Behind the Scenes

In my first video for Kriya Yoga Course 4, it appears as if I'm sitting outside in the snow, but I'm actually warm inside and have just superimposed myself onto the frozen lake behind my parents' house. This was accomplished by placing a green screen behind and under me when filming inside and then using software to replace the green with the background image. I purchased a Cowboystudio Chormakey Green 9 x 15 ft Muslin Backdrop for this purpose.

Separately, I went out onto the frozen lake and shot the footage for the background. We had shovelled the snow off part of the lake for the kids to skate on, so this is where I filmed. I'll also mention that I purchased a new Canon VIXIA HF R30 Full HD Camcorder which films at a resolution of 1920 x 1080, which is far superior to my old camera's resolution of 720 x 405.

After filming all of the footage and transferring it onto my computer, I noticed that the playback was very choppy as my old computer couldn't handle the HD picture resolution, so I then had to purchase a new computer too. This was turning into a more expensive venture than I had anticipated, but I was able to find a Lenovo G505s 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black) on sale which was able to play the HD footage smoothly.

I now needed some software that could produce chroma key green screen effects. I had been using the free tool Avidemux for some simple editing of the footage from my old camera, and while it worked great it didn't have a chroma key function. After searching a bit I discovered another free tool called Wax 2.0 which could do the job. Upon trying to load my video footage, it immediately crashed. I eventually figured out it only supported the wmv file format. After converting my footage, and then trying to apply the chroma key effect, it crashed again. I eventually figured out that if I removed the sound from my footage, the tool would finally produce the chroma key effect I was looking for.

It was quite a painful process for just this one function, so in the end I decided to buy PowerDirector 12 Deluxe which works really well, and I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to create more professional looking videos. It supports many file formats, has many special effects features in addition to chroma key, however, I discovered that when I mixed chroma key with fades the end result was a bit choppy. To solve this, I had to create an intermediate video which just applied the chroma key effect, and then used that video to create another video which added the fade in/out effects on scene changes, along with beginning and ending titles. My video footage was now complete.

The soundtrack was another story. Many people had complained to me about the low audio level in my videos, so I was eager to solve this problem. The soundtrack editing and mixing features in PowerDirector are pretty good, but in this case I found a free tool that was even better: Audacity. With just one click of the "Compressor Effect" the audio level in the entire soundtrack was raised to an optimal level without causing clipping.

Finding music for the soundtrack was far easier than I expected. From within PowerDirector I was able to search for sitar music, listen to different samples, then directly add the one I liked to my video. However, mixing the music with my voice was most easily done with Audacity. In this case I used the "Auto Duck Effect" which automatically lowers the music volume level when I'm speaking. I exported the video with the mixed soundtrack to my computer and was quite pleased with the final result.

All I had left to do now was upload my video to YouTube. PowerDirector will do this for you automatically, so I expected this to be a breeze, but my first attempt caused PowerDirector to crash. I suspected I was again trying to have PowerDirector do too many things at the same time, so instead of loading my project file, I imported the finished mp4 video and tried again. This time it looked like everything was working, except it got stuck at 100% complete and eventually spit out an error saying the upload failed. I tried to directly upload my mp4 file, but YouTube complained about that format. Using PowerDirector, I tried converting the file into different formats until wmv finally worked. The quality is not as good as the original mp4, but the video is now finally up at YouTube. Check it out below. I have also made the original mp4 available at Sellfy to download for $0.95.

Lastly, I just wanted to thank everyone that has sent me donations, either here at my blog or at my YouTube channel. I'm currently just collecting the money, but once I have enough I'll set up a non-profit dedicated to spirituality and sustainability. Thank you with all my heart.

Kundalini Syndrome

I'm often asked if Kriya Yoga is dangerous. So just like driving a car or anything else, it isn't dangerous if you learn it thoroughly and practice it carefully. With a car, if you try to drive on a highway at high speed without first learning how to maneuver at low speed, you will increase your probability of having an accident, or if you are sleepy or there is bad weather or you are being distracted by a passenger or many other situations can also increase your likelihood of having an accident. Kriya Yoga is no different, just learn it thoroughly and practice it carefully and you will be fine.

I was motivated to write this post after reading JCS's and SNG's books on the original Kriya Yoga (as opposed to Swami Satyananda's variant), for I feel these books are lacking in terms of the necessary theory and practice required for someone to practice Kriya Yoga safely. These books give me the impression that any person off the street can start practicing Kriya Yoga directly without having any issues. In my opinion, this is akin to giving someone a million dollar supercar to drive on the autobahn at 300 km/h (190 mph) and expecting them to have no issues.

There are two types of problems I hear about from people practicing the original Kriya Yoga: either they have been practicing for a long time and have not experienced anything (i.e. they are stuck in 1st gear at 30 km/h since they never learned how to use a clutch); or they have had an extremely powerful experience that has left them feeling terrified (i.e. 300 km/h is way faster than they can handle).

The most important thing that anyone wishing to practice Kriya Yoga needs to know, is that it leads to Kundalini awakening, so before starting to practice you need to fully understand what that entails or you may end up with Kundalini syndrome instead (i.e. turning a positive awakening into a negative syndrome). Here is the list of possible "symptoms" from the Psychology Wiki:

The Physio-Kundalini Syndrome Index

Category	Symptoms
Motor symptoms	1. Body assuming and maintaining strange positions for no apparent reason.
	2. Body becoming frozen or locked into strange positions and immovable.
	3. Breathing spontaneously stopping or becoming rapid, shallow, or deep for no apparent reason.
	4. Spontaneous involuntary bodily movements.
Somatosensory Symptoms	5. Spontaneous deep ecstatic tickle or orgasmic feeling.
	6. Physical sensations starting in the feet, legs or pelvis, and moving up the back and neck to the top of the head, down the forehead, over the face, then to the throat, and ending in the abdomen.
	7. Extreme sensations of heat or cold moving through the body.
	8. Moving pockets of bodily heat or cold being extreme enough to burn or otherwise affect someone else or an inanimate object.
	9. Pains in specific parts of the body that begin and end abruptly.
	10. Tingling, vibration, itching or tickling on the skin or inside the body.
Audiovisual symptoms	11. Internal noises, such as whistling, hissing, chirping, roaring or flutelike sounds.
	12. Internal voices.
	13. Internal lights or colors illuminating parts of the body
	14. Internal lights bright enough to illuminate a dark room.
Mental symptoms	15. Observing oneself, including one's thoughts, as if one were a bystander.
	16. Sudden, intense ecstacy, bliss, peace, love, devotion, joy, or cosmic unity.
	17. Sudden intense fear, anxiety, depression, hatred or confusion.
	18. Thoughts spontaneously speeding up, slowing down, or stopping altogether.
	19. Experiencing oneself as physically larger than the body.

The second thing you need to understand is that these are not symptoms of a syndrome that needs to be cured, these are positive spiritual experiences that are working to cleanse and purify your body, mind and spirit and eventually lead you to enlightenment. This is why you are practicing Kriya Yoga: to achieve Kundalini awakening and enlightenment.

The third thing to understand, is that with proper preparation you can significantly reduce the severity of your Kundalini awakening experiences. Swami Satyananda has devised a systematic approach to cleanse and purify the body-mind-spirit complex in preparation for Kundalini awakening. I've covered this in my Kriya Yoga Course 1 and 2. First, Hatha Yoga must be practiced to open the spiritual pathways (nadis) in the body; second, Pranayama (i.e. Nadi Shodhana) must be practiced to balance the flow of spiritual energy (prana) in the pathways; finally, each of the spiritual centers (chakras) must be awakened individually. This will provide a milder experience of the table items above, allowing one to become accustomed to spiritual experiences without being overwhelmed by them.

Only after all of the previous steps have been taken is it then safe to practice Kriya Yoga in my opinion. However, you may still notice that your mind wanders or your body fidgets with the original Kriya Yoga, and this may be due to being unable to achieve the advanced form of Kechari Mudra (i.e. inserting the tongue into the nasal cavity). If this is the case, then I would recommend Swami Satyananda's Kundalini Kriyas (my Kriya Yoga Course 3) instead of the original Kriya Yoga, as you are pretty much guaranteed to experience the powerful flow of Kundalini in your spine with his Kriyas in my opinion.

After all of this you may be wondering if I find any value in the original Kriya Yoga. Well, I do, for after Kundalini awakens the journey is still not over, for enlightenment still needs to be reached. This is when the original Kriya Yoga is most useful, for after inserting the tongue into the nasal cavity, it becomes easier to achieve the breathless state (see Ennio and Steve) and experience absolute stillness of body and mind.

Kriya-yoga: The Science of Life-force

Swami Nityananda Giri has written an excellent book on the Kriya Yoga of Lahiri Mahasaya called "Kriya Yoga The Science of Life Force". This book contains very comprehensive information on the background theory of Kriya Yoga prior to delving into the practices themselves. It includes many scriptural references and a deep view of the preparation required for Kriya Yoga. Here is an excerpt from the start of the book.

The breath-based meditation "Kriya-yoga" is a familiar name after its reintroduction by Mahavatara Babaji to Lahidi Mahasaya and subsequent work of Paramahamsa Yogananda in the western world. Though many literatures are available but the lack of clear exposition on the philosophy and practices of this ancient spiritual science is still felt. The book, Kriya-yoga: The Science of Life-force tries to fulfill this want. This work vividly explains "the Knowledge of Life-force" known as Pranavidya, which forms the basis of Kriya-yoga citing from Vedas, Upanishads, Srimad Bhagavadgita, Yogasutras of Patanjali and many other ancient scriptures, and analyzes how the breath technique quiets the mind, brings equanimity and results in development of discriminating intelligence that answers the questions and purpose of human life. This also gives an understanding on our inner reading, the principles and practices form auspicious resolves, noble faith, self-effort and austerities from righteousness, yama, and observances, niyama, up to the transcendental state, samadhi, those form the appendages of this treatise, and describes how the breath-based practices and meditations described herein are necessary for a seeker to remain healthy and attain the Knowledge. The body principle, sarira tattva, is also anatomized using both biological and spiritual sciences to accelerate spiritual practice and to facilitate the understanding on life and death, gross to causal bodies, five sheaths, five vital breaths, three knots, seven energy centers and their working. The most important aspect for readers and seekers is that for the first time they will find the secret techniques of Kriya-yoga, viz., Nabhi Kriya, Khecari mudra, Guru Pranama, Hamsa, prana viksana, Mahamudra, Isvarapranidhana Kriya, Thokar Kriya, Jyoti mudra, Sambhavi mudra, and different techniques of meditation, e.g., Aum, twelve-lettered Vasudeva mantra, inner-matrka and outer-matrka meditations, etc. are revealed, and explained in details citing their illustrations in Upanishads and ancient yogic scriptures and enumerating the rationale and scientific approach behind such practices and benefits involved.

As you can see, the techniques described in this book are somewhat different from the techniques described by Ennio Nimis and J.C. Stevens. Below is a list from the table of contents.

Preparing the Gross Body Energization Exercises, Kriya Hatha-yoga, Suryanamaskara, Sithilikarana Vyayama, Yogasanas, Yoganidra
Nabhi Kriya
Khecari Mudra No Need to Cut the Frenum, Talavya Kriya
Guru Pranama
Hamsah Sadhana
Vyana Viksana
Om Technique, Om Kausalah
Mahamudra

Kriya Proper I The Kriya Technique, Kriya Meditation, Subtle Manifestations of Light, Sound and Vibration, Kriya-breath and Meditation Quickens Evolution, Arousing Prana/Kundalini by Kriya Practice, Paravastha, Experiencing a Breathless State
Jyoti Mudra
Sambhavi Mudra

Kriya Proper II, Thokar Kriya Meditation with Vasudeva mantra, Matrka Dhyana, Antarmatrka Dhyana, Bahirmatrka Dhyana, Jyoti Mudra in Second Kriya
Third Kriya Techniques
The Fourth Kriya

Kriya Secrets Revealed

J.C. Stevens has written an excellent book on the Kriya Yoga of Lahiri Mahasaya called "Kriya Secrets Revealed: Complete Lessons and Techniques". It is similar to the free book by Ennio Nimis except that it presents the practices in an easy to follow lesson format. I share many of JC's views regarding spiritual development. Here is a quote regarding the importance of inner guidance.

For me, breaking the secrecy and leaving organizational attitudes behind was the key to my new found spiritual successes. I have often said that it was at this point in my journey that I started to grow up (spiritually). I was more willing to experiment with practicing different meditation techniques, and more able to discover which methods brought out the most satisfactory results for me as a unique individual. I also let my intuition guide me and tailor my practice of Kriya Yoga. It is in these moments that I feel the invisible hand of my Inner Guide. I trust that by breaking free from organization-imposed limitations, and by listening more to your intuition, you too will experience heretofore unimaginable spiritual progress.

Below are the lessons given in the book.

LESSON 1 - Find Your Meditation Seat
LESSON 2 - Nadi Sodhana Pranayama
LESSON 3 - Ujjayi Pranayama
LESSON 4 - Concentration
LESSON 5 - Talabya Kriya
LESSON 6 - Locate the Chakras
LESSON 7 - Om Japa in the Chakras

First Kriya Initiation

LESSON 8 - Kriya Pranayama I
LESSON 9 - Maha Mudra
LESSON 10 - Navi Kriya
LESSON 11 - Yoni Mudra
LESSON 12 - Mantra (Japa Yoga)
LESSON 13 - Mental Kriya
LESSON 14 - Kechari Mudra
LESSON 15 - Kriya Pranayama II
LESSON 16 - Short Breath Kriya Pranayama
LESSON 17 - Shambhavi Mudra
LESSON 18 - Kriya Pranayama III

Additional Practices

LESSON 19 - Mula Bandha
LESSON 20 - Jalandhara Bandha
LESSON 21 - Uddiyana Bandha
LESSON 22 - Bhastrika Pranayama
LESSON 23 - Sushumna Sodhana
LESSON 24 - Basic Walking Techniques

The Higher Kriyas (Omkar Kriyas)

LESSON 25 - First Omkar Kriya
LESSON 26 - Thokar Kriya
LESSON 27 - Continuous-Thokar Kriya
LESSON 28 - Gayatri Kriya
LESSON 29 - Tribhanga-Silent Kriya
LESSON 30 - Tribhanga-Mantric Kriya
LESSON 31 - Tribhanga-Thokar Kriya
LESSON 32 - Micro-Tribhanga Silent Kriya
LESSON 33 - Micro-Tribhanga Mantric Kriya

Soul Integration

I just finished reading Sal's new book Soul Integration. It is an interesting book primarily focussed on enlightenment and channelling. There is also a small update on the results of December 21, 2012. Basically, that day was a spiritual event where none of the more visible prophecies occurred. The Earth transitioned from 3D to 4D and people have been feeling the effects of that all year. The next shift is coming on May 5, 2017 which will help advance the Earth to a 4.5D vibration which will then produce more visible results. Here is a quote.

The average vibration of humanity is about 3.55. The vibration of the Earth, at the time of this writing, was about 4.05. As the Earth is ascending, there is the possibility that some human souls will be “left behind,” making it harder for them to remain on the Earth. Once the Earth reaches 4.50 in vibration (the mid-range of fourth density), souls that are still vibrating around 3.50 will not have enough compatibility with the Earth to remain here.

It is anticipated by this channel and his spirit guides that a large number of human souls will exit the Earth over the next 20 to 30 years, due to the diverging vibrational levels between humans and the Earth herself. A significant percentage of humanity is accelerating in evolution and will keep pace with the Earth as she ascends. It is this group of souls that will bring in the new Golden Age.

Less than 1/10th of one percent of humanity has a vibration in the sixth or higher densities. Although the consciousness can reach as high as 12.00, the human body can only vibrate up to 4.99 before it undergoes a radical shift in composition, becoming the fifth density crystal light body.

Due to the low density of the Earth, it has been difficult for souls to bring their physical bodies with them while going up the density scale. You have yogis, gurus, sages and avatars vibrating well above 6.00 in consciousness, while their bodies might be maintained at about 4.99 in vibration. In addition to the difficulty in raising the body above this point, another reason they maintain this level is because they need a human body in order to communicate with their students.

As the Earth continues to ascend, it will become much easier to maintain a physical body that has a vibration above 5.00. As stated in this channel’s earlier works, several million souls will be entering into physical ascension in the years to come.

At the present time on Earth, there are about 300 souls whose physical bodies are vibrating above 5.00. They have attained a state of immortality while being in a body, and their bodies are impervious to most, if not all, environmental factors.

The main part of the book is devoted to soul integration, which is essentially spiritual development in more technical terms. Plenty of lifestyle recommendations and meditation practices are given to assist you in raising your vibration to above 5D as required for achieving physical ascension.

What really stands out though are the clear and simple descriptions of advanced spiritual concepts. Here is an excerpt on enlightenment.

How does becoming One with God work when a soul is engaged in worldly activities? One of the characteristics of someone who is in a God-conscious state is that he or she “sees God in everyone and everything.” There is no longer any “make-wrong” or judgment. The God-conscious soul takes delight in every person, place or thing, and sees the inherent beauty in everything. The ego, with its bodily needs and preservation instincts, etc., is quiet. The focus is on what is actually taking place around (and within) the soul. There is no interpretation or evaluation involved.

A God-conscious soul may be an outer teacher, or may stay in a very private realm, depending on what he or she is guided to do, but every person the soul meets becomes part of a Divine encounter, a sacred meeting, an opportunity for merging and Oneness. There will be a natural and easy form of communication present, if need be, that does not depend on identification with the ego. This is because everything is coming from the perception of union. There is no separation. Out of this state, a natural loving compassion is born.

Souls in this Divine state of grace will naturally be giving and considerate of others, without trying too hard to be spiritual. There is nothing to prove, and nothing to achieve, but to simply act spontaneously in ways that increase the Divine grace of Being.

The Placebo Effect

Everyone has heard of the placebo effect, but as a reminder, here is the definition from Wikipedia.

A placebo is a simulated or otherwise medically ineffectual treatment for a disease or other medical condition intended to deceive the recipient. Sometimes patients given a placebo treatment will have a perceived or actual improvement in a medical condition, a phenomenon commonly called the placebo effect.

Up until recently, it was assumed that deception was required for the placebo effect to work, but new research is showing that not to be true. Here is an excerpt from an article at The Verge.

In 2010, researchers from Harvard Medical School and other institutions did a study on patients diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). One group received no treatment, while the other patients were told they’d be taking inactive drugs and told that placebos can have healing effects. To drive the point home, the fake drugs were placed in bottles labeled "placebo pills."

The patients who knew they were taking placebo pills reported twice as much relief as the control group. The placebo had healing effects comparable to some of the best real IBS drugs. "Our results challenge ‘the conventional wisdom’ that placebo effects require ‘intentional ignorance,’" the researchers wrote.

If placebos could be effectively prescribed without the need to lie to patients, it would be revolutionary. Placebos are cheaper and safer than many treatments. Studies have shown placebos to be 75 percent as effective as antidepressants. Fake surgeries have been shown to be just as effective as real surgeries in treating Parkinson’s. Today placebos are used to test treatments, but in the future they could be the treatment.

Daniel Jacobs believes he knows how the placebo effect works and has founded the startup company "Plecebo Effect" to bring that knowledge to the world in the form of a phone app. The video above is a demo of the app, and I know I certainly felt better after viewing it, for the placebo effect is in fact a spiritual effect resulting from simply turning the mind inward on a daily basis. However, given the widespread scientific validation of the placebo effect, perhaps this app has the potential to get a large number of people starting a daily spiritual practice.

The Physics of 9/11

I would like to commemorate the twelfth anniversary of 9/11 with a simple physics lesson using the collapse of the south tower (WTC 2) for our example. The equations for a falling body are below.

distance = (1/2) * gravity * time(squared)
velocity = gravity * time
gravity = 9.81 metres per second squared

If we were in a vacuum at a height of 415 m and dropped a bullet it would hit the ground in 9.2 seconds by the first equation, and reach a speed of 90.24 m/s or 324.8 km/h by the second equation. Now let's say we are standing on the roof of the south tower at a height of 415 m, there is no wind, and we drop our bullet over the edge. Will it still hit the ground in 9.2 sec? No, because we have now introduced air resistance into our problem which means our bullet will experience drag and eventually reach a terminal velocity. However, the terminal velocity for a bullet is around 320 km/h which is close to our vacuum speed of 324.8 km/h at impact so we can perhaps estimate an additional 0.5 seconds would be required for our bullet to hit the ground or 9.7 seconds.

In chapter 9 of the official 9/11 commission report it states:

At 9:58:59, the South Tower collapsed in ten seconds, killing all civilians and emergency personnel inside, as well a number of individuals-both first responders and civilians-in the concourse, in the Marriott, and on neighboring streets. The building collapsed into itself, causing a ferocious windstorm and creating a massive debris cloud. The Marriott hotel suffered significant damage as a result of the collapse of the South Tower.

According to this report, the south tower collapsed in ten seconds and from our previous calculations, that is essentially the same amount of time as it took our bullet to reach the ground when dropped from the roof of the south tower. So how is it possible that the roof of the south tower could reach the ground in the same amount of time as our bullet when there were 110 floors of building below it and not just air?

There is a well understood technique known as a "controlled demolition" or "building implosion" that would make this possible.

...the technique weakens or removes critical supports so that the building can no longer withstand the force of gravity and falls under its own weight.

Numerous small explosives, strategically placed within the structure, are used to catalyze the collapse. Nitroglycerin, dynamite, or other explosives are used to shatter reinforced concrete supports. Linear shaped charges are used to sever steel supports. These explosives are progressively detonated on supports throughout the structure.

So a possible theory for the collapse of the south tower is that explosives allowed the roof to collapse, but before the roof hit the top floor, explosives caused that floor to collapse, then before that floor hit the next, explosives caused it to collapse. This would need to continue in rapid succession such that every floor is falling through air and experiences nothing more than air resistance all the way down.

Of course, the official explanation for the collapse doesn't involve explosives and has been summarized at Wikipedia as follows:

Once the collapse initiated, the mass of failing floors overwhelmed the floors below, causing a progressive series of floor failures which accelerated as the sequence progressed.

According to this explanation, each floor did provide resistance to the collapse. So it should be obvious that something doesn't add up. How could 110 floors of steel and concrete resistance produce the same result as only air resistance? The answer is it can't.

The video below has been produced by Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth. It provides all of the evidence that supports the theory that the WTC towers were brought down by explosives in a controlled demolition. At the 1:16:00 point is a clip of the 10 sec collapse of the south tower that I explained here.

If this is your first time at my blog and are interested to know who I feel is actually responsible for 9/11, then I highly recommend you view the movie Thrive.