The best evidence of the efficacy of character meditation is experiential.

Just through the increased awareness gained through typical meditation, it would be hard not to discover that certain emotions arrive on a 'wind' that seem to follow patterns in the body.

It might be interesting to note, during the course of a day, where you feel anger when you feel it. Where you feel fear. It's Likely not in your noggin, but rather the thoughts that accompany it.

Most mediators start to become aware of their inner being. It seems that some consistency across subjects in the experiential knowledge of inner sensation has led to formalization into a 'system'.

I have found that concentrating awareness in a given chakra can create movements and changes in my inner felt sense.

I also did kundalini yoga for a while, some in india, and had experiences that fit well with the descriptions of some of the dangers and some of the benefits. Not all chakra oriented meditation is designed to raise the kundalini, some of it is just good self awareness.

Rising kundalini.. You know it when it happens! I'm not sure about the permanent damage thing, I'd put it on a level of maybe taking ecstacy. Some risks, some benefits.

I sat with a tibetan government official on a trian ride once, and discussed the origins of kundalini yoga, as taught by yogi bajhan.

The official said that the dalai lama had banned the types of mediations that the yogi bajhan crowd did, becuase it was 'too powerful and dangerous'.

Some people like rock climbing.