Auras & Chakras
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
Introduction
Kundalini Energy Works & How It Works
The Seven Chakras & Their Functions
The Root Chakra
The Sacral Chakra
The Solar Plexus Chakra
The Heart Chakra
The Throat Chakra
The Brow Chakra
The Crown Chakra
More Chakras
Auric Layers & Their Relationship To The Chakras
The Etheric Body
The Emotional Body
The Mental Body
The Astral Body
The Etheric Template Body
The Celestial Body
The Ketheric Template
Color Meanings
Scientific Research
Discussion
Conclusion
Bibliography
Written by Christine Breese, D.D., Ph.D.
Introduction
Chakras and the auric layers of the human energy field are fast becoming a major area of metaphysical study. There are massive amounts of written material in the world today on the subject of chakras and auras, from ancient Sanskrit texts to Western interpretations, written by people who are naturals at seeing the subtle energies of the human body (auras) to people who are Ph.Ds. Many metaphysical healers and practitioners base their whole practice on observing, diagnosing and adjusting the chakra and the aura system, thus affecting physical, mental, and emotional changes for the better.
We will look at the chakra system extensively and the auric layers that are related to them. We will also look at some scientific research that has been done on the auric fields of humans and other living beings.
The study and knowledge of chakras and the human aura is common to almost everyone who studies metaphysics, for it is nearly impossible to not run across this information in metaphysical studies. First to consider is the gathering of collective knowledge about chakras and their functions, as well as the auric connections to the chakras. Next to consider are the direct experiences of the spiritual aspirants who observe their own auras or the auras of others.
Although there are literally hundreds of chakras all over the human body (for each acupuncture point is a "little chakra") we will only look at the seven major chakras along the spine in order to simplify this material. One could easily write an entire book on the many chakras in the body. Acupuncture addresses the individual purpose and adjustments possible for each of these "little chakras."
Chakras are considered vortexes in which etheric energy can enter or leave the human energy body, which in turn affects the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of the human. They are energy centers that govern the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of the human form, whether or not the human is aware of them. These vortexes are metabolizing centers in the human energy body. Their healthy functioning is vital to having a healthy human body, mind and emotional life. They are also vital to experiences of divinity, or altered states of consciousness.
Chakras and auras can most easily be seen with the inner eye, psychic perception, during meditations or healing sessions. They can also be seen by the physical eye after much meditation, concentration, training and study of the human energy field. Some people who can see them do so without formal training. Sometimes the ordinary person will see auras spontaneously and unexpectedly. Others work for years to achieve the spiritual power (siddhi) of aura viewing.
It is a common belief that children see chakras and the auric layers around humans until they shut down these extra-sensory perceptions. This happens because of the need to connect more fully with physical existence or because they are in environments not supportive to such endeavors. Often, a child is told that he or she is seeing something that isn't there. Eventually the child lets go of this experience and ability, considering it "not real" in human life.
Not everyone is a believer. Bob Larson says in his book Straight Answers On The New Age (1989), "Because New Agers often concentrate on the healing aspects of occult indulgences, the use of auras for relieving problems is stressed." There are many who feel this way about metaphysical types of healing practices, that they are indulgences, or fantasies. This attitude is part of what is holding back the discoveries mankind can make about the laws governing the auric energies. The healing possibilities that can happen, once those laws of the aura are discovered and studied, are immense. There seems to be great resistance to these ideas from circles who believe playing with chakras and auras is the "work of the devil."
Being able to see chakras and auras would be a very useful skill to have. One could, "see people as they really are, and not what they pretend to be," as said in The Third Eye (1986), a book by T. Lobsang Rampa. Rampa describes spying on visiting Chinese dignitaries at the lamasery. This exercise happened after he was able to see auras for a while, so that he could learn how it is that people's true motives and feelings could be deciphered simply by observing their auras, rather than listening to their words. "As I looked at them from my place of concealment I observed the shimmering of their auras, the opalescent sheen, shot with murky red, the turgid swirling of hate-filled thoughts. Bands and striations of color, unpleasant colors, not the clear, pure shades of higher thought, but the unwholesome, contaminated hues of those whose life forces are devoted to materialism and evil-doing. Their speech was fair but their thoughts were foul."
The Dalai Lama used the services of these gifted Tibetan people who could see auras. Rampa goes on to describe a time when the Dalai Lama called for him and his teacher; "...We have to analyze the colors of some foreigner from the Western world. You must hurry to get ready..." It is astounding to think of the possibilities in this world if everyone was able to see a person's true motives and feelings. Lying would be impossible if this were the case. People's thoughts and feelings would no longer be private.
The reason why this subject should be written about in terms of professional practice for metaphysicians is because this is necessary study for the metaphysician. This is an attainable skill if practiced. It is through understanding these processes of energy systems that physical, emotional and mental healing can be better facilitated, no matter what healing methods are being used in treating patients and clients.
This subject should also be studied by western medical sciences, for western medicine is missing the easiest forms of healing that exist. It is easier to heal a negative thought pattern than it is to heal the physical illness that is a result of the negative thought pattern, as some of the scientific research we will look at can support.
Kundalini Energy Works & How It Works
First let's talk about kundalini, for it is a powerful force that moves through the chakras, and affects the chakras greatly. It could be thought of as the blood or the chi of the energetic bodies that the chakras represent and are connected to. Many texts consider kundalini to be the circulatory system of the etheric body, the same way that the blood is the circulatory system of the physical body.
The root chakra, located at the bottom of the spine, is where the kundalini energy resides, according to most teachings. Kundalini is a Sanskrit word meaning "circular power." Other sources say that the word kundalini means "coiled." It is also referred to as shakti (divine spark of life-force). It is an individual's basic evolutionary force.
In each person, kundalini energy is present in some proportion or another. Its natural flow is up the spine and out the top of the head. As the kundalini rises, it passes through each of the chakras, awakening the dormant energies of each. It brings new awareness, abilities and divine states. Genevieve Lewis Paulson, in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991), says, "Much as a plant reaches toward light, the Kundalini pushes us to reach for enlightenment; it removes any energy blocks in its way... A fully developed person will have exceptional paranormal gifts, great spiritual awareness and truly be considered genius or God-like." C.W. Leadbeater in The Chakras (1990) says that kundalini movement "quickens these chakras and makes them more fully available as gates of connection between the physical and astral bodies."
The release of kundalini from the root chakra could be felt as waves, flames, pulsations or an uncoiling feeling. Sometimes the movement of the wave is so subtle that people are not aware of the activity. For other people, the kundalini will be felt as extreme heat, or sometimes jolting lightning-like flashes. As the kundalini rises out the top of the head, it blends with the spiritual energy available in the universe, which aids in refining and cleansing the human system.
Kundalini experiences are often defined as divine states of consciousness that can last hours, days, weeks, or even months. Some have referred to this as samadhi, or nirvana, or Christ-consciousness. This usually happens when a person has released a number of blockages in the chakras all at once.
As the kundalini is released, a cleansing on all levels begins to become evident. There will be cleansing not only of the physical, but the emotional and mental levels of consciousness as well. Sometimes physical ailments or clearing of ailments occurs, emotional upsets or clearing of upsets occurs, and mental changes in the way a person thinks may occur, including the healing (or the flaring up) of depression, mental illnesses, and other such mental ways of being. The kundalini will most likely also bring up flashes of past events, which can be cleared from the emotional-memory banks, especially if they are traumatic in nature. All who experience kundalini cleansing will change the ways in which they think, feel and act.
Most Eastern literature covering the topic of kundalini speak of three channels that are part of the kundalini system. There are three nerve channels, called nadis, that are of particular importance in understanding kundalini: the sushumna, the ida, and the pingala. The sushumna is the central channel that runs through and connects the seven "third dimensional" chakras. The ida is the feminine channel which starts at the base of the spine and ends in the left nasal passage. It travels in a curving criss-cross pathway through the seven chakras, but resides primarily along the left side of the spinal column. The pingala is the masculine nerve channel, extending upward from the base of the spine and ending in the right nasal passage. It criss-crosses through the chakras, but primarily is located along the right side of the spine. The ida and pingala represent the opposite poles of the same energy. The ideal is to balance the energy in the ida and pingala, thus activating the central channel.
The nadis of one layer of the aura are connected to the other layers of the aura through the chakras. Ancient Tibetan texts, and some Eastern Indian texts, mention 72,000 nadis, while others proclaim 350,000. In Chinese and Japanese literature, these same channels are called meridians.
There are very few people with completely awakened kundalini energy on the Earth. One who has completely awakened the kundalini would be very vibrant physically, emotionally harmonious, and mentally clear. This would be a person who is functioning with all levels of his or her etheric and physical bodies at once, and would live as near a perfect life as possible on the Earth.
The following are comments about kundalini made by various authors:
About Kundalini energy, Vera Stanley Alder says in The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), "The magnetism of the soul dominates the body and draws up reserve force from the base of the spine, where it was used for the animal nature..."
In Man, Myth & Magic (Vol. 6) (1985), edited by Richard Cavendish, warnings are given to beginning yogis about raising the kundalini energy without conscious understanding of it. It is considered dangerous to an ordinary man without spiritual aspirations, for the kundalini becomes a destructive force and "begins to move about in a disorganized manner, raging unrestrained through the lower chakras and causing an abnormal excitation of the baser instincts and passions." It is said that the safest way to raise kundalini is with years of arduous training, and raising the kundalini is usually the climax of a long discipline.
This warning is also addressed in C.W. Leadbeater's book The Chakras (1990). He says, "It will probably flash out through the head and escape into the surrounding atmosphere, and it is likely that no harm will result beyond a slight weakening." He goes on to say that the real danger is not with the kundalini's upward rush. The true danger of premature kundalini powers happens with the possibility of it turning downwards and inwards.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh has a very interesting twist on the concepts around kundalini in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976). He says that kundalini is not the life-force energy itself that many people commonly think, but rather a passageway for the life-force to move. He says that kundalini is misunderstood. He also says that it is "not necessary that you will feel kundalini before enlightenment... you feel it when there is something that resists the flow... so the person who feels more kundalini is really blocked... when there is resistance, then the kundalini is felt..." He even goes on to say, "If the passage is clear, no chakra is needed [either]. If kundalini moves and there are no blocks, then you will never feel any chakras..."
Kundalini is associated with sexual energy by many. Kundalini activation is an integral part of sexual tantra practices. Several texts say that sexual energy is kundalini that is being used for creating a new life form, a child, or is being wasted if sexuality is not being used to create a new life. If it is not wasted, spent, or misused, and is sent upward instead, it can be used for vitality in the human body. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), says, "The feeling of emptiness that is overtaking the whole Western mind is just because of sexual wastage... conservation of energy is always blissful. Wastage of energy is only a relief... if you do not allow it to be released sexually,it will become so intense that the upward movement will begin."
Many yogis have cautioned students about wasting sexual energy, that it can be used for attaining enlightenment instead. Sexual energy is a downward movement of the kundalini energy, downward into physical existence. Not acting on sexual impulses causes an upward movement of kundalini, resulting in enlightenment. People who are indulgent in sexual energy are wasting this opportunity to use the life-force for an impetus toward enlightenment.
The Seven Chakras & Their Functions
Each of the seven chakras has a front and back aspect to it, one side of the chakra reaching out the front of the body from points in front of the spine, the other reaching out the back of the body from points at the back of the spine. Some texts say the front aspect of the chakra is what is given outward from the person, and the back aspect of the chakra is what is being received by the person. However, the back aspects are considered the will centers by Barbara Brennan.
The function of the seven chakras are, according to Barbara Brennan's book Hands Of Light (1988):
- To vitalize each auric body, and thus, the physical body.
- To bring about the development of different aspects of self-consciousness. Each chakra is related to a specific psychological function.
- To transmit energy between the auric levels.
Each auric layer has its own set of seven major chakras, each located in the same place on the physical body... These chakras appear to be nested within each other like nesting glasses. Each chakra on each higher layer extends out farther in the auric field (to the edge of each auric layer) and is slightly broader than the one below it. Energy is transmitted from one layer to the next through passageways in the tips of the chakras. In most people these passageways are sealed. They open as a result of spiritual purification work...
The following are a few comments by various authors:
Man, Myth & Magic, Vol. 6 (1985), by editor in chief Richard Cavendish, claims that in yoga, "These junctures where the physical and subtle bodies meet and interact are known as chakras, or wheels." These subtle bodies are auric layers. Auric layers are the levels of the human aura which pertain to each chakra. We will discuss these in the next section of this material.
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The chakras... act as active receivers, transformers and distributors of the various forms of prana [life force]... Through the nadis the chakras take vital energy from many subtle energy bodies, surroundings, the cosmos and the basis of all manifestation, and transform them into the frequencies needed by the various areas of the physical or subtle bodies further sustenance and development. Beyond this they give off energy into their surroundings. By means of this energy system the human being is therefore in a state of continual exchange with the powers at work at diverse levels of the environment, the universe, and creation."
The flow of energy from each of the chakras, (the metabolic path of incoming energy), according to Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988), is in a certain order. It moves first into the nadis (the shushumna, ida and pingala energy paths in the body) then the nervous system, the endocrine system and finally the blood.
The chakras, or "wheels," are said to "constantly spin in a circular motion" by Helmut G. Sieczka in his book, Chakra Breathing (1994).
Ted Andrews in How To See & Read The Aura (2000) says this of the chakra system: "The chakras mediate all energy within, coming into and going out of the body. They help distribute energy for your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual functions. The seven major chakras are points of greater electromagnetic activity within the auric field."
Shirley MacLaine writes in Going Within (1989) that the three lower chakras, in women and men, operate with yang (male, light) energy relating to the physical, Earth plane of existence. The three higher chakras, in women and men, operate with yin (female, dark) energy, which relates predominantly to issues of the spirit. She also says that the heart chakra, located in the center is androgynous and that "it is the seat and home of the soul, or Higher Self, and it is perfectly balanced in its yin and yang expressions." (Yin and Yang are Oriental names for the polar opposites in the universe, light/dark, good/bad, known/unknown, etc
Root Chakra
The root chakra is located at the bottom of the spine reaching downward, precisely at the coccyx.
Sanskrit name: Mudlahara. Associated with the color red, or a dark orange.
The root chakra has four petals or spokes. (The petals of the chakras have been determined by exploration in the meditations of sages in ancient India.)
The adrenals are the related glands.
Areas of the body governed by this chakra are the spinal column, anus, colon, prostate, blood and the kidneys.
Planet: Mars.
Astrological signs and planets for the root chakra are: Aries/Mars (new beginnings, primordial life force, aggressiveness), Taurus (stability, closeness to the Earth), Capricorn/Saturn (structure and stability), Sun (primordial source of life).
Associated sense: Smell.
Associated element: Earth.
Musical note: Do.
Hindu mantra: Lam.
The root chakra is associated with primal force, survival level issues and is the beginning point of entry into the physical world and attachment to the physical body. It is also closely associated with one's self image of oneself, be that positive or negative. It can be used to ground oneself to the earth, or physical life itself. A power that might appear when the chakra is healthy and awakened fully is entry into the world of pure and primal intelligence.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes that this chakra gives one "complete self-control over the passions, envy, lust, greed and so on."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The root chakra connects us with the physical world. It transfers cosmic energies to the physical and earthly level and let's earthly energy stream into our subtle system... building up in existence, finding material security, and securing the survival of the species by founding of family belong to the sphere of this first chakra, along with sexuality as a physical function and a means of begetting children."
In Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says that open energy flow in the root chakra brings alertness and clarity in daily life, strong motivation and perseverance, firm rootedness in life, strong physical and mental resilience, high levels of physical confidence and self-assurance, firm connection with the earth and with nature, and love of life. He says that blocked energy flow in the root chakra results in lack of self-assertiveness and confidence in life, difficulty in finding a sense of direction, insecurity, anxiety, worry and existential fears around survival.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters says, "Success and failure in our physical survival become embodied in the root chakra and are handed down from generation to generation... Depending on how past generations of your family saw life, whether as a struggle or as a worthwhile experience to be lived and enjoyed, this in turn will determine the unconscious patterns you carry in your root chakra." She also says that when the root chakra is open and functional it will "support one in manifesting all creative desires."
Shirley MacLaine writes in Going Within (1989) that the base chakra deals with issues of earth-plane grounding and understanding of the physical dimension. She uses the "spinning [of the root chakra] as a calming influence on whatever I find myself afraid of."
Sacral Chakra
The sacral chakra is located three inches below the belly button, above the first lumbar. (It is also sometimes called the spleen chakra and thought to be over the spleen in certain systems).
Sanskrit name: Svadhighthana. The Chinese call it the Dan Tien and in Japanese culture it is called the Hara.
Typically associated with the color orange.
The sacral chakra has 6 petals or spokes.
The gonads are the endocrine gland it is connected to.
The ovaries or testicles are the related organs. This chakra governs the reproductive system.
Planet: Sun.
Astrological signs and planets for the sacral chakra are: Cancer/Moon (receptivity, fertility), Libra/Venus (sensuality, pleasure, care of the self), Scorpio/Pluto (giving up of one's ego in sexual encounters).
Associated sense: taste.
Associated element: water.
Musical note: Re.
Hindu mantra: Yam.
The sacral chakra is often associated with vitality, emotional states, and sexuality. It is the lower emotional aspect of the auric field, emotions pertaining to human existence in particular. A power that might appear when this chakra is fully awakened is a clear understanding of the cycles of creation and destruction, birth and death.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes that vivification of this chakra "means coming to terms with those feminine aspects of the psyche which Jung named the anima."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The second chakra is the center of unfiltered primordial emotions, sexual energies and creativity. It is assigned to the elements of water, the source of all biological life, and corresponds to the emotional sphere on the astrological plane. Water fertilizes and continuously produces the life. Through the sacral chakra we participate in the fertilizing and receiving of energies which permeate the whole of nature."
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says that open energy flow in the second chakra invites vitality and sexual energy, a harmonious sex life, well-balanced physical constitution, feelings of connection and security toward oneself and others, a rich emotional life and a developed sense of empathy. Blockages in this chakra result in doubt, lack of interest, indecisiveness and lethargy in daily life, depression, low energy, clinging to the past, and physical and sexual inhibitions.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters says, "Depression is literally a closing down of this chakra's energy." She also notes that when there is a blockage in this chakra, it is often related to childhood abuse at an early stage of development. The tendency after abuse is to block of the flow of love and pleasure into our lives and continue the self abusive pattern into adult relationships, work situations and relationships in general. She also notes that sexual dysfunction is a direct result when this chakra is impaired.
Shirley MacLaine's personal account of the second chakra, in Going Within (1989), is that "from it flows our creative energy and our attitudes to sin and guilt." She claims that meditating on this chakra is "a way of confronting one's fear of being uncreative, unproductive."
The Solar Plexus Chakra
The solar plexus chakra is located over the solar plexus, above the seventh thoracic vertebrae.
Sanskrit name: Manipura.
Associated with the color yellow
The solar plexus has 10 petals or spokes.
The Pancreas is the endocrine gland associated with the third chakra.
The areas of the body the solar plexus chakra governs are stomach, liver, gall bladder and nervous system.
Planet: Mercury.
Astrological signs and planets for the solar plexus chakra are: Leo/Sun (warmth, strength, recognition, power), Sagittarius/Jupiter (growth, expansion, wisdom, synthesis), Virgo/Mercury (analysis, classification, organizing), Mars (self-assertion, activity, energy, personal power).
Associated sense: sight.
Associated element: fire.
Musical note: Mi.
Hindu mantra: Ram.
This chakra is sometimes referred to as the power center, or personal will center. It is thought to have much to do with the manifestation process on the physical plane. It is also associated with the mental body and its functions. A fully functioning solar plexus chakra can bring the power of being sensitive to coming changes and their appropriateness, enhancement of one's personal power, and directing the personal will appropriately.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes this chakra and its influence on the material body confers "mastery of the arts of alchemy...a metaphorical sense of magical transformations of consciousness, in which the base metal of ordinary existence is transmuted into the gold of spiritual illumination."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "Our relations with others, our likes and our dislikes and the ability to enter into a long-term relationships are for the most part controlled by this center. For the ordinary person, the third chakra represents the foundation of his or her personality. Here we find our social identity and seek to confirm it, either by personal assertion, the will to achieve, a striving for power, or adaptation to social patterns. The most important task of the third chakra consists of purifying the desires and wishes of the lower chakras."
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says open energy flow in the third chakra brings a sense of well-being, motivated action, centeredness, ability to overcome physical and mental limitation, ability to resolve conflicts, and a strong digestive system. Blockages in this chakra, according to Sieczka, are inability to surrender, yearning for a conflict-free environment, hunger for power, egotism, unrefined emotionality, repressed emotions, inexplicable sadness, listlessness and apathy, defensiveness, insecurity, and frequent feelings of boredom.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters says that balance in the solar plexus chakra creates self-confidence and the ability to take life into our own hands, breaking away from dependency on people and situations which undermine one's sense of self worth. This chakra is a point of self-empowerment.
Shirley Maclaine, in Going Within (1989), claims that the "largest obstacle to our growth and balance of the third chakra is ego."
Heart Chakra
The heart chakra is located in the center of the chest, above the fifth thoracic vertebrae, at the level of the heart.
Sanskrit name: Anahata.
Associated with the color green.
The heart chakra has 12 petals or spokes.
The endocrine gland it is related to is the thymus.
The areas of the body it governs are the heart, blood, vagus nerve, and the circulatory system.
Planet: Saturn.
Astrological signs and planets for the heart chakra are: Leo/Sun (sincerity, generosity), Libra/Venus (balance, harmony), Saturn (selfless love, overcoming ego).
Associated sense: touch.
Associated element: air.
Musical note: Fa.
Hindu mantra: Yam.
The heart chakra is considered the bridge between the physical and the astral worlds and is the home point of the astral body. It is the home of compassion, intuitiveness and loving action. The heart chakra is often the place where a healer will come from when holding a healing space for another person. Powers that come with a fully awakened and functioning heart chakra are sensitivities to the states of others and empathy.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes that harmony in this chakra gives "so many...spiritual benefits and supernormal powers that they cannot be listed in full... includes the ability to manipulate the sizes of objects and living beings, clairvoyance, and the art of making oneself invisible."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The heart chakra is the center of the entire chakra system. It connects the three lower physical and emotional centers to the three higher mental and spiritual centers... Its purpose... is to achieve perfect union through love... An open heart chakra can have a spontaneous healing or transforming influence on others... It is the devotion of the heart that makes us receptive to the subtler aspects of creation. Thus, the higher capabilities of the brow chakra develop concurrently with the unfolding of the heart chakra."
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says an open energy flow in the heart chakra brings confidence in relationships, developed sensitivity, high degree of flexibility and adaptability, compassion (as opposed to pity), and inner tranquillity. Blockages in this chakra result in loss of awareness of one's deepest and truest feelings, difficulties in relating and lack of contact, difficulties in receiving love and affection, overwhelming negative thoughts, and a distaste for life.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters says, "The heart chakra is the beginning of the path to higher consciousness and light." She emphasizes that balance in the heart causes us to experience that we are lovable and worthy and that this is the energy "in which we blossom and our true gifts begin to emerge."
Shirley Maclaine writes in Going Within (1989), "Meditating on the heart chakra will help the process of learning to love oneself so that the love of others is more possible."
Throat Chakra
The throat chakra is located in the throat area above the third cervical vertebrae.
Sanskrit name: Vishuddha.
Associated with the mid to lighter shades of blue.
The throat chakra has 16 petals or spokes.
It is related to the thyroid, endocrine gland.
Governs the bronchial and vocal apparatus, lungs, and the alimentary canal.
Planet: Jupiter.
Astrological signs and planets for the throat chakra are: Gemini/Mercury (communication, sharing knowledge), Mars (self-expression), Aquarius/Uranus (inspiration, higher wisdom, independence).
Associated sense: hearing.
Associated element: ether.
Musical note: So.
Hindu mantra: Ham.
The throat chakra is associated with sound, the spoken word, self expression and communication with others. Powers that might arise from activation of the throat chakra are claraudience (ability to hear astral sounds and music) and higher communication skills.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes that vivification of this chakra confers the "gift of eternal wisdom...not wisdom in the ordinary sense of that word. Rather is it some sort of divine illumination, the exact nature of which is incapable of being understood..."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The throat chakra is the center of the human capacity of expression, communication and inspiration... Communication of our inner life primarily takes place through the spoken word, and also through gestures and creative forms of expression... Through the fifth chakra we find our own individual expression... "
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says open energy flow in the throat chakra results in a high degree of responsibility, creativity, wealth of ideas, good communication skills and expressiveness, a sense of freedom and independence, moving with the flow of life, highly developed personality structure, a sense of being accepted, and a strong immune system. Blockages in the throat chakra cause communication problems, difficulties with vocalization, desire to maintain the role of a child, powerful yearning for safety and stability, feeling overwhelmed, stubbornness, reclusiveness, and self-hatred.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters writes "The throat chakra acts as the conduit between the heart and the mind." She also writes that it is "the most immediate channel of expression for our individuality."
Shirley MacLaine says in Going Within (1989) that the fifth chakra is the "center through which we communicate and express ourselves... the center through which we formulate judgments of others." She also says that blockages in the throat center are often caused by fear of speaking your own truth.
Brow Chakra
The brow chakra is located in the third eye area between the eyebrows and is sometimes depicted slightly up toward the forehead. It is sometimes referred to as the third eye chakra, or the head or forehead chakra.
Sanskrit name is Ajna.
Associated with the colors of dark blue or indigo.
The brow chakra has 96 petals or spokes.
Related to the pituitary gland.
Governs the lower brain, ears, nose, and shares the governing of the nervous system with the solar plexus chakra.
Planet: Venus.
Astrological signs and planets for the brow chakra are: Mercury (rational thoughts, and intelligence), Sagittarius/Jupiter (holistic thought realization of interconnections), Aquarius/Uranus (higher knowledge, intuition), Pisces/Neptune (imagination, access to inner truth).
Associated sense: all senses.
Associated element: none.
Musical note: La.
Hindu mantra: Om
The brow chakra is associated with astral awareness, ability to see and experience other dimensions during meditation, and hypnogogic images (flashes of images you see right before you fall asleep). Powers that come with the awakening of the brow chakra are cognition, remote viewing, telepathy, telekinesis, intuition, and many others. It is considered the entry point for the voice and communication of the higher self. Psychic powers of all sorts are associated with this chakra.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish reports that this is the chakra where one is liberated "from the consequences of past actions... concerning reincarnation and the supposed burdens of karma..."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "Conscious perception of Being takes place through the sixth chakra. It is the seat of our higher mental powers, our intellectual capacity to distinguish, our memory and our will. On the physical plane it is the highest center of command for the central nervous system... It is here that we can manifest matter and dematerialize it. We are able to create new realities at the physical level and dissolve old ones... This process takes place automatically and without conscious action on our part. "
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says that an open energy flow in the sixth chakra brings balance of all bodily parts and organs, acceptance of opposites, balance of feminine and masculine qualities, a strong connection with one's soul, self-knowledge, the gift of intuitive vision, contact with one's inner guidance, openness to spiritual experience, and strong powers of the mind and will. Blockages in this chakra result in problems with concentration and self-identity, fear of criticism and judgment, strongly controlling behavior, denial of reality, repetitive thoughts and inner dialogues, forgetfulness, unrelenting pressure to achieve, and a low level of trust in one's emotions and perceptions.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters says "...When it is partially developed it reflects intellectual ideas, theories and ideologies." In its purest and most functional state, it "reflects Divine Wisdom." She also writes, "Through a lifetime of rigorous... [with focus] on the development of this chakra, Tibetan lamas can actually control the moment of their death."
Shirley MacLaine connects this chakra with the third eye in Going Within (1989)and says that it "controls all incoming and outgoing thoughts and visions."
Crown Chakra
The crown chakra is located on the top of the head reaching upward.
Sanskrit name: Sahasrara.
Associated with several colors, violet-white, silver white, pure white, gold and is thought to have a shimmering or chromatic effect.
Referred to in many texts as The Thousand Petalled Lotus, meaning that it has one thousand petals or spokes. According to Barbara Brennan's book, Hands Of Light (1988), it has 972 petals or spokes. According to Genevieve Lewis Paulson's book, Kundalini And The Chakras (1991), and C.W. Leadbeater's book The Chakras (1990), it is actually two different centers, one inside the other, one that has 960 petals and the other that has 12 petals embedded and rising up from within the larger center.
Associated with the pineal gland and governs the upper brain.
Planet: Moon.
Astrological signs and planets for the crown chakra are: Capricorn/Saturn (internal viewing, concentration on the Divine, the meeting between Divine and matter), Pisces/Neptune (dissolving of limits, devotion, oneness with all).
Associated sense: none.
Associated element: none.
Musical note: Ti.
Hindu mantra: Aum.
The crown chakra is associated with divine experiences like bliss, samadhi, deep peace, Christ-consciousness or nirvana. A fully activated crown chakra brings the cosmic understanding of oneness with all, a greater understanding of life, and vast amounts of wisdom and intelligence. Powers that supposedly come with the fully awakened crown chakra are astral travel away from the body with full consciousness, and perfection of astral functions. The crown chakra is believed to be the point of entry of the Universal Mind of God-consciousness and complete oneness with the Cosmos.
Author Comments:
Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish writes that it "is in a sense the most important of all, for it is thought of as being directly linked to not only the subtle bodies of the individual but to the psychic,indeed divine,energies of the entire cosmos." It is also said in this literature that this chakra brings "spiritual gifts and supernormal powers which transcend even those brought about by the vivification of the Ajna... Those who possess [these powers] are regarded as being in state of unity with the Supreme Divinity and, as such, their mode of being is incomprehensible to all those who do not share it."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The crown chakra is the seat of highest human perfection, and is often represented as hovering above the head... Here we are connected with the level of being which contains all non-manifest forms and characteristics... From here we once started our journey into life, and to this place we will return at the end of our development... Our personal energy field becomes one with the universe... Whatever we understood intellectually and later intuitively now reaches the point of complete comprehension. The awareness given to us by the seventh chakra goes far beyond the knowledge conveyed by the third eye chakra, for here we are no longer separated from the object of our perceptions. When the seventh chakra unfolds, any blockages remaining in the other six dissolve and their energies begin to vibrate at their highest possible frequencies."
In his book Chakra Breathing (1994), Helmut G. Sieczka says that an open energy flow in the seventh chakra brings experiences of cosmic oneness, a sense of connection with both the visible and the invisible planes, pure consciousness, extreme clarity, potential for profound healing and restructuring of body and mind, experiences that transcend time and space, contact with one's spirit and experiences of satori, or enlightenment. Blockages in the crown chakra result in overly strong ego-boundaries, excessive trust in rationality and analysis, constant activity, intellectual defenses against universal energies and powers.
In Healing With The Energy Of The Chakras (1998), Ambika Wauters implies that when this center opens "we receive universal energy which guides us on our path and allows our true destiny to unfold." She says that in babies the crown center is wide open. She says that "the very nature of the crown chakra is to be receptive... It is through the opening of the crown chakra that we truly learn the most important lesson,that of surrendering to the Source."
Shirley MacLaine in Going Within (1989) says that this chakra has the highest vibrational frequency, violet, which oscillates faster than any other single color, "which stands to reason because the crown chakra is the center for final Divine integration."
More Chakras
It is said in some texts that there are actually 22 chakras, not just seven. These other chakras correspond to the dimensions beyond the third dimension. The following descriptions are Joshua Stone's speculative ideas on what the chakras may be beyond the first seven.
Fourth Dimensional Chakras
8th chakra: first chakra of the fourth dimension, seat of the soul, just as the number 0 is the beginning of the numerical system, with no particular value, but the beginning point that is necessary. Colors: emerald green and purple.
9th chakra: similar to the root chakra of the physical body, is the root chakra of the soul. Colors: blue-green.
10th chakra: integration of opposites within the self, starts functioning when union and balance is achieved, experienced as a state of effortlessness and alignment with the soul. Color: pearlescence.
11th chakra: when connected to the third chakra, the 11th chakra allows you to diminish the present and past life trauma stored in the third chakra. The feeling of the 11th chakra is that of a wave, or pulse that moves through and out without attachment. Color: pink-orange.
12th chakra: Christ consciousness, associated with the heart chakra of the third dimension. Color: shimmering gold.
13th chakra: used in materializing matter, teleportation, healing, vibratory communication. Color: pale violet-pink.
14th chakra: has to do with becoming a vessel for the Divine, alignment with the divine plan. Color: blue- violet.
15th chakra: corresponds with the crown chakra, has to do with your monadic connection, when operating, the structure of your soul is stable enough to handle the energy of the monadic level. Color: golden-white.
Fifth Dimensional Chakras
16th chakra: ascension and becoming a universal being, rather than human. The 16th chakra descends into the crown chakra at the time of ascension. At this point the master can decide whether or not he or she is going to stay in physical existence. When this chakra is activated, one can move across time and space, and adopt whatever form or body is needed. Color: light violet-white.
17th chakra: universal light, total light. Color: multi-white.
18th chakra: has to do with alignment with sixth dimensional divine intent. Color: pink-gold.
19th chakra: universal energy, universal love. Color: magenta.
20th chakra: pure beingness, no need for communication or exchange. Color: violet-gold.
21st chakra: divine structure, creation, learning that took place during the creation of all things. Color blue-gold.
22nd chakra: connection with God, all that is, merging with the source. Color: platinum.
Auric Layers & Their Relationship To The Chakras
Everything in existence has an aura. Even inanimate objects have an aura, for those inanimate objects contain atoms, which are live and sentient beings, and their combined auras make the aura of the inanimate object. The human aura is composed of seven fields, each relating to the corresponding chakra. Each of these layers has a different function. For an ordinary person, it is possible to see the first three layers. The rest of the layers will most likely only be seen by an experienced meditator. However, the physical eye is not the only instrument for viewing the aura. The mind's eye, or the third eye, can perceive the aura quite accurately. All it takes his practice and perseverance to develop this skill.
When I speak of auric layers, I am talking about the different layers in the human aura. In the Encyclopedia Of Psychic Science, (1966) Nandor Fodor writes that the aura is a "permanent radiation around the human body." Ted Andrews in his book How To See & Read The Aura (2000) describes the aura as follows: "The aura surrounds the physical body in all directions. It is 3D, and in a healthy person is elliptical in shape. The shape, the size, the colors and the clarity of colors all indicate specific things about your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well being."
Richard Cavendish, editor in chief of Man Myth & Magic, Vol 2 (1985), says that the word "aura" is used by occultists to mean "a faint cloud or luminous appearance which has been seen surrounding the human body... It is not a vapour but appears as a radiation... In all forms of religion these invisible parts of a man are regarded as more important than his body."
Eileen J. Garrett in Many Voices, The Autobiography Of A Medium (1968), describes the aura as follows: "The foglike nimbus that I 'see' would appear to be changed by the atmosphere, and so I regard it as the body's spectrum,a field of energy that flows within and without, drawing waste material from the body and bringing in the health-giving breath. This atmosphere changes by day and night."
The chakras correspond with consecutively expanding layers of the auric field, appearing larger in size with each layer outward from the physical form of the human body. The chakras could be thought of as the point-of-connection to the human form for each of these energy layers.
According to Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988), the first three layers of the aura pertain to and metabolize energies related the physical world and the body. The upper three layers pertain to and metabolize energies in the spiritual world. The fourth layer (heart chakra) acts as a bridge between both worlds and energy passes through this layer both to and from the two realities.
According To Genevieve Lewis Paulson in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991), the inner three layers are the personality bodies, the outer four layers are the spiritual bodies. Some schools of thought refer to the upper layers as built in tuners to the frequency band signature of alternate realities and dimensions in which the human can also exist and explore. It is thought that progression through each of the layers allows the human to perceive different frequency bands and types of dimensions and the beings existing in those dimensions. It is in the upper layers where the aspirant can have other-worldly experiences and powers, according to Eastern thought.
Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988) writes, "As soon as you open your perception to layers above the third you also begin to perceive people or beings who exist in those layers who do not have physical bodies." She even goes further than that and expounds on the other possibility that, "The picture is actually more complicated than that... Each is an entire world in which we live and have our being. Most of us experience these realities during sleep but do not remember them."
In How To See & Read The Aura (2000), Ted Andrews claims that the auric field has four characteristics: 1) Every aura has its own unique frequency. No two are exactly alike. 2) An aura will interact with the auric fields of others. 3) The human energy field can interact with animal, plant, mineral and other energy fields. 4) The longer and more intimate the contact, the greater the energy exchange.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), has an unusual take on the auric layers. He says that each of the auric layers has incoming and outgoing energies, polar opposites, because nothing can exist without its polar opposite (i.e. love and hate are polar opposites of the same thing). He says that prana is cosmic energy that goes in and out in every layer, and our first acquaintance with it is the physical breath in the physical body. I will list these polarities under each of the auric layers in this section.
Etheric Body (First Layer Of Aura) Root Chakra
The root chakra is associated with the first layer of the auric field, or the etheric body, ether being the state between energy and matter. According to Barbara Brennan's book Hands Of Light (1988), the etheric body is a "structure of lines of force on which the physical matter of the body tissues is shaped and anchored." This field is prior to, and not a result of, the physical body. In The Nature Of Personal Reality (1974), Jane Roberts writes, "The body... has 'invisible' counterparts composed of the electromagnetic properties and the interior sound and light qualities. These invisible structures precede the emergence of the physical body. They also exist after the body's death... The data is impressed upon them [genes and chromosomes] from within. The identity exists before the form."
The etheric body is in motion with flashes of energy or light that move through the lines or webs in the structure of the template for the physical body. It is located about one quarter to two inches outside the physical body and according to Barbara Brennan, pulsates about 15-20 cycles per minute and varies from light blue to gray colors. If one could see the pulsations as they travel around the lines, one might look at the shoulder of a person, see a flash as it goes from the shoulder to the wrist, but as soon as one sees it, it is gone until the next pulsation comes through. Brennan claims the chakras of this layer of the aura are net-like, like the etheric body, and only have grayish or bluish colors, not the typical rainbow progression that is often seen in pictures of the chakra system.
Author Comments:
Genevieve Lewis Paulson, Kundalini And The Chakras (1991), says that when this layer is in balance, the physical body will appear youthful and very energetic. It will seldom be ill and have great power. She simply calls this layer "emanations of the physical body."
According also to Ted Andrews in his book How To See & Read The Aura (2000), this first layer is simply related to the physical body, a template, and nothing more.
In Vera Stanley Alder's book The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), she says the first layer is a body of "ether, higher and finer vibrations, and acting as an intermediary between it and the outer ether, a channel through which all the magnetic life-forces are fed to it." Vera Stanley Alder also notes that the ancient Egyptians called this layer the KA, symbolizing the vehicle or holder of the body.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), says that the first layer of the aura has polar opposites of breathing like the physical body does. On the incoming breath, something is rejuvenated, and on the outgoing breath, something is dormant.
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The ethereal body resembles the physical body in shape and dimension, and is therefore sometimes called the 'ethereal twin' or 'inner physical body'... the ethereal body is formed anew with each reincarnation and dissolves within three to five days after physical death. The astral, mental and spiritual bodies continue to exist after death and reunite with the newly formed physical body in every reincarnation."
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D., says in Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), "The etheric body, or the etheric double, is an exact replica of the physical body. It is the archetype upon which the physical form is built. There is nothing in the manifest universe... that does not possess an etheric body. This etheric body governs and conditions the physical body. The function of the etheric body is to store the rays of radiant light and heat from the sun and to transmit them via the spleen chakra [solar plexus chakra] to all parts of the physical body."
Emotional Body (Second Layer Of Aura) Sacral Chakra
The second layer is called the emotional body and is all about emotional states. It is also called the astral body, by some. It outlines the physical body, but is more fluid and in motion than the first layer. It appears like colored clouds or wisps about three inches out around the physical body. Its colors change constantly depending on the emotional state of the person, and its movement varies as well.
This layer of the auric field has all the colors of the rainbow and more. The chakras in this layer reflect the typical rainbow progression up the chakras as seen in common pictures of the chakras.
The colors in the emotional body can also fly off and go in different directions, especially if strong emotions are felt toward someone or something. This is the auric layer which is most often seen by beginners who see clouds of color around a subject.
Author Comments:
Helmut G. Sieczka says in Chakra Breathing (2000) that this is the etheric body. Even though he connects it to the root chakra, he describes it as clouds of color a few inches out from the body, a typical description of the emotional body, and he says that its function is to keep out toxins and bacteria.
Genevieve Lewis Paulson, Kundalini And The Chakras (1991) says the, "Emotions and feelings are just vibratory rates... After refining this layer of the aura, it is possible to have feelings without getting caught in them, experience life without causing more karma and blocks, and to love without attachment."
According to Ted Andrews in How To See & Read The Aura (2000) this layer is the astral body. As we go on, you will see that there is some disagreement among various texts as to which layer of the auric field is actually the astral body, the causal body, etc.
In Vera Stanley Alder's book The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), this layer is also called the astral body, or ghost body, and "having the same high speed of movement as electricity..." She also states that the ancient Egyptians called this layer the BA, or astral body, the "traveler through space."
Richard Cavendish, editor in chief of Man Myth & Magic, Vol 2 (1985), writes that this "etheric double is probably physical matter of a refined character." As I have stated, there is some disagreement as to whether or not this is really the location of the etheric double, or astral body.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), says the polar opposites of this layer is that of love and hate, polar opposites of the primal level of emotion.
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The astral body, also known as the emotional body, is the carrier of feelings, emotions and character traits... Every change in emotions is radiated out into the aura by the astral body... The emotional aura is constantly in motion... an indescribable play of constantly changing colors, shining in all imaginable hues."
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D., says in Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), "If you are run by your astral body,by your feelings and desires,your astral body ends up running your conscious mind instead of your conscious mind having mastery of your emotions. You travel in this body when you practice astral projection... The limitation of this is that you are limited to traveling only on the astral plane.
Mental Body (Third Layer Of Aura) Solar Plexus Chakra
This layer extends beyond the second layer (emotional body) and is associated with mental activity. It is similar to the first layer of the aura, the etheric body, in the way that it is web-like in structure, with lines creating a net-like effect. However, the web is golden in color, or yellow, rather than the bluish-grayish tones of the etheric body.
The third layer is connected to the solar plexus chakra, thus having to do with power balancing and power struggles. The third layer can be worked with for correcting personal power imbalances or mental distortions. The third layer is also a great place for working with "stopping the mind" or calming the minds of others.
Author Comments:
According to Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988), thoughts appear as blobs of golden or yellow light emerging from the web. Well formed thoughts and ideas are intricately detailed blobs of yellow light. Unformed thoughts or ideas, still in the gestation period, will be less detailed and formed.
Genevieve Lewis Paulson in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991) says, "The mental body contains matter which can vibrate at a rate similar to that of the creative force in our cosmos... the more rigid the matter in our mental body becomes, the more difficult it is to flow with life..." She goes on to say that when this layer of the auric field is in balanced operation, "manifestation and other mental powers will be considered normal."
Ted Andrews, How To See & Read The Aura (2000), agrees with others that this is the mental layer of the auric field.
Vera Stanley Alder agrees in The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), that this is the mental body layer of the aura, "and well known instances of thought telepathy traveling right across the world in the space of a few seconds prove to us the speed at which we can function while in this body." Alder did not know the name of this layer according to the ancient Egyptians, but she did know that the spirit body was represented by a lotus, "which is able to rise out of the darkness and mud to reach the light." It is interesting to me how this same symbol emerged in Eastern spirituality...
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), says this layer is an incoming and outgoing of power. "One moment you are powerful and the next moment you are powerless; one moment you are hopeful and the next moment you are hopeless; one moment you are confident and the next moment you lose all your confidence. It is a coming in of magnetism to you and a going out of magnetism from you... This coming in and going out of the magnetic force corresponds to your breathing." He goes on to use the example of judo: "Breath corresponds to what is happening in the third body. So when the breath is going out (unless the person has been trained to fool you), that is the moment when his magnetic force is going out. That is the moment to attack! And this is the secret of judo."
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The mental body possesses both a higher and a lower octave. It's lower frequencies are expressed by the linear thinking of the rational mind, the approach adopted by most people to truth. This kind of mental activity is based on perceptions of the physical level... The astral body translates the information into feelings and passes them on to the mental body, which in turn reacts by formulating corresponding verbal thoughts. Through the influence of the astral body and its unresolved emotional patterns, the information is frequently distorted and thinking becomes biased... This means that the rational mind can practically never be unbiased and neutral, although it claims this of itself."
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D. says in Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), "The refinement and development of this body are the result of hard work and discrimination... The mental body remains clear when you maintain a good mental diet. Every thought that comes from your subconscious mind or from other people should be examined to determine if it is of God or not of God and if it is truth or illusion. If it is positive and of God, let it into your mind as you would good food into your stomach. If it is negative and not of God, deny its entrance into your mind. It is the ongoing process of remaining conscious and vigilant and not functioning on automatic pilot that will keep your mental body clear."
Astral Body (Fourth Layer) Heart Chakra
Different texts have the astral body listed in different areas of the aura, as you have seen already. There is no consistent material suggesting which layer of the aura is actually the astral body. The heart area is most often suggested as the astral body. The astral body is made up of clouds of color more wondrous than the colors in the emotional body. It tends to have the same colors, but they are different because of the love in the heart. The colors span the rainbow, but they are infused with rose light. The chakras are seen as being in consecutive order in the rainbow color spectrum as well.
Author Comments:
As with the emotional body, the astral body also has blobs, streams or wisps of light energy moving outward toward other people, interacting on an astral level. Barbara Brennan writes in Hands Of Light (1988), "It is not just body language; there is an actual energetic phenomenon..."
According to Genevieve Lewis Paulson in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991), this is the first of the four spiritual bodies. She calls it the Intuitional/Compassionate Body. She says that in this layer there will be a new understanding of God and the universe, and it will be possible to feel compassion without getting caught in other people's stuff.
Ted Andrews in How To See & Read The Aura (2000), says that this is the Buddhic layer of the auric field. Older texts tend to call it the Buddhic layer too.
In Vera Stanley Alder's book The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), she believes this is the final layer, the spiritual body, containing the finest, highest frequency vibrations of all, and can for that reason take control of all the lower ones. (This theme of only four layers of the auric field is common among many texts on the subject.)
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), says the polar opposites of this layer is life and death. He calls this the fifth body, instead of the typical fourth body that most writers call this. "Life itself is not in you. It simply comes in and goes out, just like breath... Life and death are just breaths to the fifth body...You have never been alive, you have never been dead. You are something that completely transcends both." He goes on to explain how it is that everyone, sometime or another in their lives, have contemplated suicide because it is the other side of the pole. He also says animals cannot commit suicide because they can never become aware of the fifth body.
In The Chakra Handbook (1999), Shalila Sharamon and Bodo J. Baginski say, "The spiritual body, frequently referred to as the causitive body, possesses the highest vibrational frequency of all the energy bodies. In human beings not yet highly conscious on the spiritual planes, its aura only extends about a yard from the physical body. Compared to this, the spiritual aura of a totally awakened person can radiate outward for miles, with the original oval shape changing to a perfect circle."
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D., says in Soul psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), "The soul, or causal body, exists on the higher mental plane and its characteristic is the abstract mind. The causal body is the temple of the soul. It is the storage house of all good karma and virtue from all past lives and the present life. The causal body is a collection of three permanent atoms enclosed in an envelope of mental essence. The three permanent atoms are recording devices for the physical, astral, and mental bodies... When you have achieved liberation from the wheel of rebirth, the causal body is burned up and merges back into the monad; the evolving soul extension then receives guidance from the monad rather than from the soul." (The monad is thought to be an oversoul which contains a series of souls.)
Celestial Body (Sixth Layer) Brow Chakra
This body is said to be the emotional level of the spiritual plane. It extends two to three feet out from the physical body. This is the layer where spiritual ecstasy is experienced. This could be what yogis refer to as samadhi, a state of bliss. It is reached through meditation. Here, light and love is in everything, no matter what state of duality it is in. It is a feeling of oneness with the creator, the emotional aspect of this experience of oneness with God-Self. It is a state of unconditional love.
Author Comments:
Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer say in their book Opening To Channel (1987) that the brow chakra is the place where channeling is actually happening, where information is coming through. In Amrut Laya (The Stateless State) (1998), Shri Sadguru Siddharameshwar Maharaj says this is what he calls the causal body and that it is similar to a place of sleep, a place of repose and "being in his real nature for the spirit."
This is the celestial body, according to Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988), and has the appearance of many light filled rainbow rays flowing outward. The chakras are not seen at all because there is very bright white light at the core of the layer that the rays emerge from.
Genevieve Lewis Paulson calls this the Monadic Body (or Soul Level) in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991). She says that Monad is Greek for "unit." The monadic body "expresses the unity of the polarities and allows the soul to express itself in the physical body." She goes on to say that when the monadic body is developed, "your sense of I AMness or soul awareness is so strong that the 'I' can merge with the divine, be one with all and experience both states (the I and the Thou)."
Ted Andrews in How To See & Read The Aura (2000), agrees again with Genevieve Lewis Paulson that this is the monadic layer of the auric field.
I personally have experienced, during a very deep meditation moment, these rays of light described by Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988) and this very stable point of unconditional love, long before I had read about this layer of the aura. It was the trigger that made me get serious about being on a spiritual path. It was beginner's luck perhaps, for it happened on the third day of meditating in my life! From then on, the search to find out what and who I am was on fire. (I would say that this is a perfect example of a spontaneous awakening of the kundalini energy, unexpected and coming to the inexperienced meditator.)
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), speaks of this layer as if it is the last layer. (There are many differences from one teacher or writer to the next who differ on how many layers there are). He says this is the last layer for he goes on to say that everything after this layer is "bodilessness." The two breaths in this layer of the auric field, however, are the polarities of existence and nonexistence.
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D., says in Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), "The atmic body...is associated with spiritual will."
Ketheric Template (Seventh Layer) Crown Chakra
The ketheric template is the mental level of the spiritual plane. It extends two and a half to three and a half feet out from the physical form. It is an egg shape around the human aura and contains all the auric bodies of the human. It holds the whole form of the aura together. It is referred to in Eastern thought as the causal body.
In this layer of the auric field there is direct knowing that we are one with the creator, the mental aspect of oneness, whereas the previous layer contains the feeling sense of the experience of oneness with Creator, God, or Absolute.
Author Comments:
In Amrut Laya (The Stateless State) (1998), Shri Sadguru Siddharameshwar Maharaj says this is the supra-causal body and "it can be experienced as pure knowledge," beyond human ways of thinking.
The chakras are outlined in gold, as well as the physical body, and light extends out from there to form the egg-like cocoon. According to Barbara Brennan in Hands Of Light (1988), the ketheric template "appears [as] beautiful shimmering light, composed mostly of pastel colors. This light has a gold-silver shine and opalescent quality, like mother of pearl sequins... appears to be composed of light that radiates out from the body like the glow around a candle. Within this glow are also brighter, stronger beams of light."
Genevieve Lewis Paulson calls this the Divine Body in Kundalini And The Chakras (1991). In this layer of the auric field, one would "feel the presence of God all around. Know that God is within and without at all times... enables you to... be open to cosmic or Christ consciousness... opens us to living in constant oneness with God."
Once again, Ted Andrews in How To See & Read The Aura (2000), agrees with Genevieve Lewis Paulson that this is the divine layer of the auric field.
Helmut G. Sieczka says in Chakra Breathing (1994) that this is the causal body, which vibrates at the fastest rate, coinciding with Shirley MacLaine's claim in Going Within (1989) that the seventh chakra "is the fastest oscillating center." Sieczka also says "At the level of the causal body, the permanent transformation of all unresolved issues can occur."
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in Meditation: The Art Of Ecstasy (1976), speaks of this as a "bodilessness" layer. I have mentioned above that the sixth layer was the end of his discussion on auric layers. Perhaps this layer is the unknowable beyond.
Joshua David Stone, Ph.D., says in Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994), and that this layer is the light body. "The Lightbody is the body you will inhabit at the time of your Ascension, Ascension deemed to complete merger with the monad... At that time your entire being, including your physical body, merges into light... This body is not fully complete until just before ascension."
Bob Larson condemns this experience of the seventh layer of the auric field in Straight Answers On The New Age (1989). He says of the seventh layer, "For new agers it is a holy grail, the end of their spiritual search in this life. Becoming one with the pantheistic cosmos is their goal... such doublespeak endorsing one's own ego as god doesn't make sense to the rationalist..." Bob Larson most likely has never had a spontaneous experience of realizing the self as the God within, and has probably not had a moment of samadhi, or he would not doubt the legitimacy of this experience that others have had. He comes from a Christian background, and most Christians do not accept the idea that humans are an expression of God itself within its manifestation of physical creation. Most Christians believe that God is outside the self, rather than inside the self, although esoteric Christians would be the exception.
Color Meanings
Listed below are what the colors in the aura signify, according to Richard Cavendish, editor in chief of Man Myth & Magic, Vol 2 (1985). (A more in-depth discussion of colors and their meanings can be found in the course materials for Colors & Symbols.)
Red: energy, lust, passing anger, vitality
Orange: humor, ambition, harmony
Yellow: intellect, trickery
Blue: intuition, seriousness, healing
Green: calm, sympathy, possessiveness
Violet: warmth, humility
Purple: great spirituality
Pink: love, compassion, understanding
Silver Flashes: great creativity
Dull Colors: disharmony, problems
White: death wish
Black: deep discontent
Scientific Research
According to Nandor Fodor in Encyclopedia Of Psychic Science (1966), the most enlightening scientific research on the human aura was done by Dr. Walter J. Kilner (1847-1920) of Saint Thomas Hospital of London. A dicyanin screen was enclosed which rendered the aura visible to normal sight. The screen was a solution of coal-tar dye between two hermetically sealed pieces of glass. Turning the eye on a naked man in dim light before a dark background, three distinct radiations, all lying in the ultraviolet end of the spectrum, became visible. The first was dark and colorless, and surrounded the body about one quarter to one half an inch out from the physical body. The second extended three inches beyond, and the third was almost one foot in depth.
Kilner tried several experiments. The aura was influenced by magnets and electricity. According to Nandor Fodor in Encyclopedia Of Psychic Science (1966), Kilner reported, "When negative currents were introduced, nearby, the aura went to the extent of completely vanishing under a negative charge...and increasing to an additional 50 % after the charge dissipates. It also was affected by vapors from various chemicals." Illness affected both its size and color. He also claimed that the aura was affected by an effort of will, that it could be projected to a longer distance form the body and change its colors. Mental impairment caused a diminishing in its size and distinction. Nervous diseases showed quite observable imbalances. The auras of different people showed attraction and interaction with each other, blending and becoming more intense. From this, Dr. Kilner concluded that the higher brain centers are intimately concerned in the output of auric force. He also noticed that the aura shrinks near the time of death, and that no aura whatsoever existed once the person had expired.
In the Encyclopedia Of Psychic Science (1966) Nandor Fodor continues to list other scientific studies. He refers to a forgotten and out of print book called Ten Years With Spiritual Mediums (1874) published by Francis Gerry Fairfield. Fairfield claims, "All organic structures have a special form of nerve-aura... Observation and experiments seem to indicate that the nerve-aura is material,an imponderable nervous ether... susceptible to the will of the operator, and capable of sensory impression..." Nandor Fodor notes that Morselli, Flournoy, Geley and Carrington have arrived at the same conclusion, that there is an "exteriorization of the nervous system energy."
Dr. Seymon Davidovich Kirlian made another amazing invention which revealed the human aura. It is called Kirlian photography. This is discussed in a lengthy chapter by Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder in Psychic Discoveries Behind The Iron Curtain (1973). Kirlian created a machine that uses a high frequency electrical field that generates 75,000 to 200,000 electrical oscillations per second. The object to be investigated (finger, leaf, etc.) is inserted between the clamps along with photo paper. The generator is turned on and a high frequency field which is created between the clamps causes the object to radiate some sort of bio-luminescence onto photo paper. A camera is not used.
This discovery was of great interest to many in all sorts of fields of science. According to Kirlian, different details show up in the photographs of bio-luminescence, depending on the dominant frequency. Experiments were done on leaves, photographing them in all different phases of health. Interestingly, different colors denoted illness or disease in the different samples of leaves, and even when a piece of the leaf was torn off, the aura was still there even though the piece was gone. According to Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder in Psychic Discoveries Behind The Iron Curtain ( 1973) "The Kirlian window on the unknown might revolutionize our entire concept of ourselves and our universe. It seems [Kirlian and his wife] had discovered far more than the aura."
I mention these scientific discoveries, but there are many more in which the human field has been tested and determined to be "real." I focused on these discoveries because they are actual instruments for seeing the human aura with the naked eye. I believe that a "Doubting Thomas" could be most easily convinced of the existence of the aura by sciences that make the aura visible to the naked eye, like the dicyanin screen.
Discussion
The human energy field is the next frontier for western medicine to explore. When doctors and scientists understand it completely, illness will be a thing of the past. There has been enough scientific research and enough proof that the human aura is real and is not just a product of fantasy as some would like to believe. The human energy field not only shows illness before it appears at the physical level, but it is also easily influenced, especially by the mind of the person who owns the aura.
Many people believe that all this talk of chakras, auras and kundalini are the musings of people who are self deluded. Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish says, "One has to consider whether one is dealing with a body of beliefs based on fantasy, wishful thinking or imposture... spiritual fraudsters have always abounded and the history of mysticism is littered with examples of self-deceit... [even though] the existence of spiritual frauds, fantasies and delusions does not disprove the existence of genuine spirituality."
Bob Larson is a skeptic about the human aura, and does not believe in it. In his book Straight Answers On The New Age (1989) he says, "Metaphysics is the only application of this theory. Awakening one's aura to heighten spiritual awareness is a substitute for repentance and submission to the will of a personal God. Those who experiment with chakra arousal are venturing into occult territory where strange supernatural occurrences may be precipitated by the interference of demonic forces." Personally, I believe those demonic forces he speaks of are our own negative patterns of fear caught in our energetic fields.
Bob Larson says, "Science never proved the existence of an electromagnetic force field surrounding the human spine." He obviously ignored scientific facts collected by ones such as Kilner and Kirlian, two of the most prominent inventors of devices for observing the human aura.
Kilner claimed that the human energy field, from his conclusions, is an exteriorized nervous system which is a product of higher brain activity and that it is easily influenced by outside input as well as inner output from the mind. The fields he witnessed behind the dicyannin screen were being affected by the thought patterns of the individual and also by environmental influences such as chemical vapors and electricity. Kirlian photography shows the reality of the aura, at least the first layer of it, which is the etheric template for the physical body. In the book Psychic Discoveries Behind The Iron Curtain (1973), Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder report that the Kirlians discovered a "whole galaxy of lights... a fire world, great channels of blazing, glittering light in living things, in us." There are countless researchers who have documented and studied the human aura and its properties. After seeing the proof of scientific research on the study of the human auric field, who could possibly doubt the reality of its existence?
Perhaps years of meditation and discipline will not be necessary in the future for even the ordinary person to experience the ability to see, through the physical eye or the third eye, these other layers of the human aura. Medicines could be invented to induce these abilities and even surgeries could be possible for opening the human ability to "see." Such an account of a surgical type procedure for opening the third eye was described in T. Lobsang Rampa's book The Third Eye (1986). This is described from the point of view of the receiver of the procedure, an aspirant who was still very young and was being trained in the ways of the Lamas in Tibet. "He pressed the instrument to the center of my forehead and rotated the handle... There was no particular pain as it penetrated the skin and flesh, but there was a little jolt as the end hit the bone... Suddenly there was a little "scrunch" and the instrument penetrated the bone... Mingyar Dondup passed him a very hard, very clean sliver of wood which had been treated by fire and herbs to make it as hard as steel... entered the hole in my head... slid the sliver farther and farther... suddenly there was a blinding flash... for a moment the pain was intense... it diminished, died and was replaced by spirals of color... [the procedure was over] and the sliver of wood remained, it would stay in place for two or three weeks. Until it was removed I would have to stay in this little room almost in darkness... [the Lama]... turned to me and said: "You are now one of us, Lobsang. For the rest of your life you will see people as they are and not as they pretend to be." It was a very strange experience to see these men apparently enveloped in golden flame. Not until later did I realize that their auras were golden because of the pure life they led, and that most people would look very different indeed."
Even an ordinary person without much training can be taught to see at least the first layer or two of the human aura in an evening class. I have personally witnessed the awe and excitement my students have when they first see the human aura, without a doubt that they saw it. It is not as hard to access as people might think. The tools for developing the ability to see auras are everywhere, even in entertainment books such as The Magic Eye (1993) by N.E. Thing Enterprises. This book contains pictures that are particularly good for developing the focus necessary for the aspirant to see the human aura. The pictures are static chaos, but upon achieving the correct focus, a precise and clear image emerges in a 3D way.
Many students realize that they have seen the aura before, but did not realize that it was the human aura they were seeing. Many people dismiss it as a trick of the eye rather than investigating it further. The ability to see the aura is more common than society realizes. This talent has been around for a long time, dating back to the halos depicted around holy figures and even before the times of Christ.
The human aura and the chakras are a body, a container, just like the physical body. It is a body that we have not yet as a species embraced as real and vital to health like the physical body is. The physical body has layers and organs, and so does the auric body. In the auric body, I believe that chakras are the organs, and the layers are like the different layers of the skin, i.e. fat tissue, veins, and other layers of the skin.
Shirley MacLaine writes in her book Going Within (1989), "We are in an age of enlightenment now, which means 'to be in knowledge of.' We are becoming more 'in knowledge' of ourselves." If science could embrace the idea of the auric body, truly embrace it as a reality to be examined, then quantum leaps can be taken in the healing practices of mankind. Healing and health could be explored on a whole new level.
Eileen J. Garrett says in her book Many Voices, The Autobiography Of A Medium (1968), that, "Illness tends to darken the field at the place where there is even a predisposition to weakness." The human aura appears to be governed by some unknown laws, and if the laws could be learned, healing could be done in the auric bodies, rather than in the physical body.
Working with the physical body's first defense system, the aura, is an efficient way to approach healing. Etheric illness can be healed even if the condition has been there for some time in the auric layers, so what better time is there to start exploring this than now? It stands to reason that it is much easier to cause healing at the auric level than it is at the physical level. Eileen J. Garrett in her book Many Voices, The Autobiography Of A Medium (1968), says that the aura is a "vaporous color world in which the body exists and is more than a thing of beauty. It is an outer web or surround that protects the body's action, a sieve to receive the shocks of the external world and translate them into responses which the magnetic field accepts and uses." Man Myth & Magic, Vol. 3 (1985) editor in chief, Richard Cavendish reports, "The consequence of a spiritual change of state,good or ill,can supposedly be transmitted through the chakras to the material body, in this way effecting change in the physical state."
The metaphysical community is leading the way in understanding these organs and functions of the auric field. It is like re-inventing the wheel, though, for the auric body has been known and studied for thousands of years, long before western medicine came into manifestation. In Western thought, we are just beginning to find that there is more to the physical body than the physical level alone, and that the electro-magnetic field around the human body responds to Earthly events and realities just like the physical body does.
We are quite aware of three layers of parallel existence already: physical, emotional, and mental. Even the ordinary person is aware of three overlapping layers of experience. We experience events physically, have emotions about them, and think about them all at the same time. These are three simultaneous layers of existence (mind, emotions, and physical sensory input) that we are familiar with as humans, so who is to say that there are not undiscovered layers and reactions to the events of physical life? Perhaps experiences in all the layers is tied to some greater cosmic rhythm beyond the seven layers.
This suggests that the human being is existing at the same time in parallel levels of experience, perhaps levels directly related to the physical life being lived. Vera Stanley Alder said in her book The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), that when the chakras are fully functioning, they "connect [man] with the knowledge of and power consciously to work in the different planes of matter." Entire groups of experiences might be happening, perhaps seven layers of exactly related experiences that correspond to the chakras, their corresponding auric layers and their particular versions of events, energy waves, and other such influences.
There is very little awareness beyond the seven layers as far as written works on the subject. In some works of literature eight, nine, twelve and even twenty-two chakras are mentioned. Acupuncture proclaims as many as 700 or more chakras (known as acupuncture points). One system of chakras boasts 88,000 of them. Other schools of thought denounce the existence of chakras and auras at all, and deem them quite unnecessary to the process of enlightenment.
Perhaps there is an ongoing evolution of the chakra and auric systems, and maybe that is why there is some disagreement as to how many chakras and auric layers there really are. Perhaps the chakras and the auras are evolving just like the human body is at the physical level, even though that evolution is slow. Perhaps long ago there truly were only four chakras or auric layers, and now there are seven, or maybe more. Perhaps, over time, these levels change as humankind becomes more evolved, insinuating that evolution is happening on all levels, not just physical. Obviously there has been evolution in the mental realm, with technologies and such. There has also been evolution in the understanding of the human psychological dysfunctions, mostly having to do with emotional bodies that have been harmed. There has also been much evolution in the spiritual level of mankind, so is evolution happening in all layers, not just one?
These are questions that must be asked in research and observance of the human auric system and its chakras. As yet, it is still uncharted territory as far as western medicine and science are concerned, even with the research that has already been done. This is a wide open field of discovery for many professions, especially the healing professions.
So why then have the medical sciences largely ignored the factual truth? There has been vast research about the energy field of the human being. The section on scientific discoveries in this course did not even touch the tip of the iceberg on all the experimentation and observation that has taken place in a scientific format concerning chakras and auras. Why has western medicine not leapt at the chance to diagnose and cure physical illnesses so easily even before the physical appearance of illness? It has been proven without a doubt that there is the possibility for healing through diagnosis of the aura. Complete study and mapping of the human aura would change western medicine as we know it.
The human energy field is highly sensitive, perhaps even too sensitive for our own good, especially for people predisposed to negative thought patterns. Vera Stanley Alder wrote, in her book The Finding Of The Third Eye (1976), "Love and hate, then, have each their chemical form and action. It is obviously impossible for doctors...to do us any permanent good until we learn not to poison ourselves and those around us."
The current pattern in western medicine and healing practices could be thought of as a paradigm, perhaps even something as simple as an economic one. Paradigms are built to fight change. It is a scientific fact, according to Thomas S. Kuhn in his book, The Structure Of Scientific Revolution (1962), that paradigms fight change as a natural course of action in the universe. If paradigms were not to fight change, then chaos would ensue. This tendency for paradigms to fight change is the way the physical universe maintains consistency, patterns, and resists chaos. Therefore this resistance to change has its positive aspects, even though this might cause evolution to be slower than it would be if changes were more easily embraced by the cosmos.
A world where illness never appeared physically at all would be a different world than the one we live in now. It would be a very large paradigm change, perhaps even a quantum leap. (Quantum leaps are places where the paradigm is shifted more than usual because the tendency to resist change has been suspended for moment.) Illness would appear etherically, it would be addressed etherically, and it would be healed etherically, not physically. Hmmm... Perhaps this is why western medicine resists the possibilities of etheric healing. It would be put out of business! It would also put the drug companies out of business! In fact, everything that western medicine is now made of would be obsolete and considered a primitive understanding of human health and healing. If cancer could be treated simply by addressing the mental or emotional attitudes, or environmental stressors that disturb the human aura, then medicine would mostly be a science of emotional and mental repatterning. Yes, paradigms do fight change —especially profitable economical ones!
New kinds of healers would appear in society, however. The healers of the future would not only fully understand the physical body, but would also study the auric layers in college courses, which would be just as essential as anatomy courses. They would have studied the "organs" of the human aura, learning its psychological and emotional functions, and how to affect healing in the auric level. Doctors would use electric or magnetic instruments, light or sound, thought or emotional power, or other means as yet undiscovered. This would become the merging of western medicine and what is now called metaphysical healing. Helmut G. Sieczka says in his book Chakra Breathing (1994) that the, "higher one's vibrational frequency, the easier it is to prevent physical and mental disturbances... [they] cannot take hold when one is flooded with pure energy and light."
What would it be like if every high school student had full knowledge of how the human aura and its centers (or organs) work? Could youngsters be taught to avoid all the pitfalls that most of us fall into physically just because we have mental body disorders and emotional body disorders to some extent or another that were not addressed at the auric level? Could human beings be born enlightened and stay enlightened, not just sinking into negative patterns of unawareness, fear or defenses? And what is there to pursue after enlightenment, as the mass conscious entity called humanity? How would a human world be changed without the conflict of physical illness in high quantities like it is now, with huge business profits built around it? People would actually be able to heal themselves and not need the services of a doctor...ever.
In this era, humans operate out of a state of fear (or root chakra blockages) even if it is unconscious fear or what is called "low level" fear. The main fear for almost every human on Earth is fear for personal physical survival. The drive underneath almost every activity is somehow connected with physical survival, even the craving for love from others, workaholics striving for financial security, and various other effortful endeavors. Every human is trying to avoid sickness, poverty, and death. Many people live lives of resigned acceptance in their role as have-nots. Even people who are considered high or middle class have feelings of being a have-not because they are striving to collect enough savings to alleviate the fear of poverty, which could result in survival issues. And let us not forget the people who are actually in a life and death situation on a daily basis. There is a basic belief across the mass consciousness of humanity that there is "not enough" for everyone and there must be a struggle to survive. So people do jobs they hate to serve this need. People go through all sorts of physical healing gymnastics to preserve life for even just another year. There is a prevailing struggle for survival across the globe that is reflected in everything, from global struggles for survival to the struggles between individuals.
What would happen if physical and etheric medicine merged, resulting in a world without physical disorders, only etheric ones with etheric healing practices? And what are the spiritual implications? The spiritual implications for humans exploring the auric layers will be immense. Humans still struggle greatly with little or no awareness of the functioning of their physical, emotional or mental bodies, unaware of patterns that must be broken for true health and lucidity to emerge. The first three layers of the human aura could easily be transcended if its first three layers, which are the most accessible by science, were fully mapped and understood.
The starting point in life for our children or grandchildren would be in the heart, in spiritual evolution, rather than the physical survival level, as it is now. The next era for humanity's evolution might well be the heart. Humanity is mastering the physical, emotional and mental levels of existence, and then comes the heart, the fourth layer of the human aura, the fourth chakra, the bridge between the higher and lower centers and layers. That is when the exploration of the higher levels of human existence will begin.
What kind of adventures await humanity in the higher levels of existence that the chakras and auric layers represent as a connection to these realities? I believe there would be new kinds of energies invented, new kinds of social structures, new kinds of science, especially spiritual sciences, like astral travel, time travel, telekinesis, manipulating matter with sound, teletransportation, and interdimensional travel. Physical laws could possibly be bent once the deeper levels of reality are understood, and the higher (or deeper) aspects of humankind's existence are embraced.
The other dimensions and universes are huge. Humans have only begun to explore them through meditation. Perhaps using fossil fuels and projecting our physical bodies into space is the wrong approach for travel in the cosmos! I personally believe that the direction for travel in the universe is an inward journey, not a physical one. Consciousness is faster than light. Perhaps the universe is a virtual reality already built into our system as humans, at least seven layers of virtual reality, and we only have to move inward to experience them. Perhaps the astral body is better equipped for space travel than the physical body.
The ability to enter other worlds, in which the human exists parallel to his or her physical existence, is a byproduct of meditation, awakening the chakras and harmonizing the auric field. This does not necessarily mean that there must be full consciousness of the chakras and auras, for meditation will adjust these automatically, but quieting of the mind is the first step to attaining the ability to reach these other worlds. As the aspirant quiets the human mind, the kundalini is released, and experiences in the upper layers of the auric field begin, which might very well be directly related to other worlds that the human being might simultaneously exist in.
Conclusion
Enlightenment and healing is at hand. Humanity has become more fascinated with the ideas around meditation and its healing properties than ever before. Coming into the heart layer of the aura, which allows for the experiences of enlightenment to begin, is a result of mastering the physical, emotional and mental layers of the human aura. Over the past few decades alone, leaps and bounds have been made in the fields of physical, emotional and mental body knowledge and the healing thereof.
It is not that this knowledge does not exist, but rather, that it is being largely ignored and unused by the majority. The ability to love, to have compassion, and to be merciful are qualities human beings on a mass level are still attempting to create in themselves. Compassion is a new idea, and it is the bridge, the password, to the higher (deeper) levels of human experience. Those who have the ability to have unconditional love, or at least compassion and acceptance of the human condition in others, are the ones who get to pass "go" and move to the next levels of experience, what many people call enlightenment. With those levels of harmony in every person, physical illness in the masses would be impossible.
Shirley MacLaine claims in her book Going Within (1989), "To be more aware of the value of our chakra system is to be more aware of our internal power." So let us use the knowledge that we have already gathered about the physical, emotional and mental layers of the human aura, the first three, and explore them fully. Let us truly reap the benefits of such explorations. It is the first three layers of each individual that must be healed before humanity will stop its struggle within itself. A world of physical health and well being is within our grasp if we were to unlock the mysteries of the aura with research and study. Let us learn the laws of the human aura, for it does obey laws of some sort in each layer. Let us perform the balancing needed for healing on all three levels, physical, emotional, and mental, and see what happens next. This would be a great place to start.
Bibliography
The premier book being used as a reference for this course is Barbara Brennan's book, Hands Of Light (1988). I believe it is the most thorough and intelligent book on the subject of chakras and the auric layers. It is written by a person of high intellect, education, and vast personal experience. The material is detailed. She is a Ph.D. who worked for NASA, and has researched the scientific proof of chakras and auras and has direct experience with the skill herself. Her book is a thick educational text-book style masterpiece which could be used as a classroom text in any school that teaches chakras and auric layers. She has founded her own school in New York City, NY, and has trained many teachers and healers in the use of chakra and auric diagnosis and healing. She is well known throughout the metaphysical community as an authority on the subject. If there were to be a textbook for this course, this book would be the one. It is a must have for any metaphysical healer, counselor, or teacher.
Barbara Brennan's second book, Light Emerging (1988), is also written in a text-book style and goes even deeper into the subject of chakras and auras and the diagnostic processes, especially when it comes to psychological structures, personality defenses, and other such topics. I have used this book less often in this course material for it delves more deeply into the subject of chakras and auras than this course will go, therefore, this book is used as a secondary source. Brennan's first book, Hands Of Light (1988) is more appropriate for this course. However, Brennan's second book, Light Emerging, is also a must have for the serious metaphysical practitioner.
Another book which I have found to be of great value in my research and exploration of this subject is Genevieve Lewis Paulson's book, Kundalini And The Chakras (1991). This book has an extensive coverage of chakras and their functions, and she also has vast personal experience with this subject. She gives workshops on chakras and kundalini. I found this book useful in cross-referencing similarities of the chakras with other books, including the Sanskrit names of the chakras.
Healing with the Energy of the Chakras (1998) by Ambika Wauters is another of my favorite works on the subject. Ambika Wauters is a psychotherapist, homeopath, workshop leader, writer and healer. She practices in Boulder, Colorado. I have used her descriptions of the chakras and their functions to cross-reference the most common traits of each chakra, for she is very knowledgeable on the subject. She gives many exercises, meditations, movements, affirmations, and questions to ask of each chakra in order to find and adjust whatever blockages may appear in the energetic structure of the human.
The book The Third Eye (1986) by T. Lobsang Rampa is a wonderful story about a young aspirant who studied with Tibetan masters in the Chakpori Lamasery, the Temple of Tibetan Medicine. He gives a very detailed account of his tests, endeavors and even the ceremonial opening of the third eye, which is immersed in the brow chakra, and the results of this operation. It was an amazing procedure that makes the reader cringe, but at the same time wonder if it is possible for even the ordinaryhuman to open the third eye in this fashion.
The late Vera Stanley Alder was a successful portrait painter who began to investigate ancient wisdom for her own enrichment. Since 1938, she lectured and wrote, "demonstrating a rare gift for condensing and synthesizing the essentials of esoteric teaching." Her book The Finding of the Third Eye (1976) is a very enjoyable work on the auric layers of the human energy field. She also brings in the ideas that sound and color, particularly when used on the chakras, can create great changes for the better in the human being.
Chakra Breathing (1994) by Helmut G. Sieczka is a small book with information about the chakras and the auric layers. He also has comprehensive and thorough exercises for the chakras using sound, colors, and other techniques for opening and clearing the chakras. He gives a structured presentation of the chakras, the blockages in each, and how to remove them. His focus is how the "breath is the vital bridge between body and soul" and he gives specific breathing techniques to "clean and charge each chakra and experience a new harmony..."
How To See And Read The Aura (2000) by Ted Andrews is another wonderful little book with precise and useful information on the auric fields only touching briefly on chakras. He explains what the observer is seeing when he or she begins to develop the talent for "seeing" auras. Many exercises are given. He teaches the reader how to send and feel energy patterns, detect auric intrusions, measure your auric field using dowsing rods, learn the meanings of colors in the aura, saturate your body and aura with quick energy, see and interpret the health of an aura, and cleanse the aura of energy debris.
Magic Eye (1993) by N.E. Thing Enterprises is a picture book. It is not full of pictures of auras, but is instead a book of 3D illusions that look like scrambled pictures of static or chaos, at first glance. As the observer continues to look at the picture, and finds a special focus with the eyesight, a 3D image that is immersed in the chaos suddenly emerges with great clarity. This is the type of vision that is needed for the beginner to be able to see auras and charkas. I used it as a teaching aid in my live classes on the subject of Aura Viewing.
Amrut Laya (The Stateless State) (1998) was written by Shri Sadguru Siddharameshwar Maharaj. This book is rather heady and difficult to read, but he has a very interesting and unique take on the auric layers, calling them the four bodies. He gives detailed accounts of common experiences that are usually had when the aspirant is living in the different states of awareness that each of the four layers contain. The "four bodies" are directly related to four of the seven auric layers described by others.
The Nature Of Personal Reality (1974) is one of many books in a series by Jane Roberts, a favorite in metaphysical circles in the category of metaphysical authors. Jane Roberts channeled an intellectual spirit named Seth in the 1970's. It is a vast amount of material. For simplicity's sake I have chosen only one of her books to use, even though there are many references, throughout her material, made to the auric layers, in differing terms, and how they are underneath physical experiences.
Opening To Channel (1987) is a book by Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer. I have not used it extensively as a reference guide for chakras and auras, but I did find it interesting to note which chakra they found most likely to be the place where channeling "happens."
Meditation, The Art Of Ecstasy (1976) is a book by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a well-known and respected spiritual teacher from India, even though his leaving the USA and his death were controversial. His comments about kundalini, chakras, and the seven layers of the auric field are quite fascinating. He expounds on some original ideas about these topics, for instance, the kundalini is a passage, rather than the life-force itself, which so many books call it. He also speaks of the seven layers of the aura as being each a different combined set of polarities, mentioned in the "Findings" chapter of this essay. Rajneesh has many books, and this is only one of many in which he addresses this topic.
Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain (1973) by Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder is a wonderful wealth of information about scientific discoveries about the human aura and its particular dynamics as observed by researchers. I found this to be an excellent source of information (among others) about Kirlian photography, a particular type of photography that detects at least the first layer of the human aura.
Your local library contains a reference section with an encyclopedia-style set of volumes called Man, Myth & Magic (1985). The editor in chief is Richard Cavendish, although there is an extensive list of editorial board members, consultants, and assistant editors. This set of reference material had some good information on the topics of auras (Vol. 2), chakras (Vol. 3) and kundalini (Vol. 6). Even the astral body is addressed (Vol. 1).
The Complete Hatha Yoga (1983) is a useful source of information on the chakras and auric levels, with a focus on Eastern thought. The authors are Kevin and Venika Kingsland. Kevin is the director of the Center for Human Communication and is a neuroscience/communication teacher and researcher who has devoted his life to the integration of the inner and outer sciences. Venika is a yogipatni, specializing in the physiology and psychology of nutrition. Both authors have taught yoga practice, therapy, theory and science since the sixties. They teach courses in America, Europe and India. This book has also been a wonderful source for finding the Sanskrit names and meanings of each chakra, and the Eastern thought on chakra functions.
Shirley Maclaine wrote about her personal experiences with chakras in her book Going Within (1989). I found it to be an interesting take on the subject, although she does not go into the Sanskrit words or meanings of the chakras. She uses her own experience to tell her what to do for each of the chakras as she goes along in life. This is not a textbook type of book, but is the story of Maclaine's exploration of the charkas and how she worked with them. This is a more fanciful and whimsical addition to the roster of books used in the research for this course.
Many Voices, The Autobiography of A Medium (1968) by Eileen J. Garrett, is not a book about chakras or auras per se, but I did find her descriptions of how auras look to the physical eye fascinating and worthy of noting.
Soul Psychology: Keys To Ascension (1994) was written by Joshua David Stone, Ph.D. This book is one in a series of many about the hierarchy of the soul, and the structure of self evolution in general. It has been a common book to find in metaphysical bookstores in the self-help section. Stone's books have many headings with a paragraph of information under them. It is an easy read. His speculation, inspired by Eastern teachings, about the purposes and uses of the chakras beyond the first seven that most readers are familiar with is quite fascinating.
The Encyclopedia of Psychic Science (1966) by Nandor Fodor has a useful and informative section on auras and also the astral body, which is one of the layers of the auric field. It is not as precise a guide to how the aura works or its functions as most of the other books I have used for this study, but it did have a few noteworthy things to say on the subject, especially about scientific research on auras.
Thomas S. Kuhn wrote a brilliant and original analysis called The Structure Of Scientific Revolutions (1962). He delves into the idea that paradigms resist change, which is a point I use in the discussion area of this course when I ask the question: Why have medical sciences largely ignored the factual research on the human aura and its functions?
Last but not least is a book by Bob Larson called Straight Answers On The New Age (1989). His is a skeptic's view on all things metaphysical, including chakras and auras. Bob Larson is the host of "Talk-Back with Bob Larson," a daily radio talk show that addresses Christian contemporary issues. He is a lecturer and travels to more than seventy countries. I have to admit I am amazed that the amount of research and writing he did on the subject of metaphysics did not make him a believer. He is a devout Christian and believes that the metaphysical movement is a detriment to human potential and leads people astray, away from God. I found this book interesting to peruse, for I enjoy reading differing points of view, devil's advocate arguments, and finding the ability to see more perspectives than those I agree with.