The word "Chakra" is an Indian word from the ancient language of Sanskrit and can be roughly translated as "Wheel".
Not the sort of wheel you may find on a modern day car, but rather the sort of wheel you might have seen on a stagecoach in
an old "cowboys and indians" movie.
The language of Sanskrit is thought by many to be one of the oldest languages on earth and dates back to over 3,000 years
old with many scholars arguing for beginnings dating back to 4,000 years ago. There is an oral tradition of Sanskrit pre dating
the written word that some in India believe may have its roots even further back in time.
In the Sanskrit language, pronunciation is all important, and the way that the word Chakra is often pronounced in the
West as Shack-Ra or Shark-Ra is, although in common usage, actually incorrect.
The word should be pronounced as Chack-Ra, with a hard Ch as in Church. There is also much research to suggest that the
word may be pronounced even harder as in Chuck-Ra.
So what exactly is the Chakra System?
It is a system of "Energy Points" covering our body through which we interact with the outside world and the
internal workings of our own bodies.
Our Chakras receive information from literally thousands of points all over our bodies called "Nadi". Nadi is another
ancient Sanskrit word and can be said to translate as "Pipes" or "Veins" or "Vessels".
Their function is to transport "Prana" or "Vital Energy" from the outside world along the network
of Nadi to the Chakras.
Some ancient texts mention 72,000 Nadi, whilst other, even older, writings mention 350,000.
The 3 most important of all of these energy channels are the Sushumna, the Ida and the Pingala. We will refer to these
again later on. Once again, these are Sanskrit words and the ancient Chinese and Japanese writings refer to these channels
as "Meridians".
In China, this Vital Energy is often called "Chi". You may have heard of this in the context of Tai-Chi, the
Chinese exercise and relaxation system. The Japanese call Prana, "Ki" or "Qi" and again you may have heard
of this as Rei-Ki where Rei means Universal and Ki means Life Force Energy. You may also have heard of the Japanese exercise
and relaxation system called Qi-Jong.
So what is Prana or Vital Energy? Well, it represents the basic energy necessary for all life. The light, sound, energy,
air and life force that is given off by Nature that we all need in order to exist. As an example, one form of Prana is Air
and by breathing, we are taking in Air - one of the things that we need to sustain life.
Once all of this Vital Energy or Prana has been collected by the Nadi, it is channelled back to the Chakras. The Chakras
then extract the Vital Energy or Prana that they need to either keep the physical body replenished or to keep the etheral,
mental, emotional and/or spiritual bodies replenished.
These 5 elemental bodies (physical, etheral, mental, emotional, spiritual) that are fed with Prana can also be seen by
those of you who are able to view Auras.
The Physical body is the actual body that we all see.
The Etheral Body is that just an inch or two away from our physical bodies and vibrates with the lowest frequencies. The
Etheral Body is concerned with our physical state of wellbeing.
The Emotional or Astral Body is the next one working outwards and vibrates with a higher frequency than the Etheral Body.
This is the body concerned with our feelings, emotions, expressions and so on. It may extend 3 feet or more from the body.
The Mental Body comes next with a higher frequency still. The Mental Body is concerned with our thoughts, our ideas and
our intuition etc. The Mental Body can extend to 30 feet or more around a person.
Lastly, vibrating with the highest frequency, comes our Spiritual Body or Causative Body. This body is concerned with
enlightenment and spirituality. It may extend for miles in a truly enlightened person.
So the Chakras receive in energy and keep our bodies (all of them) in working order. The Chakras also emit energy and
so there is also a sense of being in a constant state of balance with Nature.
Ancient writings again mention a vast number of Chakra Points on our bodies, some writings refer to 88,000. These would
have small, highly specialised functions. There are about 40 secondary Chakras which are located on the palms of our hands,
on the soles of our feet, the back of the neck etc etc. and there are 7 which can be considered as the Major Chakra Points
on our bodies.
These 7 Major Chakra Points are,
Seventh CrownSahasrara
Sixth Third EyeAjna
Fifth ThroatVishuddha
Fourth HeartAnahata
Third Solar PlexusManipura SecondSacralSavadhisthana
FirstBase or Root Muladhara
It is the ancient Greeks who we have to thank for our English word "Crystal". They used to believe that Clear
Quartz or Rock Quartz was ice that was frozen so hard that it would never ever melt. Their name for this phenomenon was "Krystallos".
From civilizations as ancient as the Mayans and the Egyptians, as diverse as Far Eastern cultures and Native American
cultures, and as far apart as Australian Aborigines and European peoples, all have used crystals, gemstones and minerals in
both their spiritual rituals and in their physical healing practices.
Today the practice of using stones and crystals continues. Not only with tribal people and shamanic doctors, but with
literally thousands and thousands of ordinary people, just like you and me, who live all over the planet who can claim some
extraordinary results.
About the illustrations of colours.
Our human consciousness is able to experience colours in many levels and depths. Looking at colours in that perspective,
we recognize that colours are a lot more than some beautiful objects. Colours can resonate a feeling as well as music can.
In its essence a colour is a very deep feeling which can connect us to nature and the universe. In that sense a colour
become a level of higher consciousness. Colours are a living thing. They are not - as shown here - stationary. Colours are
always in motion.
Un-Healthy conditions seen as colours
"Brown" Stagnation"Gray Brown" Greed"Gray Green" Mental Stress"Yellow Green"
Jalousie Envy"Red Brown" Blind Rage Powerless"Gray" Locked, Caught in a trap"Black" Depression
Big Changes Silence
If we are in those un-healthy conditions for a longer time, it will influence our life energy and our body, the life energy
to the vital organs of the body will slow down.
Self development leads us through different kinds of emotions, which are important to acknowledge, when we want a further
self development. The emotions are divided into reds, oranges and yellow levels.
Therefore those conditions of mind are un-healthy. When we want self development, it's important to work with those conditions
of mind towards the healthy conditions.
Chakra Acupoint Color
7th DU20v violet/white
6th YinTang indigo
5th Ren22 blue
4th Ren17 green
3rd Ren2 yellow
2nd Ren3-8 orange
1st Ren1 red
