Ten bodies, the ten bodies from the kundalini yoga philosophy #1 Soul Body
Yoga Lesson Series: Ten Bodies.
In essence, all forms of yoga aim to increase your self-knowledge .
Who am I? How am I put together? By expanding your consciousness you open the way to further deepening. Get to know yourself. In our Western idea we usually assume that we only have 1 body; we identify with the physical body.
Kundalini yoga is more rooted in energetic anatomy than in the physical body.
So it involves more than just stretching exercises and is about the system of your entire BEING, your entire being.
One of the ways we can understand our existence is through the practice of Kundalini yoga through the ten bodies ; “The Ten Light Bodies of Consciousness” . This system assumes that you have 1 physical body (your tangible body), 3 mental bodies (the “minds”) and 4 energy bodies.
Each of these 10 bodies are your powerful capacities as a human being, which enable you to live according to a certain quality or value. The qualities of each body can strengthen you when they are in balance. On the other hand, they reveal limitations and challenges when they are out of balance. Remember: You can always strengthen your body.
“If you understand that you are ten bodies, and you are aware of those ten bodies, and you keep them in balance, then the whole universe will be in balance with you.”
With kundalini yoga exercises and meditations you can learn to understand, balance and strengthen your 10 bodies. It helps you to connect with your true Self and to use your talents. It is the key to self-healing because diseases manifest themselves first in the energetic bodies.
Each of the 10 bodies forms an aspect of the growth process that is our life. Supporting this is the system of yogic numerology. Numbers make the order of forces in the Universe visible.
Are you now curious about how these ten bodies relate to you, to your body and your daily life? I will write a new blog post about one of the bodies in the coming weeks. Below is the first body - The Soul Body. I use these blogs as active documents, if I find more information or have experiences I will add them.
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1. Soul Body - Soul Body
This is a spark of the Infinite that resides in the core of your being. It is the part of us that connects to the infinite, infinity. The Soul is the vehicle of the (eternal) spirit. In Sanskrit, the Soul is called "Atman", which also means air and our word "breath" is derived from this. This confirms the spirit side of the breath, even here in the West where we often approach the breath only as a physiological process.
Your soul is your creative force and a spark of the universal creative force, of the universal soul. Your soul is your teacher, for your personality. It is your inner guide on the path of your (spiritual) life fulfillment.
The theme of the Soul Body is heart versus head. Do you dare to follow your heart, to listen to your inner voice? Or do you make choices based on logical considerations, so that you can keep your ego in check. If you bring your heart and head into balance, your life will give you more fulfillment; more in line with your destiny.
Exercises you can do to strengthen the first body:
* The Mul mantra is the first Pauri of the Japji. There are beautiful musical versions of it, here is a playlist on Soundcloud.
* Series of exercises for balance between head and heart. A short powerful kriya that does need a warm up. You can find this kriya here.
* Loose exercises for the Soul body include those for the first chakra, which provides grounding and earthing when you are dealing with the spirit side of your Being. These include body drops, the crow pose (which is mentioned above in the kriya), frogs, chair position.
* Practice humility. Everyone walks their own path and realize that there is no better or worse in spiritual development. By doing seva (selfless service) you can develop an open and humble attitude and rein in your ego.
* Be creative! Tap into the divine flow of the Universe, try painting, writing, singing or any other form of self-expression you feel called to. And step back, listen. What does your Soul want to tell you?
Read more, in English, on Spirit Voyage's blog: https://blog.spiritvoyage.com/what-is-the-soul-body-the-1st-body/
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