by Andrew Williams | Oct 23, 2015 | Chakras, General
Please note that I am not giving corresponding colors, gemstones, etc., because they are basically superfluous. Only the essential characteristics that I have found, verified, and experienced in actual practice are being listed.
#1 Muladhara
Root, connection to the earth, connection to ones’ ’tribe’, will to live, enthusiasm for life on earth-plane, survival. This chakra opens in conjunction with the crown (seventh) chakra.
#2 Swadhisthana
Home of the inner child, the magical inner child when healed, as well as sex and relationships. Watery, sensitive, usually where our deepest wounds and cording with others are found. Place where the deep pain of childhood is first felt. Has a direct relationship with the throat chakra. The second chakra is the creative power in the lower chakras; just as the fifth chakra is the creative power in the higher chakras.
#3 Manipura
Solar Plexus, Tan Tien (Oriental). This is the home of personal power, seat of ego, protector, almost always where outside energies attach, as they like to be in control of will and power center. Third chakra has a direct relationship with sixth chakra, which is a corresponding power center in the higher chakras.
#4 Anahata
The Heart is the center of our being, where our Mother Earth and Divine connections meet; kundalini and prana. It is the crucible where alchemical transformation of energy happens and where love is given and received. Of all chakra qualities, this is perhaps the most profound in terms of ability to change the reality of a person. The heart stands alone with three physical chakras above it and three below it. As the center of the seven chakra system, it has no paired chakra.
#5 Vishuddha
Throat chakra. Manifestation in our lives on all levels, speaking our truth into reality being the most obvious. Following the Dharma (universal law) and realizing one’s destiny or life path, when being worked positively, is embodied here. This is a powerful chakra, closely linked with the second chakra; the creative force is embodied in both. When the lower chakras are aligned and open, the fifth and higher chakras will slowly open on their own.
#6 Ajna
The brow center, or third eye, is the power center of the higher chakra system. Visions, clairvoyance, and intuitive inner sight are held here. This chakra is where much concentration is given during kryias and mantra practice for raising the Kundalini Shakti. This center can be used by a healer much like a laser beam, scanning for information and affecting the energy of clients.
#7 Sahasrara
Connection to God, Spirit and the Divine is found in the crown; openness to Divine Creator Spirit. All chakras are involved in both sending and receiving energy, but the crown chakra is the channel for your stream of Divine White Light energy. This chakra opens together with the first chakra. For in-depth information based on real-life experience, see my articles opening and balancing the chakras and understanding chakras.
by Andrew Williams | Jul 14, 2013 | Chakras
How the Chakras Really Work: Openness and Balance
Opening and balancing the chakras, or energy centers, is a very misunderstood concept. It is indeed possible to open the chakras and bring them into balance with one another and with one’s life purpose. However, the healing that takes place deep within us is the cause, and so to attempt to manipulate the chakras as an end in itself is a misperception of how the chakra system really works. It is actually a reverse understanding of the reality. My metaphor is that pushing the needle over to ‘Full’ on an old-style car’s gas gauge will not affect the amount of gas in the tank. In the same way, you can’t permanently make a chakra open or balance within the entire system by solely focusing on that as the goal. Chakras are portals to the deep reality inside of us. Each has a directional spin, an openness, and a deep causal impression, along with many other diagnostic qualities. Let’s explore each of the seven chakras from this perspective.
The first (root) chakra connects deeply to our ‘tribe’, and to our home, Mother Earth, with all her power. As we feel youthful enthusiasm for living life to its fullest, as opposed to wishing we were in another place or never born, this base connection is dynamic. People with a weak base chakra often were difficult births for their mother, as they really do not want to ‘be here’ in the physical.
As the inner child heals old wounds and feels safe and cherished, and returns to the innocence of the ‘magical child’, the second chakra opens and returns to balance. In my practice, I have found this part of life holds the key to our deepest healing. The best part is that with some expert healing guidance, we may learn to provide this love and safety for ourselves, so that it depends on no one else!
As the power and personality center in the belly becomes purified and able to hold compassion within a framework of self-empowerment and truth, the third chakra opens and balances with the others. I do not believe in such a thing as a human being ‘destroying the ego’. As the ego’s nuances become purified, our personality becomes one of our most beautiful qualities, as was demonstrated by Yeshua the Christ, Siddhartha Gautama the Buddha, and all the other holy enlightened beings in history. An awakening to ‘no-self’ can happen; it is a very advanced initiation.
As the heart chakra in the center of the chest becomes free of acquired pain and fear, the flow of giving and feeling unconditioned love becomes established, unimpeded and automatic. Then the fourth chakra will fully open into a beautiful, sublime balance ~ and life will transform dramatically! I find the energetic resolution and opening of the human heart to be one of the most profoundly moving and beautiful things I have experienced in my practice.
This is the center of our being. As the heart blossoms, the normally dormant Kundalini, or life force energy, may awaken and begin to release. This often automatically triggers the higher chakras to activate, as Shakti energy stored in the first chakra flows ‘upward’ unimpeded to them through the open portal of the heart. The prahnic light also streams down more powerfully through the crown chakra, third eye, throat, and into the heart chakra to meet it. Please note that there is a knot (grantha) at the heart chakra the kundalini Shakti must first pass through to move higher. Many experience an unexpected and spontaneous awakening of kundalini, and an expert guide for this powerful awakening is of great importance, although they are hard to find.
As the process continues, the fifth (throat) chakra will finally begin to open and spin; then destiny and life’s purpose will begin to express. This allows ‘following the dharma’ to destiny and is this powerful chakra’s true essence. Thus the deep esoteric nature of the fifth chakra is much greater than simply ‘speaking your truth’ as commonly taught, although that is also a part of it. Impeccability is key here.
As the third eye of the sixth chakra opens, intuition becomes much more defined. Clairvoyance, clairsentience, visions, and prophetic or lucid dreams may begin. Inner guidance and sight can eventually develop to a degree most people would consider fantastic. Perceiving and understanding Higher Self council can become as natural as daydreaming had formerly been. Various kinds of extrasensory perception may develop, depending upon the person’s predilections. If the desire to benefit others as a healer is genuine, at this point an initiate may be taught these skills.
The seventh (crown) chakra begins to open more fully, allowing an expansion of the two-way stream of Divine Light, the prahnic energy which we were all designed to ‘breathe’ in through the top of our heads. This Healing White Light helps transform the unhealed energies found throughout the lower chakra system as the initial clearing work happens. This may quicken the Kundalini Shakti, or Serpent Fire energy located in the first (sacral or base) chakra. The Divine White Light flowing in through the crown chakra intensifies as the root chakra, now deeply grounded into Mother earth, magnetically connects with it through an unrestricted chakra system. The Kundalini energy and the White Light can now flow dynamically and merge and empower the individual in fascinating ways. There are few English words for what I am seeking to convey, but this is the genuine method and meaning of “opening and balancing the chakras”. It results from a profound clearing process. It takes time and a deep devotion to truth and healing. Becoming an advanced energy healer yourself is one approach to it, and in that case, cultivating the described siddhis (powers) is justified. Having someone wave their hands over you and the New Age practices in vogue since the early 1990s will not have the effect I am describing.
The chakras have particular connections with one another. I have found that the first and seventh chakra have the most energetically powerful and direct connection. I use this correlation and the Divine White Light to transmute the difficult lower energies. I call this practice “The Invocation of Light”. Eastern traditions are more identified with consciousness as ‘God’ and awakening the Kundalini, or personal energy, to gain Self-realization. The teachings of Christ, the Sufis, and ancient Desert Wisdom traditions are more identified with the Divine White Light from the Most High as a manifestation of Divine Spirit, or ‘God’, and to this approach and practices to invoke it in order to attain awakening. They are inseparable. I am more drawn to and familiar with the non-personal Divine White Light, so I have focused on it and developed ways to channel it that do not require the long and arduous preparation for the release of Kundalini energy. Released prematurely, Kundalini energy can do severe damage, and as previously noted, it is best to have expert guidance for this. Shakti is supremely intelligent and awakens on her own as the time comes.
Thus, there is little use in trying to open the chakras above the heart until you do the inner work needed to open and align the first four chakras. As many modern gurus have shown, that path is nearly a sure way to fall. Continually meditating to ‘get up high out of the body’ causes one to become ungrounded and spiritually weak. Embodiment of spiritual energy is necessary; being deeply grounded is a requirement. First clear the lower and dense, then the higher and lighter will manifest. See my blog articles on the higher chakras for the marvelous experiences that await you there!
In the West there are many chakra meditations, guided visualizations, crystals, aromas, music, and other such perfunctory things designed to help with ‘opening and balancing the chakras’. Many modalities of energy healing that involve waving hands over the client, attunements and so on are used. How effective many are is probably questionable. A regular effortless meditation practice that feels right is extremely helpful. There are many ways to heal. There are, of course, many genuine practices which will allow one to reach deep states of healing and expanded awareness, especially Eastern and Native ones. Part of the true purpose of Hatha yoga is to allow the glands to function optimally and transform the energy received through the chakras to use for evolutionary purposes. If you are willing and able to find an authentic, awakened guru, and devote yourself to a monastery, these traditions are great. However, this can be a lifetime endeavor, and there are many false gurus these days. I believe that the time for a truly enlightening method of healing adaptable to the Western lifestyle is now here. Experiencing and learning Spiritual Energy Healing is a quickened way to this way of life and helping others heal.
So, in conclusion, opening and balancing the chakras results from deep healing and awakening – it is not the primary end goal, but an effect. It is the deep clearing of energies that do not serve your highest good and destiny that results in an open and balanced chakra system.
Call me for information on upcoming Spiritual Energy Healing Seminars.
© Andrew M. Williams
