Kirtan Kriya (Sa Ta Na Ma Meditation)

This meditation brings a total mental balance to the individual psyche. Vibrating on each fingertip alternates the electrical polarities. The index and ring fingers are electrically negative, relative to the other fingers. This causes a balance in the electromagnetic projection of the aura. Practicing this meditation is both a science and an art. It is an art in the way it molds consciousness and in the refinement of sensation and insight it produces. It is a science in the tested certainty of the results each technique produces.

Meditations have coded actions to their reactions in the psyche. But because Kirtan Kriya is effective and exact, it can also lead to problems if not done properly.

Yogi Bhajan said at Winter Solstice 1972 that a person who wears pure white and meditates on this sound current for 2-1/2 hours a day for one year, will know the unknowable and see the unsee-able. Through this constant practice, the mind awakens to the infinite capacity of the soul for sacrifice, service, and creation.

Each repetition of the entire mantra takes 3 to 4 seconds. This is the cycle of Creation. From the Infinite comes life and individual existence. From life comes death or change. From death comes the rebirth of consciousness to the joy of the Infinite through which compassion leads back to life.

Mudra: This mantra can be done in many different mudras. Most common is to begin in Gyan Mudra. The elbows are straight while chanting, and the mudra changes as each fingertip touches in turn the tip of the thumb with firm pressure.

Mantra and Mudra: Chant Saa, Taa, Naa, Maa. With each sound, alternate through four mudras:

• On Saa, touch the first (Jupiter) finger; Gyan Mudra (knowledge)
• On Taa, touch the second (Saturn) finger; Shuni Mudra (wisdom, intelligence, patience)
• On Naa, touch the third (Sun) finger; Surya Mudra (vitality, energy of life)
• On Maa, touch the fourth (Mercury) finger; Buddhi Mudra (ability to communicate)

As you chant, imagine the energy of each sound moving down through the Crown Chakra, and then out through the Third Eye Point. Project the sounds to Infinity.

Time: Begin the kriya in a normal voice for 5 minutes; then whisper for 5 minutes; then go deep into the sound, vibrating silently for 10 minutes. Then come back to a whisper for 5 minutes, then aloud for 5 minutes. The duration of the meditation may vary, as long as the proportion of loud, whisper, silent, whisper, loud is maintained.

How To Practice Kirtan Kriya

Sa Ta Na Ma Meditation

Kirtan Kriya is a meditation chant exercise originating from India and was likely first utilized in the practice of kundalini yoga. Kirtan meditation practice involves a combination of chanting a simple mantra that consists of ancient sounds while using repetitive finger poses or mudras. This simple meditative exercise reduces stress levels, increases circulation in the brain, promotes focus and clarity, and stimulates mind-body-spirit connection.

This meditative practice is easier than breathing. By the way, breathing correctly is actually not as easy as one might imagine. Regardless, once you get the hang of kirtan, you will discover what a breeze it is to do.

Use as a Daily Ritual or Random Tool for Quieting the Mind

Making it a daily practice is highly recommended. And the best part is that you can practice kirtan for as little as 10-12 minutes each day.  However, even if you choose not to adopt kirtan as a daily ritual it is still a tool to keep readily at hand. It is a quick way to quiet the mind whenever it is in overdrive. 

Birth – Life – Death – Rebirth

The four Sanskrit chanting sounds used in kirtan (Sa Ta Na Ma) translates to birth, life, death, and rebirth.

Here’s How You Begin Your Kirtan Kriya Session

Begin your session by sitting cross-legged on the floor or seated upright in a straight-backed chair. Rest your hands on your knees with palms facing upwards.

1. Chant the syllables Sa, Ta, Na, Ma – lengthen the ending of each sound as you repeat them, … ah. 
2. Touch your index fingertip to the tip of your thumb as you chant Sa(ah).
3. Touch your middle fingertip to the tip of your thumb as you chant Ta(ah).
4. Touch your ring fingertip to the tip of your thumb as you chant Na(ah).
5. Touch your pinky tip to the tip of your thumb as you chant Ma(ah).
6. Do the finger movements as shown in steps 3-6 as you chant in the following sequence:
   • Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma out loud for 2 minutes
   • Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma in a whisper for 2 minutes
   • Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma in silence for 4 minutes
   • Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma in a whisper for 2 minutes
   • Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma out loud for 2 minutes

Helpful Tips

1. The ah sound is the same as what the doctor asks you to make as she inserts the tongue depressor into your mouth during your exam.
2. If you decide to make this meditation a daily routine it is most beneficial to repeat this chant at the same time each day.
3. Kundalini yoga is specifically directed towards awakening the life force through complex sets of exercises, breathing, and the use of mantras.
4. Sitting upon a zafu (see below) or a standard meditation bench will make your practice time more enjoyable and certainly more comfortable than sitting up a flat mat or floor.

Yoga and Kirtan Kriya Meditation Bolster Brain Functioning

Fire up your brain: Seven steps to performing Kirtan Kriya in 15 minutes a day.

A study published in the April edition of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease confirmed that yoga and a form of meditation known as Kirtan Kriya improved brain functioning by increasing connectivity, improving memory, and decreasing mood aberration. 

Over the course of 12 weeks, adults age 55 and over, focused on improving brain function, the study subjects reported mild anxiety about their memory and showed some mild cognitive impairment. For one hour a week, one group of 14 attended a Kundalini yoga class, beginner-level yoga focused on breathing exercises and meditation. For 15 minutes each day, they practiced Kirtan Kriya meditation, the repeating of sounds combined with repetitive hand movements (See Improve Brain Function below).

The “brain game” group of 11 attended classroom instruction in a well established brain-training program for an hour a week, and they spent 15 minutes a day performing a series of mental exercises designed to bolster their brain functioning.

Both groups showed improved communication in the regions of the brain involved in memory and language, but those who practiced yoga also showed more activity in the regions involved in the brain’s ability to focus and multitask. The yoga group showed a statistically significant improvement in mood and visuospatial memory performance, reflecting increased connectivity and improved verbal memory.

Improve Brain Functioning with Kirtan Kriya

The Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation in Tucson, Arizona, has been studying the effects yoga meditation has on the brain and discovered (confirmed, really) that a certain form of yoga meditation, known as Kirtan Kriya, can have immediate, long-term positive benefits for the brain. Practicing this simple 12-minute yoga meditation brings about the following benefits:

• Improve cerebral blood flow (helps you think better)
• Improve blood flow to the posterior cingulate gurus (improve memory retrieval)
• Increase activity in the frontal lobe (sharpen attention, concentration, and focus)
• Replenish vital neurotransmitters and brain chemicals, such as acetylcholine, nor-epinephrine, and dopamine (which help the brain function more smoothly)
• Increase energy levels, improve sleep quality, reduce stress (lower cortisol levels)
• Improve both short- and long-term psychological health and spiritual well being

Kirtan Kriya is an ancient yoga practice that involves the combination of focused breath work, singing or chanting (and whispering), finger movements (called “mudras”), and visualization. To perform it properly, you use or activate all of your senses, awakening your brain and rejuvenating your energy.

How Does Kirtan Kriya Work?

According to yogi practitioners, Kirtan Kriya meditation stimulates all of your senses and the areas of the brain associated with them. The use of the tongue stimulates the 84 acupuncture meridian points on the roof of the mouth, sending a signal to the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and other areas of the brain. The dense nerve endings in the fingertips, lips, and tongue activate the motor and sensory areas of the brain. Using the fingertips to accompany the sounds activates the occidental lobe of the brain, which improves vision (as in “having a vision”) or clarity of purpose—short- and long-term. Like all meditation, this practice can have powerful and positive effects on brain function.

Instructions for Performing Kirtan Kriya

1. Begin by sitting comfortably with your feet flat on the floor (you can sit in a yoga pose with your legs crossed if you like). Straighten your spine above your hips; breath naturally, close your eyes.
2. Breathe in and out a few times, until your breath flows easily.
3. Begin by softly chanting “Saa, Taa, Naa, Maa” (together these sounds represent your highest self or true identity). You can use the familiar children’s song, Mary Had a Little Lamb, using only the first four notes: Mar-y-had-a.
4. Add the finger movements (mudras). With your arms lying loosely against your torso, raise both hands, palm up (you can rest your hands on your lap if you like), and, one at a time, press and release each fingertip, in sequence, to your thumb. On “Saa,” touch the tip of your index finger to your thumb; on “Taa,” the tip of your middle finger, and so on.
5. As you continue the chants, visualize energy coming down from above (from the universe, or spirit, if you like) into your head, proceeding down through your brain and then dropping and pausing at your “third eye” (considered the site of intuition, located just between your eyes).
6. Imagine the sound you are generating flowing through the same path.
7. Begin by singing the sounds out loud for approximately two minutes (listening and feeling the resonance of the sound as you sing or chant). Then sing softly for two minutes; “say” the sound softly to yourself for four minutes; whisper the sounds for two minutes; then sing out loud again for two minutes. You can use a timer if you like, but soon you’ll be able to gauge the length that works best for you.

When you’ve completed the exercise, inhale deeply, drawing air into your lungs, stretch your arms and hands above your head (gently stretch your spine), and then lower them down each side, in a sweeping motion, as you exhale.

Don’t be discouraged if it feels incredibly awkward at first. Over time, your coordination will dramatically improve, and you’ll likely find yourself looking forward to these meditation sessions as a way to start, or refresh, your mind, body, and spirit.

The Incredible Power of Kirtan Kriya: A Conversation on Brain

Imagine that you could do just 12 minutes of yoga practice every day—and live longer, stay healthier, feel happier, and think more clearly. You’d do it, right?

If you answered yes, then get started right now. According to clinical psychologist and yoga therapist Chris Walling, doing 12 minutes daily of the Kundalini Yoga practice known as Kirtan Kriya is proven to enhance brain and mental health, increase longevity, and keep your mind sharp.

“Not only can this protocol help people live longer and better, it also can also alleviate a lot of chronic illnesses,” Chris says. “People who do this practice are buying themselves quite a few years on the tail end.”

A Multi sensory Intervention

Chris describes Kirtan Kriya as a “multi sensory intervention,” combining breath, mudra (finger movements), mantra, and visualization to create far-reaching effects. Its benefits for health and longevity have long been recognized within the Kundalini Yoga lineage, but Kundalini master Yogi Bhajan and his student Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD (co founder with Kirti Khalsa of the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation) set the stage for ongoing scientific inquiry into the nature and impact of this powerful practice.

“Once it was investigated from the clinical angle, researchers discovered a whole host of brain health–supporting features,” says Chris. “Through the last couple of decades, research at top-tier academic research hospitals and institutions in the United States and all over the world have discovered that this kriya, when practiced regularly over a period of eight weeks, begins to improve a whole range of measures, from cognitive performance on memory testing all the way to cellular changes.”

A groundbreaking study at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), where Chris was executive administrator for the university’s Longevity Center, showed that regular practice increased telomerase—the enzyme linked to structures at the ends of our chromosomes, which affect how our cells age. In fact,  telomerase was increased by 43 percent, the largest increase ever recorded. Other studies on the practice have shown that it improves blood flow to the brain, reverses memory loss, eases depression and decreases inflammatory genes while increasing healthy ones.