THE CHAKRAS
Copyrightã1997,
2006 John P. Giunta
The subject of the chakras
has been one clouded with much ambiguity and hearsay, especially in the popular
and unresearched literature. Consulting
the authoritative sources of yoga science and philosophy is the remedy for
misinformation.
The way to maintain the
balance among the chakras is through dietary improvement, yoga, proper
meditation and possibly techniques related to Biofeedback. There is no gadget or apparatus that can
facilitate the balancing of the chakras better or faster than the practices and
principles of yoga when they are understood and taken internally. In the following pages, the references to the
elements are to be interpreted as states of matter, not the literal objects.
This information was
assembled from various sources:
Himalayan Institute
Teacher Training in 1993
The Encyclopedic
Dictionary of Yoga by Georg Feuerstein
Hatha Yoga Pradipika with commentary by Swami
Muktibodhananda Saraswati
Dancing With Siva: Hinduism's Conntemporary Catechism by Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniaswami,
Yoga and Psychotherapy: The Evoluution of Consciousness by Swami Rama, Rudolph
Ballentin, M.D. and Swami Ajaya, Ph.D.
The teachings of
Paramahansa Yogananda.
1. Muladhara Chakra
Psychological
aspects: personal survival, security,
self-protection, very primitive fears.
This is the home of the sleeping Kundalini. Condition when distorted: Fear of not surviving or tendency to inflict
harm on others. Condition when
undistorted: Fearlessness.
Location: Perineum or base
of the spine
Gland or organ
association: Stomach, spleen, epithelial tissues (they make the boundaries in
the body.)
Achievement of
balance: Root lock, locust posture,
horse mudra. Strive to eliminate
ignorance, go after self-knowledge and lose our attachments to outcome.
Element: Earth (solidarity). Color: Yellow.
Bija mantra: LAM.
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 178: "The lowest
chakra is within the perineal floor in the male body and the cervix in the
emale body. It is a four-petalled red
lotus called mooladhara, and it
influences the excretory and reproductive organs, reproductive glands sand
hormonal secretions. Mooladhara is
directly connected to the nose and sense of smell, and with our animal
instincts. At mooladhara human evolution
begins and kundalini emerges."
Per DWS:
memory/time/space. Four petals in lotus
symbol. Sanskrit letter: NA.
Per PY: Sound: Bumblebee, "Baby
2. Swadisthana Chakra
Psychological
aspects: Sexuality, survival of the
species, sensual pleasures. When
distorted: Greed, envy, sensual and
sexual obsession.
Location: approximately 2
inches above the muladhara chakra.
Gland or organ
association: Bladder, kidneys, reproductive glands, endocrine system, nervous
system, pathways of flow.
Achievement of balance:
Inverted Postures for the draining of the pelvic area, rocking, churning, knees
to chest, cross patterns like swimming, walking. Seek internal sources of joy. Yogis develop sexual energy to increase the
upward flow of kundalini for spiritual union.
Element: Water (ability to move). Color:
Blue-gray or creamy white.
Bija mantra: VAM.
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p.178: "Two fingers
width above mooladhara and closely associated with it, is swadhisthana chakra, a six-petalled vermillion lotus. It is connected to the sacral plexus, urinary
and reproductive organs and glands.
Swadhisthana is associated with the tongue and the sense of taste. Its influence on the deeper personality
arouses a selfish sense of ego."
Per DWS: faculty of
reason. Six petals in the lotus
symbol. Sanskrit letter: MA.
Per PY: Sound:
3. Manipura Chakra
Psychological
aspects: Center of physical power, i.e.,
digestion leading to transformation of food into energy. Dominance and submission issues. Competence, mastery, survival of the
ego. Making things happen in the
world. When distorted: Anger, jealousy,
material attachments, loss of personal power or preoccupation with dominance
over others, emergence of the authoritarian personality. The pot belly development is from a sense of
powerlessness.
Location: Solar plexus,
navel.
Gland or organ
association: adrenal glands, digestive glands, small intestines, heart,
lymphatic system immune system.
Achievement of
balance: Uddiyana Bandha, agnisara, leg
raises, sun salutation. In the interest
of sexual harmony, focus the thoughts on this chakra to cure premature
ejaculation. Strive to clean up our lives
so we are not disturbed by anything.
Element: Fire (Power, transformation). Color: Red-orange.
Bija mantra: RAM.
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 179: "The next
chakra is behind the navel, within the spinal column. It is a ten-petalled yellow lotus called manipura and it is associated with the
solar plexus. Manipura influences the
digestive process and the assimilation of food and prana. It is also connected to the eyes and
sight. At the level of manipura the
consciousness is still bound by the grosser levels of existence and
sensualities, ambition and greed."
Per DWS: faculty of will power. Ten petals in the lotus symbol. Sanskrit letter: SI.
Per PY: Sound:
Harp.
Between the Manipura and
Anahata chakras is the diaphragm, the balance point between all of them. Through proper breathing we learn to balance
the issues of Self-preservation and working for others.
These first three chakras are concerned with the very
basic maintenance needs of the body:
survival, procreation and getting along in the world.
The balance point between the upper and lower chakras is
the diaphragm and the next chakra, which transcends the needs of the
individual.
4. Anahata Chakra
Psychological
aspects: Nurturing, providing mentoring,
working cooperatively in external relationships. Expansion of the Self into working for others
altruistically. Balance point between
the upward flowing and downward flowing energy.
When the breath is focused here, the feeling is one of balance. If there are imbalances in the lower chakras,
the effect is felt here. When
distorted: Selfishness, grief, inability
to feel emotions. Knowledge of the
Anahata and Ajna chakras gives you knowledge of all the other chakras.
Location: Heart center
Gland or organ
association: Milk secreting glands,
thymus gland, skin, hair, lungs, large intestine.
Achievement of
balance: All standing postures, also the
cobra, camel, all postures using arms, Surya Namaskara, (the Salutation to the
Sun). Working with non-attachment. Focusing of the breath.
Element: Air (compassion, feeling). Color:
Smokey gray.
Bija mantra: YAM.
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 179: "Above
manipura in the proximity of the heart, is anahata
chakra, with twelve blue petals. It
is connected to the cardiac plexus, heart, respiration and thymus gland and is
responsible for emotions of love/hate, compassion/cruelty, etc. Anahata is also connected to the sense of
touch and the hands."
Per DWS: faculty of direct cognition. 12 Petals in the lotus symbol. Sanskrit letter: VA.
Per PY: Deep Gong
5. Vissuddha Chakra
Psychological aspects: Acceptance of nurturance, creativity, the
voice, increasing evolution of the higher self.
When distorted: Inability to
accept nurturing. No sense of trust or
belief or knowledge of a personal deity.
Location: Throat
Gland or organ association: Thyroid, parathyroid, liver, gall bladder.
Achievement of
balance: All limbs pose (shoulder
stand), headstand, plow, all "head and neck" postures, all thought
processes. We must accept the love
around us, but overcome any additions to external relationships.
Element: Akasha
(ether). Color: Smokey purple.
Bija mantra: HAM.
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 179: "Within the
middle of the throat is the fifth chakra vishuddhi,
with sixteen purple petals. It is
associated with the cervical plexus and thyroid gland and it maintains purity
in the body and mind. Vishuddhi is
connected to the ears and sense of audition, throat and speech. It arouses acceptance of the adversities of
life, mental balance and sensitivity to the needs of others."
Per DWS: faculty of divine love. Sixteen petals in the lotus symbol. Sanskrit letter: YA.
Per PY: Sound:
Rushing waters, distant sea.
6. Ajna Chakra
Psychological
aspects: Contact with the source of
direct knowledge, knowledge from the inside, intuition. Also called The Third Eye. Undistorted:
Visionary ability of cause/effect relationships. Need for external relationships disappears. Duality disappears. Knowledge of the Ajna and Anahata chakras
gives you knowledge of all the other chakras.
Location: Center of the
head
Gland or organ
association: pineal, pituitary (the Master Gland)
Achievement of balance:
Meditation.
Element: Space, Mind. Color:
White.
Bija mantra:
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 179: "At the top
of the spinal column, at the medulla oblongata, is one of the most important
chakras, ajna chakra, which has two
silvery grey or clear petals. Above
vishuddhi the chakras are mainly concerned with higher intelligence. Some authorities do not even consider them as
chakras because, as the veiling power of prana shakti decreases, manas shakti
becomes more predominant. Ajna chakra is
the command center. It operates in
conjunction with the reticular activating system, medulla oblongata and the
pineal gland. Ajna chakra is the third eye
through which the whole subtle world can be perceived. It is known as the gateway to liberation."
Per DWS: faculty of divine sight. Two peals in the lotus symbol. Sanskrit letter: AUM.
Per PY: Symphony of all other sounds, oceanic roar,
cosmic
7. Sahasrara Chakra
Psychological
aspects: Enlightenment. Yogis leave the body by opening the
fontanelles. They decide when they will
die. When opened: Sense of individuality disappears. Awareness of the course of future events.
Location: above the head
or at the very top of the skull.
Gland or organ
association: No association for this chakra.
Color: White.
Bija mantra:
Per Hatha Yoga
Pradipika, p. 179: "When
kundalini shakti passes beyond ajna, duality and ego cease to exist. It reaches the highest center, sahasrara, the thousand petalled
lotus. Sahasrara is situated at the
crown of the head and is associated with the pituitary gland. When this chakra is fully activated by
kundalini it is the highest experience of human evolution."
"Between ajna and sahasrara there are three other
chakras which are briefly mentioned in the tantras. Opposie the uvula is lalana chakra which is a twelve-petalled lotus. Above ajna is manas chakra, a six-petalled lotus, and abaove that, at the mid-cerebrum
is soma chakra of sixteen petals. These
chakras are concerned with the flow of nectar from bindu visarga (which is
discussed later [in the book] )., and they are responsible for higher states of
consciousness and intelligence."
DWS: faculty of illumination. One thousand eight petals in the lotus
symbol.
Per PY: Sound:
Symphony of all other sounds, oceanic roar, cosmic