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| ISBN-13: | 9781609250676 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Red Wheel/Weiser |
| Publication date: | 01/15/1998 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 184 |
| File size: | 3 MB |
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The ABC'S of CHAKRA THERAPY
A WORKBOOK
By Deedre Diemer
Samuel Weiser, Inc.
Copyright © 1998 Deedre DiemerAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-60925-067-6
CHAPTER 1
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CHAKRAS
Welcome to the ABC's of Chakra Therapy!
If you've picked up this book, most likely you are already well on your path to Self-discovery and Self-healing. The ABC's of Chakra Therapy is designed to take you on a journey of becoming more of who you truly are (your higher potential) through the exploration of your main energy centers (chakras). These simple, yet powerful techniques are designed to facilitate healing on all levels—physical, mental, emotional and spiritual—through clearing blocks in your energy field, restoring your balance and energy flow. You will learn energizing techniques for charging and clearing out energy blocks, how to run your own energy, and have the opportunity to experience the transformational power of visualization, sound, color, aromatherapy, reflexology, crystals/gemstones, and physical exercise.
Through familiarizing ourselves with our chakras, we become more aware of what is our own energy and what is the energy that belongs to someone or something else. For example: has this ever happened to you? You're walking down the street feeling great, confident, and in a good mood. You pass a crowd of people or perhaps just one person—maybe you're aware of him or her, maybe you're not. Soon you find yourself thinking negative thoughts, maybe feeling angry, irritated. You wonder, "Where did that come from, I was just in such a great mood?" Sound familiar? Well, you've just been "slimed"—you've picked up on the negative energy of someone in the crowd, and the energy penetrated your aura so now you believe you're the one who feels awful, when the reality is that someone totally separate from you just dumped his or her negativity on you, and you took it! When you're aware and certain of your own energy, you'll know right away that you've taken on someone else's energy (beliefs, thoughts, emotions, childhood programming, societal programming, etc.) and by using any variety of the tools mentioned in this workbook, you'll be able to clear your own energy to bring yourself back to a more neutral state. From that neutral state, you are better able to make decisions, see clearly what needs to be done; in short, you are better able to take control of your life—no longer being at the unconscious effect of those around you.
There are several ways you can use The ABC's of Chakra Therapy. You can explore each chakra individually, perhaps spending a week on each chakra. Before you do anything, I recommend familiarizing yourself with the basic skills mentioned later. Once you're familiar with the basic skills, read the material for each chakra. For those of you who are more auditory, you may want to create your own meditation tape by recording your voice reading the Chakra-Related Emotional, Mental, and Physical Health Issues for each chakra. Then listen to the corresponding tape, and experiment with the alternative forms of therapy to find out which ones resonate the most with you. Maybe all of them do, maybe only one, it doesn't matter—trust yourself!
Included in The ABC's of Chakra Therapy is the Where is Your Energy Blocked? section. This is a self-diagnostic that I've designed to assist you in locating where your energies may be blocked. This self-diagnostic is quite extensive. You may or may not wish to answer all the questions in one sitting. However, going through it once may assist you in determining where your major blocks are—the ones that tend to correspond with major life issues. After that, I suggest scanning the diagnostic to determine which questions seem to resonate with you at that moment (questions that you answer "yes" to). Then check the answer sheet to determine which chakras correspond with the question(s). Once you discover which chakras are the most out of balance, you can use any of the recommended therapies to assist in alleviating the blockage: i.e., listening to a corresponding chakra tape that will take you through a guided visualization, or breathing in the color that corresponds with the chakra, selecting an appropriate crystal and placing it on the chakra, etc. In my experience, the Running Energy Meditation is extremely powerful for raising your vibrational level and clearing blocks in your energy field.
How to Use the Different Therapies
Your Personal Guided Meditation Tapes (optional)
I strongly recommend the Running Energy Meditation as an extremely efficient way of clearing your energy field. You can sit and Run Energy on your own, or you can use one of the Guided Meditation Tapes that you can make to assist you with the clearing process of each chakra. You will want to set aside quiet time for this, as this is a meditation technique that requires focus and freedom from distractions. Do not listen to these tapes while driving your car, as you need to be focused and alert while driving!
Nature Therapy
Nature Therapy provides images and nature-setting suggestions that stimulate or relax the chakras. The best way to utilize this therapy is if you can meditate (sit quietly in contemplation) in the actual nature setting recommended. Sit by the ocean contemplating the sunset, sit outside in the moonlight, etc. The next best thing to do is to create a vivid picture in your mind and meditate on that, or perhaps find a photograph to meditate on. Use your imagination!
Sound Therapy
Sound Therapy is very subjective and I encourage you to listen to the music that resonates inside of you. There are recommendations in this book, however you are the best source of information as to what relaxes or energizes you musically. Explore different sounds and music. When you have a sense of the vibration that resonates for you and each individual chakra, I suggest making a tape for your listening and relaxing pleasure—perhaps five minutes of music or sound for each of the seven chakras. You'll be making a 30-minute tape (the sound for the 7th chakra is silence). You can sit and listen to the tape, or you could do the Running Energy Meditation while listening to it, or burn incense, etc.
Also included in Sound Therapy is vocal chanting. Whether you are vocalizing specific vowels or chanting mantras, allow the sound, the vibration, of your own voice to resonate and clear your energy! You don't have to be a singer to do this. We all have a voice—use it for your own healing!
Aromatherapy
Our sense of smell is a powerful tool for healing—releasing and relaxing. Use incense, potpourri, or essential oils designed for aromatherapy—again you can make this as elaborate or as simple as you want. I suggest starting simply. That allows you to find out if aromatherapy resonates with you before investing a lot of money in room diffusers, etc. I highly recommend combining aromatherapy with any meditation technique!
Color Therapy
Color Therapy involves visualizing and breathing the different colors into your energy field. This therapy, combined with the physical exercises and/or Running Energy offers a great clean-out! You can select the color corresponding to the chakra that is the most out of balance and breathe that color into that particular chakra and your aura; or you can take the time to sequentially explore your chakras and breathe the corresponding color(s) into each chakra. Again, use your creativity and imagination! Experiment with different colors. For example, while Running Energy, you might want to visualize a particular color above your crown chakra and let that color's energy flow throughout your energy field. Or perhaps you can wear clothing of a particular color to energize you—colored underwear is great, and if you can make it silk, it's even better! Many people will attest to the protective qualities of silk. Remember that white contains all the color spectrum, so it's always a safe choice. If you wish to activate a particular chakra, you may also want to surround yourself with the corresponding color: i.e., to activate the heart chakra you may decide to wear pink jewelry, place pink flowers around you, etc. Consider the color of your bed linens, surround yourself with colors that complement your energy and give you the results you're looking for. For example: orange-red may be great for sexuality/creativity, but may not be conducive to getting a restful, peaceful night's sleep!
Gemstone/Crystal Therapy
There is much to be said about the healing powers inherent in crystals, yet always remember that they, too, are just tools for healing. The ultimate source of healing is still within you—your Higher Self, whatever you wish to call it on a word level. Please be sure you don't give your power away to anyone or anything else (including crystals)! One way you can approach this form of therapy is to: lie down in a comfortable position (face up or down), place one corresponding gemstone or crystal per chakra on each of the chakra points on your body, and remain in that reclining position for approximately twenty minutes. This can be very powerful, depending upon how sensitive you are to the healing properties of the gemstone or crystal you select. Experiment to find out which crystals work for you, and know that your selection may vary, depending upon what you are experiencing in your life at the moment. Remember, one gemstone or crystal can be beneficial for more than just one chakra (i.e., clear quartz is a powerful healer for all the chakras).
Another approach is to carry those crystals or gemstones with you, or you may want to wear one. Due to the conductive qualities of gemstones and crystals, it is recommended that you "clean them out" prior to using them. One method I recommend is placing the gemstone or crystal in water and sea salt—ideally overnight. However, for a quick cleansing, holding them under running water will work. You can also burn sage and clean them with the smoke from the burning sage.
Reflexology
Just as there are hundreds of chakras in your body, so are there reflex zones that correspond with every organ of your body and reflex zones in your feet that correspond with the seven major chakras. In using this form of chakra therapy, a gentle, circular massage technique is recommended, using one, two, or three fingers. Remember that chakra therapy takes place primarily on an energy level, not necessarily the physical plane. Massage these reflex points on your own feet, or if you're fortunate enough to have a willing partner to massage these points for you, that's an added bonus! Again, be gentle. This isn't deep tissue bodywork! Feel free to use a lotion if you'd like, perhaps a lotion containing aromatherapeutic oils.
Yoga Therapy and Physical Exercises
Listed in this book are physical and breathing exercises designed to charge and open each chakra. You can use the exercises on an as-needed, individual basis for the imbalanced chakra, or you can execute them in sequential order, starting with the 1st chakra and completing with the 7th chakra. I have included a group of exercises that can be performed in a series (see pp. 147–155). If you practice them as a series, you can feel the energy build from exercise to exercise, culminating in a release in the 7th. My understanding is that the exercises are designed to be practiced in a series. To do the sequence in its entirety takes approximately fifteen minutes and is a great way to start the day! These exercises are yoga-like in their nature, so also included are possible yoga practices and postures for each chakra. I've found that integrating color breathing with these exercises can greatly enhance the experience and clearing of the energy field.
The ABC's of Chakra Therapy just scratches the surface of the healing possibilities available through conscious clearing of our energy field. If one or more of the therapies touched upon resonates deeply with you, I encourage you to do further research—read books, take classes. Please refer to the Recommended Reading List as a resource. These are some of the books that have assisted me. There is so much information available to all of us! And as always, use your discretion. Listen to the truth inside of you! Your heart, your wisdom will direct you to what you need. You will, however, be required to take the initial first step—which you obviously have!
An Overview of the Chakra System
Before we start working together, let's discuss some of the various beliefs about chakras that you will read about. More and more information is becoming available about chakras and you may discover, as I have, that there are numerous explanations of how the chakras work. For example, there are differing beliefs regarding the direction in which the chakras spin. Some teachers say they all spin clockwise, others say counterclockwise; yet another source may say they alternate with the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th chakras spinning in one direction, and the 2nd, 4th, and 6th chakras spinning in the other direction. You may read that chakras spin different directions in men and women, or that the chakras point up and down and not front to back. There are differing schools of thought regarding the colors of each chakra, as well as how many chakras there are, and their respective locations in the physical body. In my opinion, all these concepts are accurate and valid because each individual perceives things in a different way. The most important thing to remember is that you need to work with the information that resonates for you. With this in mind, I'm going to share the concepts this workbook is based upon.
You may be asking, "Why study the chakra system? What's the benefit?" The main purpose in working with and understanding the chakras is to create integration and wholeness within yourself. Knowledge of the chakras can be of immeasurable help in getting to know yourself. It can guide you in the realization of your inherent potential, and enable you to live a life full of abundance and joy.
The first major concept to understand is one of quantum physics— you are made of energy and sustained by energy. You do not end at your skin, your body is an ever-changing energy system that is affected by and affects the energy around you. Your physical body contains the most dense energy visible to the naked eye. This energy continues forming layers of energy fields around your body which are not usually visible, at least to the untrained eye. This magnetic energy field, shaped like an egg that surrounds your body is called your "aura." The aura is created by the energy of the chakras.
Chakra is a Sanskrit word meaning "wheel." A chakra resembles a spinning disc about the size of a silver dollar that opens and closes like the lens of a camera. Chakras are energy centers that receive and send information and life force energy; neuro-transmitters connecting nerves, hormones, and emotions. When a chakra is open, it is receiving information (picking up data from the environment around you). Generally speaking, whether a chakra is wide open or closed is not as important as whether the chakra system is balanced and the chakras are in alignment with each other. You may discover that the more open your chakras are, the more open you are as a person. Unfortunately in this world there still are situations when it may not be safe or appropriate to be too open, thus one goal is to become so in tune with yourself, through exploring your chakras, that you can consciously choose to open or close the chakras depending upon the situation.
Chakras actually appear in the astral energy body, but to make it easier to visualize where they are located, areas in the physical body are used as reference points. If that concept is challenging to accept, feel free to relate to chakras metaphorically. In actuality, your energy body contains hundreds of chakras, however, for our purposes we will focus on the seven main energy centers and two secondary centers referred to in figure 1 on page 10. The main chakras are connected to an "energy channel" that runs behind and parallel with the spine. All seven chakras affect each other and are interactive; much like any high-quality, fine-tuned instrument, so it is important that proper balance be maintained.
Each of the seven chakras correspond with particular body organs and emotional and psychological patterns. Physical illness and disease appear in the etheric body (energy system) prior to manifesting in the physical body. This being the case, I believe that our awareness of and ability to clear out our energy system can be a form of "preventive medicine," another great benefit from the understanding and exploration of your chakras.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from The ABC'S of CHAKRA THERAPY by Deedre Diemer. Copyright © 1998 Deedre Diemer. Excerpted by permission of Samuel Weiser, 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
Contents
Acknowledgments
Part One GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CHAKRAS
Welcome to the ABC's of Chakra Therapy!
An Overview of the Chakra System
Where is Your Energy Blocked?
Emotional, Mental, and Physical Health Issues
Part Two CHAKRA THERAPY
Basic Skills for Clearing Your Energy Field
Chakra Therapies
Part Three EXERCISING YOUR CHAKRAS
An Exercise Series for Opening the Chakras
Bibliography and Recommended Reading
Additional Answer Sheets
Index
About the Author