Chakras

References:
Listowska A., & Nicholson, M.A., (2011) Complementary Medicine, Beauty and Modelling, Xlibris Corporation, USA.
Kern Pharma, (undated notebook), Meridiankomplexe Specialities and Meridiankomplex Combinations, Portugal & Germany.
Nicholson, M.A., (2008) Purple Healer, Principles of Advanced Natural Medicine Diagnostics, Intype Libra, Wimbledon, London UK.
Swami Satyananda Saraswati, (1981) A Systemic Course in the Ancient Tantric Techniques of Yoga and Kriya, G.K. Kejriwal Publishers: Bihar School of Yoga, Monghyr, India.
Swami Satayananda Saraswati (1995) Bhakti Yoga Sagar: Satsangs with Swami Satyananda Saraswati, Vol 1, Sivananda Math, Fort, Munger, Bihar, India.
Müller, Hermann (2007), Student Handbook, Australasian Institute of Body-Mind Analysis and Psychosomatic Therapy, Australia.
Sheridan, Simon., (2007) unpublished.
White, K., (2007), Spiritual Healing, (unpublished short paper).

KRIYA YOGA & MEDITATION

YOGA PRACTICES

The practices of kriya yoga, meditation, and spiritual healing are very specific topics that for some people may border on the imaginary. However, for those whose health has been altered immeasurably from introducing these practices into their lives, it will be difficult to dissuade them from their continuance. This Chapter therefore brings a very brief introduction to Yoga, Meditation, and Spiritual Healing; introduces concepts unique to their practice; and explains how one might view the concepts of Chakras and Auras. If one has little or no interest in these matters, then this Chapter is probably not for you.

Although there is a distinct connection between Yoga and Meditation, when matters of Spiritual Healing are concerned not everyone will see the similarities within each. However, they are practices that are commonplace in some countries, even if others question their validity. But the simple fact is that many people do attend spiritual sessions, and do visit psychic healers. And if that is the case, then it behoves us to introduce something about their craft to assist in better understanding what these people do, and how they go about it. In order to do that, a short story is included of the life of a psychic healer and spiritual visionary.

Yoga Asanas and the Mind

Yoga is not merely twisting one’s body into extraordinary positions whilst chanting strange incantations. It is a powerful tool for the body and mind, and is available to everyone. It can bring balance, peace, tranquillity of mind, and above all, if practiced correctly, better understanding of one’s place in this world. Whether one is a man or a woman, whatever one chooses to do, and irrespective of whatever activity is undertaken, there must be balance.

This is so whether in family life, work surroundings, relationships with others, or in general day‐to‐day activities. For both men and women, it was explained by Swami Satyananda Saraswati during a ‘Satsang’ in Rishikesh, India on 17th November 1994, that women are one foot of society whilst men are the other. So, if one foot is strong and the other weak, society becomes lame. (Satyananda Saraswati, 1995 at 18)

In many cases, the mind cannot be kept still, and many worries pass through it without being satisfactorily resolved. If hidden away and not resolved, worries emerge yet again as if they have been locked inside to once more burden the owner when least expected. Social and cultural demands sometimes place a heavy weight on what is expected and how life should be conducted. Yet when someone acts differently, or not in accord with the expectations of their elders, or if traditional codes of conduct are not followed, criticism advances very quickly, and may cause immediate retaliation in thought, word or deed from those who receive the objection to their conduct. So, one could ask how the mind might be stilled when so much activity surrounds a daily life, when concerns and worries are about work, finance, relationships, children, unachieved goals, or any other matter that preoccupies the thought processes. It is difficult to concentrate when the mind is so full of extraneous matters. Often one is distracted by what someone else is doing, or what another’s viewpoint may be. And frequently the emotions of life cause so much distress that ill health follows without the clear indication of its source.

Chronic illnesses can take hold without resolution when the human body cannot discard them, and where conventional treatments can find no answer. Some are fortunate to have found solace in other forms of treatment that do not follow the usual paths of clinical medicine, and whose beneficial results are, for others, quite difficult to comprehend or explain. But when relief from illness or disease comes about, rational explanations are often of little value, except perhaps for those whose interests lie within their full understanding.

Yoga, meditation, and spiritual healing may appear to be quite strange to some people, just as there are unusual terminologies used in such practices. In yoga and meditation, one can hear of ‘pranayam’, ‘yoga nidra’, and ‘ishta mantra’, for example. In some forms of spiritual healing one can hear of ‘earthbounds’, ‘elementals’, 7th dimensions, karmic memory, and certain other psychic phenomena, of which none can be seen, experienced, or truly understood, except perhaps by those who have the power and perception to do so.
The mere fact that such terminologies are quite strange to many people, does not necessarily discount their validity for those who care to adopt them. They have meanings well beyond the word‐descriptions used, since the English language has no alternatives for describing either their existence or their presence.

Clearly in every walk of life there are words that are specific to a vocation or calling, unused by others who are not involved, and this is so whether it is astronomy, welding, health care, agronomy, biochemistry, or any other form of employment, career or science that is spoken of; there is always a language that others cannot speak. It is no different from a foreign language that has yet to be learnt. But with so many foreign languages existing, it is only when the need arises that one decides upon their learning. One should not be concerned about the ways in which those who offer a form of healing choose to describe its complexities. The words are merely the means by which others in the same arena of practice communicate.

It is not beyond one’s imagination that healing can take place in ways that are not fully understood, some so extraordinary that they are often regarded as illusory. However, current medicines and treatments do not have a monopoly on healing, because if they did, the healers of centuries past would have had no success at all, and nor would the body itself. And no one can say that the mind cannot produce bodily dysfunctions, otherwise improvement in health after taking a placebo would have no reference to the result.
Yet, if it is accepted that the mind can cause a dysfunction, then it must be accepted that it can also disperse one. The mind is indeed a powerful tool, one that can be used to ‘harm’ as well as to ‘heal’. The decision to apply the mind in either case lies within every individual.

In yoga, many systems of practice are designed to assist in achieving tranquillity of mind and a healthy body. Whether it is kriya yoga, hatha yoga, kundalini yoga, or just yoga exercises without the adjunct spiritual trappings, each form of yoga will ultimately lead one to a change of thinking, and where one’s ability to concentrate is enhanced and less fixed on the everyday dramas of living. Those who practice prayer in all its forms can also undoubtedly attest to the same feeling of improvement, and be equally uplifted by its effects.

Meditation ‐ Awareness

Meditation and the human ‘mind’ go hand in hand. In yoga asanas and meditation, visualizations are an integral part of the practice, as is ‘awareness’ rather than merely ‘concentration’.

As Swami Satyananda Saraswati has said:
Concentration is something that occurs spontaneously in a very relaxed mind and body. Until relaxation is achieved, concentration, real concentration that is, remains impossible. A system is required which progressively leads a person to deeper states of relaxation, until concentration becomes the spontaneous activity of consciousness. This system is the system of Kriya Yoga (Saraswati, 1981 at 4) … [But] … Kriya yoga is more interested in awareness than concentration. What do we mean by awareness? By awareness we mean conscious attention of thoughts or of objects, either external or internal, without necessarily being one pointed. Simultaneously, and this is most important, the word awareness implies that the individual knows that his attention is at a particular place or on a train of thought. (Saraswati, 1981 at 5)

In Yoga, within its truest form lies the sense of ‘awareness‐achievement’. In this respect ‘awareness’ is:
… the ability to stand back and to observe one’s mental and physical activities. If a man is aware then he becomes a spectator of his activities both internally and externally … Its implications are profound. If you are able to watch what your body and mind do, then this means that your nature transcends the body and mind. … When one practices asanas, pranayama and meditational practices awareness is essential. Without it these yogic practices lose their significance ... (Saraswati, 1981 at 71‐73)

The Brain and the Mind

If it is accepted that the mind extends beyond the brain, and that the brain is merely the organ that receives and analyses information, then it is conceivable that the mind can transcend any limitation that the brain possess. The ‘aim’ of meditation, Satyananda says:
… is to direct our normally extroverted awareness into the domains of the mind … the awareness leaves its usual arena and starts to highlight the instinctive nature, with its desires, obsessions, hatreds and prejudices. We experience the manifestation of our problems continually for they surface during everyday life in the form of emotional outbursts, anger, depression, restlessness and many other stressful life reactions. (Saraswati, 1981 at 183)

The Chakras

One frequently hears of Chakras, and there are many different opinions as to what they are, how they ‘affect’ us, and what ‘effect’ they have on us all. In yoga and meditation, chakras are described as ‘pranic centres’ with myriads of chakras in each person.

These main chakras are: 1. Mooladhara, 2. Swadhistana, 3. Manipura, 4. Anahata, 5. Vishuddhi, 6. Ajna, and 7. Sahasrara [although Sahasrara is said not to be a real chakra since it transcends all the others]. The chakras represent centres of subtle energies (prana) leading to higher states of awareness. (Saraswati, 1981 at 460)

In Body ‐Mind analysis, Herman Müller also speaks of Chakras:
… 7 main energy centres or chakras receive and radiate their own level of consciousness or sensation of awareness of that energy and retain this in the growing outer sheath. Each Chakra is situated in a particular part of the body for the specific purpose of the function and expression of the emotions of that area of the body. Like a radar dish outside the research station, the Chakra itself lies in the etheric body … vibrations [flowing] through a stem that enters the physical body and connects into the spinal column at specific points where there are nerve plexus[es] or ganglia. These nerve centres translate the vibrations received in the area into physically felt nerve responses creating actions and reactions that we experience as feelings. Therefore from birth all through our life, the rate and quality of the Chakra function directly effects and shows a corresponding response of growth in that area of the body.

Responding with the primordial instinct of survival in the environment the growing soul is exposed to its fight‐flight pattern or sense of suitable conditions determines the inner core response to the outer world. This effects body shape, size, length, width and weight. All through the growing period to this point of time these responses leave tell tale marks in structure, posture and build that can be read with the trained eye. The Soul tells us in the most tangible way, “This is The Shape I Am In”. (Müller, 2007 at 3)

Chakras - Sound, Frequency and Resonance

In relation to sound, Zeydel relates colours to the notes of the musical scale and applies them to the 7 main Chakras: (Zeydel, 1980)
Red is the Physical part of nature ... lowest of the seven of the colour scale belongs to the lowest of the seven notes of the musical scale C. Orange. Emotional … its note is D in the musical scale. … Yellow is Intellect … the third of the colour scale. It corresponds to the musical note of E. Green: Peace … belongs to the fourth of the musical scale F … Blue is Love … The musical note of blue is G … Purple (Indigo) is Inspiration ... the sixth colour … Violet is Spiritual … It is the seventh and last of the colours … Its musical note is B in which key much sacred music is written. (Zeydel, 1980 at 140‐142)

Simon Sheridan explains the relationship between sound, frequency and resonance:
‘Frequency’ is defined as inter alia “the rate at which a sound wave or radio wave vibrates”. (Hornsby, 1998 at 472) It depicts a state of being frequent; occurring repeatedly; with constant repetition. Musical notes that are heard are frequencies of air pressure waves vibrating the eardrum; the eardrum vibrating sympathetically in response to the waves. The brain translates this ‘resonance’ into sound. The frequency of a note relates to how many times (per given interval) it vibrates or moves in a repeated way. If in the case of an audible note, like Middle ‘A’, the string, bell, or fork, or whatever is to vibrate, does so ‘exactly’ 440 times per second [or 440Hertz (Hz)], and if it vibrates no more or less than 440, then it is a pure Middle ‘A’ note. If the vibration is not exactly 440 Hertz, then it is not a pure Middle ‘A’ note. To understand resonance, one might imagine a string on a ‘guitar’. Without having the hollow body of the instrument no sound would be heard. Plucking the guitar string allows the instrument to vibrate in sympathy, thereby creating a sound. The hole over the guitar will focus the sound pressure wave in one direction, and by focusing the sound waves in this way concentrates them in one direction, thus amplifying the sound that emerges. The relationship between resonance and frequency is therefore an extremely important factor. If 2 violins are in tune with each in the same room and the ‘E’ string on only one of the violins is plucked, the E string on the other will vibrate in sympathy causing it to also sound. This can also be seen when a glass is shattered by a singer’s voice. For the glass to break, the ‘exact’ frequency must be activated. Any higher or lower frequency will not break the glass. The singer needs to find the exact frequency (note) of the glass to make the glass vibrate in sympathy sufficient to shatter it. Anything else is not enough. The ‘frequency’ of the glass, and the singer’s note that reached it, are exactly the same, i.e. the “resonant frequency”. Everything in life, in fact the whole of life as we know it, with all its individual components has a resonant frequency. Therefore it is correct to say that all things resonate at a particular frequency. (S. Sheridan 2007)

Mantras

A mantra relates to sound, in meditation practices the most common being the word AUM; regarded as the “king of mantras”, (Satyananda, 1981 at 289) the experience of which may lead a person “ … to the fullest understanding of all other mantras, which are generally limited in that they are intended for specific purposes or for particular types of people. (Satyananda, 1981, ibid)
Although some people have been given their own particular mantra, the mantra AUM is available to everyone.

The mantra is made up of the syllables ‘A’ (material universe), ‘U’ (cosmic mind), ‘M’ (conscious substratum of universe), and ‘AUM’ [Atman, self] as a whole, (Brahman), providing a sound that:
“ … is not merely a monosyllable … [but one] … that has been realized by the ancient rishis in the highest states of meditation. (Satyananda, 1981, ibid) It is the cosmic mantra AUM that unites the limited existence with the unlimited. The syllables A, U, M [representing Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the sustainer) and Shiva (the dissolver) … But actually the meaning of AUM can only be known by personal realization … It is impossible to explain the meaning of AUM rationally. It is beyond intellectual concepts. (Satyananda, 1981 at 289/290)

Chakras and Homoeopathic Medicine

But when it comes to other methods of testing the resonance of the Chakras, certain results can give answers where otherwise they would be unavailable. And although individual variations occur from patient to patient, the use of homoeopathic preparations and remedies to make such findings have been found useful to determine Chakra imbalances. [Kern Pharma, undated]
Measuring Chakra activity was found possible by using homoeopathic metals in the D60 range, having regard to the organs assigned to each of the Chakras, (Kern Pharma, undated at 41), viz., Chakras 1-7.

Chakra 1:      Ferrum D60
Chakra 2:      Mercurius D60
Chakra 3:      Cuprum D60
Chakra 4:      Aurum D60
Chakra 5:      Plumbum D60
Chakra 6:      Argentum D60
Chakra 7:      Platinum D60

Active Chakras will give readings when using Vega Testing Units, for instance, as Kern Pharma suggest. However, similar determinations, albeit without specific numerical results, can also be seen when Chakras metals are used with indicator muscle testing, as in kinesiology.

Problems associated with specific organs were found by Kern Pharma to be consistently relevant to those that were assigned to each of the Chakras. Furthermore, certain acupuncture meridians were found as very specifically related to various organs.

Chakra 1:      Bladder, Small Intestine, Large Intestine
Chakra 2:      Bladder, Small Intestine, large Intestine, Spleen, Pancreas
Chakra 3:      Spleen, Pancreas, Stomach, Liver, Gall Bladder, Kidneys
Chakra 4:      Stomach, Liver, Gall Bladder, Kidneys, Heart, Lungs
Chakra 5:      Heart, Lungs, Sanjiao (Triple‐Warmer), Circulation
Chakra 6:      Sanjiao (Triple‐Warmer), Circulation, Liver, Gall Bladder
Chakra 7:      All 12 Meridians of the Chinese medicine 5‐Element Theory, [i.e. excluding Ren and Du channels]. (Kern Pharma at 41)

Further indications of the topography of the Chakras, according to Kern Pharma, and the Chakra testing and treatment protocols using their Meridiankomplexe vials are beyond the scope of this book and should be sought from Kern Pharma itself.

Chakras and Spiritual Healing

Karen White (Psychic and Spiritual Healer based in Queensland, Australia) describes the Chakras in ‘spiritual healing’ as being comprised of many points that relate to the human nervous system, made up of many cellular membranes as well as a multitude of colour and light. The light rays are affected by the sounds of music and the vibration that each individual retains. For Karen White, the Chakras:
... balance the ‘being’, the actual ‘Being’ of the individual directed by ‘Spirit’, on most occasions just with a thought or a ‘knowing’ that is entrusted to them by their Spirit or Guardian Angel, directing human beings to their learning … [to] … accomplish the ‘experience’ on a greater level for their highest consciousness, and with a karmic progression of cellular memory [allowing] foreclosure and freedom, and completeness of life’s journey on Earth. (White, K., 2007)

Each Chakra Point has its specific knowledge, what is described as its ‘memory’. It is not until Chakra energy becomes dysfunctional or diminishes that physical disturbances are thought to arise, and this can occur from emotional blockage or prior cellular memory, whether in this lifetime or another, it is believed. Spiritual healers will not deny the existence of former lifetimes; considerably different from the accepted premise of ancestry. The cellular memory contains much wisdom and knowledge from which learning can be achieved.

In the dimension within which we live (i.e. the 3rd Dimensional Plane, as it is termed), we all make many choices in life, using our higher consciousness to formulate the most important of those choices that we believe will be in our best interests. (White, K., 2007) The Chakra system therefore has an important role of balance and alignment, by keeping polarity in check, moving energy and allowing for evolution.

Auras and Colours

Although individual opinions may differ about interpretations given to the colours of a person’s aura, the intensity of the various colours of the rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet) shown around a person’s head, as well as their composition and combinations are generally indicative of the representative qualities inherently expressed. In similar expression to that of psychosomatic therapy, colours to the left side of the head and face express the female (yin) aspect of a person’s nature, whereas those to the right side express the interdependent male (Yang) aspect. The colours can be clear or mixed, the intensity of the major colours giving a general insight into the possible interpretations that accompany them. Notably, since colours and musical notes interact, a particular type of music, together with a preferred colour, can be utilized to alter mental impressions that might be facing a person at a particular time. For example, a person with spiritual aspirations and meditative needs might be more appropriately motivated towards the colour violet and the musical note B. (Zeydel, 1980 at 140‐142)

The ‘biomagnetic sheath’, as described by Judy Hall, [Hall, 2003] identifies the aura and its several etheric bodies with what she terms ‘chakra linkage points’. She describes these as the ‘physical aura’, being the first sheath from the body surface, followed outwards by the ‘emotional aura’, ‘mental body’ and ‘spiritual body’, as distinct aura fields. (Hall, 2003 at 367)

Auratomes

At a workshop with the author in Queensland, Australia in 2007 practitioner Andrew Merrell coined the term ‘auratomes’ to describe horizontal auras that encircle the human body at various levels from the head to the feet. Although this text cannot possibly do justice to fully explain the aura concept, those who can access the realities of ‘aura fields’ and ‘auratomes’ may see them as having considerable importance for understanding the unseen energy flows that encircle each person. These are likened to the acupuncture meridians running within the human body, but with auratomes horizontally traversing the body’s exterior.

Aura Energy resides at various levels outward from the whole body and like the energy of a magnet, it cannot ordinarily be seen or detected, or even consciously felt. Although there are those in the higher states of consciousness who profess to do so, for those of us less enlightened souls the ‘effects’ of aura energy might nonetheless be accessed in some manner, and used alongside muscular assessments and diagnostics to give beneficial results that in many cases cannot be explained.

Just as ‘dermatomes’ express innervation of horizontal portions of the surface of the skin relating to a particular spinal nerve segment, and ‘sclerotomes’ describe nerve innervation to bones and bone segments throughout the body, ‘auratomes’ are seen as expressing segmental aura energies traversing horizontally around the body in correspondence with the major Chakras. However, ‘auratomes’ differ from Chakras in that they are perceived to traverse the body at various levels in a circular horizontal fashion, rather than vertical. Just as the energy associated with a magnet cannot be seen, so also are the energies surrounding the body only available for view by those who have the ability to do so. In that sense, it is not my place to openly doubt those whose abilities for spiritual acuity are greater.

The Energy Fields

For Karen White, the energy fields of the auras represent stored collective conscious memories that transport and change thoughts and movement. These energy fields are subtle and often sensitive, allowing for discovery of the purpose of one’s existence and life’s accomplishments, recognising a great transformative period emerging during which ‘understanding’ and ‘consciousness’ will be elevated. (White, K., 2007)

“For us to experience the change and the difference in life”, she says, we must:
… experience the opposite of what we are trying to achieve in this lifetime. This allows growth and empowerment of soul. The vibration that comes with us now simplifies things to make it easier to access knowledge from our ‘knowing’. We have set it up in a way to redefine humankind, keeping it simple and viewing life differently. In this way, we can accomplish our purpose here on this earth plane. Children are more affected by these changes because of the new vibrations coming in … they are building bridges to a new humanity … [they] live in a higher consciousness of ‘knowing’, and there are many adults now coming into this vibration of knowing and acceptance of their consciousness. (White, K., 2007)