To: K-list
Recieved: 2000/01/11 15:55
Subject: [K-list] Kundalini confused with medical ailments
From: Ckress
On 2000/01/11 15:55, Ckress posted thus to the K-list:
This is partially in response to a query I received about the relationship
between Kundalini and epilepsy. Apparently, someone has been circulating a
tract saying that Kundalini doesn't exist, and that reported cases of it are
really epilepsy and should be medically treated.
Due to the array of symptoms set off by Kundalini, the process is often
misdiagnosed. Particularly in the case of a violent, extended Kundalini
awakening, physical symptoms are so profuse and varied they can mimic just
about any disease imaginable. Stanislav and Christina Grof say the most
likely misdiagnoses are epilepsy, incipient multiple sclerosis, heart attack
or pelvic inflammatory syndrome. (from "The Concept of Spiritual Emergency,"
and article published by SEN)
In reversal to the K = epilepsy hypothesis, certain neurological and
psychiatric illnesses may in fact be entirely -- or frequently -- cases of
awakened Kundalini which medicine has been staring in the face for eons
without recognizing what it was seeing. Joan Borysenko mentions that people
diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy (also known as complex partial
seizures) "may report out-of-body experiences and also frequently report
strange feelings akin to electrical discharges that originate at the base of
the spine, give rise to orgasmic flows of energy, can cause their body to
contort into yogalike postures, and sometimes lead to insightful
revelations." (from "A Woman's Book of Life"). Other so-called symptoms
include a preoccupation with religious ideas.
What is authentic spiritual experience for the mystic might appear to be
obsessive religious involvement to an uninformed observer. Repression of
spiritual/altered states of consciousness runs so deep in the modern world
that even when confronted with something that looks like a duck, walks like a
duck and sounds like a duck, the clinician confidently proclaims: "We have
before us a very short ostrich... and anyone who says otherwise is a quack."
(Sorry, couldn't resist the bad pun.)
Through letters to Shared Transformation newsletter (and emails to our
website), I've heard from people diagnosed with epilepsy who wrote to me
because they believed their symptoms were following the K-profile. Several
of them told me that they were prescribed Dilantin and other anti-seizure
medications which either had no effect on their continuing symptoms, or made
them feel worse. One of these people told me she did much better once she
stopped all her medications.
Keep in mind that there are many forms of epilepsy. Grand mal is among the
most dangerous in terms of losing consciousness during a seizure, thus the
threat of suffocation or injuries
-2-
when passing out. Temporal lobe epilepsy is the one that sounds to me most
likely to be misdiagnosed K, but not in all cases. There are also
characteristic "strange chewing movements of the mouth which occur throughout
each episode" of temporal lobe ep., which seems more indicative of
neurological dysfunction than the other associated symptoms. So it may be
that brain damage or neurological dysfunction is involved in some cases of
temporal lobe epilepsy, while in other cases, it's actually K and therefore
there is no need for medical intervention. If you're unsure which one is
causing your symptoms, it probably would be best to have a medical
examination... even though you may be misdiagnosed anyway, LOL.
Another suspiciously K-sounding medical condition is PLMD (periodic limb
movement syndrome) and in some cases, its cousin, RLS (restless leg
syndrome). Symptoms of this condition sound very much like kriyas:
repetitive jerking and twitching of the leg(s) or arm(s) (or both) most often
experienced during sleep. Some of the literature says that people with this
condition may feel "strong sensations -- like bugs crawling -- deep within
the leg muscles and knees that cause a powerful urge to move." For me, the
kriyas just happen spontaneously; there is no "urge" involved, but I suppose
this is impossible for someone who hasn't experienced it to imagine. At
times I can feel a pre-kriya tension (similar to before sneezing). If I
chose to resist the kriya-movements, I could, but why would I? It creates an
electric-shock type pain or an achiness if I resist, while letting it happen
doesn't hurt at all.
Medicine isn't the exact science that the media (and many doctors) would have
us believe. Jeanne Achterberg, professor of psychology and physical medicine
at the University of Texas Health Science Center, has pointed out that "one
rarely sees 'classic' cases of anything," even in traditional Western
medicine. "People are diagnosed based on clusters of symptoms that look
something like what other people have had, and a name has been attached to
them," she explains. "In truth, however, each body/mind/spirit seems to
respond to inner and outer life in a unique way, wearing thin or flaring up
here or there." (from "The Shaman's Path")
El
Unsubscribe from this list by sending email to:
kundalini-unsubscribeATnospamtopica.com
_____________________________
Keep up with breaking news! Join our Hot Topics list.
http://www.topica.com/lists/breakingnews/t/12
DISCLAIMER!
Home | Archive Index | Search the archives | Subscribe
K. List FAQ | Kundalini FAQs | Signs and Symptoms | Awakening Experiences | K. list Polls | Member Essays | Meditations | List Topics | Art Gallery | Cybrary | Sitemap | Email the moderators.
symbol.