I've always been interested in Eastern culture... the religions and beliefs, the customs, traditions, histories, etc... and in my post about the stone fluorite, I referenced the chakras and realized some readers may have never heard of them! A perfect opportunity to share one of my favorite Eastern schools of thought!

There is so much information about the chakras that instead of shoving it all in one post, I'd like to introduce the chakra system itself and then focus on one center at a time in shorter posts. Each chakra has its own fascinating story with its own color, stones, deities, aromas, breathing techniques for opening flow, meditations and mantras... a whole little entourage of energy companions!

The chakras are energy centers in our bodies that are aligned on the spine from the crown of our head to our tail bones. The word chakra in Sanskrit means wheel or disc, and we can imagine our chakras as whirpools of energy, constantly spinning in our subtle bodies. The subtle body refers to our energies and auras versus our physical body. Although there is much belief that the chakras do indeed affect our physical bodies as well, I will focus on the chakras and our subtle bodies. Because energies are always moving and flowing, its important to keep our chakras open and balanced. They are our emotional, psychological and spiritual centers and if we can become more aware of our chakras and their influence on our well being, we can help keep them spinning in harmony.

As I mentioned, the chakras are all associated with a particular color and I'd like to explain a bit of this now because the color and placement on the spine are generally the two most easily recognizable aspects of the chakras. Even before reading this post, you may have seen a chart of the chakras at some time depicted as a figure (usually seated in lotus position) with colored symbols lining the center. You may have even noticed that the colors are in perfect order with the rainbow- red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Their position on the spine and subsequent color are no accident. The spectrum of visible light, as we all know, is a matter of wavelength, with red having the longest and violet having the shortest. This order of color and wavelength is the reason for their association with each particular chakra and its place on the spine. The first chakra, also known as the root chakra (located at the base of the spine) is our center of stability and "groundedness" so its no surprise then that its associated with red because of its long wavelength and slow vibrations. The seventh chakra, located at the crown of our head is our center of spirituality and higher consciousness, so naturally violet, having the shortest wavelength and most frequent vibrations makes perfect sense!

I learned a lot about the chakras during my time working for Aveda, and I'm excited to delve a little deeper and do a bit more research so I can share their interesting stories with you! You can leave me comments and questions below! Don't forget to subscribe and stay tuned for more!