Kundalini Yoga has been referred to as the "yoga of awareness" because of its spiritual practises and its use of meditation and mantras.  I often wondered if barking for dogs, was a form of a  mantra, that helped them relax.  In this very short video, lead dog Oreo and her sister Kodi, are preparing for lunch.....

A mantra is the process of using sound to project the mind. Sound vibrates.  Mantras work because sound is a form of energy that has the power to affect the chakras, which are the energy centers of the body,  and the human psyche.  Mantras use formulas that can alter the chemistry of the brain. The power comes from vibration of the sound.   The specific mantras that are used in Kundalini Yoga can modify our consciousness through their meaning and, the use of repetition and rhythm.  It really helps raise the energy when you link the mantra to breath.

The goal of a mantra is to bring intuition, inner strength and to become completely open to doing what needs to be done to develop into total being. We are created with 72 surs that are similar to strings.  The central sur is the vagus nerve of the parasympathetic nervous system which is called the ik tara or one star. It helps tune all the other surs.  When the central channel of the sushmuna in the spine is activated the support channels of ida and pingala move along with it, and the whole system now vibrates.  The mantra helps achieve this because when we resonate the specific sounds and vibrations are first out loud. Eventually it becomes mental. Your central nervous system is balanced and you just listen. You become Anahat, when your nervous system vibrates the mantra without conscious effort and you are attuned to the Infinite.

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