The human spine can easily be referred to as the most amazing creation of God. Known as the Meru Danda in Sanskrit (Mount Meru being the Centre axis of the Universe), the spine is called the axis of the human body and is the main pathway of communication between the brain and the rest of the body. Everything that happens in our lives is decided by the health of the spine and it also governs how high we reach mentally, physically and spiritually. Almost all possibilities of experiencing the higher dimensions of life are hidden within the human spine.
The spinal column has 4 very important functions – it supports the body’s weight, provides flexibility for movement, protects the nerve roots and fibres and forms a protective surrounding for the spinal cord. As per the physical construction of the spine, there are two holes on either side of the spine which act like a conduit pipe for all the nerves to pass. Two of the most important subtle energy channels that flow through the spine are the Ida (left) and the Pingala (right) nadis which represent the dualities of manifestation. They are also called SHIVA and SHAKTI. These two channels govern the functioning of the two hemispheres of the brain. These channels flow in a criss-cross manner and govern the hemispheres to opposite side of their flow. While Ida governs the activities of the right brain, Pingala governs the activities of the left brain.
Besides these two, there is also an empty space within the spinal column through which flows what is known as the Sushumna channel. Bringing a balance between Ida and Pingala will establish us well in this life and keep us healthy. But if we can channelize our energies to flow through Sushumna, we can attain what is called as Vairagya. Raga means colour and Vairagya means colourless or transparent. Once we become transparent, we can take any colour of our surroundings. If the wall behind us is red, we can turn red too. Wherever we are, we become a part of that but nothing sticks to us. Only when we are in the state of Vairagya, we can experience all dimensions of life. If we are not transparent and we stick to something, we become prejudiced and are afraid of going into any unknown territory.
Thus, all this is fundamentally built into the spine, and not the brain. If we can manipulate our spine in a certain way through the regular practice of Yoga, all that goes inside our brain and our lives can be greatly altered.
As per Sadhguru – “You could compare the spine to the suspension of a car. If you have seen certain luxury cars in India, they will be in the garage half the time simply because they have multi-link suspensions, while our roads are made for one-link suspensions. If you go a little fast and hit a road hump, multi-link suspensions may go out of alignment, and you go straight to the garage. They are not made for such a level of stress. You can still drive, but it will drag. The idea of a multi-link suspension is enhanced manoeuvrability. Similarly, your spine is a 33-link suspension. It is very important that the spine is exercised. Otherwise it will become rigid and useless. If you do not exercise it, your ability to experience life decreases dramatically.
Not everyone experiences life with the same level of sensitivity. Going back to the car analogy, not every suspension experiences the road with the same sensitivity. The sensitivity of your suspension determines the manoeuvrability. If it is super-sensitive, it manoeuvres well, but one pothole, and it gets misaligned. So it is important to keep the spine sensitive, flexible, well-aligned, and mobile.”
All the yoga we do is in some way aimed at building up the strength of the spine and its flexibility. If we can increase the flexibility of our spine, the rigidness in our minds also vanish and we can experience certain other higher dimensions of life which otherwise remain unexplored.
