A Wellness Gateway Towards Spiritual Progress

A Wellness Gateway Towards Spiritual Progress

By Shruti ChaturLal Sharma

The chakras are delicate energy centers, literally “wheels”, that prevail on the physiological level as nerve plexuses.  All except the 7th are placed on the Sushmanaa, the central paramount channel within the spinal cord.  Life force travels through these channels or avenues, a literal “stairway to consciousness” or I may say, a “stairway to heaven”. 

Then the sun shines upon us, we feel its warmth, we feel its vibrations of heat upon us physically. It’s the vibration of light reflected that allows us to feel and see. In a similar case, we hear music because of the vibrations captured in the tiny chambers nautilus in our inner ear, composed of little hairs that vibrate when the sound reach them. This is how both sight and sound in our physical bodies are directly tied with vibrations.

Chanting of mantras also called Japa in Sanskrit, the syllable ‘ja’ destroys the birth and death cycle and the syllable ‘pa’ destroys all sins. The Japa itself has some classifications such as ‘vachika japa’ where one repeats the mantra out loud affecting the body physically. The second kind called’ upamshu japa’ is when chanting is whispered or muttered reaching deeply inside one’s soul. ‘Manasika japa’ on the other side are the mantras when chanted silently.

The word ‘mantra’ has taken root in the usage of ordinary English conversations many a times, but few of us are actually aware what mantra is all about. In simple words, mantras are the spiritual formulas tested by the ancient sages which brings energy and consciousness into the spine, and to the chakras located along the spine for a specific purpose, producing specific effects.

The first chakra, Muladhara is ruled by the ‘earth’ principle with its seed sound ‘Lam’. By chanting this seed sound, one begins to draw in energies that clears the chakra and start the process to ensure basic survival. Since our survival, emotional as well as physical, is often tied to desires, the mantra “Om Bhakta Saughagyah Dayinyei Namaha” help one to achieve abundance and provide energy that leads to the accumulation of positive thoughts in life.

Swadisthana, the second chakra is empowered by the element ‘water’ and sound seed ‘Vam’. The energy of this chakra is extremely powerful as it deals with the issues of pleasure, sexual identity. It can be harnessed and developed for extraordinary healing capabilities or it can be used to expose tricky physic damage to others. Addiction is also one of the problems that has its provenance with this chakra. Sometimes we find path of pleasure that are downright calamitous which may be drug or alcohol abuse, sexual addition or smoking. In our search of pleasure we must be sane for sure. The mantra “Om Jita Kamaya Namaha” helps to conquer a specific unhelpful desire that you identify.

At the third chakra called Manipura chakra, we begin to face our power issues with alteration in karmic circumstances. Being governed by Agni (fire) element, it has given us twelve spiritual gifts of the sun that can be obtained through chanting of the mantras ruling each of the planets. With a foundation mantra for these planets, they are also driven by other hundreds of mantras. So, if you have a problem in a certain area, you can reduce the karmic difficulties for that part of the body by working with corresponding planetary mantras. Remember, sun mantra “Om Surayaya Namaha” is chanted to increase courage and fame providing esoteric results such as illumination, healing abilities, spiritual magnetism. The sound seed for this ten petal lotus is ‘Ram’.

The Anhata Chakra is where humanity is united spiritually and where it will be ultimately be united in everyday life with sound seed ‘Yam’. This is the dwelling place where love manifests. Internally, this place is called Vishnu Granthi (knot), as it is located at three places along the spine acting as barriers, not letting the kundalini pass unless it is safe for the subtle & physical body. The mantra “Om Tare Tuttate Ture Swaha” is counted as the most powerful & compassionate in the Tibetan tradition, Tara being the universal foundation bringing incalculable blessings.

Lead by the ether principle, Vishuddha Chakra, is the gateway to the Akashic records. Everything is stored here, yet time in the normal sense does not exist. Time is like a rolled up canvas on which all the events of a particular cycle of creation are written which can be attuned with the great Gayatri Mantra. This sixteen petal lotus is disciplined with the sound ‘Hum’ and recognise the seven musical notes as its nectar.

The Ajna Chakra between the eyebrows has two petals and chord with seed sound ‘Om’, a place of cosmic unified mind. When Paramahansa Yogananda described meditation in his book “Autobiography of a Yogi” in which he had 360 vision, his consciousness was established at this chakra.

The thousand petal lotus at the crown of the head, Sahasara Chakra does not have a specific mantra but contains all the mantras. Here the actual attainment is being experienced with no more further levels to encompass.  In other words, all the levels and layers of universe exist here in potential rather than in manifest state.

But somehow, some schools of spiritual practice in India teach meditations that concentrate solely on the seed sounds that rule the chakras where as some are based on other means of mantras. However,  different schools have different ideas of how to clear the chakras and what kind of energy should be drawn in. Thus, practice your bit and experience what suits the best for you.