The chakras are
where we receive, assimilate, and distribute our life energies. And through external situations (the
pressures of life) or internal habits (poor physical alignment or
self-destructiveness), a chakra can become imbalanced.
Think about your own
life. Have you ever had days when you
felt "rushed off your feet" or "a little off center"? We
use these expressions without really thinking about their meaning, but they imply
that Muladhara chakra is out of balance.
Each chakra
corresponds to a specific part of your foot. The bone of your heel corresponds
to Muladhara chakra and is your solid base.
The outside flesh of the heel links to Svadhishthana chakra, which is
motivation and movement. Manipura chakra
is the outer arch of the foot, related to the lumbar curve. Anahata chakra is the ball of the foot, which
lifts you as a you move through the air.
Vishuddha chakra is in the toes that launch you forward into space.
Anahata, which means
"unstuck sound", is the spiritual center of the heart.
Manipura is the home
of your fire element and literally means "city of gems".
The second chakra,
Svadishthana, means "the favored place" or "the place of
sva", the place of self.
Muladhara is the
base of our being and the center of our physical world.
From the moment your
first cells divide, nadi exists, even before the beat of your heart.
Vishuddha chakra is
the center of extreme purification. When
it is in balance, it purifies all of the chakras and brings harmony into your
being.
Ajna chakra controls
the chakras and oversees the management of the elements (earth, water, fire,
air, and space)…. Ajna chakra holds
universal intelligence, Mahat, which is the blueprint for creation. Following
Mahat's blueprint, Ajna mixes karma with the elements to bring each of your
chakras to life.
Karma, derived from
the root kri, means "action"; it is a mass of energy that is the
impetus for your existence and your motivation for growth.
There are three
types of karma: sancita karma (past karma): the accumulation of karma from past
lives that is seeking expression.
Prarabhda karma (present karma): karma that is happening in the present moment. It works off the debts of the past
and projects into the future. Agami
karma (future karma): karma acquired in the present lifetime that will come to
fruition in the future.
Sahasrara directs
prana into Ajna chakra, where it is combined with karma and the elements and
distributed through all of the other chakras to be used in life.
Sanskrit evolved as
a language with a purely spiritual purpose…. Each term in Sanskrit has such a
profound meaning that it is very difficult to find its equivalent in
English. Translating a word from
Sanskrit is like opening a folder in your computer: inside there are more
folders containing more information.
