The Yogayājñavalkya – Krishnamacharya’s Main Source on Kuṇḍalinī
Krishnamacharya on Kundalini - The Origins and Coherence of his Position - Simon Atkinson
Simon Atkinson [+ ]
scholar-practitioner
Simon Atkinson has been practising and studying yoga in the broad tradition following Krishnamacharya since the 1990s and has been learning Sanskrit since 2001. He teaches academic English and academic skills at the University of Cambridge.
Description
The Yogayājñavalkya was Krishnamacharya’s source text on kuṇḍalinī. This chapter contains the first detailed critical analysis of translations of the Yogayājñavalkya by two of Krishnamacharya’s long-term students: T.K.V. Desikachar (Krishnamacharya’s son) and A.G. Mohan. It argues that these translators misrepresent the Yogayājñavalkya in different ways. Desikachar mistranslated the Yogayājñavalkya by introducing concepts not in the original Sanskrit text, thereby relocating kuṇḍalinī from the navel to the perineum. Mohan changed the original Sanskrit of one verse without informing his readers, conveniently avoiding content that contradicts Krishnamacharya’s position.