If you are involved into Yoga or meditation, you probably know how

great this type of spiritual practice is, and how you are constantly in
a position to uncover new layers of understanding and spirituality.
The lessons about the Bindu chakra certainly belong to the
category of teachings that come in a more advanced phase of our
development. Have you ever seen a bhakti yogi with a shaved hair
except for a tiny area close to the top of their head with a pony tail.
That's the position of the Bindu chakra. Bindu is one of the main
chakras of the human body, although it is often left out from the
charts. It is sometimes referred to as the Eight Chakra.

This mysterious energy center is very often overlooked and little is

known about it. The majority of Yoga books don't even mention it.
But, because of its ability to provide strength, energy, and longevity,
Tantra Yoga devotes a great deal of attention to this chakra.
Here is a list of main points you should know about the Bindu
chakra.

The meaning
Bindu means a drop or a point. In fact, as the Yoga tradition says, it
is the point of manifestation of our entire physical body, and,
likewise, the point of its dissipation. This chakra is important for
overall physical, emotional, and spiritual health and vitality of our
entire microcosm. Bindu brings a sense of happiness, well-being,
purpose, and enthusiasm.

Metaphysical
The Bindu chakra is the primal point of appearance of Clear
Consciousness that exists beyond time, space, energy, matter, or
form. It represents a very subtle level of consciousness. The subtle
pranic energy that flows through this chakra is concentrated into
drops (elixir) and winds (help carry this elixir through the channels,
nadis).

Bindu is the point where we gain true experience about the Divine,
because here the many forms of manifestation cease to be observed
as such. Here we are faced with the Infinite as One, not as Many.

Location
Bindu is located at the back of the head, near the top. It is placed
behind the place where most people have a lock of hair growing in
the opposite direction from the rest of their hair.

Symbol

The CRESCENT Moon is the symbol of this chakra. Because of that,

yet another name of this center is Moon Chakra. The energy of the
Moon is life giving and sustaining. It is responsible for the growth of
the plant life on Earth. If Bindu is fully activated the light that shines
from it resembles the bright shine of the full moon.

Function
Bindu holds our life force within. It is the center of where our life
nectar, AMRITA, is produced. Amrita is said to help the yogi
obtain enlightenment. From there, this nectar drops down toward
the third chakra, Manipura.

In the Manipura chakra, the life nectar from the Bindu chakra is
being used up for various activities of our body. In other words, the
fire of Manipura (the name Solar Plexus Chakra is not given by
chance) is responsible for burning up and gradually using the
nourishing powers of the AMRITA nectar.

In the 17th century Gheranda Samhita, one of the three classic hatha
yoga texts, we find verses that describe this process. This book is
presented as a manuscript that presents the secrets of Hatha Yoga
with regard to the Ultimate Reality as taught by Gheranda to
Chanda. Here are the verses:
 The sun dwells at the root of the navel, and the moon at the root of the palate. The sun consumes
the nectar of immortality and thus man is held in the sway of death.

If only we could catch up this nectar before reaching the Solar

Plexus, preferably in the Throat chakra, we could enjoy the
vitalizing, nourishing energy of the Bindu chakra. This is certainly
not easy, but with certain Yogic exercises, it may become possible.
The proof of this may be found in the reports of yogis capable of
living without food or water for 70 years.

One of the possible explanations of these astonishing achievements

is the direct use of the Bindu chakra nectar.

As a result of underutilization or dissipation of the Bindu's life force,

we grow older, our skin becomes dryer, rougher, slack and more
transparent, we lose bone tissue and cartilage and hair, develop
age-related hearing loss, suffer from dementia and have to deal
with other mental and physical problems.

Benefits
When properly mastered this energy center helps overcome many
problems we encounter in our life, for example, unhealthy eating
habits, poor eyesight, headaches, depression, and anxiety. People
who lack energy should concentrate on the Bindu area to get some
of the invigorating effects of this chakra.

Physical Connection
Bindu chakra is connected to the Pineal gland. When Bindu is
awakened, the Pineal gland and our Third eye are activated too. The
more active this chakra becomes, the more active the pineal gland
is. Science has determined that an active pineal gland means having
greater awareness, psychic and empathic powers, vivid dreams,
lucid dreaming, and greater imagination and creativity.

Practical Exercises to Keep the Bindu Nectar

There are some exercises everyone can use to keep the elixir of this
chakra from dissipating in the lower chakras and active within the
upper part of the chakra system.

Massaging the Scalp

Massaging the area of the Bindu chakra is one obvious, albeit not
overly effective way of activating the soothing energy of this center.
It could be done by applying circular movements, with or without
using oil.

Asana Special Posture: Vipareeta Karani

If you do hatha yoga, Vipareeta karani is an asana you might want to

try. Vipareeta karani is something like a half shoulder stand. It is
one of the easiest inverted postures and quite simple to perform. It
is said to protect the bindu chakra and its nectar because in this
inverted position the nectar flows toward the throat and Vishuddha
chakra.

Here is what Gheranda Samhita has to say about this asana:

Carefully place the head and both hands on the ground, raise the feet, and remain steady. This is
considered to be Vipareetakarani." and also "Put the sun up and bring the moon down. This
Vipareetakarani mudra is concealed in all the tantras.

Any type of yoga asana that involves inversion, like Supported

Shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana), Supported Headstand
(Salamba Sirsasana), Plow Pose (Halasana), or Feathered Peacock
Pose (Pincha Mayurasana), should be great for the awakening of the
Bindu chakra and for concentrating the amrita elixir. In fact, you
might even want to try some of the inversion therapy tables for that
purpose.

Pranayama Breathing exercise

Any type of breathing exercise, deep yoga breathing, or pranayama

can potentially help. A pranayama has three important stages:
inhaling, exhaling and breath retention. The breath retention phase
is actually when the life nectar is being held in the Bindu chakra.

We should be aware, however, that whenever we exhale,

unfortunately, this nectar goes down toward the lower chakras. This
part cannot be prevented, so, in a way, a part of the Amrita is
always lost during the normal process of breathing.

Khechari Mudra

This is an exercise done with your tongue. The tongue is rolled back
to the soft palate as far as possible. This helps preserve the Amrita
nectar from the Bindu chakra. The idea is to caught the downward
stream of Amrita and control it by redirecting it toward the
Vishuddha chakra. Here is what Gheranda Samhita says about this
practice:

Gently insert the tongue into the base of the palate. When the tongue is turned back into the
cavity of the skull and the gaze is directed between the eyebrows, that is Khecharimudra.

The Bottom Line

We have considered the most important properties and spiritual
functions of the Bindu chakra. We have presented some practical
exercises that could potentially help awaken and preserve some of
the energy of this center.

What this teaches us is that we all carry within the power of

immortality, everlasting happiness, and blissful consciousness.
When we have progressed on our path of spiritual and personal self-
growth, Bindu is activated naturally and without our deliberate
intervention. So, take your time and enjoy the process.
A word of caution at the end. Don't rush too much into reaping the
benefits of this chakra ahead of time. Don't try to develop this
center without previously working on the other chakras. Be patient
and follow the instructions of your spiritual teacher. When the time
comes, you will be able to work with the Bindu chakra in a natural
and pleasant way.

Namaste!