Shakti

Literally, Shakti translates from Sanskrit as energy. However, Shakti has a much broader meaning. Shakti is the Energy of Lord Shiva. Shakti is the Mother of the Universe, Parvati, Jagadamba. All gods worship the Primordial Adi-Shakti. When the world was threatened by demonic destruction, everyone turned to Adi-Shakti for salvation, and thus Durga manifested — one of the forms of Shakti who saved the world from terrible demons.

Shakti is also the gentle maternal energies of Parvati. Shakti is also Kundalini. Any manifestation of sound in the Universe is also Shakti. A poet's creative impulse is impossible without Shakti.

In the subtle body of a human, in the area of the tailbone, in the Muladhara Chakra, the Universal Shakti sleeps coiled like a serpent. And when She awakens, She begins to rise upward to unite with Her beloved Lord Shiva. This ascending movement of Shakti Energy shakes a person's entire nature. One in whom Shakti has awakened and begun to move upward will never be the same as before. This ascending process is like a chick hatching from an egg, breaking the shell from within. The egg must die for new life to appear. If the egg does not die, the chick will die. So it is with a human: at some point, their old form must die for something new to emerge, leading into immortality.

Author: Yogi Isha