Clearing the Chakras
Despite everything you may have heard or read about the chakras, there is no unified theory or explanation of what exactly the chakras are and what they do. Unfortunately, much of the information on the chakras is simply a repetition of what has been said or written elsewhere and the basis of its authority is only its repetition. Very often, the components of different theories are mixed, which increases confusion and misunderstanding.
Perhaps the biggest confusion is between the yogic or tantric concept of the chakras and western or new age concepts. In yogic/tantric philosophies, the chakras are subtle centers of consciousness, but they do not have an energetic state of their own. Whereas in western/new age theories, the chakras are seen as vortexes of energy that connect each of the subtle bodies and the physical body.
From this ‘dynamic’ point of view, the chakras are energy/consciousness transformers, linking the various subtle bodies (the etheric body, the astral body, the mental body, etc.) with the physical. They serve to reduce the frequency of the consciousness/energy of the higher bodies, so that it can be received by the lower ones.
It was CW Leadbeater of The Theosophists who first proposed these ideas in the early 20th century. His ideas were later mixed with ideas largely derived from Sir John Woodroffe’s The Serpent Power, a highly technical work based on a 16th-century translation of two Bengali texts, first published in 1919 under the pseudonym Arthur Avalon.
The big difference between these two concepts of the chakras is this. In the yogic/tantric concept, the chakras are latent dimensions of consciousness that must be awakened and activated in the process of spiritual evolution. In the ‘dynamic’ concept, the chakras are fluid energy centers and energy portals that have a direct impact on every level of our being, from the physical to the spiritual. it is then clear that the two concepts are not mutually exclusive, and must be seen and understood separately, to avoid confusion and misunderstanding.
The confusion stems from many of the chakra books, charts and diagrams using Sanskrit names and descriptions from ancient texts (mantra, deity, etc.), while at the same time assigning colors, crystals and all sorts of attributes. and activities, derived from the various dynamic concepts of the chakras.
Common among many of the different concepts is that the number of primary chakras is seven. Exactly where they are located is another matter. But here, too, we can widely differentiate between the two main groups of thought that I am discussing. The main difference between the two is the location of the second and third chakras. In the yogic/tantric view, the second chakra is located in the lower abdomen at the ‘root of the genitals’ and the third chakra at the navel. From the “dynamic” point of view, the second chakra is at the navel and the third at the solar plexus.
The Sanskrit names are, from top to bottom:
Sahasrara – crown
ajna-eyebrow
Vishuddha – throat
Anahata – heart
manipura – navel
Svadhisthana – genitalia
Muladhara – base of the spine
According to traditional tantric teachings, the seven chakras are strung like ‘pearls’ or ‘jewels’ along the central thread of the sushumna nadi, or energy channel, in the center of the spine. On both sides of sushumna are ida and pingala. The six yogic chakras below Sahasrara are located vertically at specific intervals along the Sushmana, where Ida and Pingala cross it as they intertwine upwards.
The tantric yogi aims to direct the subtle pranic ‘airs’ from the feminine Ida and the masculine Pingala towards the central Sushumna nadi. This activates the latent Kundalini energy coiled at the base of the spine. Kundalini then ascends piercing each of the chakras as it ascends the sushumna. When it reaches the top of the head, the lower six chakras are unified as one at the crown of the head and the yogic ‘union’ is achieved.
Tantric texts describe the chakras as stations or centers of pure consciousness (chaitanya) and consciousness-power. They are focal points for meditation; represented as iconographic structures within the “subtle body”. In addition to the Sahasrara, each chakra is described by a whole series of associations or symbolic representations. Each chakra, in addition to having a specific position in the physical body, element, mantra, and deity, also has a particular number of “petals,” each associated with one of the letters of the Sanskrit alphabet, a corresponding color, shape, animal, plane of existence, sense organ, sound, etc. The texts also describe fantastic powers and abilities gained as each chakra is pierced.
As is often the case with complex esoteric systems, many of these associations are quite arbitrary, eg smell with Muladhara, taste with Swadhishthana, sight with Manipura, etc. The number of petals also seems to be more a resource for visualization in meditation than to represent a real reality. After some time of visualizing these forms in specific places on the body, they would naturally form in the subtle bodies.
Christopher Hills introduced the almost universal application of rainbow colors to the different chakras in the early 1970s. Hills’ model of the chakra-based personality types that accompanied the rainbow colors is in much forgotten now, but the rainbow had an irresistible appeal and became central to future presentations of the chakras and another flavor in the ongoing mix of their depiction.