HOW TO USE THIS BOOK:- Swami Radha describes the Kundalini system as a map to higher consciousness. In Kundalini yoga for the West, she has clearly laid out this map but leaves it up to each one of us whether or not we want to take this jonrney & what our approach will be. We each have our own unique way of learning, so how we approach Kundalini Yoga for the West will tell us something about ourselves. The question Swami Radha asks in the first chapter are a good starting point: What is this process of learning? Do I want to learn? And what does it mean to be an aspirant? Record your reflections. They will prove invaluable as a way of seeing changes in yourself over time. Yoga means to think intuitively, to investigate & to inquire. Kundalini yoga for the West offers a wealth of questions & exercises that requite thought & practice in other to realize their benefit. Much of what is offered is a process of clarifying your own thinking in order to dispel past conditioning & to find out where you stand. This process of clarification gradually will lead to the awareness that the mind has an awesome power. As you continue to reflect & practice, you will be able to see your own evolution of consciousness built on personal understanding. One recommended approach with Kundalini Yoga for the West is to work in a group. Everyone can do their own thinking on the questions related to each cakra, writing down their understanding & reading their reflections to the others. In this way you can expand your awareness by hearing a variety of perceptions on the same topic—realizing your uniqueness & also your interconnectedness. Each cakra of the Kundalini system is related to an element, a level of consciousness & a sense perception. You can choose to focus on any of these areas. For example, work through the exercises in all the cakras on the senses or on speech, mind or sex. The color cakra plates are a visual representation of the Kundalini system. These images are like a mirror. What are you drawn to? Can you see the images as symbolic aspects of yourself? The gods & goddesses represent the intelligence of the cakra. Looking at them, can you recognize the tools they hold as effective means for dealing with the issues arising at this point in your life? When you look at the whole system, ask how it relates to you. When does it mean that the cakras are represented symbolically within the human body & particularly? Each cakra also has a mantra, which is presented at the beginning of each chapter. These mantras, like the visual images, are seeds containing the essence of the cakra. They may seem esoteric or how they resonate & generate insights. THE ASPIRANT:- Self-develoment in yoga may, in the initial stages, seem to have much in common with the psychological approach of the human growth movement. however, the goals are fundamentally different. The person who undertakes human growth therapy works toward self-acceptance, efficient functioning in everyday life & mature relationships not based on emotional needs. But the spiritual aspirant, man or woman, looks at this development from a different perspective. There is already an innate perception, however vague, that there is more to life than having a family, friends, reasonable success—“the good life.” For such a person, the goal is liberation from all limitations, realizing all human potential and, finally, the Self. Anyone entering the path of Kundalini Yoga must clarify the reasons & motivation for considering such an undertaking. Any building, be it a storeroom, a tiny or a house or a big mansion, needs a foundation. The type of foundation reflects the purpose of the building to be constructed. Similarly, the foundation of a spiritual life indicates the perception of the purpose of life, & the way of life chosen will reflect this purpose. During the time the foundation is laid, the aspirant will need special tools to help in this development. Yogic exercises & spiritual practice provide these tools. The first question to be asked is: “What is the purpose of my life? What makes my life worth living?” This is the beginning of self-inquiry, & in the pages that follow you will frequently be asked, “What do you mean by such world as consciousness, mind, ego?” “What are their characteristics? Do you use these world synonymously, or is there a difference? Without such self-in-quiry, you are subject to the authority & opinions of others—parents, friends, the mass media, & so on.