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Overview
This accessible and user-friendly book introduces the seven major chakras—those spinning vortexes of energy throughout the body—and presents ways of healing the emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual problems that arise when the chakras are blocked, misaligned, or too open. It also describes how the chakras affect people and provides simple healing techniques, an explanation of the relationship between color and mood, tips for using gemstones to cleanse and energize, and advice for practicing aromatherapy and other complementary systems to channel energy within the body. A brief history of the chakras, a discussion of the relationship between the chakras and astrology, and an exploration of the chakras and kundalini are also included.
This is a book for anyone interested in alternative medicine and for everyone interested in leading healthier, more energetic, and happier lives.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781612833859 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc. |
| Publication date: | 06/01/2017 |
| Series: | Plain & Simple Series |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 144 |
| File size: | 4 MB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Chakras
Plain & Simple
By Sasha Fenton
Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc.
Copyright © 2017 Sasha FentonAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-57174-773-0
CHAPTER 1
An Introduction to Chakras
The word chakra derives from the Sanskrit word cakra, which means "wheel" or "cycle." Chakras are variously described as spinning vortices, cones, discs, or even cogs. Imagine a length of pipe running through your body from head to toe, and along its length are seven cones that resemble the open ends of trombones, sticking out of the front and the back of the body. Now imagine that these cones are spinning. Each of these cones is an energy node, a swirling wheel where matter and consciousness meet. The invisible energy that moves within these cones is called prana, our vital life force, the metaphysical energy that keeps us healthy and alive.
These seven spinning cones are the chakras. They are located from the bottom of your spine (your tail bone) and ascend upward and out through the crown of your head. Each chakra spins in the direction opposite to the previous one.
You cannot see chakras on an X-ray or a scan because they are part of a "subtle" energy system, much the same way that your aura is an invisible emanation of your body's energy. The chakras link with the endocrine system, the nerve ganglia that lie along the spinal column, and also, therefore, with the glands that supply us with hormones such as adrenaline, insulin, estrogen, and progesterone.
Chakras are always active, as they are constantly monitoring things around such us as light, warmth, sound, smells, tastes, comfort, and discomfort. Chakras relate to the five senses of smell, taste, touch, hearing, and sight, as well as our senses of intuition and spirituality. The chakras sense and measure the surrounding elements and then balance our bodily interaction with them. Chakras work with the human aura to let us know when we are getting too hot, cold, wet, or dry for comfort. They sense when the wind is too strong and perhaps when a rainstorm will come. They are part of the human survival system, and they act as an early warning system. Many cultures consider chakras to be a very ancient form of survival mechanism that exists in all animals and human beings. Chakras also help us to sense and calculate emotional atmospheres, so if a situation is likely to turn ugly, the chakras alert our sixth sense, to tell us to prepare for fight or flight.
When a chakra is closed, partially blocked, misaligned, or too open, it throws some part of our health, personality, or consciousness out of alignment. I know from my own experience that exhaustion and worry can make me lose perspective, and when this happens, problems that I can normally handle perfectly well suddenly appear overwhelming. When I am overtired or very worried, I forget to eat. When I start to eat again, I might overdo it, and my blood glucose can rise into unhealthy levels. In this situation, some energy healing directed into my solar plexus chakra works miracles, both on the physical and emotional level. In Chakras Plain and Simple, we will discuss the physical and emotional systems governed by each of the seven chakras.
There are three concepts inherent in the chakra system. These are:
• The physical body, which embraces health and strength, or sickness, weakness, and discomfort.
• The subtle or psychic body, which includes the mind, intellect, ego, and subtle feelings. This level helps us to "know" when something is wrong. (If you are a healer, this level is the one that helps you feel what is amiss within the bodies of those you are healing.)
• The spiritual world, which allows us to be psychic and mediumistic, to contact spiritual guides, to tap into people's past and future lives, and ultimately, to contact the Universe or the Divine.
A Brief History
The knowledge of the chakra system has its origins in ancient India, and it is incorporated into Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism. Chakras are mentioned in the Vedas, the four holy books that Hindus believe date back to before 2500 BC. The earliest mention of the chakras is in the later Upanishads, including Brahma Upanishad and Yoga Tattra Upanishad. This early Vedic model was later adapted into Tibetan Buddhism.
Sir John Woodroffe, who wrote under the name Arthur Avalon, translated two 16th century texts, the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana and the Paduka Pancaka, and published the translations in 1918 as his book titled The Serpent Power. The ideas in his book were complex. Later, the Theosophists took an interest in the book and the subject, and they removed some of the unnecessary complications. One of the Theosophists, C. W. Leadbeater, meditated on the subject and then wrote his own ideas down in a book called The Chakras, published in 1927. Modern Indian scholars who have studied Leadbeater's ideas are in broad agreement with him.
Chakra positions in relation to nervous system. This illustration is from the 1927 edition of The Chakras by C. W. Leadbeater. Here one can clearly see the conceptualization of the chakras as trumpet cones, into which and through which the prana, life force, flows.
In the Vedic (Hindu) tradition, the chakras are linked with Vishnu, who is "The Protector of the Universe." Vishnu is linked to the stars, the galaxies, and the universe, so those who have faith in astrology worship him.
Ancient Hindu tradition tells us that the soul is located in the solar plexus, heart, throat, brow, and crown chakras.
Other traditions use a similar system of connecting energy paths around the body, including the Chinese meridian system used in acupuncture, acupressure, and reflexology. There is even some similarity between the chakra system and the Kabala, and even with ideas contained in Islamic Sufism.
How Many Chakras Exist?
Not everybody agrees about the total number of chakras or all their locations, but here are some common theories:
• There are 78,000 chakras in the human body
• Seven are major chakras
• Twenty-one are minor chakras
• Forty-nine are tiny chakras
• The remainder are minute nano-chakras
Lotus Flower Symbols
Many Indian illustrations depict the chakras as lotus flowers (water lilies). The number of petals on each flower increases or changes with the growing complexity of each chakra. This doesn't match up with the idea of spinning cones and pipes, so the flower images are symbolic and give people a way to identify the chakras. Some people confuse these flowers with the chakras themselves, which irritates purists to the point that they reject the idea of the flower symbols completely! I am a great believer in doing what works for you, so if you wish to imagine the chakras as flowers, please do so. When I first learned about the chakras, my teacher described them to me as common flowers (poppies, marigolds and so forth) so I still remember them that way.
The Seven Major Chakras
Let us return to our image of the pipe and the spinning cones. We can now discuss each of these seven energy "wheels" as the seven major chakras. Starting from the base of your spine, the seven chakras are
• The base (or root) chakra
• The sacral chakra
• The solar plexus chakra
• The heart chakra
• The throat chakra
• The brow (or third eye) chakra
• The crown chakra
The lower three chakras are associated with our most basic, fundamental needs, both physically and emotionally. They are sometimes called the instinctual chakras. The prana, or life force, is thought to vibrate more slowly through these chakras, and the energy is more dense.
The upper three chakras represent a more rapidly vibrating life force, and they correspond to our higher mental, emotional, and spiritual aspirations.
The heart chakra, between the higher and lower chakras, is known as the gateway chakra.
Chakras as Lotus Flowers
Using the Hindu lotus system, the seven chakras are described as follows:
Base: four petals
Sacral: six petals
Solar plexus: ten petals
Heart: twelve petals
Throat: sixteen petals
Brow: a petal on each side of a circle
Crown: one thousand petals
An illustration from an ancient manuscript shows the thousand-petalled lotus crown chakra, twopetalled brow chakra, and the sixteen-petalled throat chakra (Nepal, 17th century)
Chakra Colors
Each chakra is also associated with a color. These are:
Base: red
Sacral: orange
Solar plexus: yellow
Heart: green
Throat: blue
Brow: indigo
Crown: violet
Chakras and Astrology
Each of the chakras is associated with one of the seven planets that were known before the invention of telescopes. The signs with which they are linked belong to traditional astrology, predating the "new" planets of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto.
CHAPTER 2How to Work with the Chakras
The seven energy wheels, the chakras, keep our life force, prana, moving throughout our bodies. When this vital energy is blocked, the result is illness, both physical and emotional. In order to maintain health and vitality, it is necessary to understand what each chakra represents so we can focus our healing efforts on the proper chakra. We will go into the seven chakras in depth in part two of this book, but the following is a quick overview:
1. Base Chakra — Our foundation, our feeling of being grounded, our survival instinct
2. Sacral Chakra — Our ability to accept, and take pleasure in, other people and new experiences
3. Solar Plexus Chakra — Our self-worth, self-confidence, and self-esteem
4. Heart Chakra — Our ability to love and find inner peace
5. Throat Chakra — Our ability to communicate; self-expression
6. Brow Chakra — Our intuition, imagination, and wisdom
7. Crown Chakra — Our connection to spirituality
If a lower chakra is blocked, the upper ones can't work properly. A blockage in the sacral chakra might affect the actions of the throat or brow chakra, so you may discover that clearing one chakra helps others.
As you read through the chapters on each of the seven main chakras, you will come across character traits and emotional or psychological problems that you recognize within yourself.
Many health or emotional problems require conventional treatment, but complementary remedies can hasten the healing process. Thus, such things as gem therapy, color therapy, massage, reflexology, and spiritual healing can be of use. All of these can be directed toward specific conditions by identifying chakras that need to be cleared, balanced, aligned, mended, and healed.
The Basics: Opening and Closing the Chakras
There are as many methods of opening and closing chakras as there are groups of channelers, healers, and other light workers. The following method comes from my friend, Barbara Ellen, and it uses common international flower images.
Opening the Chakras
Imagine yourself gathering light from the whole universe and then bringing this light down to the crown chakra. See the crown chakra as a purple lotus (water lily) and imagine it opening and allowing the light to enter through it. Then, allow the light to come down as far as the forehead chakra, at which point a large blue eye opens up. Allow the light to come down as far as the throat, at which point a pale blue cornflower opens up. Allow the light to come down to the heart chakra, where a bunch of green leaves opens up. Allow the light to come down to the spleen chakra and let a large yellow daisy or dahlia open up. Allow the light to come down to the solar plexus chakra, where a large orange marigold opens up. Allow the light to come down to the base chakra, where a big red poppy opens up. Then allow the light to filter down through the legs and to fill out the whole body and the surrounding aura. Finish by imagining the light extending down into the earth.
Closing the Chakras
Start by imagining the light that has reached down into the earth being turned off. Then turn off the light in your legs until you reach the base chakra. Now turn off the light there and carefully close down the red poppy. Next, turn off the light up to and beyond the solar plexus and close that flower down tightly. Continue the process until you have finished, and then send the light off into the universe.
Frankly, it is more important to learn how to close the chakras than to open them, because they open of their own volition as soon as you do any kind of psychic or spiritual work. They will also open if you talk about psychic matters, read about them, or when you watch a psychic or spooky television program. Chakras that have been left open can lead to bad dreams, feelings of psychic invasion, and other uncomfortable sensations.
Some people like to open their chakras from the bottom upwards, so if that is your preferred method, that's fine.
Clearing the Chakras
This idea comes from Eve Bingham. Imagine crystal clear water entering your crown chakra and running through your body and out through your fingertips and toes. Focus on giving each chakra a good wash. When you have finished, close your chakras carefully, using the method previously described.
If you feel that something has really upset you, as soon as you can get around to it, take a shower. While you are under the shower, wash your hair thoroughly, and don't forget to give the underneath of your feet a good wash. Then go through the chakra closing procedure again. This can actually help if someone upsets you, because the nastiness will have got into your aura or subtle body and got stuck there like bits of Velcro. A bath will help, but a shower does a better job of washing unwanted subtle material away from the body.
Strengthening Weak Chakras
Each of the seven main chakras rules a different portion of a person's psychology and character. We all naturally have one or two chakras that are stronger than the others. Or we might even have one chakra that is performing very badly. We can strengthen our weaker chakras in various ways:
• We can work on our psychology by trying to think, behave, or react in a way that is less harmful to ourselves and to others, but this is only practical if the emotional or psychological problem is fairly mild. Also, it is not always easy to change oneself.
• Hypnotherapy or emotional freedom technique (EFT) might be useful.
• You can ask a healer to channel light and strength into your weaker chakras.
• You can take advantage of healing techniques such as crystal therapy, color therapy, and aromatherapy. I suggest relevant crystals, colors, and essences for each chakra later in this book.
• Reflexology, acupuncture, and acupressure all work on the meridian lines, which themselves align to the chakras.
• You can do a certain amount of self-healing with these techniques.
• Those of you who are into pagan ways may wish to use items that connect to certain chakras on an altar.
The chakras are associated with specific body parts and with specific ailments, so healers can work directly on the right chakra for each ailment. For instance, you would work on the sacral and base chakras for bowel problems.
Keeping Yourself Grounded
All psychic work can make the practitioner or the recipient feel light-headed and "spacey." If this happens to you, take your shoes off and walk around on the ground, or even lie down on the ground for a while, if possible. As soon as you can do so, go out of doors and stand on the grass or the earth for a few minutes. This will act like the earth wire or a lightning conductor, and it will ground you once again.
If you get a headache while giving or receiving healing or any other kind of psychic work, stop for a while. The headache denotes too much activity going on in your upper chakras, and a need to ground and balance the lower ones. It might be worth focusing on sending light from your body downward through the earth at this time. Another idea might be to lick a little salt or to hold a couple of crystals in your hands, as these items are part of the earth realm.
Always close your chakras down after working. If you haven't the time to do a proper close down, or if you forget how to do it, use this simple trick: Imagine yourself in a purple sleeping bag, zipped up all around you, and even over your head. That will strengthen your aura.
Meditation and Psychic Work
Your meditations will be more effective if you open your chakras first. Don't forget to close them down again when you have finished. The chakras will open easily as soon as you give healing to others or perform any channeling or any other kind of spiritual or psychic work. Do remember to close them down afterward.
CHAPTER 3The Base Chakra
Location
The base chakra is located at the base of the spine and it goes through the body at the bottom of the trunk. Some say that its sphere of influence includes the hips and thighs, while others say that it includes the whole of the legs and feet, linking the body to the earth via the feet.
Basic Purpose
The base chakra symbolizes the drive for survival. It is the first of the instinctual chakras, as opposed to emotional, mental, or spiritual chakras. The base chakra rules such things as the ability to sense danger and to seek safety by taking cover. It also relates to the basis of anything, such as the home from which one ventures out into the world, the mother, one's family history, family honor, the past, the collective unconscious, and even the earth itself.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Chakras by Sasha Fenton. Copyright © 2017 Sasha Fenton. Excerpted by permission of Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Part 1 What are Chakras?
1 An Introduction to Chakras 3
2 How to Work with the Chakras 17
Part 2 The Seven Chakras
3 The Base Chakra 27
4 The Sacral Chakra 37
5 The Solar Plexus Chakra 47
6 The Heart Chakra 57
7 The Throat Chakra 65
8 The Brow Chakra 73
9 The Crown Chakra 81
Part 3 Chakra Healing
10 Healing Physical Ailments 91
11 Emotional and Mental Ailments 105
Part 4 Additional Chakras
12 Beyond the Seven Chakras 115
13 Kundalini 127
Conclusion 131