We live in a universe full of electro-magnetic, subtle energy and pranic currents embedded in our own bodies and in the very fabric of space. These cosmic forces are symbolised as serpents (nagas) in yogic thought. Mastering them is the key to the unfoldment of higher awareness.
We must honour all forms of Nagas, from ordinary snakes to Kundalini.
Nagas are not simply snakes but represent all the transformative electrical forces of the cosmos from the material level to that of pure consciousness. Unfortunately, today we have forgotten how to read the symbolism of nature, such as rishis and yogis can, and see only a literal serpent worship in the traditional honouring of the Nagas.
As modern physics notes, the entire universe and all of space consists of various wormholes through which subtle currents are relentlessly flowing. These currents are all Nagas, snakes or serpents in a metaphorical sense, powers arising out of a hole or moving through a channel. They are all forms of lightning or dynamic energy strikes that have their enlivening power and their danger or poison. We must recognize that we live, breathe, speak and think in and through the serpent forces of the greater cosmos.
The human body is composed of numerous channels from the digestive tract to the respiratory and circulatory systems, to the brain, from gross to subtle levels, through which the prana or vital force flows at various vibratory frequencies as our main stimulating lightning energy that keeps us alive and awake. All these channels within and around us are connected in the vast fabric of life and awareness, of which we ourselves are but a focus, a point or a transmission center.
Some of these serpent forces are hidden and support us in the background like the electro-magnetic energies that sustain the Earth through the force of gravity, or like Vishnu’s serpent Ananta who holds the power of the entire universe in a state of pure potential. This hidden contracted or concentrated state of forces is like that of a coiled serpent. Other forces are manifesting like a moving snake and swirl around us creating colorful force fields in a magical phenomenal display.
One of the most important of these serpent powers is the Kundalini Shakti, the electrical force of higher prana, mantra and awareness. Normally it is latent or coiled in the earth chakra at the base of the spine, with our life energy resting upon its sleeping state. In Yoga Sadhana, the Kundalini awakens and spreads its electrical currents throughout our body and mind extending to the entire universe, propelling us into the infinite.
Honoring the Higher Serpent Forces on Nag Panchami
Nagas as powerful forces contain profound wisdom, which is the highest transformational energy of awareness. There are such Nagas in the Earth or earth currents holding the Earth wisdom and power, creating various sacred sites and nature’s points of power. There are Nagas in the atmosphere or life currents from which all weather patterns arise through the thunder and lightning, clearing the air and renewing all life. There are Nagas in the sky extending from solar, lunar and planetary currents to those of the stars and galaxies – subtle winds and energies of light in an overflowing tapestry reaching beyond time and space.
On Nag Panchami we honour all forms of Nagas from ordinary snakes to Kundalini, to Lord Shiva who is Nageshvara or Ahipati, the Lord of the Serpents, who holds all the electrical forces in existence, both manifest and unmanifest. The transcendent awareness of Shiva alone in its unshakeable stillness, calm and centeredness can master all the cataclysmic energies of the universe, which dance around him like powerful serpents under his control, yet can never touch him.
Today in our information technology era, which is another kind of Naga, serpent or electrical force, we need to contact the higher wisdom Nagas and not become victims of mere artificial currents and commercial powers. It is important that our minds and hearts are vibrating not just with electrical energies from the media, music, our computers, or our instruments of communication and travel on any level.
We must allow the electrical force of the entire universe, its secret currents of pure consciousness and bliss to flow within us like a dance of perpetual lightning. This is the real inner worship of the Nagas. We do this when we recognize our true nature, our inner being, the presence of Shiva, who rules over the vast and intricate ever-changing cosmos from a point of pure unity within the spiritual heart.
