Yoga and Chakras

Chakra is a Sanskrit word meaning spinning wheel. These are a system of seven energy centers located along the spine. Each chakra corresponds to an area of the body, a set of behavioral characteristics and stages of spiritual growth.

Practicing yoga and focusing your energies during different postures can help you to align your chakras and get all the wheels spinning in the same direction and speed. Understanding how to fine tune and control your chakras through yoga and meditation can help bring balance and peace to your mind, body and spirit.

The seven chakras are:

• Muladhara- base of the spine;
• Svadhisthana- abdomen, genitals, lower back/hip;
• Ajna- brow;
• Sahasrara- top of head, cerebral cortex.
• Manipura- solar plexus;
• Anahata- heart area;
• Visshudha- throat;

These chakras are associated with a different part of the body along the spine from the perineum to the crown of your head. Each chakra is associated with a particular body location, a color, a central emotional/behavioral issue, as well as many other personal aspects including identity, goals, rights, etc.

Through the movements and postures of yoga, you can learn to focus your concentration and energy to and from the various chakras in your body. This can allow you to compensate for areas that may be out of synch with the rest of your body or not active at all. By balancing the energy among all seven of the chakras, balance can be achieved. This spiritual energy is known as Kundalini energy. In its dormant state, it can be visualized as a coiled up snake resting at the base of your spine, the Muladhara chakra. Since the chakras act as valves or pumps regulating the flow of energy through your system, controlled and purposeful movements such as yoga can be extremely beneficial in realigning your chakras in a way that can cause great benefits to you in your physical and emotional wellbeing.

What is your Ego?

The word Ego comes from the Latin word meaning "I am," or "self." It means to have an awareness of your personal identity. The American Heritage Dictionary defines ego as “sense of the self, especially as distinct from the rest of the world and other selves.” Ego is the aspect of your mind that is in touch with both your internal and external realities and can direct your thoughts and behavior to fulfill your needs.

Ego also refers to a sense of pride you have in yourself, or self- esteem. It is the relationship between you and the rest of the world. It is in knowing where you stand, what your capabilities are, your contribution, and your worth. The ego is the name for the process of relating your inner gifts to the outer arenas where you exercise those gifts.

There are many imbalances in relationships. Many women are extremely humble and always undervalue themselves. They have very low self-worth. On the other hand, "Egotism" is a sense of self-esteem that is way out of proportion in the other direction, an exaggerated sense of your own importance.

However, one person's egotism is different from one person's natural and healthy pride, and you can tell the difference only over the long run. The irony is that most people who appear to have too much ego are actually quite insecure and have low self worth. They have not yet developed a realistic self-esteem. They want to be out in the world, but because they are shy or feel inadequate, they pump themselves up and put on a protective shell.

In some circumstances the process of ego denigration has an appropriate place. An important part of joining some groups is to have your ego "reduced," or "broken down.” When you join the military or a convent, you are given a different image, other than your old image of yourself. And as a part of the group, you are a new being in a new world of possibilities.

The 7 Chakras

According to yoga theory, our physical body is accompanied and surrounded by an electromagnetic field called the energetic body. Within this energetic body, there are seven energy centers, called chakras (or cakras).

The chakras start on the floor of the pelvis at the perineum with the mula, or the root chakra, and run all the way up to the top of the head to the sahasrara, or the crown chakra. They are generally described as spinning wheels of light that store, regulate, and provide prana, which is the life force, or energy for our body, mind, and soul.

The word chakra means "wheel" or "disk," and each of the seven chakras roughly corresponds to one of the major nerve (ganglia) plexuses (centers) of the body that branch forward from the spinal column. The chakras emanate from the nadis, or the channels that conduct prana through the physical and electromagnetic bodies. They cannot be physically located or seen, but each has a specific location in the body.

As far as what the researchers know, the chakra system was originated in India, over four thousand years ago. It is referred to in the Rig Veda, which is the oldest portion of the sacred canon of the Vedas, and dates back to 1550 B.C. It is once again mentioned around 900 B.C. in the earliest Upanishads, which is the genre of Hindu spiritual literature that transcribes knowledge transmitted by word of mouth from the teacher to the student. There is also reference to the chakras in the Yoga Sutras.

It is generally thought that as we evolve spiritually, our prana moves up through the chakras. The chakras are often divided up into the lower three and the upper three, with the 4th chakra being kind of a transitional point between them. It does not mean that lower chakras are bad and the upper chakras are good. It simply means that the lower chakras vibrate at a much slower frequency. They store information such as thoughts, instincts, memories, impressions, and so on that is needed for basic tangible things like survival and reproduction.

As we evolve spiritually, more prana gets directed to the upper centers. These upper chakras spin faster and store lighter information. They vibrate faster and have more to do with our spiritual aspirations and with ethereal concepts like the Divine Consciousness. The whole practice of yoga is directed at consciously moving this prana into higher and higher chakras. This upward movement of the prana corresponds to increasing mindfulness, awareness, and power of concentration.

Yoga Introduction - Basic Questions Answered

A lot of people think that Yoga is a religion. Others believe it to be a kind of magic. Some people even associate Yoga with a rope trick, snake-charming, fire-eating or sitting on nail-beds or walking on sharp swords! Some link Yoga to fortune telling, spiritualism, hypnotism and other "isms." In reality, however, Yoga is a method, a system of physical, mental and spiritual development. Below are 5 basic questions and answers about yoga:

1. What is the meaning of the word "Yoga"? The word Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root "yuj," which means join, or union. The purpose of all Yogas is to unite man, the finite, with the Infinite, with Cosmic Consciousness. Truth, God, Light or whatever other name one chooses to call the Ultimate Reality. Yoga, as they say in India, is a marriage of spirit and matter.

2. Is there only one Yoga? Yoga has several branches or divisions, but the goal, the aim of all of them is the same the achievement of a union with the Supreme Consciousness. In Karma Yoga, for instance, this is achieved through work and action; in Jnana (or Gnani) Yoga, through knowledge and study; in Bhakti Yoga, through, devotion and selfless love; in Mantra Yoga through repetitions of certain invocations and sounds. Raja Yoga (Royal Yoga) is the Yoga of consciousness, the highest form of Yoga.

Hatha Yoga is the Yoga of physical well-being. It consists of several steps and is preceded by the Yama-Niyama, the ten rules of the Yoga code of morality. The first stage is called Asana, or posture; the second is Pranayama, or breath control; the third is Pratyahara or nerve control; the fourth is Dharana, or mind control; the fifth is Dhyiana, or meditation; and finally there is Samadhi, the state of ultimate bliss and spiritual enlightenment.

3. What is the origin of Yoga? Yoga was originated in India several thousand years ago. According to the German Professor Max Mueller, Yoga is about 6,000 years old, but other sources suggest it is much older than that.

4. What religion does a yogi profess? A yogi can belong to any religion or to none at all.

5. If the goal of Yoga is a spiritual illumination, why then is so much attention given to the care of the body? The yogis regard the human body as a temple of the Living Spirit and believe that as such it should be brought to the highest state of perfection. Also, the advanced practices of Yoga require great power of endurance. The body might not be able to stand the strain without special preparation.