The Shakti Voice

THE SHAKTI VOICE

“May our waking consciousness replace pain and suffering with divinity…” Kali Puja

Shakti is the primordial cosmic energy of all living things. It has the ability to completely transform a person or it can radiate out, purifying an entire village. I like to picture the Shakti mechanism within a human as a humidifier. Water drops down into the mechanism and becomes heated. The heat transforms the water to steam. The steam rises up to the top and is merged with the atmosphere. In the same way, through surrender, our personal tension falls down into our mechanism, becomes heated through the fire of yoga, and is transformed into energy, or Shakti. The Shakti rises up and merges with unmanifested consciousness.

“It is because I have surrendered completely to my Guru that I have been able to transmit Shakti to so many people all over the world.” - Swami Muktananda

As Muktananda says, it is in the surrender that Shakti becomes available. When I allow surrender to occur, tensions let go and fall away. Using the breath, they move down the body to feed a burning fire. The heat rises as energy or Shakti. This is what fills the heart, and continues to rise to the crown of the head. The heart becomes the source of the mind and radiates the Shakti for all. In place of the tension that existed before, something else is now available within - God, universal consciousness, the Guru, the Self.

If, in the middle of the humidifier, a second nozzle were placed, steam would pour out of both the middle and the top. This is what occurs when someone speaks and also why times of silence are important. The Shakti escapes, riding on the vibration of the words. What we say matters, but the Shakti within the words leaves the imprint. The energy of the sound vibration transforms the environment, the plants, the animals, and our fellow humans.

Shiva sutra 3.27 says “Katha Japah - Ordinary talk of life is the recitation of mantra.”

Everyone who is near the vibrations of any spoken word has the possibility of being set anew. That is the way of my spiritual lineage. There is no better gift. Babaji Shambhavananda could be talking about the weather, the news, or a new Marvel movie and we all receive Shakti. For the non-practitioner, whatever he says brings a sense of ease, a deep exhale and release from stress. With enough Shakti, anyone has the ability to affect their environment in the same way. All of us could speak about spiritual evolution, accounting, or chores and have others relax from stress. Nityananda was in such a state that words were not even necessary; the aura of his presence filled the room and village. All became eager for the relief of the gentle rolling love that surrounded, in order to be transformed.

To be like Nityananda, I need more Shakti. I need more Shakti to help humanity in a way that requires nothing of my small self. I need more wood to add to the internal fire. All the stress I feel from staying awake in the evening, dealing with issues at work, breaking a pattern, or handling a trauma, create the fuel of not just my own growth, but my internal Shakti reservoir. The extremely simple act of overcoming myself, drudging through resistance, adds fuel over and over again to my fire.
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With the world in Kali yuga, I truly need my spiritual work. I pick up so much stuff from other people that I cannot determine what is mine or theirs. I find that it does not matter as long I am working. The act of clearing the tension has become a survival tool. Currently, I find relief in using my stress like a Bodhisattva. While walking in the grocery store, I can feel tension within my chest and belly. I use my breath and soften. While driving, I bring in a mantra to relax the mind.

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Sri Shambhavananda doing mantras into the fire at Shoshoni Yoga Retreat.

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​While listening to the extremely difficult words of a counselor, in the midst of a hard conversation, I work to stay present. And when I widen my vision to see the fleeing people from Ukraine, the homeless children of Asia, and the people just downtown who wonder where their next meal is coming from, I am scared and sad, but so is everyone else. There is truly nothing more I can do except to know that this is out my hands. I need help from something far bigger than my small mind. I need to transform myself to radiate something 

beyond my limited capabilities. Through surrender I give it up, I hand it over, I trust. Then, and only then, can I see the sun shining. I surrender, I smile, and reestablish myself in joy, because that is what is truly going to change the situation. In hard conversations, I work to stay present. I talk, listen, and hold my babies tight. We will have a dance party and then play a game. The world, my world, needs my surrender. And maybe it will overflow to help others struggling also.

My wanting to increase Shakti in order to help others makes it easier to let go. It is an automatic override of the small self. When I am only looking at providing relief for the limited me, I am unmotivated. However, by wanting to ease the suffering of all, I am willing to do the work.

I remember Swami Shambhavananda telling the sangha that if we really want to turn up the heat of transformation, we need to work with our uncomfortable situations. They are usually the ones filled with unease, awkwardness, pain, or distress. For me, I needed to take on the stress of hard conversations. By surrendering before speaking, I can speak with words when necessary, or I can simply radiate my heart. The Shakti comes through the heart, out the mouth, and vibrates the environment. In surrendering the stress of that process, the fire of transformation burns. A change can occur.

If we want to help more people, we need more Shakti, which means we need to work with our stress. I overcome the stress of dreadful situations by finding ease and contentment in the middle of it. The act of simply showing up and doing something that feels hard in that moment feeds the fire. I have found that just pushing through to get something done without surrender is a worthless endeavor. On the same note, working without a good long sit each day adds only twigs.
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​I want to be enlightened in such a way that it does not matter what I say, those around me are affected. I want to radiate the peace I feel within without saying anything. If I do speak, may I talk about frogs in such a way that it brings eminent peace. It is this constant process of 

overcoming something, moving into the heart, and transforming the situation, other person, and/or the environment by doing nothing externally. The more I get over myself, the more Shakti I am able to give.

The Kali puja says, “The most excellent manifested cause is to take away darkness.” It is to be in such a state that we transform darkness into light. When we practice mantra from the heart, those vibrations transmute within and also without. When we talk normally, it also has the ability to change the world. It does not matter what we are saying as long as we are working and burning within our own selves.