A Sahaja Yoga session is not your average meditation class. First, Sahaja Yoga involves a non-commercial form of meditation, so sessions are always free, no strings attached. There’s nothing to buy, now or ever. Sahaja Yoga is a not-for-profit organization whose facilities and programs are funded by donations. We welcome people of all ages and from all walks of life. There’s no need to reserve a place in advance. Walk-ins are welcome.

Sahaja Yoga meetings take place across Canada on a daily basis, and are designed to help you awaken and experience your Kundalini energy, with the goal of achieving the state of thoughtless awareness. You’ll discover and experience, step by step, your own chakras and the qualities associated with each. Once you’re able to consistently feel the flow of the Kundalini energy, you can explore more advanced techniques which help to clear and heal your chakras, leading to a healthier mind, body and soul. You can explore at your own pace, in your own way.

The Experience

In the process of Self Realization, you become aware of the Inner Self or the Spirit and experience the flow of Kundalini throughout your central nervous system, which manifests physically in the form of vibrations (a throbbing or tingling of the fingers) and/or a cool breeze. It is a soothing, pleasant experience.

This connection of the Kundalini to the all-pervading power that created us, is necessary to achieve a state of quality meditation in Sahaja Yoga.  For the rest of your journey, the practice of Sahaja Yoga deepens, and you are more able to achieve the state of meditation known as thoughtless awareness.

The initial experience of Self-Realization or realizing the Self or Spirit varies from person to person and is largely dependent on the current health of the chakras. The state of any one person’s subtle energy system is unique — no two individuals are exactly alike. Most people feel, at the very least, a sense of inner calm and peace. Many experience the cool breeze or vibrations during their first session. Others experience these sensations gradually, within a few weeks or months, depending on how long it takes to develop a sensitivity to the state of their inner energy.  Even if someone doesn't feel the cool breeze or vibrations, the Kundalini energy is certainly awakened during this process of Self-Realization. Most people experience the state of thoughtless awareness intermittently during initial sessions.  Then over time, they’re able to stabilize their attention and remain in thoughtless awareness for longer and longer periods of time.

This entire process of Self-Realization in the first session takes less than a half-hour. And Sahaja instructors are always there to guide you every step of the way and answer any questions you may have. You’ll also learn how to practice the technique of meditation on your own at home or wherever you wish.

The Kundalini travels throughout your body by way of three energy channels, or nadis. The three nadis are the left channel, the right channel and the center channel. All three work perfectly together to integrate and balance the flow of your Kundalini. Each also plays a specific role in maintaining your emotions, moods and physical health.

Each of the chakras is located on all the three channels. As the Kundalini energy rises through the central channel, it nourishes each chakra, the center, left and right side of each chakra. At the 7th or Sahasrara chakra, it achieves a connection with the all-pervading divine energy. The opening of the Sahasrara chakra thus facilitates the flow of the divine energy through this opening back into the three nadis nourishing the chakras again.

All this happens in a split second and nearly instantaneously.

The Left Channel - Ida Nadi

Your left energy channel (called Ida nadi in Sanskrit), also known as the moon channel, begins at the Mooladhara chakra and travels up the left side of your body, terminating in the superego area on the right side of your mind-brain. The superego is the storehouse of all your memories, habits and conditionings. Your superego is also the area of your brain that encourages moral behavior. In most of us, it has to wage war on our more selfish, pleasure seeking urges in the process.

Joy is an essential quality associated with the left energy channel. Ideally, it is felt as the innocent joy of a child. Remember when you were a young child and you’d wake up happy every morning? The joy carried by the left energy channel feels just like that. As adults, we long for this joy, though we don’t often find it. It may become blocked or “bruised” by some of our life experiences. However, it still lives within us and can be awakened through meditation.

If you have a problem with your left energy channel, you may experience emotional extremes. This includes moods that shift rapidly from elation to depression and back again. You may also experience lethargy and extreme passivity. Most of us have suffered the occasional “couch potato” day. Remember the lack of energy and desire you felt as you sat around, doing nothing at all?  That feeling may have been caused by a problem with your left energy channel.

In summary, your left energy channel influences your emotions, feelings and desires. It is also connected to your memories and past experiences. As long as your emotions stay at normal levels, you’ll do just fine. However, if you’re feeling extremes of emotion such as depression, gloominess and brooding, then it’s time to do something about it. All you need to start clearing your left channel is meditation. Sahaja Yoga techniques are easy, safe and the renewed feelings of joy and energy you’ll experience can be positively addictive.

The Right Channel - Pingala Nadi

Your right energy channel (Pingala nadi), also called the sun channel, begins at your Swadisthan chakra and travels up the right side of your body, terminating in the ego area of the brain. The ego is the area of your brain that gives you a sense of individualism and self, as distinct from others. It is the ego that allows you to relate to yourself as “me” or “I.”

Action and planning are essential qualities associated with the right energy channel. They drive your mental and physical activities. However, the demand for energy on the right side can sometimes be so great that the left side is weakened. When this occurs, your desire for joy may evaporate, and you find yourself grouchy and irritable. You may even feel like yelling at everyone or you may be the type to “fly off the handle” when the slightest thing goes wrong.

Unfortunately, you have likely encountered many stressed out, irritated and agitated people. This is because it can be difficult to maintain a balance of emotion and action when our workplaces and schools are stressful, aggressive environments. It can also be difficult to maintain a peaceful, nurturing home where these imbalances can be corrected. These imbalances allow the negativity, stress and aggression to continue to build. Fortunately, awareness is the first step to correcting imbalance. Meditation, and accessing your Kundalini energy to restore harmony, will allow you to do so.

In summary, your right energy channel influences your ability to plan and take action for the future. It also plays a role in negative emotions such as anger, irritability and stress. Your right channel thinks in terms of “I,” “mine,” and “myself.” Overdo any of these and you may become unpleasant to be around. However, your meditation will tell you when your right channel energy is too high and when it’s time to cool down and rebalance.

The Central  Channel - Sushumna Nadi

Your central energy channel (Sushumna nadi), also called the middle path, travels from the sacrum bone at the base of your spine (where your Kundalini energy resides) straight up your spine towards the Sahasrara chakra. Your central energy channel is the channel that aids your spiritual growth.  In fact, we’d say that you’ve been drawn to Sahaja Yoga because of the strength of your central channel.  The central energy channel can be used to help you evolve continuously into an improved personality with an increased focus on the subtler aspects of life.

Your entire subtle energy system is integrated in the Sahasrara chakra. As such, it is the most important chakra for spiritual growth and meditation. It is also the chakra in which your Kundalini has the greatest ability to maximize its potential to help you. Clearing obstructions in the central energy channel is a critical component of Sahaja Yoga. When you are constantly in balance, your central channel remains clear. This paves the way for your Kundalini to rise smoothly to the Sahasrara chakra. When this happens, your own Kundalini unites with the Divine Energy of the universe.  Proper functioning of the central energy channel is crucial to maintaining energy balance. In a way, it represents the very essence of balancing the chakras and the primary goal of meditation.

It may sound complex, but understanding your energy channels is quite simple if you think of them in the following way. You’ll want to use your left and right energy channels to balance your emotions, desires and actions as you live and enjoy your life. At the same time, you’ll want to spend time on the central energy channel so you can continuously improve yourself as a spiritual personality. Keeping all three channels balanced and clear will give you the power to manage your life, and all its challenges, with ease. You’ll also experience and enjoy all of life’s pleasures in a balanced and more meaningful way.

The main function of a nerve plexus is to ensure that all areas of the body are innervated, thereby equipping each region with the ability to send and receive messages from the peripheral nervous system. The different plexuses are charged with innervating different portions of the body and help to control the functions unique to each portion. A nerve plexus is formed during development, when disparate muscles of the skeleton fuse together and result in large muscles requiring innervation.

One of the most important nerve plexuses in the body is the solar plexus This region innervates the body's internal organs. A few of the areas served by the solar plexus include the stomach, pancreas, and specific areas of the heart.

The brachial nerve plexus supplies nerves to the arms, chest, hands, and shoulders. It runs from the spinal cord through the chest and shoulders before reaching the armpit; from there, it descends down the arm and into the hand. The brachial nerve is comprised of a series of branches, cords, divisions, roots, and trunks.

Areas of the head, neck, and shoulders are innervated by the cervical plexus. The cervical nerve plexus is primarily located in the neck, linking the spinal column with the rest of the head and down into the shoulder region. There are two types of branches in this plexus: cutaneous nerves, which provide innervation to the skin, and muscular nerves that provide sensation to and from the muscles.

The coccygeal nerve supplies nerves to a limited area near the coccyx bone. Rooted in this nerve is the anococcygeal nerve. This important nerve transmits sensation to and from the skin over the coccyx area.

The cardiac plexus is one of several nerve networks situated close to the arch of the aorta (heart). The cardiac plexuses contain sympathetic and parasympathetic nerve fibers that follow the right and left coronary arteries into the heart.  Some of these fibers terminate in the sinus node; others terminate in the atrioventricular node and in the atrial myocardium.

The lumbar plexus is responsible for nerves in the abdomen, calves, back, knees, groin, and thighs. It contains several smaller nerve systems that handle such tasks as muscular contraction of the abdomen, the raising and lowering of testes in males, and the external rotation of the hip joint. The lumbar plexus is interwoven with the sacral plexus.

Some of the same areas are served by the sacral plexus, namely the calves and thighs. The sacral system also sends nerves to and from the buttocks, feet, and pelvis. One of the main responsibilities of this plexus is the transmission of sensory and motor stimuli from the spinal cord. Given its relationship with the lumbar plexus, both regions are sometimes lumped together under the term lumbosacral plexus.