Lee Sanella, Kundalini: Psychosis or Transcendence, 1976 see here

Kundalini in the idea of Dharma, identifies a form of primal energy or shakti reported to be located at the base of the vertebrae. Different spiritual traditions teach methods of awakening kundalini for the intended purpose of reaching religious enlightenment and a range of supernormal forces.

Copy writer Joseph Campbell details the idea of Kundalini as the number of an coiled girl serpent a serpent goddess not of gross but of refined substance which is to be thought of as residing in a torpid, slumbering talk about in a delicate center, the first of the seven, nearby the foot of the spine the purpose of the yoga then being to rouse this serpent, lift up her brain, and bring her up a subtle nerve or channel of the spinal column to the so called thousand petaled lotus Sahasrara at the crown of the top.

She, rising from the lowest to the best lotus center, will go through and wake the five between, and with each waking the mindset and personality of the specialist will be completely and fundamentally transformed. Kundalini awakening is thought to result from deep meditation, and therefore enlightenment and bliss.

However, as each individual is exclusive, Kundalini awakenings can occur through a number of methods not limited to deep meditation. This awakening includes the Kundalini bodily moving up the central channel to reach within the Sahasrara Chakra at the top of the head. Many systems of yoga give attention to awakening Kundalini through yoga, pranayama respiration, the practice of asana and chanting of mantras. In physical terms, the Kundalini experience is frequently reported to be a feeling of electric energy running over the spine.