Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man (Gopi Krishna)
Kundalini Krapola
[My 1-star Amazon review (NDA) of “Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man†by Gopi Krishna)
I first read this book more than forty years ago after I had intensely awakened Kundalini and was suffering from a Kundalini disorder. I thought this book was hokum then, and now, after re-reading it, I still think it’s hokum. I’ve battled with the Serpent Power for four decades now, and eventually I’ll write a detailed account of my story, which isn’t anything like Gopi Krishna’s, which I think is fiction. My guess is that Gopi Krishna figured there was some serious coin to be made peddling a Kundalini story – and how right he was, as this initial text was just the tip of the iceberg for the many books he would author on the subject, and the many presentations he would provide.
The writing and descriptions of his experiences are so aureate and grandiloquent, so overblown and pretentious, it’s almost comical. Moreover, there is no depth, no real understanding of mysticism and Kundalini-Shakti relative to the Self-awakening, or En-Light-enment process. Here’s a typical Gopi Krishna paragraph:
"The illumination grew brighter and brighter, the roaring louder, I experienced a rocking sensation and then felt myself slipping out of my body, entirely enveloped in a halo of light...I felt the point of consciousness that was myself growing wider, surrounded by waves of light... I was now all consciousness, without any outline, without any idea of a corporeal appendage, without any feeling or sensation coming from the senses, immersed in a sea of light simultaneously conscious and aware of every point, spread out, as it were, in all directions without any barrier or material obstruction...bathed in light and in a state of exaltation and happiness impossible to describe."
Here’s another example of a typical Gopi Krishna sentence: “Suddenly, with a roar like that of a waterfall, I felt a stream of liquid light enter my brain through my spinal cord.â€
Zen practitioners suffer from Kundalini energy disorders; for example the renowned Zen master Hakuin (1686-1768). But they don’t get all the psychedelic-like experiences that Gopi Krishna did. It’s hardly a coincidence that this book was first published in 1967, when LSD was uber-popular. Maybe Gopi Krishna dropped some acid himself. But more likely, being a writer (including poetry), he saw a market for his story in acid heads and those intrigued with yoga and Eastern mysticism.
If you’re fascinated with florid fiction focusing on Kundalini awakening, then you might find this book fun reading (if you can stomach the awful writing). But if you’re interested in serious accounts of genuine Kundalini awakening, forget it.
[My 1-star Amazon review (NDA) of “Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man†by Gopi Krishna)
I first read this book more than forty years ago after I had intensely awakened Kundalini and was suffering from a Kundalini disorder. I thought this book was hokum then, and now, after re-reading it, I still think it’s hokum. I’ve battled with the Serpent Power for four decades now, and eventually I’ll write a detailed account of my story, which isn’t anything like Gopi Krishna’s, which I think is fiction. My guess is that Gopi Krishna figured there was some serious coin to be made peddling a Kundalini story – and how right he was, as this initial text was just the tip of the iceberg for the many books he would author on the subject, and the many presentations he would provide.
The writing and descriptions of his experiences are so aureate and grandiloquent, so overblown and pretentious, it’s almost comical. Moreover, there is no depth, no real understanding of mysticism and Kundalini-Shakti relative to the Self-awakening, or En-Light-enment process. Here’s a typical Gopi Krishna paragraph:
"The illumination grew brighter and brighter, the roaring louder, I experienced a rocking sensation and then felt myself slipping out of my body, entirely enveloped in a halo of light...I felt the point of consciousness that was myself growing wider, surrounded by waves of light... I was now all consciousness, without any outline, without any idea of a corporeal appendage, without any feeling or sensation coming from the senses, immersed in a sea of light simultaneously conscious and aware of every point, spread out, as it were, in all directions without any barrier or material obstruction...bathed in light and in a state of exaltation and happiness impossible to describe."
Here’s another example of a typical Gopi Krishna sentence: “Suddenly, with a roar like that of a waterfall, I felt a stream of liquid light enter my brain through my spinal cord.â€
Zen practitioners suffer from Kundalini energy disorders; for example the renowned Zen master Hakuin (1686-1768). But they don’t get all the psychedelic-like experiences that Gopi Krishna did. It’s hardly a coincidence that this book was first published in 1967, when LSD was uber-popular. Maybe Gopi Krishna dropped some acid himself. But more likely, being a writer (including poetry), he saw a market for his story in acid heads and those intrigued with yoga and Eastern mysticism.
If you’re fascinated with florid fiction focusing on Kundalini awakening, then you might find this book fun reading (if you can stomach the awful writing). But if you’re interested in serious accounts of genuine Kundalini awakening, forget it.
