om spirit
O
ver the next few months I shall
be writing about the Chakras
and energy. I have lately been
surprised at realising how little
people know about them, and
yet they are unbelievably important when it
comes to our health and wellbeing. It is so
important to look after them as we do our
bodies, breath and mind. We often don’t
think about them as many of us cannot see
them, like we can see the more material
things, but they exist within us and can affect
every aspect of our lives.
In my yoga therapy work, one of the main
areas I focus on and work on with a client is
their present situation/symptom and what is
happening with their Chakras. It is my belief
that all symptoms of the body and mind begin
in our energetic field and in the Chakras.
When our energy is affected, if left untreated
and possibly ignored, then eventually
blockages and negative energy can start to
affect the physical body and mind.
For example: Heartache and pain caused
by a relationship break up can reduce the
energy of the Heart Chakra and cause the
shoulders to drop forwards and/or heart
issues or breathing difficulties later. A family
death can affect different Chakras but will
certainly affect the Root Chakra and this
can become blocked due to a person’s
home, security and safety being affected –
which may later reflect in a person havingYoga therapist Sarah Swindlehurst begins a nine-month exploration of the Chakras
addictions and being unable to settle at
home or in work. A deficiency of the energy
in the Throat Chakra can cause throat issues
such as laryngitis or thyroid problems (this
can also be Heart Chakra related if the
cause is that we are not speaking our truth
from our hearts).There can be many examples of how
unbalanced Chakras – over energy and
under energy – can affect us, and many
of the symptoms can be avoided (or
healed) if we work with our own Chakras
in the various yogic ways in keeping them
balanced and healthy.What are Chakras?
The Sanskrit word ‘Cakra’ (Chakra in English)
means ‘wheel’ or ‘disk’. Many who can see
the Chakras (usually those with clairvoyance
skills) have described them as spinning
wheels of light. We have many Chakras
within the body and they are located along
the energy lines/meridians of the body,
around 72,000 of them, and acupuncturistsuse these energy lines in their work to place
their needles. However, in yoga we tend to
focus on the seven major Chakras which
are located along the spine of our body- Muladhara (Root), Svadisthana (Sacral).
Manipura (Solar plexus), Anahata (Heart),
Visuddha (Throat), Anja (Third eye) and
Sahasrara (Crown). In the coming months
I shall also introduce the Ear Chakras which
I believe are important too. The Chakras
have various elements and information
attached to each of them and with this
knowledge we can work with them to keep
the energies healthy.
It is because of the Chakras that the breath
is so important in yoga (in some places this
information has been lost). When we breathe,
we breathe in Prana/Pranic energy and it
is in your Pranic body that the meridians/
nadis and Chakras reside. However, these are
by no means physical and we would not be
able to see them if we were to dissect a body.
The three most important nadis are: Ida (left
nostril), Pingala (right nostril) and Sushumna
(central body and along the spinal cord).
When we breathe through both nostrils (and
we do this naturally through one, the other or
both during the cause of a day) we breathe in
Prana that flows down and around our spinal
cord in opposite directions, in a spiralling
motion, and where the channels cross over
and intersect then these are where the
Chakras are. The energy travels up and down
Chakras: an introduction
Part 1 of 9 - The Chakras
“It is my belief that all
symptoms of the body
and mind begin in our
energetic field and in
the Chakras.”