Kriya Yoga

Kriya Yoga is a system of carefully chosen techniques which are designed to lead to that state of being where you experience "You are That." It is a widely known yogic path that has nothing to do with philosophical speculation and solely concerned with practice of certain exercises that need to be done one after the other in a fixed sequence.

History

Kriya Yoga became popular through Paramahansa Yogananda's book Autobiography of a Yogi. He has mentioned how the ancient technique was revived in 1861 when Mahavatar Babaji initiated Lahiri Mahasaya into it. Yogananda wrote that at that meeting, Mahavatar Babaji told Lahiri Mahasaya, "The Kriya Yoga that I am giving to the world through you in this nineteenth century, is a revival of the same science that Krishna gave millenniums ago to Arjuna; and was later known to Patanjali, and Christ, and to St. John, St. Paul, and other disciples."

The ancient Yogic text the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali contains a description of Kriya Yoga in the second chapter II.49:"Liberation can be attained by that pranayama which is accomplished by disjoining the course of inspiration and expiration."

Krishna refers to Kriya Yoga in the Bhagavad Gita Chapter-4 Verse 29:

अपाने जुह्वति प्राणं प्राणेऽपानं तथापरे |

प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणा: ||

Offering inhaling breath into the outgoing breath, and offering the outgoing breath into the inhaling breath, the yogi neutralizes both these breaths; he thus releases the life force from the heart and brings it under his control.

Practice

As Yogananda describes Kriya Yoga, "The Kriya Yogi mentally directs his life energy to revolve, upward and downward, around the six spinal centers (medullary, cervical, dorsal, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal plexuses) which correspond to the twelve astral signs of the zodiac, the symbolic Cosmic Man. One half-minute of revolution of energy around the sensitive spinal cord of man effects subtle progress in his evolution; that half-minute of Kriya equals one year of natural spiritual unfoldment." Kriya is an advanced technique that reinforces and revitalises subtle currents of life energy in the body, enabling the normal activities of heart and lungs to slow down naturally. As a result, the consciousness is drawn to higher levels of perception, gradually bringing about an inner awakening more blissful and more deeply satisfying than any of the experiences that the mind or the senses or the ordinary human emotions can give.

Learning Kriya Yoga

Kriya Yoga should be learnt from a person who has realised Self through the practice of Kriya Yoga. There are many popular schools and Gurus and one can explore different traditions before taking up the one where intellect and heart are both satisfied. While there are books and manuals on Kriya Yoga also easily available, it is not advisable to start on one's own without proper guidance. These practices if done incorrectly can also be dangerous and harmful.