Category: Miscellaneous Pagan

Let's Talk Witch – Two Goodies for Your Chakras

Pentagram Book of Shadows

Let’s Talk Witch – Two Goodies for Your Chakras

 

Chakra Meditation

You can do this meditation either standing or lying down, however it is important to not cross your legs or arms since this will close your energy loop.

Center yourself. Hold your right hand a few inches above your Root Chakra. Focus on this spot and hold this focus for a moment. Picture energy coming down from the Universe and flowing through your hand, into the chakra.

Each time you inhale, feel more energy being drawn into the chakra. When you feel a comfy warmness in this area, move onto the next chakra and keep doing so until you have charged all of your chakras.

This exercise is very helpful for when you are feeling out of balance. It also helps during times of physical illness. YOU SHOULD STILL SEE A DOCTOR IF YOUR CONDITION IS SERIOUS. This is not a substitute for a doctor’s care, it is an aid to help strengthen the healing process.

If you wish, you can hold crystals/stones in your hands while doing this or place the appropriate stone on the appropriate chakra. The corresponding stones are:

Red Jasper–Root Chakra
Carnelian–Sexual Chakra
Tiger’s Eye–Solar Plexus Chakra
Aventurine–Heart Chakra
Sodalite–Throat Chakra
Lapis Lazuli–Third Eye Chakra
Amethyst–Crown Chakra

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Balancing And Clarifying Your Chakras

Here are some chakra color treatments to put you back in balance.

For the following, visualize each specific color penetrating and cleansing that chakra. This is a good way to balance yourself in the morning before getting up and starting your day.

Root Chakra:
A very bright shade of red.

Sexual Chakra:
A clear shade of orange.

Solar Plexus Chakra:
A bright and sunny yellow.

Heart Chakra:
You can visualize a bright green or a bright pink. Both are seen as the color of this chakra.

Throat Chakra:
A light shade of blue.

Third Eye Chakra:
A transparent indigo.

Crown Chakra:
Violet or white are both seen as the color of this chakra.

Gardnerian Traditional Witchcraft –B.14. Skyclad (1953) c.2013

Gardnerian Traditional Witchcraft –B.14. Skyclad (1953)

B.14. Skyclad (1953)
It is important to work naked from the start, so it becometh as second nature, and no thought of “I have no clothes” shall ever intrude and take your attention from the work.  Also, your skin being so accustomed to unconfinement, when power is given off the flow is more easy and regular.  Also, when dancing you are free and unconfined. . . .
And the greatest of all, the touch of the body of your beloved thrills your inmost soul, and so your body gives out its utmost power; and then it is most important of all that there is not the slightest thing to divert the attention, for then the mind must seize and mold the power generated, and redirect it to the desired end with all the force and frenzy of the imagination.
It has been said that no real knowledge may be gained our way, that our practices are such that they can only lead to lust; but this is not really so.  Our aim is to gain the inner sight, and we do it the most natural and easy way.  Our opponents’ aim is ever to prevent man and woman from loving, thinking that everything that helps or even permits them to love is wicked and vile.  To us it is natural, and if it aids the Great Work it is good.
‘Tis true that a couple burning with a frenzy for knowledge may go straight to their goal, but the average couple have not this fire.  We show them the way, our system of props and aids (i.e., magic ritual).  A couple working with nothing but lust will never attain in any case; but a couple who love each other dearly should already be sleeping together, and the first frenzy of love will have passed, and their souls will already be in sympathy.  If the first time or two they do stay a while to worship Aphrodite, ’tis only a day or two lost, and the intense pleasure they obtain only leads them again to the mysteries of Hermes, their souls more attuned to the great search.  Once they have pierced the veil they will not look back.
This rite may be used as the greatest of magics if it be done with both partners firmly fixing their minds on the object and not thinking of sex at all.  That is, you must so firmly fix your mind on your object that sex and all else are naught.  You inflame your will to such an extent that you may create a strain on the astral such that events happen.

 

Simple Crystal Self-healing for Chakras

Simple Crystal Self-healing for Chakras

 

This self-healing treatment is also a good way of ending your day even if you feel well. Repeating this treatment daily will help to keep your energies in balance and maintain health. You can work with a crystal chakra set or, if there are specific issues or ailments you wish to treat, replace a standard chakra crystal or with one of the crystals that work on all chakras.

Simply lie on your back in bed, on a sofa, or on the floor, place the crystals in the appropriate position on your body. Lie still and allow yourself to rest and relax for about half an hour. Play gentle relaxing music and light some incense if you like.

 

Suggested crystals and their placement:

 

Crown:  Amethyst

Brow: Lapis lazuli

Throat; Blue lace agate

Heart: Malachite

Solar plexus: Citrine

Sacral: Carnelian

Base: Red jasper

How to Tell if Your Base Chakra Is Out of Balance

How to Tell if Your Base Chakra Is Out of Balance

When the base chakra is out of balance, energy doesn’t flow or moves very slowly, leading to a stagnation of life’s movement. You can feel stuck in a rut and find it difficult to release emotions that become trapped. Sometimes a loss, such as a death or broken relationship has occurred, and a failure to release the associated emotions leads to dysfunction in the energy hot spot.

Common symptoms include:

  • Chronic lower-back pain
  • Sciatica
  • Varicose veins
  • Water retention
  • Constipation or diarrhea
  • Rectal and anal problems
  • Fertility issues such as impotence
  • Immune disorders
  • Feelings of insecurity
  • Phobias
  • Depression, anxiety or panic attacks.

Healing the Base Chakra: The Benefits

Healing Benefits

Balancing the base chakra stimulates the flow of energy through the body’s whole energy system, which can have a beneficial effect on many chronic conditions throughout the body. It also helps to build up energy that is stored in the sacral chakra for when it is needed. By removing anxiety and stress, this healthy flow of energy allows positive changes to occur in your life. It facilitates the release of unwanted and unneeded emotions and thoughts that can block your path and prevent you from following your destiny.

Healing The Base Chakra

Healing the Base Chakra

 

The base chakra, also known as the first chakra, is located at the base of the spine. It is the survival center, supporting strength, determination, and the things that nurture us such as our family and friends. In certain traditions, such as Ayurveda and hatha yoga, it is regarded as the place where the resting kundalini is stored. It is the center through which we experience our connection to the earth and earth plane, while we are living this life. A healthy base chakra will keep you grounded and help you move forward in life.

Location:  Base of the Spine

Crystal:  Red Jasper

Color:  Red

Fragrance Association:  Patchouli

Keywords:  Survival, health abundance, connection to the earth, change, strength, family, security, nurture, assertiveness, determination, passion, practical matters, tradition, endings and new beginnings.

Emotional/Mental Healing:  An unbalanced base chakra can prevent you from advancing in life. When it’s blocked, nothing seems to happen. The lack of balance prevents the release of grief and other restricting emotions that hold you back. Everyone needs time to grieve, but this should always be a process of release rather than something to hold on to. Death is about change–not just for the person who dies but also for the relatives and friends they leave behind. All change brings opportunity and a fresh start. Without releasing grief and holding onto feelings such as sorrow and guilt, any new projects you start may never quite work or come to fruition. This prevents abundance–not only material but abundance on a deep soul level, of sensitive feelings and happy emotions. You feel unfulfilled. Slowly this has an emotional effect. You start to feel as if nothing is working or worthwhile and no one is on your side. You become stressed, a myriad of apparently unrelated physical symptoms begin to appear, and low-level depression sets in. You can feel as if you have lost a connection but to what you often are not sure. The dysfunction of your base chakra prevents you from appreciating the nurturing things in life. You can feel distanced from family and friends and unsettled. As you start to feel alone, insecurity can set in, leading to anxiety and panic attacks. In extreme circumstance, addictions, phobias, and obsessions can develop.

Physical Healing:  When the base chakra is out of balance, common symptoms appear, such as chronic lower-back pain, varicose veins, sciatica, water retention, rectal and anal problems, constipation, diarrhea, some fertility issues such as impotence and immune disorder. The base chakra also affects the health of the groin, hips, pelvis, lower end of the digestive system, legs, knees, ankles and feet.

Spiritual Healing:  The base chakra connects you to the earth. In one sense this is rational, mental grounding, as in your link to the planet; keeping your feet on the ground than your head in the sky. In another way, it’s bringing all your spiritual knowledge and experience into your everyday life, living in the present moment and experiencing every second of your existence. Part of this process can involve development workshops and classes, but many people go to these have enlightening experience and then simply go back to their everyday lives, maybe tell their friends about the weekend and nothing. A healthy base chakra enables you to take the experiences and skills you have acquired and use them in your everyday life. This brings positive change in small manageable doses, leading to happiness.

Lifestyle:  A balanced base chakra can help you move forward in life, change career, accept opportunities and run with the ball when it falls in your hands. It promotes a healthy sense of security and confidence, allowing you to give and receive nurture, stand up for yourself when you need to, take advantage of all that life offers and succeed in whatever you do.

Alternative Crystals:  Hematite, black obsidian, smoky quart, snowflake obsidian, red calcite, falcon’s eye, zircon, mookaite, black banded agate, jet, black opal, petrified wood.

Unblocking Chakras

UNBLOCKING CHAKRAS

 

It is vital to the energetic health of the patient that the upward flow of energy through the chakra system, and the flow of energy into and through each chakra, be maintained. If you have sensed that a chakra is blocked-that the energy stops its normal flow at that chakra-it is possible to restore the healthy upward energy flow.

Unblocking of chakras is done during the normal round of hand positions-with the hands on the chakra in the same position, and at the same time, as regular hand placement. When you have detected a blocked chakra at a certain location, clear it in the following way:

As you lay the hands on that chakra point during the normal course of treatment, visualize the appropriate symbol (see the diagram) in the proper way during the full time you treat that chakra, and at the same time visualize, intend and sense that a blockage in the upward flow of energy is being removed-visualize the energy that is flowing upwards through the spine, at that chakra point, flowing through the chakra, the blockage in the chakra being removed as it does so. You may find it easier to visualize the symbol and the chakra clearing with your eyes closed, as you learn. With a little practice will be able to visualize in the proper manner with your eyes open, as you practice this technique, and this is to be desired.

The symbols are each related to a certain manner of energy flow, and this energetic nature of the symbols relates to the chakras in this way. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd chakras, for example, bear a relationship to the Circle in their energetic functioning. The 4th, 5th and 6th chakras bear a relationship to the energetic nature of the Trine. The 7th chakra bears a close energetic relationship to the Star. Accessing the energetic nature of these symbols (and hence that of the corresponding chakra) through visualization, combined with the visualization of the chakra clearing, provides the effectiveness of this technique-the energy flow through the chakra is cleared, and the blockage is removed.

If you have perceived that a blockage of the first chakra exists, it must be treated in a slightly different way, as placing the hands on the corresponding body area (the genital region) is not done. The hands of any person, however, are receptive channels for the body energy, and the patient’s hands may be used to treat this chakra.

To clear the first chakra:

Place your hands on the patient’s hands, with each of your palms on a palm of your patient. As you send in the energy, visualize the Circle, and visualize-intend and sense-that the first chakra is being cleared. This will not be as focused a clearing as would be provided with direct hand placement, but will assist considerably.

As the diagram implies, the symbols are also associated with regions of the body as well. The Circle is associated with the abdomen below the diaphragm, the Trine with the area above the diaphragm up to the third eye, and the Star with the crown of the head. Visualization on the appropriate symbol during the laying-on-of-hands on supplementary areas may also be done. For example, when treating problems in the lower abdomen, you may, if you have sensed that it is appropriate, use a visualization of the Circle while placing the hands in supplementary positions after the usual chakra positions. Use of the symbols during treatment of positions other than blocked chakras will not be required on most patients, however, but if you sense it will benefit a particular condition you encounter, use it. It may interest you to know, also, that while one symbol predominates in each of these areas, elements of the others are also present.

Stone Substitutions for Use With The Chakras

Stone Substitutions For Use With The Chakras

Crystal Quartz – Diamond

Garnet – Ruby

Lapis Lazuli – Blue Sapphire

Sodalite – Blue Sapphire

Turquoise – Aquamarine

Chrysocolla – Aquamarine

Citrine – Topaz

Carnelian – Fire Opal

Rhodochrosite – Rubellite

Malachite – Emerald

Chrysoprase – Emerald

Azurite – Indigo Sapphire

Stones Associated With The Seventh Chakra

Seventh Chakra (crown of the head)

The seventh chakra is our direct connection to spirit. When it is balanced we understand our relationship with the universe. We dissolve the illusion that  we are separate from other humans and other forms of life. We appreciate our uniqueness and our places as parts of the whole. When it is blocked we compare  ourselves to others or to internal checklists (and usually find ourselves wanting). We feel lonely, we are afraid of death. Stones associated with the  seventh chakra:

Clear calcite brings spiritual understanding to problems on the earth plane.
Clear quartzThere are many forms of clear quartz. See our articles about Clusters and different kinds of Crystal Points.
Danburite helps us to view what happens in our lives from the soul perspective and have a feeling of calmness and serenity even when    life seems very difficult.
HerkimerThis form of clear quartz is especially brilliant, and has a particular ability to dissolve chakra blockages.
Selenite

Stones Associated With The Sixth Chakra

Sixth Chakra (between eyebrows)

This is the psychic center, and, when unblocked, the source of intuition, esp, and other psychic abilities. This chakra is particularly related to the  fears of cultures which wish to believe only that which they can experiences with the physical senses, and blockages abound, including fear of the  imagination, of dreams, and one’s “irrational” intuitions. Physical symptoms of blockage may include persistent headaches, insomnia, and  anxiety.

Stones associated with the sixth chakra:

Amethyst, known as nature’s tranquilizer, helps in sleep and in peaceful dreams.
Azurite helps us to consciously look at old programmed beliefs and dissolve them.
Charoite helps to dissolve fears, both known and unknown.
Hawk’s eye helps us to see our lives as with aerial vision.
Kyanite reminds me that everything which happens is for a purpose, and that we are ultimately in charge, and often brings to surface beliefs we    have accepted as fact.
Lapis helps us to discover our hidden beliefs and bring them to the surface.
Sodalite helps in balance when one is emotionally or mentally confused.
Moss agate helps to balance the left and right sides of the brain.
Sugilite helps to release resentment and guilt.

Stones Associated With The Fifth Chakra

Fifth Chakra (throat area)

This chakra governs communication and mental creativity. When it is balanced we communicate easily and effectively with others in both written and verbal  form. This includes being able to constructively express anger and other emotions. When it is blocked communication is difficult to impossible, and these may  be the people who say, “I’m just not creative.

In my experience there can be more physical blockages associated with the fifth chakra than with any other. These can include excessive eating and  drinking (good ways to keep the throat busy while preventing communication), and a range of respiratory diseases. Teeth and gum disorders fall into this  category, as well.

Stones for the fifth chakra:

Angelite helps us to communicate with angels and other nonphysical beings, as well as aiding in long-distance communication. It also    helps to dissolve anger.
Aqua Aura teaches us self-expression through service to others.
Aquamarine helps us to express ourselves in a tranquil way.
Blue lace agate helps to ground our communications with a sense of what can be accomplished.
Blue Topaz Helps us to communicate fearlessly that which we know to be true, and also stimulates creativity.
Celestite helps to calm the over-active mind and teaches us how to be receptive
Chrysocolla helps one to have self-confidence in personal expression.
Larimar enables us to communicate with others that which we feel deeply in our hearts and souls.
Turquoise helps us to enroll others to help in the manifestation of our desires.

Stones Associated With The Fourth Chakra

The Fourth Chakra (heart area)

This chakra relates to love and emotional well-being. When it is unblocked we give love unconditionally and attract to ourselves those people who give us  an abundance of love. When it is blocked we feel the lack of love in our lives as keenly as those with third-chakra blockages feel a lack of material  security. Heart conditions are the most common physical symptoms.

Stones associated with the fourth chakra:

Aventurine is the stone most related to physical health and heart balancing.
Emerald relates most directly to the spiritual aspects of love.
Green calcite Eases old, limiting beliefs (especially those based on fear) from the mind so that new ideas can flourish.
Green tourmaline opens the creative elements of the heart, i.e., adding an emotional depth to one’s creations.
Lepidolite helps to calm the heart and relieves stress.
Malachite releases congestion in the solar plexus, and aids creativity.
Malachite-Chrysocolla blends malachite’s ability with chrysocolla’s gift of soothing and calming.
Pink Calcite helps to release old and hurtful emotional patterns so that the heart can be open to receive and give unconditional    love.
Rhodochrosite helps to relieve anxiety.
Rhodonite helps us to be patient with others.
Rose quartz is the stone for helping to create unconditional self-love.

Stones Associated With The Third Chakra

Third Chakra (navel and solar plexus area)

This is the chakra of physical and material power, with an emphasis on mastery in the physical realm, especially the ability to manifest one’s hopes and dreams. It relates to expressing one’s unique individuality in the physical world.

When it is unblocked people feel self-confident, have a clear sense of purpose, and pursue dreams which others would consider impossible. Imbalances appear as lack of self-confidence, insecurity about money or other physical things, and may also express itself in terms of being aggressive or using one’s power to dominate others. Physical symptoms are usually digestive.

Stones associated with the third chakra:

Aragonite has a calming and stabilizing effect, especially on emotions such as anger and stress.
Citrine is the stone most related to manifesting abundance and to the balanced use of will.
Golden calcite helps to integrate new energies and beliefs areas related to personal empowerment, such as relationships and  business.
Malachite releases congestion in the solar plexus, and aids creativity.
Rhodochrosite assists in deep breathing, thus helping to relieve anxiety and tension.
Rutilated quartz helps to add enhanced creating energy to our dreams.
Pyrite helps us to come up with creative ideas which can help bring abundance in our lives.
Tiger’s eye helps to teach us good timing in terms of when to act on a dream.
Unakite Unakite helps us to understand the mental and emotional sources for it. It is also believed to help release conditions which  have been inhibiting personal growth.

Stones Associated With The Second Chakra

Second Chakra (just above the pelvic bone)

This chakra is most directly related to energy flow, as expressed in the flow of blood, and especially with the energies of sexuality and creativity. It  is also deeply connected to the five physical senses.

When it is unblocked people feel fully alive, energetic, spontaneous, guilt-free. and in full appreciation of their bodies. When it is unbalanced  reproductive organ diseases, joint stiffness, and various blood disorders may result.

Stones associated with the second chakra:

Bloodstone can stimulate energy.
Carnelian is associated with creativity and decision-making.
Red garnet encourages patience.
Red jasper helps to connect us to the flowing energies of the earth.
Ruby, the stone of passion, enhances sensory awareness.
Ruby in Zoisite is a way to benefit from ruby’s energy in a grounding form.

Stones Associated With The First Chakra

First Chakra (Feet to base of spine)

The first chakra represents our relationship with our physical bodies and with the material world. It grounds us in physical existence. When balanced, its  energy helps us to blend the physical and spiritual, and to eliminate that which is no longer needed for growth. We enjoy physical existence. When  unbalanced, we may be afraid of life, feel like victims, withdraw from physical reality, or operate in our own interests only. Physical symptoms can include  any difficulties with feet, legs, or lower back.

Stones associated with the first chakra:

Black tourmaline: This is a protective stone when you feel threatened at the survival level.
Hematite: This stone helps you to set protective boundaries when you feel as if others are intruding into your private space.
Black and snowflake obsidian help you to see what material things you no longer need for growth.
Smoky quartz, the lightest of the dark stones, helps to blend the energies of the first and seventh chakras.
Tiger’s eye helps you to feel secure about physical existence.

Any of these stones may be placed at the base of the spine or at the feet.

Early doctrines regarding the chakras

Early doctrines regarding the chakras

The idea of the subtle vital force (prana) and the channels along which it flows (nadis) appear in the earliest Upanishads (7th-8th century b.c.e.). The heart was said to be the centre of the 72,000 nadis or subtle channels, and the place into which the senses are withdrawn during sleep. As with many ancient civilisations (e.g. Egypt, Homeric Greece), the heart was also considered the seat of waking consciousness.

But it was only in the later Upanishads – the earlier of which were composed somewhere between the 2nd century b.c.e. and the 2nd century c.e. – reference is first made to basic Tantric concepts such as chakras, mantras, and so on.

The Brahma-Upanishad mentions the four “places” occupied by the purusha (soul): the navel, heart, throat, and head. Following common tradition, each place is characterised by a particular state of consciousness: the navel (or the eye) waking consciousness, the heart dreamless sleep, the throat dreaming, and the head the “fourth” or transcendent state. These four states, originally referred to in the Mandukya Upanishad, are identified with the gods Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra (a derivative of Shiva) and Akshara (the indestructable). [Mircea Eliade, Yoga, Immortality, and Freedom, p.128]

The Yogatattva Upanishad speaks of the “five parts” of the body corresponding to the five great or cosmic elements – earth, water, fire, air, and space. Each element corresponds to a particular mantra – a “seed-vibration” or mystical syllable – and a particular deity. Emphasise is also given to siddhis (supernormal powers) that can be attained through mastery of yoga and of the different elements. [Eliade, Ibid, pp.130-1]

Primary Chakras

A distinction has to be made between primary and secondary chakras, as these are very often confused.

The primary chakras are the inner chakras, i.e. the chakras as described by original Tantra (Shaktism, Nathism, etc), which can only be accessed through  deep yogic practice.  These chakras are archetypal and do not have a form; the form they are represented as in tantric literature is stylised and symbolic.    Now do they have a precise location.  They are associated with specific correspondences including mantric vibrations, elements, gods, etc.

The primary chakras are represented in an up-down vertical axis (the microcosmic “Mount Meru” – world mountain), and are polarised according to  Shiva (pure unmanifest Consciousness, the Godhead) and Shakti (the power of manifestation).  Shakti is represented by the Kundalini energy at the base of the  spine, or more strictly speaking, in the Muladhara chakra (which as with all the Primary Chakras does not have a strict physical location).  Shiva is located  in the crown chakra (Saharsrara) at the crown above the head.  This vertical polarisation represents the major planes of existence

As microcosmic archetypes the primary chakras can be equated with the ten sefirot of Kabbalah, which are arranged, significantly, in seven rows.  Various  schemes and suggestions have been made to equate the two, but none are completely satisfactory.

Types of Chakras

Types of Chakras

The simplistic position asserts that there is only one type of chakra, or at best two (major and minor). This in fact is quite incorrect, and comes from the obscure nature of the aura and the subtle body (yogic anatomy), and the fact that the different grades, organs, strata, and so on are frequently confused and jumbled, owing to a lack of an overall systematic framework.

It seems to me that there are at least five different chakra series (and probably more). These are:

The Seven Primary Major Chakras – these are archetypal and pertain to the Inner Being. They represent the original microcosmic vertical axis (“Mount Meru”), and contain (links to) gods and major planes of existence

The Tan Tien (“Cauldren” for the processing of ch’i), of which there are at least three, which seem to constitute the etheric counterparts of the Primary Chakras, and are located with the body.

The (at least 18, if not much more) Secondary Major Chakras. These are etheric and pertain to the Outer Being. They ideally constitute – or rather can be awakened into – a rhythmic microcosmic orbit (although this is very rarely the case because of congested energy flow etc)

The ten(?) important “chakras” (if they can be called such) are obviously also associated with the internal organs. Chinese medicine speaks of the five pairs (one major and one minor) of internal organs, each pair associated with specific correspondences such as an emotion, a taste, colour, cardinal point, etc etc. These body chakras would seem to constitute a different series again.

A larger number of Tertiary, Minor Chakras. These are associated with acupunture points, sensitive points in the body, etc

An even much larger number of Quaternary, Quinternary etc chakras (minor acupuncture points etc), associated along the meridians.

Human Energy Systems

Human Energy Systems

In Sanskrit chakra means “wheel,” and those who can see them describe chakras as spinning wheels of light. They are found in the aura, an electromagnetic force field which surrounds every living being. The energy of the aura is that of our thoughts and feelings, and the chakras concentrate and coordinate the flow of these energies in and from the physical body.

We who use healing modalities based on subtle energy (flower essences, crystals, Reiki) believe that illness first manifests in the realm of thought and feelings. Stress is an excellent example. The mind says, “I’m doing too much; I’m under pressure.” This message translates into the emotional feeling of being burdened. On both levels resistance creates energetic blockages form, as mind and emotions try to close up against what is perceived as a negative experience.

If the mind and emotions continue to create resistance the blockage will eventually assume physical proportions, lodging in whichever physical area is most vulnerable.

The purpose of chakra balancing is to dissolve blockages before they become physical (although it can also be helpful with physical conditions. Crystals, being symmetrical in their molecular structure, radiate energy in a consistent and steady manner. When they’re used in chakra balancing they can help to reestablish a healing, creative flow.

Each chakra has a color, and usually stones of corresponding colors are placed there.