Is sushumna the spinal cord?

No. It is described along the spinal axis, and later writers made the identification, but the texts place its opening at the perineum and its exit at the fontanelle and describe three finer channels inside it, none of which maps onto anatomy.

How do I know if sushumna is open?

The classical marker is both nostrils flowing equally. It happens naturally several times a day, usually briefly, and alternate-nostril breathing is meant to encourage it.

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Principal channel

Sushumna

Suṣumṇā · सुषुम्णा

The central channel, from the base of the spine to the aperture at the crown. Described as closed in most people and opened by practice, it is the road every other part of the system is measured against.

central channel axis kundalini brahma nadi

Runs from: Muladhara at the base of the spine
Runs to: Brahmarandhra at the crown
Side: Central
Contains: Vajra, chitrini and brahma nadi, nested
Opened by: Balanced ida and pingala
Sources: Shiva Samhita, Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Shat-chakra-nirupana

Three channels inside one

Sushumna is not described as a single tube. Inside it runs vajra, and inside vajra runs chitrini, and the finest thread at the centre is brahma nadi, which is where the energy actually travels. The nesting is the texts' way of saying that the central channel has degrees of subtlety and that opening the outer one is not the same as opening the innermost.

Each of the six centres is threaded on this axis like beads on a cord, which is the standard image in the commentary literature.

Closed and open

The default state is closed. The lower opening at muladhara is described as blocked by the coiled energy resting there, and the practices of hatha yoga are aimed at that blockage: locks, retentions, inversions, and the balancing of the two side channels.

When ida and pingala run evenly, which is what alternate-nostril breathing is for, sushumna is said to open and the breath to move in both nostrils at once. Practitioners are told that this state is short and worth using rather than admiring.

What it is used for

Meditation practice is timed to it. The classical instruction is to sit when sushumna is flowing, which in practical terms means when both nostrils are equally clear, and to handle active work when pingala dominates and rest when ida does.

Whether or not the physiology holds, the habit it produces is useful: checking your own state before deciding what kind of work to attempt.

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Left channel

Ida

The cooling channel that winds around it.

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Right channel

Pingala

The heating channel on the other side.

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Lower gate

Root chakra

Where the central channel begins.

Frequently asked questions

: No. It is described along the spinal axis, and later writers made the identification, but the texts place its opening at the perineum and its exit at the fontanelle and describe three finer channels inside it, none of which maps onto anatomy.
: The classical marker is both nostrils flowing equally. It happens naturally several times a day, usually briefly, and alternate-nostril breathing is meant to encourage it.

Nadi

Ida

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