Going Within (12 page)

Since the chakras are created with soul energy, when we attune to them we are attuning to the specialized centers that have shaped our characters and our natures each time we have entered the physical plane to learn and experience. The more we are attuned to the unique energies within our bodies, the more we can open our consciousness to the higher resource to which they are connected and of which we, and they, are a part.

The more we are connected to higher resources, the more infinite we become as human beings. Carl G. Jung claimed that the chakras were the gateways of consciousness in man, receptive points for the inflow of energies from the cosmos and the spirit and soul of man; that the chakras are always aligned with the Divine God energy because they are the creation of the soul.

The ancient masters claimed that good health depends upon the correct alignment and functioning of these seven etheric energy centers: that the union of spirit and matter manifests as consciousness in the
physical, and the seven chakras govern how our consciousness is experienced in the physical body. How then to open the mind to the energies of the chakras?

In order to understand the meaning of aligning the chakras it is necessary to understand the area of physical consciousness that each one represents.

For me, the seven chakras can best be identified by using key words that represent the emotional issues associated with each chakra. The function of the physical glands associated with the emotional issues of each chakra then becomes clear.

The first chakra, also known as the base chakra or root chakra, is located at the base of the spine and is defined as the chakra that governs one’s understanding of the physical dimension. It is the grounding chakra—that is, it grounds one in the Earth, it puts both feet on the ground: it is pragmatic, ultrarealistic, the “survival” chakra responsible for our balance and our attitudes toward fight or flight. It is therefore the chakra that externalizes as the adrenal gland, and it also governs the functioning of the kidneys and the spinal column. It is esoterically perceived as
red.

Indian Hindu Vedic seers claim that the base chakra also channels the energy of the human will and that the entire human system balances itself on this base support. It is the seat of insecurity, where survival,
possessiveness, and materialism lie. It is referred to as the survival chakra because it is through this center that we feel fear or anger when threatened.

These negative aspects to survival lead to an interesting anomaly. Because the root chakra is ground-based, its fundamental nature is secure. But the personality, conditioned by the process of evolution, has learned to fire off alarm signals, triggered by
perceived
threat, so that the adrenals will start pumping adrenaline.

The intriguing thing that explorers have learned about animals living in an environment previously devoid of mankind is that
they do not perceive humans as a threat.
Even now, animals in the wild react to their natural predators only while an actual hunt is in progress. The rest of the time they get along peacefully, allowing quiet coexistence at a respectful distance.

Is it conceivable that when humans first became hunters and eaters of flesh, the glandular tie to the security chakra evolved in a distorted fashion? I wonder how far back we would have to go to learn when people first became afraid of people. This would be an interesting area for exploration as greater skills develop in working with the chakras, and might help to explain some of the basic insecurities that we as individuals may feel.

As I learned how to work with my chakras, it was with this first chakra—the red chakra, the root and base of the human chakra system—that I worked
with first. In the meantime, though, I needed to learn where and what the other six chakras were.

The second chakra is the sexual chakra, the chakra of creativity, located in the reproductive organs (the ovaries in the female and the testes in the male). It is the color
orange
and governs one’s creative attitudes in relationships, sex, and reproduction.

The third chakra is located in the solar plexus. Its glandular externalization manifests in the pancreas and it governs the action of the liver, stomach, gallbladder, spleen, and certain aspects of the nervous system. This chakra is the clearinghouse for emotional sensitivities and issues of personal power. Its color is seen as
yellow.

Sensitives often comment that they see most people who have emotional attachments to children and loved ones “leaking” from the third chakra. The yellow color spills out of its center and depletes the energy of the individual experiencing concern, possessiveness, and proprietary interest in the lives of those they love. This does not mean one should not be concerned, for instance, about one’s children. But the concern should be in terms of the child’s well-being, not for the relief of one’s own possessive anxiety.

This third chakra gives all of us more problems than any other because it is essentially the “seat of emotional living.” Out of unbalanced emotions come ulcers, digestive problems, and liver, spleen, and pancreatic troubles. The positive and negative energy
polarities are located in the solar plexus chakra, which, when balanced, is bi-polar, meaning that the positive (masculine-yang) and negative (female-yin) are perfectly harmonious. When a person crosses his arms in front of his solar plexus, he is blocking off the energy of that potential balance by adopting a defensive posture; or to put it another way, he is protecting his feelings by crossing his arms.

When a person is overwhelmed with emotion there is an automatic triggering of an almost involuntary act called crying. When tears well up, if allowed to proceed, they often lead to sobbing. The physical act of sobbing produces a gentle—or sometimes not so gentle—massage of the solar plexus. The deep and heavy sob caresses the solar plexus, which can then relax, releasing the pent-up emotion that it was unable to process in the first place. “Having a good cry” enables the third, yellow, chakra at the solar plexus center to reestablish its balance and release itself from emotional overload.

If the sobbing doesn’t bring this about, sometimes a person will vomit. The act of vomiting activates the diaphragm muscles. The diaphragm itself is a dome-shaped muscle that separates the lower three chakras from the upper four chakras. Vomiting actually clears out the physical manifestation of what is causing the emotional overload. That is why we feel so “spacey” and mellow after a good cry or a purging vomit! It is the body’s defense mechanism against feeling more of an emotional overload than it is able to handle.

The fourth chakra is called the heart chakra. Its glandular externalization manifests in the thymus. The fourth chakra governs the heart, blood, and circulatory system. It has a strong influence on the vagus nerve, located in the brain, and also governs the immune and endocrine systems. Its color, usually seen as
green
, depends on the level of clairvoyant perspective from which it is viewed.

When I began meditating on the heart chakra, I soon realized that the key word was
acceptance—
acceptance of others, and acceptance of the love within self. It is often said that when we pray we speak to God. Meditation is when God speaks to us through the God within via the communicative centers of energy. Achieving true meditation on all the chakras is a path to complete inner peace.

The Sanskrit word for the heart center is
anahata.
It means “that which is ever new, that which is self-sustaining.” Through the heart chakra we “fall in love.” Instinctively, when we recognize the attraction in another we move from the heart chakra down to the yellow solar plexus chakra of emotional integration, to the bright orange sexual chakra, which is motivated by love, and finally to the root chakra, the warm red energy that inspires us to settle down, to ground ourselves in the Earth with this person.

The Eastern mystics say we define our personalities through the heart chakra, which they believe is the core of the soul. The soul manufactures the
“forever hormone,” which, when experienced, keeps us feeling forever young through love.

The “forever hormone” is said by the masters to emanate as energy from the heart when one is in a state of love. This energy hormone nourishes all of the lower chakras, where we feel insecurity, survival needs, and fear.

It is amusing to me that we never “go (up) in love”—we always “fall (down) in love.” To me that is the intuitive recognition of the soul attraction first experienced in the heart chakra, which then spills down through the energy systems of emotion (third chakra) and sexuality (second chakra) until it becomes anchored in the Earth (first chakra).

The fifth chakra is the throat chakra. Its focal point of activity is the thyroid gland and it governs the lungs, the vocal cords, the bronchial apparatus, and metabolism. This chakra is usually seen as
blue.
It is the center not only of expression and communication but of judgment.

I find that it is extremely important to work with the fifth chakra these days because individual self-expression
without
judgment is the task of balancing a free democracy. We feel the urge to tell the truth as we see it. But we should try to accomplish this without judgmental condemnations that hurt others. Again, when we remember that what we perceive in another is a reflection of ourselves, we become less judgmental. So when we freely express harsh judgment of another, we are in effect talking about those
aspects of ourselves that trouble us the most. I find that when I feel negatively judgmental about someone, by examining that feeling in meditation on the fifth, blue, chakra, I usually achieve better understanding of my own communicative dynamics and better judgment of what to say and what not to say to others.

The sixth chakra is located in the center of the forehead. It is better known as the third eye and externalizes as the pituitary gland. Its color is usually seen as
indigo
—a deep, vibrant color composed of red and blue. Primarily it governs the lower brain and nervous system, the ears, the nose, and the left eye, which is the eye of the personality.

Idealism and imagination center in the sixth chakra, which also reflects inner vision and governs the outer expression of that inner vision. The mystics say that to access a limitless potential of thought it is necessary to “tickle” the pituitary. They accomplish this through visualization in meditation. They focus on the third eye and allow their inner vision to be limitless.

The seventh chakra, or crown chakra, is located at the top of the head. Its color is seen as
violet
or sometimes
white.
It externalizes as the pineal gland and governs the upper brain and right eye. Within the crown chakra are the counterparts of all the other chakras. It is the chakra that speaks, in combination with other chakras, to unlimited consciousness and Divine purpose. It is through this chakra,
they say, that one reaches, ultimately, the feeling of integration with God.

The upper three chakras form what is known as the Golden Triangle, which represents a triad of energy reflecting the perfection of cosmic harmony in a balanced way, which then infuses the neurological, or nervous system, within the physical body. A kind of esoteric pumping effect occurs whereby three harmonious cosmic energies are “milked down” through the entire chakra system to the root chakra, which grounds the harmony and thus provides a feeling of security. Thus reinforced, the cosmic energy travels back up the chakra system until it reaches the crown chakra again and the cycle is complete, whole. The energy is, as it were, plugged in, the circuit connected.

Unfortunately, in most of us the return of cosmic energy back up the chakra system is blocked in either the sexual chakra or the solar plexus, in our strong feelings of attraction/deprivation, or love/possession, need/power, et cetera. The problem does not lie in whether or not we are infusing the cosmic energies. We are. But we tend to prevent their completing the circuit of power by allowing them to become stuck in the second and third chakras. Meditating on those chakra energy centers will help free the blockage. The results are often astonishing. Again, we will explore this form of meditative technique more fully later.

When all the chakras are recognized and aligned
with the conscious mind, the consciousness of the individual is expanded and made more aware of the energy sources available for good health and happiness. An imbalance in the chakras (or, more precisely, imbalance in recognition of the chakras) disturbs and blocks the flow of energy within the consciousness and properly functioning physical health becomes distorted.