Complete Chakra Map
The Chakra Map has been revealed from ancient times thanks to yogis who have been capable of locating and describing them. We will see that knowing their position will be useful for treating them.
The seventh main chakras are located along the spine and in our head; they correspond to nervous plexuses of autonomic nervous system. Thanks to this nervous system, that extends in the whole body, the chakras are reflected in various part of our body.
For example, the third chakra (called as Nabhi) is placed in the solar plexus and is reflected in the middle finger of our hands, in the big toes of our feet, and also in our knees and our elbows. So, whatever we feel in those parts of our body, will give us a signal of the state of our Nabhi chakra. It is as simple as that.
The first chakra (Mooladhara) is placed in the pelvic plexus, it is not reflected on a finger but at the base of our palm and in our heels. Also the Sahasrara chakra is not on a finger but in the center of our palms and of our soles. The green region called Void that is around the Nabhi chakra, is also present on our hands as a circular region of the palm around the Sahasrara.
Another important thing to notice is that our channels cross at the level of Agnya chakra (let’s remember what scientists say about our brain and its crossed effect, that it has clearly been discovered thousands of years ago in the Yoga science), so that the left Agnya chakra is actually placed in the right hemisphere of our bran, while the right Agnya chakra is placed in the left hemisphere of our brain.
When we meditate and our Kundalini (the Mother Energy placed in our sacred bone) rises passing through all chakras (except the first), we can perceive the state of our chakra on our hands. This thing will allow us to correct them with specific techniques we will see in this course.
The basic elements
In history, many seekers of truth and philosophers have hypothesized the existence of basic constituents of matter. Some people have supposed the existence of four elements and other people have supposed there are five main elements (see on Wikipedia Classical elements). The four elements are Earth, Water, Fire and Air. The plus one is Ether.
We are considering the second case, as electromagnetic waves and so vibrations (that means our Kundalini energy) are actually travelling through ether.
In Hindu tradition, they are called bhumi for earth, jala for water, agni for fire, marut for air, akash for ether; do not worry, these names will become familiar to you soon, as they are commonly used in Sahaja Yoga. For example, we call Mother Earth as Adi Bhoomi Devi; the principle of water is called as Jala Tattwa, etc.
We have already seen how we can use some elements for working on our channels and balancing our chakras. Actually, each one of these element is associated with one specific chakra. Earth element is associated to the first chakra, the Mooladhara. Fire is connected with Swadhisthan chakra — this element is also peculiar of the right side; Water with Nabhi chakra (it is actually surrounded by the Bhavasagara, the Ocean of Illusions) — the Water element is also peculiar of the left side. In our Anahat chakra, or Heart chakra, blows the Life Breath, its element is Air.
The Vishuddhi chakra is the chakra of communication and guess what? Its element is ether. (We jokingly represented this element with a mobile in the image)
In this class we will see the characteristics of these elements in detail.
Earth element
Of all the elements, Earth is the last one, not the first; actually the Creation starts just from what is more ethereal, subtler: first ether, then light, air and water, and then, out of consolidation, we have a solid, steady, complete element. Actually earth include the fire of magma that moves below its surface and it is permeated by water and air.
Earth is defined in Genesis as “first matter” and in the Book of Changes (I Ching) it corresponds to the ancestral force of feminine that receives, nourishes, protects.
All the primitive cultures. closer to nature than what people are now, have recognized the refreshing power of the earth and often they have considered it like a one-organism, a living and pulsating unity capable of filling itself in vegetation, animals and human beings. For many peoples, the earth was the body of a goddess bestower of energy, health, prosperity: Mother Earth; plants, herbs, roots, minerals and crystals we so gifts of inestimable value that the goddess was giving to human beings for nourishment and protection from calamities and diseases (see article La Grande Madre nelle antiche culture).
And it is just from this ancient concept of the earth as mother that molds from her own substance all the living creatures, that all the cures with clay, herbs, gems, etc. are born.
At subtle level, this element purify all our left side and in particular the first chakra (the Mooladhara) making us righteous, steady, auspicious people. The action of the Earth has effect also on left Nabhi chakra, enhancing the sense of generosity and the capacity of offering nourishment and support.
Water element
Water represents one of the purifying elements for excellence in every tradition.
The innumerable symbolic aspects and the thaumaturgic properties attributed to water since ancient times, but even now the use of water in many therapeutic applications shows that water is more that a chemical element.
In ancient Egypt and in Persia, bathing was considered a sacred doing, hygienic and therapeutic at the same time. Ancient Greek used water therapies to treat many illnesses and it is thank to Hippocrates (Greek doctor of the IV century BC) the formulation of many cures with cold baths, showers, steams. Similar treatments came with ancient Romans.
In Christian tradition, water has always had a primary role: let’s just think of baptism as act of spiritual purification.
In India, then, water has always been considered as primary source of “prana”, the life force that allows the existence of all living beings; they have preserved may water therapies similar to those currently practiced in western countries.
In numerous scriptures, the spiritual aspect of water is mentioned ; we will quote a couple.
Fire element
Generator of light and energy, the fire element permeate all things. On the earth it has the shapes of flames, in the sky it is the symbol of the day and of life, inside us it is that inner sun that animates and gives strength to our daily action.
The possession of fire goes back in the middle of the Lower Paleolithic (700.000 – 300.000 years ago). Human race at that time was the Homo Erectus (that comes before the Homo Sapiens) that, from the oriental Africa, moved and colonized all the Old World.
Learning how to use fire helped men to find a strong creativity input (creativity is the main quality of the Swadhisthan chakra) and to widen their horizons to a higher awareness. Life was no more a question of survival, but out of their creativity men could do more interesting things.
Mastery of fire started to assume the subtle meaning of mastery of one’s own intellect: prehistoric man, actually, started to completely modify his relationship with environment and so his behavior. He could live in colder regions (widening of horizons), could chase away dangerous wild beasts (more security), could cook food, forge weapons, utensils, jewelry and metal sculptures (more creativity).
Towards the end of Lower Paleolithic, the built-up area started to be more structured and around fireplace domestic has been organized. So, the next step was the use of fire as element of aggregation: around fire tribes were gathering in occasion of rituals, celebrations, etc.
Fire also has been considered by some peoples and renown is is power of purification. Fire has been often be associated to the sun, the greatest generator of light and warmth that peoples from all the world have identified with a divinity: for Persians was Mithra, for Egyptians was Osiris, for Greeks Apollo, for Indians is Surya.
Air element
Air is an essential element for plant and animal life, surrounds the earth and forms its atmosphere.
We are permeated from the air, completely immersed in it, and yet this element may seem so “little concrete”; elusive to the touch and the other senses, odorless, tasteless, colorless … and yet so present and important!
So, treating the element of air, it would seem difficult to recognize its essence, so invisible and impalpable. But it is definitely less when the air shows such as vibrations, appearing to us in the form of cool breeze. A cool breeze that spreads out of our hands and the top of our head.
The Air is also a very important means of transmitting, because through it we receive the sound waves, and then the magic of music. In many philosophical treatises we talk about the connection between music, philosophy and religion, then the power of music to give a higher consciousness.
In one Indian script of the twelfth century, the Sangitaratnakara (Ocean of Music), music deserves the appellation of Vimuktida or “giver of liberation” to indicate those higher faculties of the art which it bears.
Some sounds also have a significant effect on our subtle system and this is the principle that is the basis of mantras, a mantra comes as a phonetic repetition of expressions that facilitate the achievement of the state of thoughtless awareness, thus facilitating the achievement of a meditative optimal condition. 
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Ether element
According to the ancient, Ether was the most high, pure and bright part of space.
The cosmic ether would be a hypothetical substance, extremely thin and imponderable, that would fill the whole Universe. The physicists themselves have introduced this fictitious entity that would fill the space, otherwise considered void, because they could not make ends meet in certain physical theories.
What is between nucleus and electrons?
To the concept of ether is generally associated the one of electromagnetic waves: it is proved that they are able to be transmitted in vacuum (indeed, the propagation in vacuum is better, because the presence of matter, although transparent, slows it down), but are still ongoing studies that explain how this is possible.
In the ’80s, some Russian scientists have suggested the existence of a curved field of electromagnetic type said Torsion Field. According to Anatoli Akimov, the Torsion Field would be characterized by subtle energy fields, whose emanation would be able to travel at the speed of at least 109 times that of light (that means it would have a frequency much greater); moreover, torsion fields associated with the common electric, magnetic and gravity fields would lead to a unified field theory as to extend the realm of science to include the effects of realm of consciousness (hot to say? they would switch from physics to metaphysics with a scientific theory).
Balance your chakras with vibrations
In this lesson, we will see a practical application of the ether element: we will use our vibrations to balance our chakras.
But how do we know which chakras need to be helped?
Well, this is the magic of Sahaja Yoga. You do not need anyone telling you, as it will be your own Mother Energy Kundalini to tell you. Through the autonomic nervous system, she indicates us what is the state of our chakras. At a first stage, you will feel the state of your chakras on our hands, you will have specific signals you will learn to identify very easily. Lightness, cool breeze mean your chakras are fine. Heat, heaviness, tickling mean your chakra need help.
We have already shown you a first approach when we have seen the technique for balancing our channels. Here we will see how to treat chakras only.
Another nice thing of Sahaja Yoga is that as you can treat your own chakras, you can do the same with other people… but this is a thing we will see later in this course. For the time being, you’d better learn how to master your own energy and perceptions.
Mooladhara chakra
The first center of our subtle system is the Mooladhara chakra.
This chakra is placed below the sacred bone, in the pelvic plexus. On our hands, it is reflected at the base of our palm. In our feet, it is reflected in the heels. It regulates the sexual organs and the excretory organs. Having a good Mooladhara means that our Kundalini is steady and strong inside us.
The term Mooladhara is composed by two terms: moola, that means root, and dhara, that means support; so it means “support of the root”. Actually the Mooladhara chakra is the one that supports our Kundalini‘s ascent. It is the root of our evolution.
The main qualities of this chakra are innocence, purity, spontaneity, wisdom. Without purity there cannot be any spiritual ascent, this is the point. Now, nobody is going to judge what you are, but depending on the state of your chakra, then you will know what you need to improve to establish your Self Realization.
Mooladhara chakra: symbols and traditions
The Mooladhara chakra is place in correspondence of the pelvic plexus, just below the sacred bone. It is not crossed by Kundalini when she rises. Nevertheless, it is the most important chakra, because it supports the Kundalini herself: if our Mooladahra chakra is strong and steady, then our Kundalini will be steady and will settle in the seventh chakra, in her connection with the All-pervading Energy. Moreover, the Mooladhara principle (innocence) is present in every chakra.
After these considerations, it is clear that the Mooladhara chakra is not directly helped by the Kundalini (like it happens for other chakras), but there are many ways to clear it, as we have seen in a previous lesson. One important thing to underline is that a human being can never completely lose his own innocence, but this chakra can be so much damaged that his innocence can be completely blackened; in that case, it will take longer to balance this chakra, but it is always possible. The main point is that, if a person has ruined so much his Mooladhara chakra, probably he would not even have any desire to correct himself.
In the previous lesson about Mooladhara chakra, we have seen what are its main functionality and qualities. Now we will see what are symbols and traditions bound to this aspect of our subtle personality.
Temple of Spirit 