Changing your path frequently

Recently I met a person who is practicing Yoga for the last six years. Overall a good person. With my book on Kundalini Yoga released recently the topic of our discussion revolved around Kundalini Yoga. He mentioned that he mastered Kundalini Yoga for two years followed by a "fast" Yoga style and currently Mantra Yoga is fascinating him. With all respect to him and his practice I must say that he is not doing any good to him by changing his paths often.

I have often observed this casual attitude among people who practice Yoga merely as a physical exercise or craze. There are people who claim to have acquired "advanced" stages of Yoga but in reality know nothing. Some people treat Yoga like college education. After 10 years you pass S.S.C., then two more years you become H.S.C. and finally four more years and you are graduate. Yoga is not something that can be mastered in couple of years. You need to spend your lifetime for that!

I fail to understand what it means by mastering something like Kundalini Yoga in couple of years. I am sure that such people either don't know real essence of Yoga or they are just kidding. As per my opinion, knowledge and experience NO branch of Yoga (especially Kundalini Yoga) can have an attribute like "mastered" attached to it (Note that here I am not referring to styles of Yoga such as I, B or P). Take for example Kundalini Yoga. When a person says that he mastered Kundalini Yoga what does that mean? Having theoretical knowledge of chakras, colors and petals? Doing some pranayamas and mudras? Opening chakras? Awakening Kundalini? Even if you consider all of the above factors together in no way they indicate any mastery of Kundalini Yoga itself.

Kundalini Yoga is a practice for lifetime. It is a misconception that Kundalini Yoga ends when your Kundalini awakens. No. From my experience I can say that awakening of Kundalini is just the beginning. It's like tip of an iceberg. There is a huge hidden treasure waiting for you. All this takes time. If you change your paths often you will not get any real benefits from your practice. At the most you can satisfy your ego by saying that you know many paths of Yoga but ultimately you get nothing.

Somebody may say that with Shaktipata one can master Kundalini Yoga in say couple of years. It is misconception that after receiving Shaktipata your efforts are not needed. It is true that an able guru can awaken the sleeping serpent through Shaktipata but this in no way indicates that you become "master". Even today there are people who give Shaktipata to their disciples. How many such disciples really get liberation? Forget liberation but how many of them even reach an advanced spiritual stage? Possibly very few. This is because others make the same mistake. They feel that "Oh! My shakti is now awake. She will take care of rest for me. I can now live an uncontrolled life as per my desire". Such an attitude is useless if your aim is Samadhi or liberation.

Choose whatever path you like but once you chose it pursue it till you reach your goal. It is understandable that you change or twist Yogic techniques over a period of time as you practice but entirely changing your path will lead you nowhere. At least this is what I learnt and follow in my life.

Anyway...the great self proclaimed "master" left my house with a copy of my new book...