The Kundalini Guide (Bonnie Greenwell)
A Flawed but Worthwhile Kundalini Guide
[My 3-star Amazon review (NDA) of “The Kundalini Guide: A Companion for the Inward Journey†by Bonnie Greenwell.]
The author of this book, Bonnie Greenwell, is a psychotherapist who has extensive experience counseling individuals with Kundalini-related issues. Greenwell has been involved with a number of spiritual traditions, including Ashtanga yoga, Kundalini yoga, Zen, and Advaita Vedanta, and her current spiritual teacher is the renowned Adyashanti (see my three-star review of Adyashanti’s “Emptiness Dancing†and two-star reviews of “The Way of Liberation†and “The End of Your Worldâ€).
This book is pretty much on par with Lee Sannella’s “The Kundalini Experience†(see my three-star review), as both books provide numerous case studies and descriptions of Kundalini awakenings and the attendant experiences and symptoms associated with them.
Greenwell makes some positive suggestions for dealing with Kundalini-related problems, and I strongly second her recommendation for “Snake-bit†individuals to see an Ayurvedic practitioner, who can prescribe a specific regimen (involving food, herbs, oils, massage, etc.) to help them deal with their Energy disorder.
Greenwell does not venture into a deep consideration of Kundalini relative to esoteric anatomy and Awakening, and given that her guru is Adyashanti (an overrated Advaita-Vedanta guru who is clueless about the relation between Kundalini-Shakti and Self-realization), she doubtless would be in over her head if she did. For example, she writes:
“There are extensive writings that place psychological or esoteric meaning on chakras, and it is beyond the scope of this guide to explore all the nuances and philosophies regarding chakra change and trandformation (Books about chakras are included in the Appendix.) Various spiritual systems focus on specific chakras such as the base (to open kundalini energy), the heart (in Self-enquiry taught by Ramana Maharshi) and the sixth (also called the third eye), which is believed in some yoga systems, and some western esoteric practices, to be the primary modulator of all the other chakras and the doorway into other-dimensional experiences.â€
If Greenwell had a clue about Ramana Maharshi’s esoteric teachings, she’d know that his Self-enquiry does not focus on the heart chakra (Anahata), but rather on the spiritual Heart-center (Hridayam), which is the “Seat†of not only the Self, but also the “higher†Kundalini. But Greenwell has no comprehension of the “higher†Kundalini, the final terminal of Sushumna Nadi (Amrita Nadi), which, ultimately, is a pillar of Light-Energy between, and beyond, the Hridayam and the Sahasrara (Crown Chakra).
Greenwell provides a lengthy but lousy Appendix of (some seventy) books pertaining to Kundalini. She recommends just one Kashmir Shaivism text – “The Shiva Sutras†– and if she had a clue about Kashmir Shaivism, she’d have instead recommended “The Philosophy of Sadhana†and “Kundalini: Energy of Depths.†Other books that should be added to her Appendix include “Sri Ramana Gita,†“Sat Darshana Bhashya,†“Monsoon of Grace,†“Electrical Christianity,†and “The Knee of Listening†and other books by Adi Da Samraj.
In summary, this text is a worthwhile read because it provides good basic information on the “lower†Kundalini and on Kundalini-related experiences and problems; but it is flawed because it is a shallow exposition of Kundalini. For a deeper consideration, check out the texts I suggested in the previous paragraph.
[My 3-star Amazon review (NDA) of “The Kundalini Guide: A Companion for the Inward Journey†by Bonnie Greenwell.]
The author of this book, Bonnie Greenwell, is a psychotherapist who has extensive experience counseling individuals with Kundalini-related issues. Greenwell has been involved with a number of spiritual traditions, including Ashtanga yoga, Kundalini yoga, Zen, and Advaita Vedanta, and her current spiritual teacher is the renowned Adyashanti (see my three-star review of Adyashanti’s “Emptiness Dancing†and two-star reviews of “The Way of Liberation†and “The End of Your Worldâ€).
This book is pretty much on par with Lee Sannella’s “The Kundalini Experience†(see my three-star review), as both books provide numerous case studies and descriptions of Kundalini awakenings and the attendant experiences and symptoms associated with them.
Greenwell makes some positive suggestions for dealing with Kundalini-related problems, and I strongly second her recommendation for “Snake-bit†individuals to see an Ayurvedic practitioner, who can prescribe a specific regimen (involving food, herbs, oils, massage, etc.) to help them deal with their Energy disorder.
Greenwell does not venture into a deep consideration of Kundalini relative to esoteric anatomy and Awakening, and given that her guru is Adyashanti (an overrated Advaita-Vedanta guru who is clueless about the relation between Kundalini-Shakti and Self-realization), she doubtless would be in over her head if she did. For example, she writes:
“There are extensive writings that place psychological or esoteric meaning on chakras, and it is beyond the scope of this guide to explore all the nuances and philosophies regarding chakra change and trandformation (Books about chakras are included in the Appendix.) Various spiritual systems focus on specific chakras such as the base (to open kundalini energy), the heart (in Self-enquiry taught by Ramana Maharshi) and the sixth (also called the third eye), which is believed in some yoga systems, and some western esoteric practices, to be the primary modulator of all the other chakras and the doorway into other-dimensional experiences.â€
If Greenwell had a clue about Ramana Maharshi’s esoteric teachings, she’d know that his Self-enquiry does not focus on the heart chakra (Anahata), but rather on the spiritual Heart-center (Hridayam), which is the “Seat†of not only the Self, but also the “higher†Kundalini. But Greenwell has no comprehension of the “higher†Kundalini, the final terminal of Sushumna Nadi (Amrita Nadi), which, ultimately, is a pillar of Light-Energy between, and beyond, the Hridayam and the Sahasrara (Crown Chakra).
Greenwell provides a lengthy but lousy Appendix of (some seventy) books pertaining to Kundalini. She recommends just one Kashmir Shaivism text – “The Shiva Sutras†– and if she had a clue about Kashmir Shaivism, she’d have instead recommended “The Philosophy of Sadhana†and “Kundalini: Energy of Depths.†Other books that should be added to her Appendix include “Sri Ramana Gita,†“Sat Darshana Bhashya,†“Monsoon of Grace,†“Electrical Christianity,†and “The Knee of Listening†and other books by Adi Da Samraj.
In summary, this text is a worthwhile read because it provides good basic information on the “lower†Kundalini and on Kundalini-related experiences and problems; but it is flawed because it is a shallow exposition of Kundalini. For a deeper consideration, check out the texts I suggested in the previous paragraph.
