Mapping the Energy Body
Unit 2 - Master Your Energy E-course.
In this chapter we describe the main energy channels, currents and centers of our body and their symbolism, in order to have a general outlook of the archetypal forces that move our personality and soul.
Recording: Heart Centre Meditation
THE CENTRE OF THE ENERGY BODY
The energy body is a combination of different qualities of energy, which need to be owned and mastered as an integrated harmonious whole.
All is energy, as science states. Our energy bodies vibrate at different levels of energy, with matter and the physical body vibrating at the slowest rate. Our emotions and thoughts are energy forms which vibrate increasingly faster. Ultimately, we are only one energy, which is Light.
We have seen that energy flows in a two-way system with the Upwards and the Downward currents running through the central channel of the body (see The Basics of Energy Unit 1). We are on a journey where the Personality Self ascends to be melted into the Infinite Field of light and the Divine Consciousness descends to be manifested in the Individual Self.
The chakra system is the universal map of the different energies in the body. The system moves from the dense vibration of the root chakra at the base of the spine, to the light vibration of the crown chakra at the top of the head. All seven chakras need to be in harmony for our well-being, as they hold the basic elements of the universal force. For example balance and harmony needs to be achieved between the first 4 elemental chakras (earth, water, fire, air) and the 3 high vibrational chakras (ether, light, consciousness).
The centre of the energy body and of the chakra system is the Heart. The Heart is the place where all energies meet and connect. The earthy ascending kundalini energy meets here the light energy of the Soul streaming down into the body. From the heart all spectrum of energies radiates outwards. In the Heart, as the centre of our Being, we embrace wholeness. Here the lower chakras energies (Root, Sacral, Solar plexus) merge with the upper chakras energies (Throat, Third eye, Crown) to become one core essence. In the heart our Personality Chakras (1-2-3) are connected to our Soul Conscious chakras (5-6-7) to anchor Spirit in our centre.
Whilst moving through the chakra system energy takes different expressions. Imagine being a tree, your roots deeply grounded in the earth, you are drawing up water for your nourishment, your branches are soaking in sunlight, your leaves are literally breathing oxygen in and out. Earth, water, fire and air are creating your life.
The human body is similarly grounded in the lower energy body, which is composed of the same four elements. The dense matter of Earth in the first chakra (root) transforms into Water in the second chakra (sacral), into Fire in the third chakra (solar plexus) and into Air in the fourth chakra (heart). Ether is the element of the fifth chakra (throat) and represents the vibrational grid holding everything together. Light is the frequency of the sixth chakra (third eye) and pure consciousness is the energy of the seventh chakra (crown)
The chakras are energy vortexes connected to the body through the nervous system. They are in fact positioned at the main nervous ganglia along the spine. Through them energy is breathed in and out of the body and moved along the central axis of the body. Through the chakras we link to the quantum field of light all around.
Connect to your heart
As a first step to develop awareness of the energy body we need to centre in the heart. We can connect to heart by firstly putting the attention to our lower belly. The practice is very simple and in the shamanic reclaiming tradition is called “Dropped Attention”.
Take a deep breath and drop your attention into the lower belly, below the navel. Breathe deeply in and out from your belly. By breathing there notice how tension is automatically released from your upper body. Stay anchored in your belly and breathe all the tension up your body, to be discharged from your chest upwards, like a fountain.
Once you have emptied yourself of all tension, negative emotions and restless thoughts, your heart will naturally open. You may want to put one hand on your belly and one on the heart. Notice how the heart spontaneously opens whilst you are relaxed and centered in your belly. Breathe in and out of your heart. Feel the stillness, feel the peace. Feel how all your energy body becomes coherent there, if you can just be there with awareness of the breath.
Sit in your centre of light and notice the stillness arising.
Drop your attention in the belly many times during the day.
THE CHAKRA SYSTEM AS A MAP FOR AWAKENING
We will look at more ways in which energy is expressed through the chakra system and offer various interpretations, however it’s not about the mind understanding, it’s about direct experiencing of all energy frequencies within ourselves. There is no hierarchy of importance in the way Source energy manifests itself, our task as human beings is to be aware of the variety of its expression and to embody the whole spectrum at will.
Before going deeper in understanding the chakras, it is useful to refer to a simple step by step process, as a basic reference for working with their energy.
There are 3 steps in working with energy= EMPTY + RECEIVE + TRANSMIT
We empty to release energy disrupting or obstructing our inner flow.
We receive to embody those qualities of energy we need in the moment.
We transmit to send out certain qualities of energy in the environment.
We have the conscious power to empty-receive-transmit and we can direct the process. At the same time we are spontaneously moved by the power of the universal force in a continuous flow.
But what are the chakras exactly and do they really exist?
There are many traditions and systems which describe the chakras, offering a variety of perspectives and interpretations. These models describe the chakra system as a map to understand different qualities of energy, manifested in the outer world and within our psyche. Depending on the tradition each chakra corresponds to an element, a stage of life, a psychological archetype, a deity, a being of light, an animal, a cosmic energy, a symbol and more.
In most pictures Chakras are positioned around the main nervous ganglias along the spine. This is not a coincidence. Through the nervous system all information is transmitted from the brain to the body and viceversa. The transmission from the brain also happens chemically, through hormones and neurotransmitters.
Ultimately the answer is that chakras do not exist in the strict physical realm. Like thoughts they are not tangible, whilst the physical brain is. However they exist in a subtle realm and we feel them in the body, like we feel grief in the heart or anxiety in the solar plexus or tension in the head.
Being so connected to the physical body leads to thinking that chakras are the interface between the body and more subtle dimensions of consciousness.
I also agree with the interpretation of A. Judith that chakras exist as a storage system for programs, like software uploaded in the hard-drive of a computer. The body is the hardware, the chakras are the software and energy is the electricity.
The software is created by the imprinting of all our experiences in the body. Imprints of memories, beliefs and emotions get encoded at a cellular level as demonstrated by many scientists (i.e. Bruce Lipton, Candice Pert and more).
Chakras are a map to uncover thoughts and emotions ultimately stored in the body. Stored thoughts and emotions behave like programs which determine conditioned behaviors. When negative programs or energy imprints are activated, they alter the flow of energy in the body and cause reactive behaviors over which we don’t have conscious choice. Who we are is light and power and all our negative stories, memories and beliefs need to be cleared for the ultimate purpose of allowing this light to flow untainted in our Body and Being.
One day whilst I was buying a property, I woke up in a state of fear and anxiety. It was big decision, raising many emotions, memories and doubts. My chest was contracted, I felt tearful and weak. No breathing or attempt to relax would work. But suddenly a thought hit me:
“Fear is just a programme, IT IS NOT REAL”. A program is not who I am. I am light. In an instant all my anxiety and physical contraction was gone! A thought of trust had arisen instead.
If thoughts and experiences get encoded in the body, we need to add one more step to the process of working with energy and the chakras
From:
EMPTY + RECEIVE + TRANSMIT
To:
EMPTY + RECEIVE + STORE + TRANSMIT
We store programs in our body and in our chakras, derived from our life experiences and belief system. These programs influence the way we perceive the world and receive and transmit energy. With awareness and choice we can consciously transform them into more functional and joyful ones.
THE PRINCIPLE OF WHOLENESS: BALANCING ALL ENERGIES IN THE BODY
The world of archetypal energies is indeed vast, as much vast as we can imagine qualities of being.
For the purpose of mapping the energy body we have classified a few basic types of energies, such as the upward and downward currents and the 5 elements of earth, water, fire, air and ether. We have divided the personality chakras (root, sacral and solar plexus) from the soul chakras (throat, third eye and crown), in consideration of the energy moving from density to high consciousness. We have felt our sacred centre in the heart chakra.
According to the Vedic yoga tradition there are three main channels of energy, from the base chakra to the crown: the Sushumna Nadi, flowing in the centre, and the Ida and the Pingala nadi arising at the sides in a spiral dance. The Ida and Pingala currents represent the Feminine and Masculine principles. Each chakra has in fact a female and male aspect. In a balanced energy body female and male energies are balanced and integrated.
Many traditions look at balancing the three selves, as the basic archetypes of the Soul. In huna shamanism these are called the Basic Self, the Conscious Self and the Higher Self, whose energies can be correlated to the lower chakras (Basic Self), upper chakras (Conscious Self) and heart (Higher Self). The new Age movement looks for harmony of Body, Mind and Spirit. Psychologists search the integration of Subconscious, Conscious and Superconscious. Metaphysical teacher D.J. Stone speaks about the Subconscious Power, Personal Power and God Power. In Reclaiming Wicca, these are called the Younger Self, the Talking Self and the Deep Self.
In the psychological model of A. Judith, in each chakra we can individuate developmental archetypes, like the Inner Child from birth to puberty, the Adolescent Self and the Adult Self. These are real energy forms, that exist as memories imprinted in our mind and body and that create the world of perception we live in.
We will go deeper in understanding these main archetypal energues by adding further symbology from mythology and shamanism and there would be many other traditions to explore, such as the metaphysics of the 12 Rays, the astrological signs and the tarot archetypes to name a few. The way Spirit manifests itself in the world of dense and subtle creation is, in fact, limitless. However, without losing complexity we want to create a simple guide, that gives us major signposts to direct our personal journey.
To summarise we are going to follow this map of energies:
2 currents: Upward and Downward current
5 elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether
Male/Female Archetype
3 selves: Body Self/Conscious Self/Higher Self
Lower Personality chakras 1-2-3
Heart chakra, balancing centre
Upper Soul chakras chakras 5-6-7
The primary purpose of mapping the energy body is to seek an overall balance, where we embody all the basic energies, so that they can work as a harmonious whole.
We often disown certain archetypes because of conditioning and trauma, therefore blocking the access to their energy and power. When this happens these energies remain unexpressed in the shadow of our psyche.
For example some people are too earthy, too grounded and attached to material possessions and cannot open to new ideas and a more spiritual vision of life. In this case there will be an overload of energy in the lower chakras. Other people are polarized in their upper chakras, either too much in their mind or too open psychically and find it difficult to make things happen in a grounded way. In this case there will be an overload of energy in the upper chakras.
Another example is the balance of the Feminine and Masculine principles in our psyche, where we express one side too much over the other. My life journey has been of reclaiming my feminine self, in her magical, intuitive, emotionally open and loving aspect, in a society that values more the masculine qualities of logic and focused action. In the process however, I had to integrate my masculine energy as well, which lied in the shadow of my psyche because I judged it as being aggressive and dominating. Ultimately, we need both energies: the feminine for her perception and openness and the masculine for his determination and focused ability to manifest.
Some patterns of energy are over expressed or under expressed and this can lead to an unbalance in the giving and receiving process. My favorite pattern is that I love too much, in order to be loved back. I am generous with my energy with others and I end up being depleted as I am not recharging in self-love and self-care. Other people do the same when they overdo power by working hard and controlling everything, often out of low self-value, only to dissipate a lot of energy and end up feeling burn-out.
We will go deeper in observing our shadow patterns when we will experience the energies of the different elements, i.e: are you watery enough and flowing with life? Are you expressing your fire and passion? and so on. We will also observe how we express the combined features of our inner selves, such as the Inner child and the Adult self or the Basic self- Conscious self and Higher self.
The simple truth about mastering our energy is that we need to be whole and embrace all our unloved parts, releasing hurt and pain from our energy body, so that the universal force can express itself freely and accordingly to what is needed in every moment.
The Inka shamans used to say: I am the Wind and the Fire, I am the mountains, the rivers and the stars. We are both physical and light beings, we are God and Goddess, we are Love, we are Source Energy in its vast forms of expression.
