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MEDITATION AND THE CHAKRAS
(published in Holistic Nurses Newsletter 2007)
Meditation can be described as simply the art of opening to
each moment of life with calm awareness. David Fontana describes
meditation as: “the experience of the limitless nature of the mind, when it ceases to be dominated by its usual mental chatter.”[1] This can be achieved by focusing one’s concentration on chosen stimuli – attention is the underlying key to all forms of meditation.
Visualisation is a commonly used technique in meditation. “When meditators visualise something they touch on one of the greatest strengths of the human race”. [2]
Visualisation is the dominant means of perception in our species.
It developed long before spoken language evolved. It takes up a
large proportion of our brain and has a large affect on how we think
and behave. The creation of a mental image will cause the brain
to react as if faced by the real object, e.g. thinking of a cut lemon
being squeezed on your tongue causes the saliva to flow. Because
of this, imagination and affirmation are very effective, because if we
imagine something to be true, part of the mind appears to accept it as
a reality.
This can be a very effective tool in
balancing and energising the chakras. To imagine each chakra in
its perfect colour, size and location, the mind cannot differentiate
between what is real and what is realistically imagined. Whatever
we see or feel started as a thought; whatever we think we can create.
Therefore,
as the chakras are metaphysically linked with a number of different
systems within the physical body, balancing the chakras with meditation
and visualisation can help ensure your physical and emotional
well-being.
BASE CHAKRA
 The
Base Chakra (also called the Root Chakra) is located at the base of the
spine or the area of the perineum. Its Sanskrit name is Muladhara,
meaning root or support. It is a downward facing vortex or cone
of energy which connects to the foot chakras and grounds us to the
earth, as well as connecting with the chakras above. Kundalini
Energy is said to reside in the Base Chakra: kundalini is the coiled
mystical energy that rises upward through the spine energizing all the
other chakras into full operation and potential. When it reaches
the Crown Chakra one is said to have reached Nirvana.
 Its
symbol is a four-petalled lotus flower – representing the four
elements. Within the lotus is a square, representing the Earth
and inside it is a downward facing triangle which keeps us grounded to
the Earth. This chakra resonates to the colour red.
The Base Chakra is concerned with issues of survival and basic physical needs.
It is powerful (or it feels powerful) because the energy here is in raw
form and is closest to the density of the physical body. Its life
lesson is “standing up for oneself”.
The corresponding gland is the Adrenals
– the gland associated with the ‘fight or flight’ response. It
energises the kidneys, the spine and the sense of smell; the most
essential elements for survival of early man.
A misaligned
Base Chakra can cause: sexual or reproductive problems, circulation and
blood deficiencies, osteoporosis, constipation, bladder problems and
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Emotional dysfunctions of the
Base Chakra include: fear, obsessive/compulsive behaviour,
protective instincts, mental lethargy, ‘spiciness’, lack of inner
stillness.
Essential Oils for the Base Chakra
The
chakra system needs to function like well-oiled interconnecting cogs or
wheels. When one cog becomes misaligned, rotates too fast or too
slow, then the whole system breaks down and won’t operate properly,
until all the cogs are re-balanced. So it is with the
chakras. If one is spinning too fast, or is too open or is
sluggish, due to emotional blockages, then they all need to be
re-aligned and balanced to bring them all back into equilibrium.
There
are many ways to re-balance the chakras: affirmations, crystals,
yoga, toning, meditation, incense, essential oils etc. Each
chakra functions at a unique frequency and this determines its colour
and other characteristics.
Essential oils can have an effect
on the frequency of the chakras, by energising, calming or balancing
them. Choosing the appropriate oil is an individual choice, but
often the oil correlates to the corresponding colour of the oil or the
flower it came from. Even the part of the plant the oil is taken
from or its size or shape may be the thing that leads to a particular
choice. Kinesiology and dowsing are also used to choose an oil
that will balance the chakras in an individual.
The Base
Chakra is about grounding. So most books refer to base note oils
and earthy aromas to balance this chakra. The following is a list
of suggested oils to balance the Base Chakra:
Cedarwood, Myrrh, Patchouli, Vetiver, Rosewood, Frankincense, Elemi, Thyme
Written by Maree Kendall
Images:
References:
- [1] Fontana, D, 2000, Learn to Meditate, Ken Fin Books, Australia, p.16
- [2] Davich, V, 1998 The Best Guide to Meditation, Renaissance Media, California, p.112
- Simpson, L, 1999, The Book of Chakra Healing, Gaia Books, London
- Davis, P, 1991, Subtle Aromatherapy, CW Daniel Company Limited, Great Britain
- Worwood, V, 1999, The Fragrant Heavens, Doubleday, Great Britain
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