Bana is a form of dress. Any kind of outfit is technically a bana. Your clothing is a reflection of your consciousness and what you wear is amplifying your energy.

These were my notes from the last Kundalini yoga teacher training I did earlier this year. I loved that my teachers went over this in some detail. I have always loved clothes and even spent my freshman year as a fashion major.. and I almost dropped out because I realized pretty fast that the fashion business is full of shit not for me. Don’t get me wrong – I know some wonderful people who are in the business but overall I feel like it’s really.. misguided. And I think a part of that is because clothing is actually a very powerful container for our energy and so there are systems in place to manipulate this basic human need. But more on that later.. What I am really excited to talk about is how we can shift our understanding of clothing now.

Clothes are a basic human need. What you wear tells the world about who you are long before you even say a word. The color, shape, and materials that make up your clothes all effect you on a conscious and subconscious level. When you dress in a way that expresses who you are inside – and who you want to be- then you are working with your own power in a very productive, practical way. There is a saying in the corporate world ,”dress for the job you want, not the one you have” . They got that right and it is true on many levels.

If you hang around kundalini yogi’s and / or Sikh people long enough you will hear the term bana being thrown around. I believe the word and the concept of bana was invented by the 10th Sikh guru – Guru Gobind Singh. He gave the Sikh people a specific way to dress that helped shape their energy to give them access to a specific, very high frequency. Sikh bana involves a system called the 5 K’s , which basically outline the way baptized Sikhs (Khalsa’s) are to dress. When you look at someone dressed in what they call “full bana”,  it is really easy to be fooled into thinking that this is a dogmatic religious ritual kind of situation. The reality is that each of the “rules” of Khalsa dressing are actually creating specific energetic outcomes. It’s actually a very advanced way of dressing and it’s perfect because it has a built in bullshit shield – close minded bigot types naturally stay away! My husband is a Khalsa Sikh and dresses in full bana a lot so I have gotten a chance to observe the effectiveness of this first hand.

My teachers made it a point to say that the most important thing about choosing your bana is this – BE YOU! Dress however is appropriate for YOU. We don’t have to follow trends anymore. The flock mentality is so over and so boring. Wear what makes you feel good. I look forward to going into much more depth about this topic in future posts. In the mean time watch this excellent 9 min video on this subject.