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The Chakra System, identified thousands of years ago by the ancient Indian Vedas, consists of seven major energy portals, or funnel shaped whirling discs, located in a column from our tailbones to the top of our head. Each of these portals communicates with the world around us in a way that relates specifically to one aspect of our well being. Each point in the column resonates with one aspect of human development. They are inter-related; in a healthy chakra system, information and energy flow easily up and down the column as well as between us and our outer worlds.
They are a component of our aura, those layers of non-physical energy that surround us like great space suits. Some people can see auras as colors or a thickening of light; medical intuitives can see or sense muddying or murkiness in the colors as indications of health problems that exist but may not be visible by use of traditional medicine's technology.
Have you ever met someone for the first time and felt an instant connection? Something in your aura and theirs is finding common ground. Or been in the company of someone who gives you the creeps for no reason you can put your finger on? Something in your energy field is picking up warning signals from the emanations of their aura, or energy field.
Chakra Seven is the energy portal that connects us with the spiritual dimension. It sits like a whirling cap at the top of our chakra column, tuning into the wisdom of the ages and gathering information from universal intelligence. If we are conscious of it, and have a healthy relationship with this energy, we can funnel it down throughout our entire non-physical being. Since this particular energy is spiritually powerful, it nourishes each part of us it reaches. A particular healing focus of seventh chakra energy is to the major physical systems--the skin, the muscles, and the central nervous system--our "containers," so to speak, and our "operating system." Since the central nervous system is vital for functioning of every cell in our body, this is energy worth cultivating for general well-being.
However, the prime purpose of this chakra is the development of our spiritual connection, both with the Source, whether we name it Universe, God, Spirit, Allah, Jehovah. This is the power that surrounds and connects each of us to each other and to all other life on this planet and beyond; it is the prompt for the saying, "All are one."
Spiritually aware people, whether or not they practice a particular religion, have a healthy seventh chakra energy. They nourish their spirituality through prayer, through meditation, through spending time in natural settings, by listening to their instinctive reactions, and/or by honoring the gifts they were born with, using them to serve. Gratitude comes easily, as well as unselfish giving. With honesty, openness and willingness to listen and to share, they are a welcome gift in any family or community. Some live lives that of on-going prayer, consciously offering their daily work as moving meditation; others withdraw periodically to recharge their spiritual batteries with alone time. Some people even operate on a spiritual power pack that feels so natural to them they can't imagine any other way to live; kindness radiates from them like a light.
Most of us, however, need to spend regular time reconnecting with our spiritual selves--becoming more conscious of what's going on in that aspect of our nature. We have learned that meditation is a form of being with our Higher Consciousness, of God, to listen; that prayer is a way of speaking, of asking for more wholeness or more wisdom. In order for us to plug in to seventh chakra energy, we need to set aside time specifically to focus.
Retreats, either organized with a group or time alone, become important in a world of increasing chaos that batters our ability to stay tuned in. Daily check-ins through journaling, brief prayers, or meditations gain importance as we become more aware of the innate spiritual nature of humans.
A daily check-in meditation beginning or end of each day can set a balanced, centered tone. Here's one way to de-fragment ourselves and connect with the spiritual. This meditation can be done alone, or in the company of others who are of like mind.
Sit quietly, on a straight-backed chair with feet flat on the floor and hands resting quietly in your lap, palms up with fingers relaxed, or, if it's comfortable for you, in a lotus or half-lotus yoga posture. You may use silence or calming music, but try to limit distractions by turning off the phone ringer, the television and radio. Your eyes may be relaxed in a half-open position or closed. Remember to breathe gently; do not hold your breath, but allow it to move your body in whatever way is natural for you.
Imagine cords running into the earth from your feet or from your tailbone, to keep you grounded, and to gather solid energy from the planet. Imagine that energy running in a continuous flow up your spine. Now, imagine a cord running from the top of your head out into space, gathering spiritual energy, which then flows back along the cord and down your spine. Imagine those two forms of energy intermingling up and down your spine, the grounding and the spiritual.
Now take your focus to the top of your head. Ask yourself how your head feels, and how you feel about spirituality. Focus on the energy collected there, at the spot that was your "soft spot" when you were an infant. If you can't feel anything there, imagine something. It will be right for you.
Now, allow this energy to flow into your head. Encourage it to run through the bones of your face and ears. As it passes your forehead and eyes, pause a moment to reflect on your thinking, on what mental processes will be required of you today, and on the state of your physical health. Are you suddenly aware of eye strain or a headache?
Move the energy down into your shoulders and throat. What will you be saying today? Is there stiffness in your neck or arms? Does the energy feel blocked or stagnant here, unwilling to move?
Take a breath and exhale as you move the energy into your chest. Do you have heart pain, either emotional or physical? Does your back hurt?
Allow the energy to flow more downward, into your mid section (solar plexus). Is there a lump in your stomach? Do you feel like laughing? Will you be making decisions that challenge your integrity today?
Let the energy continue to move like a waterfall, into your soft belly. Allow your breath to reach there. Do you find emotional pain, relationship issues, uncomfortable changes there?
Breathe the energy to the base of your spine, between your "sit" bones. What's going on with your stability in the world? Your finances, your connection with family?
Allow the energy and your breath to fill your whole body now; breathe gently for a moment and, without judgment, just awareness, take note of any places that feel sticky or "dark."
Now, imagine the energy taking the form of a stream and flowing up your spine, out the top of your head and surrounding you like a round waterfall, cascading with a steady, powerful flow to the floor, returning up your spine, and flowing out again. Continue this image until you sense that you are in the midst of smoothly moving energy inside and out.
This energy can be your protective armor today. If you are so inclined, you can imagine that it is permeable only by information that is healthy and helpful to you.
After you finish, while you are still in a calm and relaxed state, you may want to jot down notes about particular problem areas you found. There's no need to do this during the meditation; the important things are the ones that you will remember long enough to write down.
This daily "running the energy" meditation can be done in a quick five minute session before you step into the busy-ness of your day, or, if you have the time, fill an hour of intense meditative stillness for you.
The process brings the spiritual healing power of seventh chakra energy through your entire body, and connects it with each of the seven main chakra points along your spinal column. This impacts us in all areas of our life, since we are hooked together in such amazing ways it is impossible to affect one aspect of our life without a ripple effect to all others--the spritual, the emotional, the physical and the mental.
As you surround yourself with the waterfall of energy at the end of the meditation, you are generating a healing of your aura which has dramatic impact on relationships with the world around us.
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