“He who realises the truth of the body can then come to know the truth of the universe”

Ratnasara Tantra

The Chinese Medicine Meridian System

The meridians of Chinese medicine are energy channels within the body distributing Qi or Ki [vital energy] throughout the body. They exist in corresponding pairs and each meridian has many acupuncture points along its path. The twelve standard meridians, also called Principal Meridians, are divided into Yin and Yang groups and are associated with the organs of the body. The Yin meridians of the arm are Lung, Heart, and Pericardium. The Yang meridians of the arm are Large Intestine, Small Intestine, and Triple Burner. The Yin Meridians of the leg are Spleen, Kidney, and Liver. The Yang meridians of the leg are Stomach, Bladder, and Gall Bladder. There are also eight extraordinary meridians which are of pivotal importance in the study of Qigong and T’ai chi ch’uan. These eight extra meridians are different to the standard twelve organ meridians in that they are considered to be storage vessels or reservoirs of energy and are not associated directly with the internal organs. The meridian system not only forms the basis of Chinese medicine but also associated martials arts, shiatsu, macrobiotics andacupuncture.

The Third Dimensional Chakra System

Many people recognize seven major energy centres, commonly referred to as chakras. The word chakra comes from the Sanskrit word which translates as “wheel” or “circle”. This system has been known in India from earliest times and is the model of energetic reality widely used in various forms of yoga and in ayurvedic medicine. Each chakra in the body is a focal point of life force relating to physical, emotional, mental and spiritual energies. They are the network through which body, mind and spirit interact as one holistic system. Each chakra is responsible for a range of energetic frequencies and should ideally spin harmoniously and regularly in a clockwise direction, receiving and radiating energy to create health and balance in the body’s energy system.

The Indian Tradition

 The chakras are connected to each other by subtle energy channels, called nadis in Hindu, whichcover the complete etheric/physical vehicle. In the science of Kriya Yoga, the main nadis used are Pingala, the canal of the Sun which runs down the right side of the body from the right nostril to the base of the spine, Ida, the canal of the Moon which runs down the left side of the body from the left nostril to the base of the spine and Sushumna, the central unifying column which occupies the spinal column itself.

There are also other minor chakras, such as in the palms of the hands, used in magnetic healing and explaining the energetic significance of holding hands or the laying on of hands for healing, and in the soles of the feet which are important for our grounding and connection with the Earth.

When the chakras are fully open, they form a spinning sphere open at 360° radiating energy in every direction. When distorted, they may spin more slowly, in the opposite direction or may not spin at all. Physical diseases are the result of blocked energy. There are seven principal chakras present in the third dimensional physical body.

They correspond to specific aspects of consciousness and have their own individual characteristics and functions.

Chakra Development

New born children have very wide open crown chakras as they try to squeeze into the limits of the tiny body of a baby. With great difficulty they open the root chakra to connect to the earth. The other chakras are not yet developed or covered with any protective screen making the child very impressionable and vulnerable to incoming psychic influences which end up right in the energy field. At around the age of seven, a protective film forms over the chakra openings and the child is no longer as vulnerable as before.

Chakras in the Aura of a Baby

Adult and Child’s Chakras Compared

from Barbara Ann Brennan

The adult chakra in the upper drawing on the left is fully developed with its protective membrane. The various chakra chambers and facets are clearly visible in this diagnostic view. The child’s chakra below it is still in a bud-like state and has no protective screening.

Chakra Chambers and Facets

• Each chakra has seven levels all of which need to be opened and activated for full God realisation.
• Each level has a number of facets which also need opening and activated. Drunvalo Melchizidek uses a model of 48 facets. Each chakra level or chamber with its 48 facets contains information which when available brings us further along our evolutionary path.
• The totality of the chakras and their chambers helps to create a tonal quality and tonal frequency for each person.
• The Indian tradition looked at chakras from the point of view of individual petals which needed to be opened.

Kundalini & Initiations of Light

• To some observers the chakras are a means of focussing light energy in the physical body.
• The Soul Merge occurs when the kundalini energy stored in the root chakra rises to meet light energy coming in from the 12th.chakra, the Monad, and a new level of consciousness is reached.

The Healing Process

• All illnesses are basically caused by forgetting who we truly are and acting according to that forgetfulness.
• Not meeting our real needs is also a direct outcome of this.
• The healing/transformation process is about addressing those needs that have not been filled, to acknowledge these needs and to find a way to fill them now.

The main purpose of working with and understanding the chakras is to create integration and wholeness within ourselves. In this way we bring various aspects of our consciousness into a harmonious relationship. It is important to understand that the chakras are doorways for our consciousness through which emotional, mental and spiritual energies flow into physical expression.