Visualize a spark of light jumping from one chakra to the next

What the Method Is

The core instruction for this method is: “Or in the spaces between, feel this as lightning.” This sutra presents a modification to the “Visualize light rays rising up your spine” technique, specifically tailored for individuals who experience or prefer a sudden, jumping movement of light energy, rather than a gradual flow.

How It Is Done

To practise this method, you should:

  • Posture: Sit comfortably with your eyes closed, ideally in a stable posture such as padmasana or siddhasana, though any comfortable seated position, including on a chair, is acceptable. The spine should be kept straight to facilitate energy flow, as the spine is the base of both body and mind.
  • Body Motionless: Keep your body motionless to avoid distraction and allow for deeper focus.
  • Imagine Yourself as Light: Begin by conceptualising your entire being as composed of light particles or energy, as Tantra suggests that everything, including yourself, fundamentally consists of light.
  • Focus on the Root Energy Centre: Direct your attention to the Mooladhara chakra, located at the base of the spine (sex centre). This is the starting point, connected to earthly existence.
  • Visualise the Ascent as Lightning: Instead of imagining a continuous ray, feel this as lightning – like a spark of light jumping from one center to the next. This method is particularly suitable if, when attempting the ‘light rays’ method, you found the energy naturally jumped directly between centers.
  • Ascend Through the Chakras: Visualise the spark of light piercing each successive energy centre with a sudden movement. Osho suggests working with a simplified model of five main centers: the sex centre (Mooladhara), behind the navel, behind the heart, between the eyebrows (third eye/Ajna chakra), and at the peak of the head (Sahasrara chakra). Initially, it can be helpful to mentally name each chakra as the light pierces it.
  • Observe the Refinement of Light: As the light pierces each centre and rises, it becomes subtler and fainter, until it finally dissolves at the crown chakra.
  • Repeat the Process: After the light dissolves at the highest centre, begin again from the root centre, imagining another spark of light rising. Continue this practice for up to 30 minutes.
  • Complete the Meditation: It is crucial not to leave the energy “in the middle” during this experiment, as it can be harmful and potentially create mental illnesses. The energy must be brought to the head and released into the cosmos. Ensure absolute privacy and no disturbances to complete the session.
  • Best Practice Times: The ideal times for practice are typically between 4 and 6 a.m. or at dusk, on an empty stomach, in a quiet, clean environment with loose, light clothing.
  • Develop Feeling: It is important to develop your “feeling dimension” for this technique to be effective, as mere intellectualisation or thinking that you are feeling won’t work. Engaging in sensory awareness practices, such as feeling the touch of water while showering or the bed while lying down, and even observing a child’s pure sensory engagement, can enhance this sensitivity.
  • Address Sensations: When the energy begins to rise, there might be sensations or erections at the sex centre; Osho explains this is a good sign, indicating that energy is alive and needs movement, and one should not be afraid. As meditation deepens, this excitement subsides, and energy flows upwards. If this method causes unbearable heat, one should stop or visualise the rays as cool to reduce discomfort. When the energy reaches the head, it may become hot, which is a good sign; release it by feeling your head opening like a lotus. A profound coldness will follow this heat.
Commentaries and Insights
  • Spine as the Foundation: Both Yoga and Tantra profoundly emphasise the spine as the base of both the body and mind. A vibrant, alive spine is intimately linked to a brilliant mind and overall vitality. This practice aims to awaken and vitalise the spine itself.
  • Two Poles of Existence: The spine embodies two critical energetic poles: the sex centre (Mooladhara) at the base, which connects an individual to the earthly or material existence (Prakriti), and the Sahasrara chakra at the top of the head, which connects one to the divine or cosmic (Brahman). The purpose of this meditation is to reverse the natural downward flow of energy and initiate a conscious upward flow towards liberation and cosmic absorption.
  • Psychic Energy (Kundalini): This meditation is a direct technique for raising Kundalini, the dormant, coiled energy often symbolised as a serpent, located at the Mooladhara chakra. The visualisation of light rising along the Sushumna Nadi (the central channel within the spine) represents the psychic part of sex energy, which can rise, unlike its physical counterpart (semen). When Kundalini rises, one experiences a deep sense of peace and liberation. Swami Lakshmanjoo notes this as the “bliss of the rise of cit kuṇḍalinī”.
  • Experience of “Livingness”: As the psychic energy rises upwards, the practitioner will feel a rising warmth and an inward light, accompanied by a new sense of “livingness”. This inner movement can also result in observable physiological changes, such as changes in heartbeat and deeper breathing.
  • The Role of Imagination: Osho clarifies that while the process begins with imagination, it is rooted in reality, as all existence fundamentally consists of light and energy. When one’s attention is adequately focused at the third eye centre, imagination becomes potent and can manifest phenomena. So-called “coincidences” in ordinary life, where imagination seems to actualise, are often due to unconscious attention shifting to the third eye centre.
  • Transformation and Liberation: The ultimate goal is to allow this rising energy to reach the Sahasrara chakra, the highest point at the top of the head. When the energy is fully released there, one experiences a profound coldness following the warmth, which signifies a complete inner rebirth and liberation. The self becomes identified as light, leading to a state of omnipresence and the realisation of one’s true nature.
  • Warnings and Master’s Guidance: These meditations, especially those directly raising Kundalini, are very powerful and can be dangerous if not completed properly. Osho explicitly warns against leaving the energy “in the middle” (incomplete), as this can be harmful and potentially create various mental illnesses. He advises stopping the practice if one experiences intense uneasiness or unbearable sensations. Osho also stresses the benefit of seeking a master’s guidance, as initiation can make methods “qualitatively different” and significantly accelerate the process by providing individualised techniques and a living energy transfer.
  • Simplicity vs. Depth: Despite the seeming simplicity of the instruction, its execution is profound. The ego often dismisses simple methods because it seeks difficulty to feel a sense of achievement and conquest. However, Osho asserts that these “simple” methods are powerful because they touch fundamental realities of existence, facilitating a direct remembering of one’s already existing enlightened state.
  • Physiological and Psychological Connection: Tantra deeply believes in the body as the starting point for spiritual transformation, as physiological processes are intimately linked with psychological and spiritual states. This technique effectively leverages this connection by working with the physical spine and its energetic counterparts.
  • Centering: While the ultimate state of cosmic consciousness (samadhi) is not itself called “centering,” the act of centering is the method (path) to reach samadhi (the goal). When one is fully centered and their energy is gathered, this concentrated point can explode, leading to the dissolution of the individual centre into the cosmos, where there is “no center – or then the center is everywhere”.
  • Acceptance as Framework: A fundamental principle of Tantra is total acceptance as the basic framework for all spiritual practice. This means working with reality as it is, rather than struggling against desires or experiences. This acceptance allows vital energy to be relieved from inner conflict and directed inwards for transformation, facilitating a deeper understanding that eventually leads to liberation.
  • Nature of Lightning: The specific imagery of ‘lightning’ is considered “more real” than gradual rays because, in its fundamental nature, light “jumps” rather than flowing gradually. This means this specific modification of the technique aligns more directly with the actual energetic process of light.