Energy is a strange and wondrous thing, but it is energies, not just energy. There are energies all around us in the trees, the rocks, the earth, even the air and light. (Yes, the Force surrounds us always.) But there are energies in the human body, and they are controlled by energy centers called Chakras (pronounced shock-rahs).
In the body, we have seven major energy centers (chakras). There are many minor energy centers, or sub-chakras, and many more much smaller energy centers, or sub-sub-chakras. Energy is always moving through the body, and its path is controlled by the chakras. If there is a problem in any of the energy centers, there is a corresponding problem in the person, or visa versa.
As practitioners of many energy modalities including Reiki, Polarity Therapy, and Therapeutic Touch can tell you is that energy should always be flowing. When it gets stuck or blocked, it causes problems in the body. The problem is that energy does get stuck. Some say that the energy field reflects what is in the body and some say that the body reflects what is in the energy field. But it is the energy centers, or chakras, that determine what is affected, and by looking at the chakras, one can get a general idea what is going on.
So, here is a simple guide to the chakras from the bottom up, and what they control...
Root Chakra
Location: Pubic Bone where the genitals are. (The male root chakra is actually two inches lower than the female. )
Color: Red
Controls: All things physical
If the Root Chakra is blocked, one would have some type of physical problem. This could be pain (like back pain, or pain in some area), problems doing things (like range of motion issues), or a physical impairment of some type.
Spleen Chakra also known as the Center Chakra (as the martial arts refers to one’s center as two inches below their naval; in India they refer to this area as one’s Hara)
Location: The midsection two inches below the naval
Color: Orange
Controls: Emotions
Someone with a blocked Center Chakra would be having some type of emotional issues. This could be sadness, worry, fear, etc. It is something that is bothering them either constantly, or nagging them in the background.
Solar Plexus Chakra
Location: Just below the sternum in the midsection
Color: Yellow
Controls: Thought processes.
With a blocked Solar Plexus Chakra, one could have trouble thinking or concentrating. The opposite could also be true where they are over-thinking, like worrying about career prospects. If you are one of these people that constantly worry about everything down to the minutest detail, you could easily have this chakra blocked.
Heart Chakra
Location: in the center of the chest (at the heart)
Color: Green
Controls: Balance
This chakra controls balance as in physical balance as well as balance in life and balance between the upper and lower chakras. (The upper chakras are more ethereally based while the lower ones are more physically based. ) Someone with a blocked heart chakra could have physical balance issues, but more likely, they would have life balance issues. This could be needing a balance between work and play, balance in activities, and so forth.
Throat Chakra
Location: Throat
Color: Blue
Controls: Communication
A block in the Throat Chakra would cause communication problems, but not just in the expected sense. Yes, this could mean that one is having trouble communicating, but it could also mean someone is not saying things they want to. They could be biting their tongue so to speak and not saying something that they very much want to, but would get them into trouble, or make a bad situation worse if they did say it. This could be comments held back from a boss or loved one. This is not a situation where they can not formulate the words, but it is a situation where communication is stifled, so it is a problem.
Third Eye Chakra
Location: Center of the forehead
Color: Indigo (a mix of blue and violet)
Controls: Insight
A problem with insight could be significant. Our Third Eye Chakra is where we pick up information in the form of energy. This is the information we get that is above and beyond our other five senses. This is what drives our intuition. With insight issues, we could find it hard to make decisions. The path to the right answer could be clouded and unsure. Our ability to notice things could also be affected. Often we notice how other people are doing. We can tell that they are not doing well even if they tell us they are. Without insight, we miss this information.
Crown Chakra
Location: Just above the head
Color: Violet
Controls: Connection to spirit (the ethereal connection to the universe)
Most people do not have blocked Crown Chakras, but occasionally it does happen. These people tend to feel unguided and alone. On the other hand mediums tend to have a very open Crown Chakra. They get information from spirit and pass it on to others. When we get information through this chakra, it is such a type that we usually don’t know where it came from, but we know it to be so.
There is also a trick to remembering the colors. You just have to remember my good friend Roy G. Biv.
It is possible to have blocks on the lower chakras, and not the upper, or the reverse. I have seen people that were very spiritually connected, but could not do much physically, and had problems thinking, and emotional issues. I have also seen where people have been closed off to the upper chakras. They had trouble communicating, and had very little insight and no guidance.
A good energy practitioner that knows how to check for blocks can tell a lot about a person from what chakras are problems. I remember once telling someone I had just met that she had emotional issues because her Center Chakra was blocked. She then told me how she had broken up with her boyfriend three days before.
So, energy is not mystical, nor is it anything to laugh at. If we take notice of energies, we can find things that are not right, and help get them back to where they should be.