CHAKRAS AND THE TREE OF LIFE

Part 4 -  

Each of the chakras is like a power station that corresponds to a certain range of frequencies, the root chakra at the base of the spine being the lowest, and the crown chakra on the top of the head being the highest. Thus the entire spectrum of frequencies accessible to all of the seven chakras represents the total reality of the individual (the other five 'external' chakras represent realities larger than the individual). This spectrum corresponds to others, such as the color spectrum or the major scale in music. Thus each chakra has a related color and note, as well as many other relationships, ie; a gemstone, a seed sound, an element, a sense, and an endocrine gland. Chakras are traditionally symbolized as lotus flowers, each chakra having a specific number of open lotus petals which represent the number of nadis that radiate from them to the rest of the body.

The chakra system is like a description of the way that consciousness relates to the material world, of how creation happens. What I'm about to say can be a bit confusing, but just try to grasp the general idea without taking the words too literally. The lower chakras correspond to the lower frequencies, to the Earth, the manifestation of physical matter. The highest chakras correspond to the higher frequencies, to the cosmic consciousness, to energy that is not manifest as matter. The chakras between these two extremes correspond to varying degrees of interaction between these two aspects of reality. This interaction is represented by two 'streams' of manifestation, called the liberating current, and the manifesting current.

The liberating current moves upward from the base to the crown. It represents the denser consciousness of the material world as it moves upwards, accessing more and more of the higher frequencies until it unites with the cosmic consciousness, bringing liberation. The manifesting current moves downward from the crown to the base. It represents the process by which consciousness manifests into physical reality. Pure awareness at the crown chakra descends into the more visual thought processes of the brow chakra, and then into the denser verbal domain of language at the throat chakra. Each step down represents a denser, less subtle version of energy. At the bottom step, consciousness expresses as the material, physical world. Each chakra has a different ratio of the two extremes, a different balance of pure cosmic consciousness versus physical matter. Each of these steps represents the movement of consciousness from a more abstract, less specific, less tangible expression, to a more solid, clearly defined expression. In the lower, denser consciousness resides our desires, our physical pleasures and our concern for survival in the material world. In the higher, more subtle consciousness resides our capacity for abstract thought, our higher concerns of love and compassion.

In Hinduism these two extremes of consciousness are represented by the deities, Shiva and Shakti. Shiva, representing the male aspect of cosmic consciousness, and Shakti, representing the female aspect of Earth consciousness, are often depicted in a loving, sexual embrace. This symbolizes the awareness of unity that can be achieved by bringing together these two aspects of consciousness. It is interesting, from an etymological point of view, that the root of 'paternal' is 'pater', which is also the root for 'pattern'. The root for 'maternal' is 'mater', which is also the root for 'matter'. Patterns of thought and matter are deeply related and combine to form our reality.

Next month we'll look at the chakra system as it pertains to our physical, mental and spiritual health.