Unity Consciousness

Yoga means “union,” but what exactly is being united? When we’re doing a yoga practice—asana or postures—we’re uniting breath with movement. When practicing alternate nostril breathing—called nadi shodhana—we are uniting right and left, warm and cool, masculine and feminine. When we are sitting in meditation, we are uniting the individual self with higher consciousness.

I began this discussion in the last post called “Unity” where I explained the philosophical view that we are all seeking unity and offered some ways to experience unity. Now I wish to embark on an exploration of how the chakras support our quest for unity consciousness through meditation.

Most yoga students are aware of the “wheels” of energy known as chakras. There are over 100 chakras in and around the body, but the ones we find most useful are the six chakras that rest along the spinal column at the tip of the tailbone, pelvis/sacrum, solar plexus/navel, heart center, throat center and third eye/just above the eyebrows. The space above the head is often called the crown chakra, but technically it is not a chakra but rather an opening to transcendence (however you define or understand it).

In upcoming posts we’ll explore the individual chakras, but for today we’ll look at the two things that bind them together. The first is the central energetic channel that rises from the tip of the tailbone to the top of the head. It’s called the sushumna and can be visualized as a tube through which energy can flow up and down as well as out into the body and the aura that surrounds the body.

The second is the sacred sound OM, the sound that brought all things into being at the beginning of time and which continues to bind us all together. Did you know that sophisticated listening devices record a humming sound in the earth, at the bottom of the sea and even in deep space? The vibration is 136.1 Hz, the vibration of OM.

To experience unity consciousness today, find a quiet place to sit for 5-10 minutes. Whether cross-legged on the floor or in a chair, sit up to lengthen your spine. Listen to your breath for a minute or so. Next visualize the central channel along the spine filled with the white light that is moving energy. Listen for the sound of OM filling the channel. You can even repeat OM quietly with your breath or silently in your mind. You are one with everyone and everything. Express gratitude for this deep truth. When you are ready to transition out, return to listening to your breath. Stand up slowly and return to the day carrying with you this profound realization of unity consciousness.