() is a term for the channels through which, in traditional Indian medicine and spiritual theory, the energies such as prana of the human body, the subtle body and the causal body are said to flow. Within this philosophical framework, the nadis are said to connect at special points of intensity, the .
Overview
Nadi is an important concept in
Hindu philosophy, mentioned and described in the sources, some as much as 3,000 years old. The number of nadis of the human body is claimed to be up to hundreds-of-thousands and even millions. The
Shiva Samhita treatise on
yoga states, for example, that out of 350,000 nadis 14 are particularly important, and among them, the three just mentioned are the three most vital.
The three principal nadis are
ida,
pingala, and
sushumna.
Ida (इडा, iḍā "comfort") lies to the left of the spine, whereas
pingala (पिङ्गल, piṅgala "orange", "tawny", "golden", "solar") is to the right side of the spine, mirroring the ida.
Sushumna (Suṣumṇa "very gracious", "kind"
[ spokensanskrit.de]) runs along the spinal cord in the center, through the seven
chakras. When the channels are unblocked by the action of yoga, the energy of
kundalini uncoils and rises up the
sushumna from the base of the spine. While the sushumna came to be envisioned as a vertical channel extending upwards from the heart, navel region, or base of the torso, there is an old precedent for the idea that it extends, like the śaktitantu, to the feet: the Mataṅgapārameśvara, a comparatively early Siddhāntatantra, envisions the sushumna running from the tips of the big toes to the crown of the head via the navel and heart. This archaic model of a central channel extending to the feet, linking together the principal series of nine lotuses i.e., spanning the body’s axis from crest (śikhā) to feet (pāda), may underlie the Brahmayāmala’s conception of the śaktitantu.
The nadis play a role in yoga, as many yogic practices, including Satkarma, and pranayama, are intended to open and unblock the nadis. The ultimate aim of some yogic practices is to direct prana into the sushumna nadi specifically, enabling kundalini to rise, and thus bring about moksha, or liberation.
Early references
Several of the ancient
use the concept of nadis (channels). The nadi system is mentioned in the
Chandogya Upanishad (8~6 cc. BCE), verse 8.6.6.
[For reference to Chandogya Upanishad 8.6.6 and interpretation as an early form of the occult physiology see: McEvilley, Thomas. "The Spinal Serpent", in: Harper and Brown, p. 94.] and in verses 3.6–3.7 of the
Prasna Upanishad (second half of the 1 millennium BCE). As stated in the last,
The medieval Sat-Cakra-Nirupana (1520s), one of the later and more fully developed classical texts on nadis and chakras, refers to these three main nadis by the names Sasi, Mihira, and Susumna.[ Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, Purnananda Swami]
Functions and activities
In
hatha yoga theory, nadis carry
prana, life force energy. In the physical body, the nadis are channels carrying air, water, nutrients, blood and other bodily fluids around and are similar to the
arteries,
veins,
capillaries,
bronchioles,
nervous system,
lymph system and so on.
In the subtle and the causal body, the nadis are channels for so-called cosmic, vital, seminal, mental, intellectual, etc. energies (collectively described as
prana) and are important for sensations, consciousness and the spiritual aura.
Yoga texts disagree on the number of nadis in the human body. The Hatha Yoga Pradipika and Goraksha Samhita quote 72,000 nadis, each branching off into another 72,000 nadis, whereas the Shiva Samhita states 350,000 nadis arise from the navel center,
The Ida and Pingala nadis are sometimes in modern readings interpreted as the two hemispheres of the brain. Pingala is the extroverted (Active), sun nadi, and corresponds to the right side of the body and the left side of the brain. Ida is the introverted, moon nadi, and corresponds to the left side of the body and the right side of the brain.
Three channels (nadis)
Central channel (Sushumna)
Sushumna is the central and most important channel. It connects the
Muladhara to the
Sahasrara. It is important in
Yoga and
Tantra.
It corresponds to the river Saraswati.
Side channels
Left channel (Ida)
Ida is associated with lunar energy. The word
ida means "comfort" in
Sanskrit. Idā has a moonlike nature and feminine energy with a cooling effect.
[ Three fundamental nadis] It courses from the left testicle to the left nostril and corresponds to the Ganges river.
Right channel (Pingala)
Pingala is associated with solar energy. The word
pingala means "orange" or "tawny" in Sanskrit. Pingala has a sunlike nature and masculine energy.
Its temperature is heating and courses from the right testicle to the right nostril. It corresponds to the river
Yamuna.
Unblocking the channels
The purpose of
yoga is
moksha, liberation and hence immortality in the state of
samadhi, union, which is the meaning of "yoga" as described in the Patanjalayayogasastra. This is obstructed by blockages in the nadis, which allow the vital air,
prana, to languish in the Ida and Pingala channels. The unblocking of the channels is therefore a vital function of yoga. The various practices of yoga, including the preliminary purifications or
, the yogic seals or
, visualisation, breath restraint or
pranayama, and the repetition of mantras work together to force the prana to move from the Ida and Pingala into the central Sushumna channel. The mudras in particular close off various openings, thus trapping prana and directing it towards the Sushumna. This allows
Kundalini energy to rise up the Sushumna channel, leading to liberation.
[Arthur Avalon, The Serpentine Power (collection of yoga-tantric texts)]
Other traditions and interpretations
Other cultures work with concepts similar to nadis and prana.
Chinese
Systems based on Traditional Chinese Medicine work with an energy concept called
qi, analogous to
prana.
Qi travels through meridians analogous to the nadis. The microcosmic orbit practice has many similarities to certain Indian nadi shuddha (channel clearing) exercises and the practice of Kriya Yoga.
Tibetan
Tibetan medicine borrows many concepts from Yoga through the influence of
Vajrayana. One of the Six Yogas of Naropa is a cleansing of the central channel called
phowa, enabling the transfer of consciousness to a
pure land through the
sagittal suture.
The Vajrayana practice of Trul Khor is another practice used to direct and control the flow of energy within the body's energetic meridians through breath control and physical postures.
European
The three main nadis have been compared to the
Caduceus of Hermes: "the two snakes of which symbolize the kundalini or serpent-fire which is presently to be set in motion along those channels, while the wings typify the power of conscious flight through higher planes which the development of that fire confers".
[C. W. Leadbeater, Chakras, Adyar, 1929]
See also
Notes and references
Sources
-
-
Sandra, Anderson (2018). "The Nadis: Tantric Anatomy of the Subtle Body". Himalayan Institute. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
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"The Three Main Nadis: Ida, Pingala and Sushumna". Hridaya Yoga France. Retrieved 2021-04-03.
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"The Ida and Pingala". Yin Yoga. Retrieved 2021-04-03.
