in balance with the other aspects of our lives. Do we
attend to our feelings? Do we attend to our physical needs? Are we using
shakti to avoid the painful realities of our life?
With the use of shakti, we are given the social reinforcements and
supports to continue the 'spiritual' practices! We are told and we tell
ourselves how special we are because the rest of the world doesn't have
the same experiences we do. We develop an all knowing look and language to
support our use of shakti.
Just as people who have addiction problems, we also develop symptoms of
abuse that get in the way of our daily functioning. Some of these might
include:
1. Use of shakti to avoid feelings and critical thinking
2. Spending money we don't have to attend another program, to get another
'hit'
3. Isolate ourselves from others who do not use shakti
4. Lie to support the organization that delivers the shakti
5. Developing a dependency upon the person (guru) and the organization
that delivers the shakti
6. Breaking the law (physical and sexual assaults on individuals, forging
documents, smuggling items into India and the US) under the guise of
protecting the shakti
7. Use of shakti to develop open and receptive states in people, then
'programming' them with the goals of the organization
8. Developing illness by not getting enough sleep in search of shakti
9. Call in sick at work to do seva, to get ready for a program and more
shakti
I have also observed shakti used to heal. I remember having the flu and
attending a spiritual healing center. The healer 'worked on me' and I felt
a strong energy, similar to but not exactly the same type of energy I had
felt at the Siddha Yoga ashram. Almost immediately, I began to feel
better. This healer had been trained to do 'spiritual healing'. She
clearly 'channeled' some energy to me and I felt better. I've had other
instances of healing from individuals who channeled energy. It seems to me
that if energy can be used to help can't it be used to hurt?
ByeSY
Pendragon,
It sounds like your article on the shakti is going to open up discussion of
that energy in a more immediate, useful, and practical way than I have been
accustomed to seeing. I've always associated the term (I first heard it in
sy) with talk of god and guru and who gives it, controls it, gets it and
doesn't get it. In other words, it has always seemed to me to be something
inaccesible to me through ordinary means in my day to day life. This is simply
because I had never thought of it as the same energy I was encountering in my
experiences of art, music, friendship, love-making and work. It all seems
obvious to me now, of course.
The idea of shakti as drug is an interesting one although I'm not sure I
want to think of this energy as being just the effect of more
neurotransmitters. Perhaps it is, but I prefer to think of it more as a vital
or animating force which is experienced more immediately whenever we engage in
life-enhancing activities.
Anyway, thanks for taking on the task and I look forward to seeing the end
result.
Regards......ByeSY