TheChakrasAMONOGRAPH

BY

C.W.Leadbeater

withtencolourillustrations

AnandGholapTheosophicalInstitute

2009

PREFACETOTHEFIRSTEDITION

WHENamanbeginstodevelophissenses,sothathemayseealittlemorethaneverybody sees, a new andmost fascinatingworld opens before him, and thechakras are among the first objects in that world to attract his attention. Hisfellow-men present themselves under a fresh aspect; he perceives much withregardtothemwhichwaspreviouslyhiddenfromhiseyes,andheis thereforeabletounderstand,toappreciateand(whennecessary)tohelpthemmuchbetterthanhe could before.Their thoughts and feelings are expressed clearly beforehiseyesincolourandform;thestageoftheirdevelopment,theconditionoftheirhealthbecomeobviousfacts insteadofmeremattersof inference.Thebrilliantcolouring and the rapid and incessant movement of the chakras bring themimmediately under his observation, and he naturallywants to knowwhat theyare andwhat theymean. It is the object of this book to provide an answer tothose questions and to give to those who have not yet made any attempt tounfoldtheirdormantfacultiessomeideaofatleastthisonesmallsectionofwhatisseenbytheirmorefortunatebrethren.

Inordertoclearawayinevitablepreliminarymisconceptions,letitbedefinitelyunderstood that there is nothing fanciful or unnatural about the sight whichenables somemen to perceivemore than others. It is simply an extension offaculties with which we are all familiar, and to acquire it is to make oneselfsensitive to vibrationsmore rapid than those towhich our physical senses arenormallytrainedtorespond.Thesefacultieswillcometoeveryoneinduecourseofevolution,butsomeofushavetakenspecialtroubletodevelopthemnowinadvanceoftherest,atthecostofmanyyearsofharderworkthanmostpeoplewouldcaretoundertake.

Iknowthattherearestillmanymenintheworldwhoaresofarbehindthetimesastodenytheexistenceofsuchpowers,justastherearestillvillagerswhohavenever seen a railway train. I have neither time nor space to argue with suchinvincibleignorance;IcanonlyreferenquirerstomybookonClairvoyance,ortoscoresofbooksbyotherauthorsonthesamesubject.Thewholecasehasbeenprovedhundredsoftimes,andnoonewhoiscapableofweighingthevalueofevidencecananylongerbeindoubt.

Muchhasbeenwrittenaboutthechakras,butitischieflyinSanskritorinsome

oftheIndianvernaculars.ItisonlyquiterecentlythatanyaccountofthemhasappearedinEnglish.ImentionedthemmyselfinTheInnerLife about1910,andsincethenSirJohnWoodroffesmagnificentworkTheSerpentPower hasbeen issued, and some of the other Indian books have been translated. Thesymbolical drawings of them which are used by the Indian yogis werereproduced in The Serpent Power, but so far as I am aware the illustrationswhichIgiveinthisbookarethefirstattempttorepresentthemastheyactuallyappeartothosewhocanseethem.Indeed,itischieflyinordertoputbeforethepublicthisfineseriesofdrawingsbymyfriendtheRev.EdwardWarnerthatIwrite thisbook,andIwish toexpressmydeep indebtedness tohimforall thetime and trouble that he has devoted to them. I have also to thank myindefatigable collaborator, Professor Ernest Wood, for the collection andcollation of all the valuable information as to the Indian views on our subjectwhichiscontainedinChapterV.

Beingmuchoccupiedwithotherwork,itwasmyintentionmerelytocollectandreprintasaccompanyingletterpresstotheillustrationsthevariousarticleswhichIhadlongagowrittenonthesubject;butasIlookedoverthemcertainquestionssuggestedthemselvesandalittleinvestigationputmeinpossessionofadditionalfacts, which I have duly incorporated. An interesting point is that both thevitality-globuleand thekundalini-ringwereobservedbyDr.AnnieBesantandcataloguedashyper-meta-protoelementsaslongagoas1895,thoughwedidnotthen follow them far enough to discover their relation to one another and theimportantpartthattheyplayintheeconomyofhumanlife.

C.W.L.

CHAPTERI

THEFORCE—CENTRES

THEMEANINGOFTHEWORD

THEwordChakra isSanskrit, andsignifiesawheel. It isalsoused invarioussubsidiary,derivativeandsymbolicalsenses,justasisitsEnglishequivalent;aswemightspeakofthewheeloffate,sodoestheBuddhistspeakofthewheeloflifeanddeath;andhedescribesthatfirstgreatsermoninwhichtheLordBuddhapropoundedhisdoctrineas theDhammachakkappavattanaSutta (chakkabeingthe Pali equivalent for the Sanskrit chakra) which Professor Rhys Davidspoeticallyrendersastosetrollingtheroyalchariot-wheelofauniversalempireof truth and righteousness.That is exactly the spirit of themeaningwhich theexpressionconveystotheBuddhistdevotee,thoughtheliteraltranslationofthebarewordsistheturningofthewheeloftheLaw.Thespecialuseofthewordchakrawithwhichweareatthemomentconcernedisitsapplicationtoaseriesofwheel-likevorticeswhichexistinthesurfaceoftheethericdoubleofman.

PRELIMINARYEXPLANATIONS

AsthisbookmayprobablyfallintothehandsofsomewhoarenotfamiliarwithTheosophical terminology it may be well to insert here a few words ofpreliminaryexplanation.

In ordinary superficial conversation a man sometimes mentions his soul—implying that thebody throughwhichhe speaks is the realman, and that thisthing called the soul is a possession or appanage[1] of that body—a sort ofcaptive balloon floating over him, and in some vague sort ofway attached tohim.Thisisaloose,inaccurateandmisleadingstatement;theexactoppositeisthetruth.Manisasoulandownsabody—severalbodiesinfact;forbesidesthevisiblevehiclebymeansofwhichhetransactshisbusinesswithhislowerworld,hehasotherswhicharenotvisibletoordinarysight,bymeansofwhichhedealswiththeemotionalandmentalworlds.Withthose,however,wearenotforthemomentconcerned.

In the course of the last century enormous advances have been made in ourknowledgeoftheminutedetailsofthephysicalbody;studentsofmedicinearenowfamiliarwithitsbewilderingcomplexities,andhaveatleastageneralideaofthewayinwhichitsamazinglyintricatemachineryworks.

THEETHERICDOUBLE

Naturally, however, theyhavehad to confine their attention to thatpart of thebody which is dense enough to be visible to the eye, and most of them areprobablyunawareof the existenceof that typeofmatter, still physical thoughinvisible,towhichinTheosophywegivethenameofetheric.[4]Thisinvisiblepartofthephysicalbodyisofgreatimportancetous,foritisthevehiclethroughwhichflowthestreamsofvitalitywhichkeepthebodyalive,andwithoutitasabridgetoconveyundulationsofthoughtandfeelingfromtheastraltothevisibledenserphysicalmatter,theego[5]-couldmakenouseofthecellsofhisbrain.Itis clearly visible to the clairvoyant as a mass of faintly-luminous violet-greymist, interpenetrating the denser part of the body, and extending very slightlybeyondit.

Thelifeofthephysicalbodyisoneofperpetualchange,andinorderthatitshallliveitneedsconstantlytobesuppliedfromthreedistinctsources.Itmusthavefood for its digestion, air for its breathing, and vitality in three forms for itsabsorption.This vitality is essentially a force, butwhen clothedwithmatter itappearstousasthoughitwereahighlyrefinedchemicalelement.Itexistsuponallplanes,butourbusinessforthemomentistoconsideritsmanifestationinthephysicalworld.

In order to understand that, wemust know something of the constitution andarrangement of this etheric part of our bodies. I have written on this subjectmany years ago in various volumes, and Colonel A. E. Powell has recentlygatheredtogetheralltheinformationheretoforepublished andissueditinaconvenientforminabookcalledTheEthericDouble.[7]

THECENTRES

The chakras or force-centres are points of connection at which energy flowsfromonevehicleorbodyofaman toanother.Anyonewhopossessesa slightdegree of clairvoyancemay easily see them in the etheric double,where theyshowthemselvesassaucer-likedepressionsorvorticesinitssurface.Whenquite

undevelopedtheyappearassmallcirclesabouttwoinchesindiameter,glowingdully in the ordinary man; but when awakened and vivified they are seen asblazing, coruscating whirlpools, much increased in size, and resemblingminiaturesuns.Wesometimesspeakofthemasroughlycorrespondingtocertainphysical organs; in reality they show themselves at the surface of the ethericdouble, which projects slightly beyond the outline of the dense body. If weimagineourselves to be looking straight down into thebell of a flowerof theconvolvulustype,weshallgetsomeideaofthegeneralappearanceofachakra.Thestalkoftheflowerineachspringsfromapointinthespine,soanotherviewmightshowthespineasacentralstem(seePlateIX),fromwhichflowersshootforthatintervals,showingtheopeningoftheirbellsatthesurfaceoftheethericbody.

Thesevencentreswithwhichweareatpresentconcernedare indicated in theaccompanying illustration (Fig. 1). Table I gives their English and Sanskritnames.

Allthesewheelsareperpetuallyrotating,andintothehuboropenmouthofeacha force from the higher world is always flowing- a manifestation of the life-streamissuingfromtheSecondAspectof theSolarLogos—whichwecall theprimaryforce.Thatforceissevenfoldinitsnature,andallitsformsoperateineachof thesecentres,althoughoneof them ineachcaseusuallypredominatesovertheothers.Withoutthisinrushofenergythephysicalbodycouldnotexist.Thereforethecentresareinoperationineveryone,althoughintheundevelopedperson they are usually in comparatively sluggish motion, just forming thenecessaryvortexfortheforce,andnomore.Inamoreevolvedmantheymaybeglowingandpulsatingwithlivinglight,sothatanenormouslygreateramountofenergypassesthroughthem,withtheresultthatthereareadditionalfacultiesandpossibilitiesopentotheman.

FrontispieceTheHead(Crown)Chakra

THEFORMOFTHEVORTICES

This divine energywhichpours into each centre fromwithout sets up at rightangles to itself (that is to say, in the surface of the etheric double) secondaryforcesinundulatorycircularmotion,justasbar-magnetthrustintoaninductioncoilproducesacurrentofelectricitywhichflowsroundthecoilatrightanglestotheaxisordirectionofthemagnet.Theprimaryforceitself,havingenteredthevortex,radiatesfromitagainatrightangles,butinstraightlines,asthoughthecentreofthevortexwerethehubofawheel,andtheradiationsoftheprimary

forceitsspokes.Bymeansofthesespokestheforceseemstobindtheastralandetheric bodies together as though with grappling-hooks. The number of thesespokesdiffersinthedifferentforce-centres,anddeterminesthenumberofwavesorpetalswhicheachofthemexhibits.BecauseofthisthesecentreshaveoftenbeenpoeticallydescribedinOrientalbooksasresemblingflowers.

EnglishName SanskritName SituationRootorBasicChakra Muladhara AtthebaseofthespineSpleenorSplenicChakra OverthespleenNavelorUmbilicalChakra Manipura Atthenavel,overthesolar

plexusHeartorCardiacChakra Anahata OvertheheartThroatorLaryngealChakra

Vishuddha Atthefrontofthethroat

BroworfrontalChakra Ajna Inthespacebetweentheeyebrows

CrownorCoronalChakra Sahasrara Onthetopofthehead

TABLE1TheChakras

Eachofthesecondaryforceswhichsweeproundthesaucer-likedepressionhasits own characteristic wave-length, just as has light of a certain colour; butinsteadofmovinginastraightlineaslightdoes,itmovesalongrelativelylargeundulations of various sizes, each of which is some multiple of the smallerwave-lengthswithinit.Thenumberofundulationsisdeterminedbythenumberofspokesinthewheel,andthesecondaryforceweavesitselfunderandovertheradiating currents of the primary force, just as basket-work might be wovenround the spokes of a carriage-wheel. Thewave-lengths are infinitesimal, andprobably thousandsof themare includedwithinoneof theundulations.As theforcesrushroundinthevortex,theseoscillationsofdifferentsizes,crossingoneanother in this basket-work fashion, produce the flower-like form to which Ihavereferred.Itis,perhaps,stillmoreliketheappearanceofcertainsaucersorshallowvasesofwavyiridescentglass,suchasaremadeinVenice.Alloftheseundulationsorpetalshavethatshimmeringpavonineeffect,likemother-of-pearl,yeteachof themhasusually itsownpredominantcolour,aswillbeseenfromourillustrations.ThisnacreoussilveryaspectislikenedinSanskritworkstothegleamofmoonlightonwater.

THEILLUSTRATIONS

These illustrations of ours show the chakras as seen by clairvoyant sight in afairly evolved and intelligent person, who has already brought them to someextentintoworkingorder.Ofcourseourcoloursarenotsufficientlyluminous—noearthlycolourscouldbe;butatleastthedrawingswillgivesomeideaoftheactualappearanceofthesewheelsoflight.Itwillbeunderstoodfromwhathasalready been said that the centres vary in size and in brightness in differentpeople, and that even in the same person some of them may be much moredevelopedthantherest.Theyaredrawnaboutlife-size,exceptfortheSahasraraorcrownchakra,whichwehavefounditnecessarytomagnifyinordertoshowits amazing wealth of detail. In the case of a man who excels greatly in thequalitieswhichexpress themselves throughacertaincentre, thatcentrewillbenotonlymuchenlargedbutalsoespeciallyradiant,throwingoutbrilliantgoldenrays.AnexampleofthatmaybeseeninMadameBlavatskysprecipitationoftheauraofMr.StaintonMoses,whichisnowkeptinacabinetinthearchivesoftheSociety at Adyar. It is reproduced, though very imperfectly, on page 364 ofVolumeIofColonelOlcott’sOldDiaryLeaves.

Thesechakrasnaturallydivideintothreegroups, thelower, themiddleandthehigher;theymightbecalledrespectivelythephysiological,thepersonalandthespiritual.

The first and second chakras, having but few spokes or petals, are principallyconcernedwith receiving into the body two forceswhich come into it at thatphysical level—one being the serpent-fire from the earth and the other thevitalityfromthesun.Thecentresofthemiddlegroup,numbered3,4and5,areengagedwiththeforceswhichreachmanthroughhispersonality—throughthelowerastral in thecaseofcentre3, thehigherastral incentre4, and from thelowermind in centre 5. All these centres seem to feed certain ganglia in thebody. Centres 6 and 7 stand apart from the rest, being connected with thepituitary body and the pineal gland respectively, and coming into action onlywhenacertainamountofspiritualdevelopmenthastakenplace.

Ihavehearditsuggestedthateachofthedifferentpetalsoftheseforce-centresrepresents amoral quality, and that the development of that quality brings thecentreintoactivity.Forexample,inTheDhyana-binduUpanishad thepetalsoftheheartchakraareassociatedwithdevotion,laziness,anger,charityandsimilarqualities.Ihavenotyetmetwithanyfactswhichdefinitelyconfirmthis,andit

isnoteasytoseeexactlyhowitcanbe,becausetheappearanceisproducedbycertain readily recognizable forces, and the petals in any particular centre areeither active or not active according as these forces have or have not beenaroused, and their unfoldment seems to have no more direct connection withmorality than has the enlargement of the biceps. I have certainly met withpersons in whom some of the centres were in full activity, though the moraladvancementwasbynomeansexceptionallyhigh,whereasinotherpersonsofhighspiritualityandthenoblestpossiblemoralitythecentreswerescarcelyyetvitalized at all; so that there does not seem to be any necessary connectionbetweenthetwodevelopments.

There are, however, certain facts observable which may be the basis of thisrathercuriousidea.Althoughthelikenesstopetalsiscausedbythesameforcesflowing round and round the centre, alternately over and under the variousspokes, those spokes differ in character, because the inrushing force issubdivided into its component parts or qualities, and therefore each spokeradiatesaspecializedinfluenceofitsown,eventhoughthevariationsbeslight.The secondary force, in passing each spoke, is to someextentmodifiedby itsinfluence, and therefore changes a little in its hue. Some of these shades ofcolourmayindicateaformoftheforcewhichishelpfultothegrowthofsomemoralquality,andwhenthatqualityisstrengtheneditscorrespondingvibrationwillbemorepronounced.Thusthedeepeningorweakeningofthetintmightbetakentobetokenthepossessionofmoreorlessofthatattribute.

THEROOTCHAKRA

Thefirstcentre,thebasic(PlateI),atthebaseofthespine,hasaprimaryforcewhichradiatesoutinfourspokes,andthereforearrangesitsundulationssoastogivetheeffectofitsbeingdividedintoquadrants,alternatelyredandorangeinhue,withhollowsbetweenthem.Thismakesitseemasthoughmarkedwiththesignof the cross, and for that reason the cross is oftenused to symbolize thiscentre,andsometimesaflamingcrossistakentoindicatetheserpent-firewhichresides in it. When acting with any vigour this chakra is fiery orange-red incolour,correspondingcloselywith the typeofvitalitywhich issentdownto itfromthespleniccentre.Indeed,itwillbenoticedthatinthecaseofeveryoneofthechakrasasimilarcorrespondencewiththecolourofitsvitalitymaybeseen.

THESPLEENCHAKRA

The second centre, the splenic (Plate II), at the spleen, is devoted to thespecialization,subdivisionanddispersionofthevitalitywhichcomestousfromthesun.Thatvitality ispouredoutagain from it in sixhorizontal streams, theseventhvarietybeingdrawnintothehubofthewheel.Thiscentrethereforehassix petals or undulations, all of different colours, and is specially radiant,glowingandsunlike.Eachofthesixdivisionsofthewheelshowspredominantlythecolourofoneoftheformsofthevitalforce-red,orange,yellow,green,blueandviolet.

THENAVELCHAKRA

Thethirdcentre,theumbilical(PlateIII),atthenavelorsolarplexus,receivesaprimary forcewith ten radiations, so it vibrates in such amanner as to divideitselfintotenundulationsorpetals.Itisverycloselyassociatedwithfeelingsandemotions of various kinds. Its predominant colour is a curious blending ofseveral shades of red, though there is also a great deal of green in it. Thedivisionsarealternatelychieflyredandchieflygreen.

THEHEARTCHAKRA

The fourth centre, the cardiac (Plate IV), at the heart, is of a glowing goldencolour,andeachofitsquadrantsisdividedintothreeparts,whichgivesittwelveundulations,becauseitsprimaryforcemakesforittwelvespokes.

THETHROATCHAKRA

The fifth centre, the laryngeal (PlateV), at the throat, has sixteen spokes, andtherefore sixteen apparent divisions.There is a gooddeal of blue in it, but itsgeneraleffectissilveryandgleaming,withakindofsuggestionasofmoonlightuponripplingwater.Blueandgreenpredominatealternatelyinitssections.

THEBROWCHAKRA

The sixth centre, the frontal (Plate VI), between the eyebrows, has theappearanceofbeingdividedintohalves,onechieflyrose-coloured,thoughwithagreatdealofyellowaboutit,andtheotherpredominantlyakindofpurplish-blue,againcloselyagreeingwiththecoloursofthespecialtypesofvitalitythatvivify it. Perhaps it is for this reason that this centre is mentioned in Indianbooks ashavingonly twopetals, though ifwe are to countundulationsof the

same character as those of the previous centreswe shall find that each half issubdividedintoforty-eightofthese,makingninety-sixinall,becauseitsprimaryforcehasthatnumberofradiations.

This sudden leap form 16 to 96 spokes, and again the even more startlingvariationfrom96to972betweenthisandthenextchakra,showusthatwearenowdealingwithcentresofanaltogetherdifferentorder fromthosewhichwehave hitherto been considering. We do not yet know all the factors whichdetermine thenumberofspokes inachakra,but it isalreadyevident that theyrepresentshadesofvariationintheprimaryforce.Beforewecansaymuchmorethan this, hundreds of observations and comparisons must be made—made,repeated andverifiedover andover again.Butmeantime thismuch is clear—thatwhile the need of the personality can be satisfied by a limited number oftypesof force,whenwecome to thehigherandmorepermanentprinciplesofmanweencounteracomplexity,amultiplicity,whichdemandsforitsexpressionavastlygreaterselectionofmodificationsoftheenergy.

THECROWNCHAKRA

Theseventhcentre,thecoronal(seefrontispiece),atthetopofthehead,iswhenstirred into full activity the most resplendent of all, full of indescribablechromatic,effectsandvibratingwithalmost inconceivablerapidity.Itseemstocontainallsortsofprismatichues,butisonthewholepredominantlyviolet.Itisdescribed in Indian books as thousand-petalled, and really this is not very farfrom the truth, the number of the radiations of its primary force in the outercircle being nine hundred and sixty. Every line of this will be seen faithfullyreproducedinourfrontispiece,thoughitishardlypossibletogivetheeffectoftheseparatepetals.Inadditiontothisithasafeaturewhichispossessedbynoneof theother chakras—asortof subsidiary centralwhirlpoolofgleamingwhiteflushedwithgoldinitsheart—aminoractivitywhichhastwelveundulationsofitsown.

Thischakra isusually the last tobeawakened. In thebeginning it is thesamesizeastheothers,butasthemanprogressesonthePathofspiritualadvancementit increases steadily until it covers almost thewhole top of the head.Anotherpeculiarityattendsitsdevelopment.Itisatfirstadepressionintheethericbody,asarealltheother,becausethroughit,asthroughthem,thedivineforceflowsinfromwithout; but when theman realizes his position as a king of the divine

light,dispensinglargessetoallaroundhim,thischakrareversesitself,turningasit were inside out; it is no longer a channel of reception but of radiation, nolongeradepressionbutaprominence,standingoutfromtheheadasadome,averitablecrownofglory.

InOriental pictures and statues of the deities or greatmen this prominence isoftenshown.InFig.2itappearsontheheadofastatueoftheLordBuddhaatBorobudurinJava.Thisistheconventionalmethodofrepresentingit,andinthisformitistobefoundupontheheadsofthousandsofimagesoftheLordBuddhaallovertheEasternworld.InmanycasesitwillbeseenthatthetwotiersoftheSahasrara chakraare copied—the largerdomeof960petals first, and then thesmaller domeof 12 risingout of that in turn.Theheadon the right is that ofBrahmafromtheHokke-doofTodai-ji,atNarainJapan(datingfromA.D.749);anditwillbeseenthatthestatueiswearingahead-dressfashionedtorepresentthis chakra, though in a form somewhat different from the last, showing thecoronetofflamesshootingupfromit.

Fig2RepresentationsoftheCrownChakra

ItappearsalsointheChristiansymbology,inthecrownswornbythefour-and-twentyelderswhoareforevercastingthemdownbeforethethroneofGod.Inthe highly developed man this coronal chakra pours out splendour and glory

which makes for him a veritable crown; and the meaning of that passage ofScriptureisthatallthathehasgained,allthemagnificentkarmathathemakes,allthewondrousspiritualforcethathegenerates—allthathecastsperpetuallyatthe feet of theLocos to be used in hiswork.So, over andover again, canhecontinue tocastdownhisgoldencrown,because itcontinuallyre-formsas theforcewellsupfromwithinhim.

OTHERACCOUNTSOFTHECENTRES

Thesesevenforce-centresarefrequentlydescribedinSanskritliterature,insomeof theminorUpanishads, in the Puranas and in Tantricworks. They are usedtoday bymany Indian yogis. A friend acquainted with the inner life of Indiaassuresmethatheknowsofoneschoolinthatcountrywhichmakesfreeuseofthe chakras—a school which numbers as its pupils about sixteen thousandpeople scattered over a large area. There is much interesting informationavailable on the subject fromHindu sources,whichwewill try to summarizewithcommentsinalaterchapter.

ItappearsalsothatcertainEuropeanmysticswereacquaintedwiththechakras.Evidence of this occurs in a book entitled Theosophia Practica by the well-knownGermanmystic JohannGeorgGichtel, a pupil of JacobBoehme,whoprobablybelongedtothesecretsocietyoftheRosicrucians.Itisfromthisworkof Gichtels that our Plate VII is reproduced by the kind permission of thepublishers. This book was originally issued in the year 1696, though in theedition of 1736 it is said that the pictures, of which the volume is mainly adescription,wereprintedonlysometenyearsafterthedeathoftheauthor,whichtookplacein1710.ThebookmustbedistinguishedfromacollectionofGichtelscorrespondenceputforthunderthesametitleTheosophiaPractica; thepresentvolumeisnotintheformofletters,butconsistsofsixchaptersdealingwiththesubject of that mystic regeneration which was such an important tenet of theRosicrucians.

The illustration which we give here has been photographed from the Frenchtranslation of theTheosophia Practica, published in 1897 in theBibliothequeRosicrucienne(No.4)bytheBibliothequeChacornac,Paris.

Gichtel,whowasbornin1638,atRatisboninBavaria,studiedtheologyandlawandpractisedasanadvocate;butafterwards,becomingconsciousofaspiritualworldwithin,gaveupallworldlyinterestsandbecamethefounderofamystical

Christianmovement.Being opposed to the ignorant orthodoxy of his time, hedrewdownuponhimself thehatredof thosewhomhehadattacked,andabout1670 he was consequently banished, and his property confiscated. He finallyfoundrefugeinHolland,wherehelivedfortheremainingfortyyearsofhislife.

HeevidentlyconsideredthefiguresprintedinhisTheosophiaPracticaasbeingof a secret nature; apparently they were kept within the small circle of hisdisciplesforquiteanumberofyears.Theywere,hesays,theresultofaninnerillumination—presumably of what in our modern times we should callclairvoyant faculties. On the title-page of his book he says that it is, A shortexpositionofthethreeprinciplesofthethreeworldsinman,representedinclearpictures,showinghowandwheretheyhavetheirrespectiveCentresintheinnerman;accordingtowhattheauthorhasfoundinhimselfindivinecontemplation,andwhathehasfelt,tastedandperceived.

Like most mystics of his day, however, Gichtel lacks the exactitude whichshould characterize true occultism and mysticism; in his description of thefiguresheallowshimselflengthy,thoughoftentimesquiteinterestingdigressionson the difficulties and problems of the spiritual life. As an exposition of hisillustrations,however,hisbookisnotasuccess.Perhapshedidnotdaretosaytoo much; or he may have wished to induce his readers to learn to see forthemselves that of which he was writing. It seems likely that by the trulyspirituallifewhichheledhehaddevelopedsufficientclairvoyancetoseethesechakras,but thathewasunawareof their truecharacteranduse,so that inhisattemptstoexplaintheirmeaning,heattachedtothemthecurrentsymbolismofthemysticschooltowhichliebelonged.

He is here dealing, aswill be seen,with the natural earthlyman in a state ofdarkness,sohehasperhapssomeexcuseforbeingalittlepessimisticabouthischakras.He lets the firstandsecondpasswithoutcomment (possiblyknowingthattheyarechieflyconcernedwithphysiologicalprocesses),butlabelsthesolarplexusas thehomeofanger—asindeedit is.Hesees theheart-centreasfilledwith self-love, the throatwith envy and avarice; and the higher centres of theheadradiatenothingbetterthanpride.

Healsoassignsplanetstothechakras,givingtheMoontothebasic,Mercurytothesplenic,Venustotheumbilical,theSuntotheheart(thoughitwillbenotedthatasnakeiscoiledroundit),Marstothelaryngeal,Jupitertothefrontal,andSaturntothecoronal.Heinformsusfurtherthatfireresidesintheheart,waterin

theliver,earthinthelungs,andairinthebladder.

It isnoteworthy thathedrawsaspiral, startingfromthesnakeround theheartand passing through all the centres in turn; but there seems no very definitereason for the order in which this line touches them. The symbolism of therunningdogisnotexplained,soweareleftatlibertytointerpretitaswewill.

Plate1THEROOTCHAKRA

Plate2THESPLEENCHAKRA

Plate3THENAVELCHAKRA

Plate4THEHEARTCHAKRA

Plate5THETHROATCHAKRA

Plate6THEBROWCHAKRA

Frontispiece-TheHeadCenter

Plate7TheChakrasaccordingtoGichtel

Plate8-THESTREAMSOFVITALITY

The author gives us later an illustration of theman regenerated by theChrist,who has entirely crushed the serpent, but has replaced the Sun by the SacredHeart,drippinggoremostgruesomely.

The interestof thepicture tous,however, isnot in theauthors interpretations,butinthefactthatitshowsbeyondthepossibilityofmistakethatatleastsomeofthemysticsoftheseventeenthcenturyknewoftheexistenceandpositionofthesevencentresinthehumanbody.

Further evidence of early knowledge about these force-centres exists in theritualsofFreemasonry, thesalientpointsofwhichcomedowntousfromtimeimmemorial;themonumentsshowthatthesepointswereknownandpractisedinancientEgypt, and they have been handed down faithfully to the present day.Masonsfindthemamongtheirsecrets,andbyutilizingthemactuallystimulatecertainof thesecentres for theoccasionand thepurposeof theirwork, thoughtheygenerallyknowlittleornothingofwhatishappeningbeyondtherangeofnormalsight.Obviouslyexplanationsareimpossiblehere,butIhavementionedasmuchofthematterasispermissibleinTheHiddenLifeinFreemasonry.

CHAPTERII

THEFORCES

THEPRIMARYORLIFEFORCE

THEDeitysendsforthfromHimselfvariousformsofenergy;theremaywellbehundredsofwhichweknownothing;butsomefewofthemhavebeenobserved.Each of those seen has its appropriatemanifestation at every levelwhich ourstudentshaveyetreached;butforthemomentletusthinkofthemastheyshowthemselves in the physical world. One of them exhibits itself as electricity,anotherastheserpent-fire,anotherasvitality,andyetanotherasthelife-force,whichisquiteadifferentthingfromvitality,aswillpresentlybeseen.

Patientandlong-continuedeffortisneededbythestudentwhowouldtracetheseforcestotheiroriginandrelatethemtooneanother.AtthetimewhenIcollectedinto the bookTheHidden Side of Things the answers to questionswhich hadbeenaskedduringpreviousyearsat the roofmeetingsatAdyar, Iknewof themanifestationonthephysicalplaneofthelife-force,ofkundaliniandofvitality,butnotyetoftheirrelationtotheThreeOutpourings,sothatIdescribedthemasentirelydifferentandseparatefromthem.Furtherresearchhasenabledmetofillthe gap, and I am glad now to have the opportunity of correcting the mis-statementwhichIthenmade.

There are three principal forces flowing through the chakras, and we mayconsider them as representative of the three aspects of theLogos. The energywhichwefindrushingintothebell-likemouthof thechakra,andsettingupinrelation to itself a secondary circular force, is one of the expressions of theSecondOutpouring, fromtheSecondAspectof theLogos—thatstreamof lifewhich is sentoutbyhim into thematter alreadyvitalizedby theactionof theThirdAspectoftheLogosintheFirstOutpouring.ItisthiswhichissymbolizedwhenitissaidinChristianteachingthattheChristisincarnateof(thatis,takesformfrom)theHolyGhostandtheVirginMary.

That Second Outpouring has long ago subdivided itself to an almost infinitedegree;notonlyhasitsubdivideditself,butithasalsodifferentiateditself—thatis to say, it seems to have done so. In reality this is almost certainly only the

mayaor illusionthroughwhichwesee it inaction.Itcomesthroughcountlessmillionsofchannels,showingitselfoneveryplaneandsub-planeofoursystem,andyetfundamentallyitisoneandthesameforce,innowayforamomenttobeconfusedwiththatFirstOutpouringwhichlongagomanufacturedthechemicalelements from which this Second Outpouring takes the material of which itsvehicles at all levels arebuilt. It appears as though someof itsmanifestationswere lowerordenser,because it isemploying loweranddensermatter;on thebuddhic level we see it displaying itself as the Christ-principle, graduallyexpandingandunfoldingitselfimperceptiblywithinthesouloftheman;intheastralandmentalbodiesweperceivethatvariouslayersofmatterarevivifiedbyit,sothatwenotedifferentexhibitionsofitappearinginthehigherpartoftheastral in theguise of a noble emotion, and in the lowerpart of thevery samevehicleasamererushoflife-forceenergizingthematterofthatbody.

Wefinditinitslowestembodimentdrawingrounditselfaveilofethericmatter,and rushing from theastralbody into the flower-likebellsof thesechakrasonthesurfaceoftheethericpartofthephysicalbody.Hereitmeetsanotherforcewelling up from the interior of the human body-the mysterious power calledkundaliniortheserpent-fire.

THESERPENT-FIRE

Thisforceisthephysical-planemanifestationofanotherofthemanifoldaspectsofthepoweroftheLogos,belongingtotheFirstOutpouring,whichcomesfromtheThirdAspect.Itexistsonallplanesofwhichweknowanything;butitistheexpressionofitinethericmatterwithwhichwehavetodoatpresent.Itisnotconvertible into either the primary force already mentioned or the force ofvitalitywhich comes from the sun, and it doesnot seem tobe affected in anywaybyanyotherformsofphysicalenergy.Ihaveseenasmuchasamillionandaquartervoltsofelectricityputintoahumanbody,sothatwhenthemanheldouthisarmtowardsthewall,hugeflamesrushedoutfromhisfingers,yethefeltnothingunusual,norwouldhebe in the leastburntunder thesecircumstancesunlessheactuallytouchedsomeexternalobject;buteventhisenormousdisplayofpowerhadnoeffectwhateverupontheserpent-fire.

Wehaveknownformanyyearsthatthereisdeepdownintheearthwhatmaybedescribedas a laboratoryof theThirdLogos.Onattempting to investigate theconditions at the centre of the earth we find there a vast globe of such

tremendousforcethatwecannotapproachit.Wecantouchonlyitsouterlayers;but indoingeventhat itbecomesevidentthat theyare, insympatheticrelationwiththelayersofkundaliniinthehumanbody.IntothatcentretheforceoftheThirdLogosmusthavepouredagesago,butitisworkingtherestill.ThereHeisengaged in the gradual development of new chemical elements, which showincreasing complexity of form, and more and more energetic internal life oractivity.

Students of chemistry are familiar with the Periodic Table originated by theRussian chemistMendeleff in the latter part of the last century, in which theknown chemical elements are arranged in the order of their atomic weights,beginningwiththelightest,hydrogen,whichhasanatomicweight1,andendingwith the heaviest at present known, uranium, which has a relative weight of238.5. Inourowninvestigations into thesematterswefound that theseatomicweights were almost exactly proportional to the number of ultimate atoms ineachelement;wehaverecordedthesenumbersinOccultChemistry,andalsotheformandcompositionofeachelement.

Inmostcasestheformswhichwefoundwhentheelementswereexaminedwithethericsight indicate—asdoes thePeriodicTablealso—that theelementshavebeendevelopedincyclicorder,thattheydonotlieonastraightline,butonanascending spiral.We have been told that the elements hydrogen, oxygen andnitrogen(whichconstituteapproximatelyhalfthecrustofourglobeandnearlyallitsatmosphere)belongatthesametimetoanotherandgreatersolarsystem,but we understand that the rest of the elements have been developed by theLogos of our system. He is carrying on his spiral beyond uranium, underconditionsoftemperatureandpressurewhicharequiteinconceivabletous.Andgradually,asnewelementsare formed, theyarepushedoutwardsandupwardstowardsthesurfaceoftheearth.

The force of kundalini in our bodies comes from that laboratory of the HolyGhost deep down in the earth. It belongs to that terrific glowing fire of theunderworld.That fire is in strikingcontrast to the fireofvitalitywhichcomesfrom the sun,whichwill presently be explained.The latter belongs to air andlightand thegreatopenspaces;but the firewhichcomes frombelow ismuchmorematerial, like thefireofred-hot iron,ofglowingmetal.There isa ratherterrible side to this tremendous force; it gives the impression of descendingdeeperanddeeper intomatter,ofmovingslowlybut irresistiblyonwards,withrelentlesscertainty.

Theserpent-fireisnotthatportionoftheenergyoftheThirdLogoswithwhichHeisengagedinbuildingdenseranddenserchemicalelements.Itismoreofthenatureofafurtherdevelopmentofthatforcewhichisinthelivingcentreofsuchelementsasradium.ItispartoftheactionofthelifeoftheThirdLogosafterithas reached its lowest immersion and is once more ascending towards theheightsfromwhichitcame.Wehavelongunderstoodthatthesecondlife-wave,fromtheSecondLogos,descendsintomatterthroughthefirst,secondandthirdelemental kingdoms, down to themineral, and then ascends again through thevegetable and animal to the human kingdom, where it meets the downward-reachingpoweroftheFirstLogos.ThisissuggestedinFig.3,inwhichtheovalindicating that Second Outpouring comes down on the left side, reaches itsdensestpointatthebottomofthediagram,andthenrisesagaininthecurveontheright-handsideofthefigure.

Fig3TheThreeOutpourings

WenowfindthattheforceoftheThirdLogosalsorisesagainaftertouchingitslowestpoint,sowemustimaginethattheverticallineinthecentreofthefigurereturnsupon itspath.Kundalini is thepowerof thatOutpouringon itspathof

return,anditworksinthebodiesofevolvingcreaturesinintimatecontactwiththe primary force already mentioned, the two acting together to bring thecreaturetothepointwhereitcanreceivetheOutpouringoftheFirstLogos,andbecomeanego,ahumanbeing,andstillcarryonthevehiclesevenafterthat.Wethus drawGodsmighty power from the earth beneath aswell as fromheavenabove;wearechildrenoftheearthaswellasofthesun.Thesetwomeetinus,andworktogetherforourevolution.Wecannothaveonewithouttheother,butif one is greatly in excess there are serious dangers. Hence the risk of anydevelopmentofthedeeperlayersoftheserpent-firebeforethelifeinthemanispureandrefined.

Wehearmuchofthisstrangefireandofthedangerofprematurelyarousingit;andmuch ofwhatwe hear is undoubtedly true. There is indeedmost seriousperilinawakeningthehigheraspectsofthisfuriousenergyinamanbeforehehasgainedthestrengthtocontrolit,beforehehasacquiredthepurityoflifeandthoughtwhichalonecanmakeitsafeforhimtounleashpotencysotremendous.Butkundaliniplaysamuchlargerpartindailylifethanmostofushavehithertosupposed; there isafar lowerandgentlermanifestationsof itwhich isalreadyawakewithinusall,whichisnotonlyinnocuousbutbeneficent,whichisdoingits appointed work day and night while we are entirely unconscious of itspresenceandactivity.Wehaveofcoursepreviouslynoticedthisforceasitflowsalongthenerves,callingitsimplynerve-fluid,andnotrecognizingitforwhatitreallyis.Theendeavourtoanalyseitandtotraceitbacktohissourceshowsusthatitentersthehumanbodyattherootchakra.

Like all other forces, kundalini is itself invisible; but in the human body itclothesitselfinacuriousnestofhollowconcentricspheresofastralandethericmatter,onewithinanother,liketheballsinaChinesepuzzle.Thereappeartobesevensuchconcentricspheresrestingwithintherootchakra,inandaroundthelastrealcellorhollowofthespineclosetothecoccyx;butonlyintheoutermostof these spheres is the force active in the ordinary man. In the others it issleeping,asissaidinsomeoftheOrientalbooks;andit isonlywhenthemanattempts to arouse the energy latent in those inner layers that the dangerousphenomenaofthefirebegintoshowthemselves.Theharmlessfireoftheouterskinoftheballflowsupthespinalcolumn,using(sofarasinvestigationshavegone up to the present) the three lines of Sushumna, Ida and Pingalasimultaneously.

THETHREESPINALCHANNELS

OfthesethreecurrentswhichflowinandaroundthespinalcordofeveryhumanbeingMadameBlavatskywritesasfollowsinTheSecretDoctrine:

The Trans-Himalayan school locates Sushumna, the chief seat of these threeNadis, in the central tube of the spinal cord. Ida andPingala are simply thesharpsandflatsofthatFaofhumannature,which,whenstruckinaproperway,awakensthesentriesoneitherside,thespiritualManasandthephysicalKama,andsubduesthelowerthroughthehigher.[9]

It is thepureAkasha thatpassesupSushumna; its twoaspectsflowinIdaandPingala. These are three vital airs, and are symbolized by the Brahmanicalthread. They are ruled by theWill.Will andDesire are the higher and loweraspects of one and the same thing.Hence the importance of the purity of thecanalsFromthesethreeacirculationissetup,andfromthecentralcanalpassesintothewholebody.[10]

IdaandPingalaplayalong thecurvedwallof thecord inwhich isSushumna.They are semi-material, positive and negative, sun and moon, and start intoaction the free and spiritual current ofSushumna. They have distinct paths oftheirown,otherwisetheywouldradiatealloverthebody.[11]

InTheHiddenLifeinFreemasonryIreferredtoacertainMasonicuseoftheseforcesasfollows:

It ispartoftheplanofFreemasonrytostimulatetheactivityoftheseforcesinthehumanbody, inorder that evolutionmaybequickened.The stimulation isappliedat themomentwhenR.W.M.creates, receivesandconstitutes; in theFirstDegree it affects the Ida or feminine aspect of the force, thusmaking iteasierforthecandidatetocontrolpassionandemotion;intheSecondDegreeitis thePingala ormasculine aspectwhich is strengthened, inorder to facilitatethecontrolofmind;but in theThirdDegree, it is thecentralenergy itself, theSushumna,which is aroused, therebyopening theway for the influenceof thepure spirit from on high. It is by passing up through this channel of theSushumnathatayogileaveshisphysicalbodyatwillinsuchamannerthathecanretainfullconsciousnessonhigherplanes,andbringbackintohisphysicalbrainaclearmemoryofhisexperiences.The little figuresbelowgivea roughindicationofthewayinwhichtheseforcesflowthroughthehumanbody;inamantheIdastartsfromthebaseofthespinejustontheleftoftheSushumnaand

thePingalaon the right (be itunderstood that Imean the rightand leftof theman,not thespectator);but inawomanthesepositionsarereversed.Thelinesendinthemedullaoblongata.[12]

The spine is called in India the Brahmadanda, the stick of Brahma; and thedrawinggiven inFig.4(d)shows that it isalso theoriginalof thecaduceusofMercury,thetwosnakesofwhichsymbolizethekundaliniorserpent-firewhichispresentlytobesetinmotionalongthosechannels,whilethewingstypifythepowerofconsciousflightthroughhigherplaneswhichthedevelopmentofthatfireconfers.Fig.4(a)showsthestimulatedIdaaftertheinitiationintotheFirstDegree; this line iscrimson incolour.To it isaddedat thePassing theyellowline of thePingala, depicted in Fig. 4 (b); while at the Raising the series iscompletedbythedeepbluestreamoftheSushumna,illustratedbyFig.4(c).

Fig4TheSpinalChannels

Thekundaliniwhichnormallyflowsuptheseisspecializedduringthisupwardpassage,andthatintwoways.Thereisinitacuriousminglingofpositiveandnegativequalitieswhichmightalmostbedescribedasmaleandfemale.Onthewholethereisagreatpreponderanceofthefeminineaspect,whichisperhapsthereason why in the Indian books this force is always spoken of as she, alsoperhapswhyacertainchamberintheheartwherekundaliniiscentredinsomeformsofyogaisdescribedinTheVoiceoftheSilenceasthehomeoftheWorldsMother.Butwhenthisserpent-fire issuesfromitshomein therootchakraandrisesup the threechannelswhichwehavementioned it isnoteworthy that thesectionrisingthroughthechannelPingalaisalmostwhollymasculine,whereasthatrisingthroughthechannelIdaisalmostwhollyfeminine.Thelargestream

passinguptheSushumnaseemstoretainitsoriginalproportions.

Theseconddifferentiationwhichtakesplaceduringthepassageofthisforceupthe spine is that it becomes intensely impregnatedwith the personality of theman.Itseemstoenteratthebottomasaverygeneralforceandtoissueforthatthetopasdefinitelythisparticularmansnerve-fluidcarryingwithittheimpressof his special qualities and idiosyncrasies, which manifest themselves in thevibrations of those spine-centres which may be considered as the roots fromwhichspringthestemsofthesurfacechakras.

THEMARRIAGEOFTHEFORCES

Thoughthemouthoftheflower-likebellofthechakraisonthesurfaceoftheethericbody,thestemofthetrumpet-likeblossomalwaysspringsfromacentreinthespinalcord.Itisalmostalwaystothesecentresinthespine,andnottothesuperficialmanifestationsofthem,thattheHinduhooksreferwhentheyspeakof the chakras. In each case an etheric stem, usually curving downwards,connects this root in thespinewith theexternalchakra. (SeePlateVI.)As thestemsofallthechakrasthusstartfromthespinalcord,thisforcenaturallyflowsdownthosestems into theflower-bells;where itmeets the incomingstreamofthedivinelife,andthepressuresetupbythatencountercausestheradiationofthemingledforceshorizontallyalongthespokesofthechakra.

Thesurfacesofthestreamsoftheprimaryforceandthekundalinigrindtogetheratthispoint,astheyrevolveinoppositedirectionsandconsiderablepressureiscaused. This has been symbolized as themarriage of the divine life,which isvividly male, to the kundalini, which is always considered as distinctivelyfeminine, and the compoundenergywhich results iswhat is commonly calledthepersonalmagnetismoftheman;itthenvivifiestheplexuseswhichareseenintheneighbourhoodofseveralofthechakras;itflowsalongall thenervesofthebody,andisprincipallyresponsibleforkeepingupitstemperature.Itsweepsalongwithitthevitalitywhichhasbeenabsorbedandspecializedbythespleenchakra.

Whenthetwoforcescombineasmentionedabovethereisacertaininterlockingof some of the respective molecules. The primary force seems capable ofoccupyingseveraldifferentkindsofethericform;thatwhichitmostcommonlyadoptsisanoctahedron,madeoffouratoms[13]arrangedinasquare,withonecentral atom constantly vibrating up and down through the middle of the

quadrilateral and at right angles to it. It also sometimes uses an exceedinglyactive littlemolecule consisting of three atoms. The kundalini usually clothesitselfinaflatringofsevenatoms,whilethevitalityglobule,whichalsoconsistsof seven atoms, arranges themon a plan not unlike that of the primary force,exceptthatitformsahexagoninsteadofasquare.Fig.5mayhelpthereadertoimagethesearrangements.

Fig5TheFormsoftheForces

AandBareformsadoptedbytheprimaryforce,Cisthattakenbythevitalityglobule,andDthatofthekundalini.EshowstheeffectofthecombinationofAandD;FthatofBandD.InA,BandCthecentralatomisallthetimeinrapidvibration at right angles to the surface of the paper, springing up from it to aheightgreaterthanthediameterofthedisc,andthensinkingbelowthepapertoan equal distance, but repeating this shuttle-like motion several times in asecond.(OfcourseitwillbeunderstoodthatIspeakrelativelyandnotliterally;inrealitythespherewhichcurdiscrepresentsissotinyastobeinvisibletothemost powerful microscope; but in proportion to that size its vibration is as Idescribe.) In D the only motion is a steady procession round and round thecircle, but there is an immense amount of latent energy therewhichmanifestsitself as soon as the combinations take place which we have endeavoured toillustrate in E and F. The two positive atoms inA andB continuewhen thuscombined their previous violent activities—in fact, their vigour is greatlyintensified;whiletheatomsinD,thoughtheystillmovealongthesamecircularpathway, accelerate their speed so enormously that they cease to be visible asseparateatomsandappearasaglowingring.

The first fourmoleculesdepictedabovebelong to the type towhich inOccultChemistryDr.BesantgivesthenameofHyper-meta-proto-elementalmatter.[14]Indeed,theymaybeidenticalwithsomeofthosewhichshedrewforthatbook.ButE andF, being compounds,must be taken asworking upon the next sub-

plane,whichshecallsthesuper-etheric,andsowouldbeclassifiedasmeta-protomatter.TypeBisfarcommonerthantypeA,anditnaturallyfollowsthatinthenerve-fluid which is the final result of the confluence we find many moreexamplesofFandE.Thisnerve-fluidisthereforeastreamofvariouselements,containing specimens of each one of the types shown in Fig. 4—simple andcompound,married and single, bachelors, oldmaids and conjugal couples, allrushingonwardtogether.

The marvellously energetic upward and downward movement of the centralatominthecombinationsEandFgivesthemaquiteunusualshapewithintheirmagneticfieldsasshowninFig.6.

TheupperhalfofthisseemstometobeararemarkableresemblancetothelingawhichisfrequentlytobeseeninfrontofthetemplesofShivainIndia.Iamtoldthatthelingaisanemblemofcreativepower,andthatIndiandevoteesregarditasextendingdownwardsintotheearthtojustthesameextentasitrisesaboveit.I have wondered whether the ancient Hindus knew of this especially activemolecule,andof the immense importanceof thepart itplays in thesupportofhuman and animal life; and whether they carved their symbol in stone as arecordoftheiroccultknowledge.

Fig6TheCombinedFormoftheForces

THESYMPATHETICSYSTEM

Anatomists describe two nervous systems in the human body—the cerebro-spinalandthesympathetic.Thecerebro-spinalbeginswiththebrain,continuesdownthespinalcord,andramifies toallpartsof thebodythroughthegangliafrom which nerves issue between every two successive vertebrae. Thesympatheticsystemconsistsoftwocordswhichrunalmostthewholelengthofthe spine, situated a little forward of its axis, and to the right and leftrespectively. From the ganglia of these two cords, which are not quite asnumerous as those of the spinal cord, sympathetic nerves proceed to form thenetworksystemscalledtheplexuses,fromwhichinturn,asfromrelaystations,emerge smaller terminal ganglia and nerves.These two systems are, however,interrelated in a great variety ofways by somany connecting nerves that onemustnotthinkofthemastwodistinctneuralorganizations.Inadditionwehaveathirdgroupcalledthevagusnerves,whichariseinthemedullaoblongata,anddescendindependentlyfarintothebody,minglingconstantlywiththenervesandplexusesoftheothersystems.

Thespinalcord,theleftsympatheticcord,andtheleftvagusnerveareallshownin Plate VI. It exhibits the nervous connections between the spinal andsympathetic ganglia, and the channels bywhich the latter give forth nerves toformtheprincipalplexusesofthesympatheticsystem.Itwillbenotedthatthereisatendencyfortheplexusestodroopfromthegangliainwhichtheyhavetheirorigin,sothat,forexample,thecoeliacorsolarplexusdependslargelyuponthegreat splanchnic nerve, shown in our plate as rising from the fifth thoracicsympatheticganglion,whichinturnisconnectedwiththefourththoracicspinalganglion. This is almost on a level with the heart horizontally, but the nervedescendsandjoinsthesmallerandthesmallestsplanchnicnerves,whichmergefromlowerthoracicganglia,andthesepassthroughthediaphragmandgotothesolarplexus.Therearealsootherconnectionsbetweenthatplexusandthecords,showninthePlatetosomeextent,buttoocomplicatedtodescribe.Theprincipalnervesleadingtothecardiacplexusbenddownwardsinasimilarmanner.Inthecaseofthepharyngealplexusthereisbutaslightdroop,andthecarotidplexuseven rises upward from the internal carotid nerve, coming from the superiorcervicalsympatheticganglion.

THECENTRESINTHESPINE

There is a somewhat similar droop in the etheric stem which connects theflowersorchakrasonthesurfaceoftheethericdoublewiththeircorrespondingcentresinthespine,whicharesituatedapproximatelyinthepositionsshowninredonPlate IX, and detailed in Table II. The radiating spokes of the chakrassupplyforcetothesesympatheticplexusestoassistthemintheirrelaywork;inthepresent stateofourknowledge it seems tome rash to identify, thechakraswiththeplexuses,assomewritersappeartohavedone.

Plate9-TheChakrasandthenervoussystem

Thehypogastricorpelvicplexusesarenodoubtconnected in somewaywiththeSvadhisthanachakrasituatednearthegenerativeorgans,whichismentionedin Indian books but not used in our scheme of development. The plexusesgrouped together in this region are probably largely subordinate to the solarplexusinallmattersofconsciousactivity,asboththeyandthesplenicplexusareconnectedverycloselywithitbynumerousnerves.

NAMEOFCHAKRA

POSITIONONSURFACE

APPROXIMATEPOSITIONOF

SPINALCHAKRA

SYPHATETICPLEXUS

CHIEFSUBSIDIARYPLEXUSES

Root Baseofspine 4thSacral Coccygeal

Spleen Overthespleen 1stLumbar Splenic

Navel Overthenavel 8thThoracic CoeliacorSolar Hepatic,pyloric,gastric,mesenteric,etc.

Heart Overtheheart 8thCervical Cardiac Pulmonary,coronary,etc.

Throat Atthethroat 3rdCervical Pharyngeal

Brow Onthebrow 1stCervical Carotid Cavernous,andcephalicgangliagenerally

TABLEIITheChakrasandthePlexuses

Thecrownchakraisnotconnectedwithanyofthesympatheticplexusesofthephysicalbody,butisassociatedwiththepinealglandandthepituitarybody,asweshallseeinChapterIV.Itisrelatedalsotothedevelopmentofthebraeandspinalsystemofnerves.

On the origin and relations of the sympathetic and cerebro-spinal systemsDr.AnnieBesantwritesasfollowsinAStudyinConsciousness:

Letusseehowthebuildingofthenervoussystem,byvibratoryimpulsesfromtheastral,beginsand iscarriedon.Wefindaminutegroupofnervecellsandtinyprocessesconnectingthem.Thisisformedbytheactionofacentrewhichhas previously appeared in the astral body—an aggregation of astral matterarrangedtoformacentreforreceivingandrespondingtoimpulsesfromoutside.Fromthatastralcentrevibrationspassintotheethericbody,causinglittleethericwhirlpools which draw into themselves particles of denser physical matter,formingat last anervecell, andgroupsofnervecells.Thesephysical centres,

receiving vibrations from the outer world, send impulses back to the astralcentres, increasing their vibrations; thus the physical and the astral centres actand re-act on each other, and each becomes more complicated and moreeffective. As we pass up the animal kingdom, we find the physical nervoussystemconstantlyimproving,andbecomingamoreandmoredominantactorinthe body, and this first-formed system becomes, in the vertebrates, thesympathetic system,controllingandenergising thevitalorgans—theheart, thelungs, the digestive tract; beside it slowly develops the cerebrospinal system,closely connected in its lower workings with the sympathetic, and becominggraduallymoreandmoredominant,whileitalsobecomesinitsmostimportantdevelopment thenormalorganfor theexpressionof thewaking-consciousness.Thiscerebro-spinalsystemisbuiltupbyimpulsesoriginatinginthemental,notin the astral plane, and is only indirectly related to the astral through thesympatheticsystem,builtupfromtheastral.[15]

VITALITY

Weallknowthefeelingofcheerfulnessandwell-beingwhichsunlightbringstous, but only students of occultism are fully aware of the reasons for thatsensation. Just as the sun floods his system with light and heat, so does heperpetuallypouroutintoitanotherforceasyetunsuspectedbymodernscience—a force to which has been given the name vitality. This is radiated on alllevels,andmanifests itself ineach realm—physical,emotional,mentaland therest—butwearespeciallyconcernedforthemomentwithitsappearanceinthelowest,where it enters someof the physical atoms, immensely increases theiractivity,andmakesthemanimatedandglowing.

We must not confuse this force with electricity, though it in some waysresembles it, for its actiondiffers inmanyways from thatof either electricity,lightorheat.Anyofthevariantsofthislatterforcecauseoscillationoftheatomasawhole—anoscillationthesizeofwhichisenormousascomparedwiththatof the atom;but this other forcewhichwe call vitality comes to the atomnotfromwithout,butfromwithin.

THEVITALITYGLOBULE

Theatomisitselfnothingbutthemanifestationofaforce;theSolarDeitywillsacertain shapewhichwecall anultimatephysicalatom(Fig.7a), andby that

effortofHiswillsomefourteenthousandmillionbubblesinKoilonareheldinthatparticularform.Itisnecessarytoemphasizethefactthatthecohesionofthebubblesinthatformisentirelydependentuponthateffortofwill,sothatifthatwere fora single instantwithdrawn, thebubblesmust fallapartagain,and thewholephysicalrealmwouldsimplyceasetoexistinfarlessthantheperiodofaflashoflightning.Sotrueisitthattheworldisnothingbutillusion,evenfromthispointofview,tosaynothingofthefactthatthebubblesofwhichtheatomisbuiltarethemselvesonlyholesinKoilon,thetrueaetherofspace.

Fig7TheUltimatePhysicalAtom

Soit is thewill-forceof theSolarDeitycontinuallyexercisedwhichholds theatomtogetherassuch;andwhenwetrytoexaminetheactionofthatforcewesee that it doesnot come into theatom fromoutside,butwellsupwithin it—which means that it enters it from higher dimensions. The same is true withregardto thisotherforcewhichwecallvitality; itenters theatomfromwithinalong with the force that holds that atom together, instead of acting upon itentirely fromwithout, asdo thoseothervarietiesof forcewhichwecall light,heatorelectricity.

Whenvitalitywellsupthuswithinanatomitendowsitwithanadditionallife,andgivesitapowerofattractionsothatitimmediatelydrawsrounditsixotheratomswhichitarrangesinadefiniteform,thusmakingasub-atomicorhyper-meta-proto-element, as Ihavealreadyexplained.But this elementdiffers fromallotherswhichhavesofarbeenobserved,inthattheforcewhichcreatesitandholdsittogethercomesfromtheFirstAspectoftheSolarDeityinsteadoffromtheThird.

Theseglobulesareconspicuousaboveallotherswhichmaybeseenfloatinginthe atmosphere, on account of their brilliance and extreme activity—theintenselyvividlifewhichtheyshow.TheseareprobablythefierylivessooftenmentionedbyMadameBlavatsky,as,forexample,inTheSecretDoctrine,Vol.I,p.306,whereshewrites:

...We are taught that everyphysiological change, nay, life itself, or rather theobjectivephenomenaoflife,producedbycertainconditionsandchangesinthetissuesofthebody,whichallowandforcelifetoactinthatbody—thatallthisisdue to thoseunseenCreatorsandDestroyers,whicharecalled, insucha looseandgeneralway,microbes.ItmightbesupposedthattheseFieryLivesandthemicrobes of Science are identical. This is not true. The Fiery Lives are theseventh andhighest sub-divisionof theplaneofmatter, and correspond in theindividual with the One Life of the Universe, though only on that plane ofmatter.

While the force that vivifies these globules is quite different from light, itnevertheless seems to depend upon light for its power of manifestation. Inbrilliant sunshine thisvitality is constantlywellingupafresh, and theglobulesare generated with great rapidity and in incredible numbers, but in cloudyweatherthereisagreatdiminutioninthenumberofglobulesformed,andduringthenight,sofaraswehavebeenabletosee,theoperationisentirelysuspended.Inthenight,therefore,wemaybesaidtobelivinguponthestockmanufacturedinthecourseofpreviousdays,andthoughitappearspracticallyimpossiblethatit should ever be entirely exhausted, that stock evidently does run low whenthereisalongsuccessionofcloudydays.Theglobule,oncecharged,remainsasa sub-atomicelement, and isnot subject to anychangeor lossof forceunlessanduntilitisabsorbedbysomelivingcreature.

THESUPPLYOFGLOBULES

Vitality, like light and heat, is pouring forth from the sun continually, butobstaclesfrequentlyarise toprevent thefullsupplyfromreachingtheearth.Inthewintryandmelancholyclimesmiscalledthetemperate,ittoooftenhappensthat fordays together thesky iscoveredbya funeralpallofheavycloud,andthisaffectsvitalityjustasitdoeslight;itdoesnotaltogetherhinderitspassage,butsensiblydiminishes itsamount.Therefore indullanddarkweathervitalityruns low, and over all living creatures there comes an instinctive yearning for

sunlight.

Whenvitalizedatomsare thusmoresparselyscattered, theman in rudehealthincreases his power of absorption, depletes a larger area, and so keeps hisstrength at the normal level; but invalids and men of small nerve-force, whocannotdo this, often suffer severely, and find themselvesgrowingweaker andmoreirritablewithoutknowingwhy.Forsimilarreasonsvitalityisatalowerebbin the winter than in the summer, for even if the short winter day be sunny,which is rare, we have still to face the long and dreary winter night, duringwhichwemustexistuponsuchvitalityasthedayhasstoredinouratmosphere.Ontheotherhandthelongsummerday,whenbrightandcloudless,chargestheatmosphere so thoroughly with vitality that its short night makes but littledifference.

Fromthestudyofthisquestionofvitality,theoccultistcannotfailtorecognizethat,quiteapartfromtemperature,sunlightisoneofthemostimportantfactorsintheattainmentandpreservationofperfecthealth—afactorfortheabsenceofwhichnothing else can entirely compensate. Since this vitality is poured forthnotonlyuponthephysicalworldbutuponallothersaswell, it isevident that,wheninotherrespectssatisfactoryconditionsarepresent,emotion,intellectandspiritualitywillbeattheirbestunderclearskiesandwiththeinestimableaidofthesunlight.

PSYCHICFORCES

Thethreeforcesalreadymentioned—theprimary,thevitalityandtheKundalini—arenotdirectlyconnectedwithmansmentalandemotionallife,butonlywithhisbodilywell-being.Buttherearealsoforcesenteringthechakraswhichmaybedescribedaspsychicandspiritual.Thefirsttwocentresexhibitnoneofthese,but the navel chakra and the others higher in the body are ports of entry forforceswhichaffecthumanconsciousness.

In an article on Thought-Centres in the bookThe Inner Life, I explained thatmassesofthoughtareverydefinitethings,occupyingaplaceinspace.Thoughtson the samesubjectandof the samecharacter tend toaggregate; therefore formanysubjectsthereisathought-centre,adefinitespaceintheatmosphere,andother thoughts about the samematter are attracted to such a centre, and go toincreaseitssizeandinfluence.Athinkermayinthiswaycontributetoacentre,butheinturnmaybeinfluencedbyit;andthisisoneofthereasonswhypeople

think in droves, like sheep. It is much easier for a man of lazy mentality toacceptaready-madethoughtfromsomeoneelse thantogothroughthementallabourofconsideringthevariousaspectsofasubjectandarrivingatadecisionforhimself.

This is true on themental planewith regard to thought; and,with appropriatemodifications,itistrueontheastralplanewithregardtofeeling.Thoughtflieslikelightningthroughthesubtlematterofthementalplane,sothethoughtofthewholeworldonacertainsubjectmayeasilygathertogetherinonespot,andyetbe accessible and attractive to every thinker on that subject. Astral matter,thoughsofarfinerthanphysical,isyetdenserthanthatofthementalplane;thegreatcloudsofemotion-formswhicharegeneratedintheastralworldbystrongfeelingsdonotallflytooneworld-centre,buttheydocoalescewithotherformsof the same nature in their own neighbourhood, so that enormous and verypowerfulblocksoffeelingarefloatingaboutalmosteverywhere,andamanmayreadilycomeintocontactwiththemandbeinfluencedbythem.

Theconnectionofthismatterwithourpresentsubjectliesinthefactthatwhensuch influence is exercised it is through the medium of one or other of thechakras. To illustratewhat Imean, letme take the example of amanwho isfilledwith fear.Thosewhohave read thebookManVisibleand InvisiblewillrememberthattheconditionoftheastralbodyofsuchamanisshowninPlateXIV.Thevibrations radiatedbyanastralbody in thatstatewillatonceattractanyfear-cloudsthathappentobeinthevicinity;ifthemancanquicklyrecoverhimself andmaster his fear, the clouds will roll back sullenly, but if the fearremains or increases theywill discharge their accumulated energy through hisumbilical chakra, and his fearmay becomemad panic inwhich he altogetherloses control of himself, andmay rushblindly into anykindof danger. In thesamewayonewholoseshistemperattractscloudsofanger,andrendershimselfliable to an inrush of feelingwhichwill change his indignation intomaniacalfury—aconditioninwhichhemightcommitmurderbyanirresistibleimpulse,almostwithout knowing it. Similarly amanwho yields to depressionmay besweptintoaterriblestateofpermanentmelancholia;oronewhoallowshimselftobeobsessedbyanimaldesiresmaybecomeforthetimeamonsteroflustandsensuality, andmay under that influence commit crimes the thought ofwhichwillhorrifyhimwhenherecovershisreason.

All such undesirable currents reach the man through the navel chakra.Fortunatelythereareotherandhigherpossibilities;forexamplethereareclouds

ofaffectionandofdevotion,andhewhofeelsthesenobleemotionsmayreceivethroughhisheartchakraawonderfulenhancementofthem,suchasisdepictedinManVisibleandInvisibleinPlatesXIandXII.

The kind of emotion which affects the navel chakra in the manner before-mentioned is indicated in Dr. Besants A Study in Consciousness, where shedividestheemotionsintotwoclasses,thoseofloveandthoseofhate.Allthoseonthesideofhateworkinthenavelchakrabutthoseonthesideofloveoperateintheheart.Shewrites:

Wehaveseenthatdesirehastwomainexpressions:desiretoattract,inordertopossess, or again to come into contact with, any object which has previouslyaffordedpleasure;desiretorepel,inordertodrivefaraway,ortoavoidcontactwith,anyobjectwhichhaspreviouslyinflictedpain.Wehaveseenthatattractionandrepulsionarethetwoformsofdesire,swayingtheSelf.

Emotion,beingdesireinfusedwithintellect,inevitablyshowsthesamedivisionintotwo.Theemotionwhichisof thenatureofattraction,attractingobjects toeachotherbypleasure,theintegratingenergyintheuniverse,iscalledlove.Theemotion which is of the nature of repulsion, driving objects apart from eachotherbypain,thedisintegratingenergyintheuniverse,iscalledhate.Thesearethetwostemsfromtherootofdesire,andallthebranchesoftheemotionsmaybetracedbacktooneofthesetwain.

Hence the identity of the characteristics of desire and emotions; love seeks todrawtoitself theattractiveobject,or togoafter it, inorder tounitewithit, topossess,or tobepossessedby it. It bindsbypleasure,byhappiness, asdesirebinds.Itstiesareindeedmorelasting,morecomplicated,arecomposedofmorenumerousandmoredelicatethreadsinterwovenintogreatercomplexity,buttheessenceofdesire-attraction,thebindingoftwoobjectstogether,istheessenceofemotion-attraction,of love.Andsoalsodoeshateseek todrivefromitself therepellentobjectortofleefromit, inordertobeapartfromit, torepulse,orberepulsed by it. It separates by pain, by unhappiness. And thus the essence ofdesire-repulsion, the driving apart of two objects, is the essence of emotion-repulsion,ofhate.Loveandhatearetheelaboratedandthought-infusedformsofthesimpledesirestopossessandtoshun.

Later on,Dr.Besant explains that each of thee twogreat emotions subdividesintothreeparts,accordingasthemanwhohasitfeelsstrongorweak.

Love looking downwards is benevolence; love looking upwards is reverence;and these are the several common characteristics of love from superiors toinferiors, and from inferiors to superiors universally. The normal relationsbetweenhusbandandwife,andthosebetweenbrothersandsisters,affordusthefieldforstudyingthemanifestationoflovebetweenequals.Weseeloveshowingitselfasmutualtendernessandmutualtrustfulness,asconsideration,respect,anddesire toplease,asquick insight intoandendeavour tofulfil thewishesof theother, asmagnanimity, forbearance.Theelementspresent in the love-emotionsofsuperiortoinferiorarefoundhere,butmutualityisimpressedonallofthem.Sowemaysaythatthecommoncharacteristicsoflovebetweenequalsisdesireformutualhelp.

Thuswehavebenevolence, desire formutual help, and reverence as the threemaindivisionsof the love-emotion, andunder theseall loveemotionsmaybeclassified.For all human relations are summedupunder the three classes: therelationsofsuperiorstoinferiors,ofequalstoequals,ofinferiorstosuperiors.

Shethenexplainsthehate-emotionsinthesameway:

Hate lookingdownwards is scorn,and lookingupwards is fear.Similarly,hatebetween equals will show itself in anger, combativeness, disrespect, violence,aggressiveness,jealousy,insolence,etc.—alltheemotionswhichrepelmanfromman when they stand as rivals, face to face, not hand in hand. The commoncharacteristicofhatebetweenequalswillthusbemutualinjury.Andthreemaincharacteristicsofthehate-emotionarescorn,desireformutualinjury,andfear.

Love is characterised in all its manifestations by sympathy, self-sacrifice, thedesire togive; theseare itsessential factors,whetherasbenevolence,asdesireformutualhelp,asreverence.Forallthesedirectlyserveattraction,bringaboutunion,areoftheverynatureoflove.Henceloveisofthespirit;forsympathyisthe feeling for another as one would feel for oneself; self-sacrifice is therecognition of the claim of the other, as oneself; giving is the condition ofspirituallife.Thusloveisseentobelongtospirit,tothelife-sideoftheuniverse.

Hate, on theother hand, is characterised in all itsmanifestationsby antipathy,self-aggrandisement,thedesiretotake;theseareitsessentialfactors,whetherasscorn,desireformutualinjury,orfear.Allthesedirectlyserverepulsion,drivingoneapart fromanother.Hence,hate isofmatter,emphasisesmanifoldnessanddifferences,isessentiallyseparateness,belongstotheform-sideoftheuniverse.

CHAPTERIII

THEABSORPTIONOFVITALITY

THEGLOBULE

THEvitalityglobulethoughinconceivablyminute,issobrilliantthatitisoftenseenevenbythosewhoarenotintheordinarysenseclairvoyant.Manyaman,looking out towards the distant horizon, especially over the sea, will noticeagainsttheskyanumberofthetiniestpossiblepointsoflightdashingaboutinall directions with amazing rapidity. These are the vitality globules, eachconsisting of seven physical atoms, as shown in Fig. 5C—the Fiery Lives,specks charged with that force which the Hindus call prana. It is oftenexceedingly difficult to be certain of the exact shade of meaning attached totheseSanskritterms,becausetheIndianmethodofapproachingthesestudiesissodifferentfromourown;butIthinkwemaysafelytakepranaastheequivalenttoourvitality.

When this globule is flashing about in the atmosphere, brilliant as it is, it isalmostcolourless,andshineswithawhiteorslightlygoldenlight.Butassoonasitisdrawnintothevortexoftheforce-centreatthespleenitisdecomposedandbreaksupintostreamsofdifferentcolours,thoughitdoesnotfollowexactlyourdivisionofthespectrum.Asitscomponentatomsarewhirledroundthevortex,eachof the six spokes seizes upononeof them, so that all the atoms chargedwithyellowflowalongone,andallthosechargedwithgreenalonganother,andsoon,while the seventh disappears through the centre of the vortex—throughthehubofthewheel,asitwere.Theseraysthenpassoffindifferentdirections,each to do its special work in the vitalization of the body. PlateVIII gives adiagrammaticrepresentationofthesepathsofthedispersedprana.

AsIhavesaid,thecoloursofthedivisionsofpranaarenotexactlythosewhichweordinarilyuseinthesolarspectrum,butratherresemblethearrangementofcolourswhichwe seeonhigher levels in the causal,mental and astral bodies.Whatwecallindigoisdividedbetweenthevioletrayandtheblueray,sothatwefind only two divisions there instead of three; but on the other handwhatweusuallycallredisdividedintotwo—rose-redanddarkred.Thesixradiantsare

thereforeviolet,blue,green,yellow,orange,anddarkred;whiletheseventhorrose-redatom(moreproperly the first, since this is theoriginalatom inwhichtheforcefirstappeared)passesdownthroughthecentreofthevortex.Vitalityisthus clearly sevenfold in its constitution,but it flows through thebody in fivemain streams, ashasbeen stated in someof the Indianbook, for after issuingfromthespleniccentre theblueand theviolet join intooneray,andsodo theorangeandthedarkred(PlateVIII).

THEVIOLET-BLUERAY

(1)Theviolet-blue ray flashesupwards to the throat,where it seems todivideitself, thelightblueremainingtocoursethroughandquickenthethroat-centre,while the dark blue and violet pass on into the brain. The dark blue expendsitselfinthelowerandcentralpartsofthebrain,whilethevioletfloodstheupperpart,andappearstogivespecialvigourtotheforce-centreatthetopofthehead,diffusingitselfchieflythroughtheninehundredandsixtypetalsoftheouterpartofthatcentre.

THEYELLOWRAY

(2)Theyellowrayisdirectedtotheheart,butafterdoingitsworktherepartofitalso passes on to the brain and permeates it, directing itself principaly to thetwelve-petalledflowerinthemidstofthehighestforce-centre.

THEGREENRAY

(3)Thegreenrayfloodstheabdomen,andwhalecentringespeciallyinthesolarplexus, evidently vivifies the liver, kidneys and intestines, and the digestiveapparatusgenerally.

THEROSERAY

(4)Therose-colouredrayrunsalloverthebodyalongthenerves,andisclearlythe life of the nervous system. This is the specialized vitalitywhich onemanmayreadilypourintoanotherinwhomitisdeficient.Ifthenervesarenotfullysuppliedwiththisrosylighttheybecomesensitiveandintenselyirritable,sothatthepatientfindsitalmostimpossibletoremaininoneposition,andyetgainsbutlittleeasewhenhemovestoanother.Theleastnoiseortouchisagonytohim,and he is in a condition of acute misery. The flooding of his nerves withspecializedpranabysomehealthypersonbringsinstantrelief,andafeelingofhealingandpeacedescendsuponhim.Aman in robusthealthusuallyabsorbs

andspecializessomuchmoreofthisvitalitythanisactuallyneededbyhisownbody that he is constantly radiating a torrent of rose-coloured atoms, and sounconsciouslypours strengthuponhisweaker fellowswithout losinganythinghimself;orbyaneffortofhiswillhecangathertogetherthissuperfluousenergyandaimitintentionallyatonewhomhewishestohelp.

Thephysicalbodyhasacertainblindinstinctiveconsciousnessofitsown,whichwesometimescallthephysicalelemental.Itcorrespondsinthephysicalworldtothedesire-elementalof theastralbody;and thisconsciousnessseeksalways toprotect its body from danger, or to procure for itwhatevermay be necessary.This is entirelyapart from theconsciousnessof themanhimself, and itworksequallywellduringtheabsenceoftheegofromthephysicalbodyduringsleep.Allourinstinctivemovementsareduetoit,anditisthroughitsactivitythattheworkingofthesympatheticsystemiscarriedonceaselesslywithoutanythoughtorknowledgeonourpart.

While we are what we call awake, this physical elemental is perpetuallyoccupiedinself-defence;heisinaconditionofconstantvigilance,andhekeepsthenervesandmusclesalwaystense.Duringthenightoratanytimewhenwesleepheletsthenervesandmusclesrelax,anddevoteshimselfspeciallytotheassimilationofvitality and the recuperationof thephysicalbody.Heworksatthismost successfully during the early part of the night, because then there isplentyof vitality,whereas immediatelybefore thedawn thevitalitywhichhasbeen left behind by the sunlight is almost completely exhausted. This is thereasonforthefeelingoflimpnessanddeadnessassociatedwiththesmallhoursof themorning; this is also the reasonwhy sickmen so frequently die at thatparticulartime.Thesameideaisembodiedintheoldproverbwhichsaysthatanhours sleep before midnight is worth two after it. The work of this physicalelementalaccountsforthestrongrecuperativeinfluenceofsleep,whichisoftenobservableevenwhenitisameremomentarynap.

Thisvitalityisindeedthefoodoftheethericdouble,andisjustasnecessarytoitas ismaterial sustenance to thegrosserpartof thephysicalbody.Hencewhenthe splenic centre is unable for any reason (as through sickness, fatigue orextremeoldage)topreparevitalityforthenourishmentofthecellsofthebody,thisphysicalelementalendeavourstodrawinforhisownusevitalitywhichhasalreadybeenpreparedinthebodiesofothers;andthusithappensthatweoftenfindourselvesweakandexhaustedaftersittingforawhilewithapersonwhoisdepletedofvitality,becausehehasdrawntherose-colouredatomsawayfromus

bysuctionbeforewewereabletoextracttheirenergy.

Thevegetablekingdomalsoabsorbsthisvitality,butseemsinmostcasestouseonly a small part of it. Many trees draw from it almost exactly the sameconstituentsasdoes thehigherpartofmansethericbody, the resultbeing thatwhentheyhaveusedwhattheyrequire,theatomswhichtheyrejectarepreciselythosechargedwiththerose-colouredlightwhichisneededforthecellsofman'sphysical body. This is specially the case with such trees as the pine and theeucalyptus;andconsequentlytheveryneighbourhoodofthesetreesgiveshealthand strength to those who are suffering from lack of this part of the vitalprinciple—thosewhomwe call nervous people.They are nervous because thecells of their bodies are hungry, and the nervousness can only be allayed byfeedingthem;andoftenthereadiestwaytodothatisthustosupplythemfromwithoutwiththespecialkindofvitalitywhichtheyneed.

THEORANGE-REDRAY

(5)Theorange-redrayflowstothebaseofthespineandthencetothegenerativeorgans, with which one part of its functions is closely connected. This rayappears to include not only the orange and the darker reds, but also a certainamount of dark purple, as though the spectrumbent round in a circle and thecoloursbeganoveragainataloweroctave.

COLOURSOF

PRANASCHAKRASENTERED COLOURSGIVENIN

S.D.PRINCIPLES

REPRESENTEDLightblue Throat Blue Atma(auricenvelope)Yellow Heart Yellow BuddhiDarkblue Brow Indigoordarkblue HighermanasGreen Navel Green KamamanaslowermindRose Spleen Red KamarupaViolet Crown Violet EthericdoubleOrange-red(withanotherviolet)

Root(afterwardscrown)

TABLEIIIPranaandthePrinciples

Inthenormalmanthisrayenergizesthedesiresoftheflesh,andalsoseemstoenterthebloodandhelptokeepuptheheatofthebody;butifamanpersistentlyrefusestoyieldtohislowernature,thisraycanbylonganddeterminedeffortbedeflected upwards to the brain, where all three of its constituents undergo aremarkablemodification.Theorangeisraisedintopureyellow,andproducesa

decided intensification of the powers of the intellect; the dark red becomescrimson,andgreatlyincreasesthequalityofunselfishaffection;whilethedarkpurpleistransmutedintoalovelypaleviolet,andquickensthespiritualpartofmans nature. The man who achieves this transmutation will find that sensualdesiresnolongertroublehim,andwhenitbecomesnecessaryforhimtoarousethehigherlayersoftheserpent-firehewillbefreefromthemostseriousofthedangers of that process.When a man has finally completed this change, thisorange-redraypassesstraightintothecentreatthebaseofthespine,andfromthatrunsupwardsalongthehollowofthevertebralcolumn,andsotothebrain.

There seems tobeacertaincorrespondence (Table III)between thecoloursofthe streams of prana flow to the several chakras and the colours assigned byMadame Blavatsky to the principles of man in her diagram in The SecretDoctrine,Vol.V,p.454,Fifth(Adyar)Edition.

THEFIVEPRANAVAYUS

In the Hindu books there is frequent reference to the five principalVayus orpranas.TheGherandaSamhitagivestheirpositionsbrieflyasfollows:

Thepranamovesalways in theheart; theapana in the sphereof theanus; thesamana in the region of the navel; the udana in the throat; and the vyanapervadesthewholebody.[16]

Numerousotherbooksgive thesamedescription,andsaynomoreabout theirfunctions,butsomeaddalittlemoreinformation,asfollows:

Theaircalledvyanacarriestheessentialpartinallthenerves.Food,assoonasitiseaten,issplitintotwobythatair.Havingenteredneartheanusitseparatesthesolidandliquidportions;havingplacedthewateroverthefire,andthesolidover thewater, thepranaitself,standingunder thefire, inflamesitslowly.Thefire, inflamed by the air, separates substance from the waste. The vyana airmakes the essence go all over, and the waste, forced through the twelvegateways,isejectedfromthebody.[17]

Thefiveairsasthusdescribedseemtoagreefairlywellwiththefivedivisionsofvitalitywhichwehaveobserved,asshowninTableIV.

PRANAVAYUANDREGIONAFFECTED

RAYOFVITALITY CHAKRACHIEFLYAFFECTED

Prana;heart Yellow CardiacApana;anus Orange-red BasicSamana;navel Green UmbilicalUdana;throat Violet-blue LaryngealVyana;theentirebody Rose Splenic

TABLEIVTheFivePranaVayus

VITALITYANDHEALTH

Theflowofvitalityinthesevariouscurrentsregulatesthehealthofthepartsofthebodywithwhich they are concerned. If aperson is suffering fromaweakdigestion, it manifests itself at once to any person possessing etheric sight,becauseeithertheflowandactionofthegreenstreamissluggishoritsamountissmaller inproportionthanitshouldbe.Where theyellowcurrent isfullandstrong, it indicates, or more properly produces, strength and regularity in theactionof theheart.Flowing round that centre, it also interpenetrates thebloodwhichisdriventhroughit,andissentalongwithitalloverthebody.Yetthereisenough of it left to extend into the brain also, and the power of highphilosophicalandmetaphysicalthoughtappearstodependtoagreatextentuponthevolumeandactivityofthisyellowstream,andthecorrespondingawakeningofthetwelve-petalledflowerinthemiddleoftheforce-centreatthetopofthehead.

Thoughtandemotionofahighspiritual typeseemtodepend largelyupon thevioletray,whereasthepowerofordinarythoughtisstimulatedbytheactionofthebluemingledwithpartof theyellow. In some formsof idiocy the flowofvitality to the brain, both yellow and blue-violet, is almost entirely inhibited.Unusualactivityorvolumeinthelightbluewhichisapportionedtothethroat-centre isaccompaniedbythehealthandstrengthof thephysicalorgansin thatpartofthebody.Itgivesstrengthandelasticitytothevocalcords,sothatspecialbrillianceandactivityarenoticeable in thecaseof apublic speakeror agreatsinger. Weakness or disease in any part of the body is accompanied by adeficiencyintheflowofvitalitytothatpart.

THEFATEOFTHEEMPTYATOMS

As the different streams of atoms do their work, the charge of vitality iswithdrawn from them, precisely as an electrical charge might be. The atoms

bearingtherose-colouredraygrowgraduallypaleras theyaresweptalongthenerves,andareeventuallythrownoutfromthebodythroughthepores—makingthuswhatwascalled inManVisibleandInvisible thehealth-aura.By the timethattheyleavethebodymostofthemhavelosttherose-colouredlight,sothatthegeneralappearanceoftheemanationisbluish-white.Thatpartoftheyellowray which is absorbed into the blood and carried round with it loses itsdistinctivecolourinjustthesameway.

Theatoms,whenthusemptiedoftheirchargeofvitality,eitherenterintosomeofthecombinationswhichareconstantlybeingmadeinthebody,orpassoutofitthroughthepores,orthroughtheordinarychannels.Theemptiedatomsofthegreenray,whichisconnectedchieflywithdigestiveprocesses,seemtoformpartoftheordinarywastematerialofthebody,andtopassoutalongwithit,andthatisalsothefateoftheatomsofthered-orangerayinthecaseoftheordinaryman.The atoms belonging to the blue rays, which are used in connectionwith thethroat-centre,generallyleavethebodyintheexhalationsofthebreath;andthosewhichcomposethedarkblueandvioletraysusuallypassoutfromthecentreatthetopofthehead.

Whenthestudenthaslearnttodeflecttheorange-redrayssothattheyalsomoveupthroughthespine,theemptyatomsofboththeseandtheviolet-bluerayspouroutfromthetopoftheheadinafierycascadewhich,aswehavealreadyseeninFig.2,isfrequentlyimagedasaflameinancientstatuesoftheLordBuddhaandothergreatsaints.Theseatomsarethususedagainasphysicalvehiclesforsomeofthegloriousandbeneficentforceswhichhighlyevolvedmenradiatefromthatcrownchakra.

Whenemptyofthevitalforcetheatomsareoncemorepreciselylikeanyotheratoms, except that theyhave evolved somewhat through theuse that has beenmadeofthem.Thebodyabsorbssuchofthemasitneeds,sothattheyformpartof the various combinations which are constantly being made, while otherswhicharenotrequiredforsuchpurposesarecastout throughanychannel thathappenstobeconvenient.

Theflowofvitalityintoorthroughanycentre,orevenitsintensification,mustnotbeconfusedwith theentirelydifferentdevelopmentof thecentrewhich isbroughtaboutbytheawakeningofthehigherlevelsoftheserpent-fireatalaterstage inmans evolution,withwhichwe shall deal in the next chapter.We alldraw in vitality and specialize it, butmany of us do not utilize it to the full,

becauseinvariouswaysourlivesarenotaspureandhealthyandreasonableasthey should be. One who coarsens his body by the use of meat, alcohol ortobaccocanneveremployhisvitalitytothefullinthesamewayascanamanofpurerliving.Aparticularindividualofimpurelifemaybe,andoftenis,strongerin thephysical body than certainothermenwhoarepurer; that is amatter oftheirrespectivekarma;butotherthingsbeingequal,themanofpurelifehasanimmenseadvantage.

All thecoloursofthisorderofvitalityareetheric,yet itwillbeseenthat theiractionpresentscertaincorrespondenceswiththesignificationattachedtosimilarhues in the astral body.Clearly, right thought and right feeling react upon thephysicalbodyandincreaseitspowertoassimilatethevitalitywhichisnecessaryforitswell-being.ItisreportedthattheLordBuddhaoncesaidthatthefirststepontheroadtoNirvanaisperfectphysicalhealth;andassuredlythewaytoattainthatistofollowtheNobleEightfoldPathwhichhehasindicated.SeekyefirsttheKingdomofGodandhisrighteousness,andall thesethingsshallbeaddeduntoyou—yes,evenphysicalhealthaswell.

VITALITYANDMAGNETISM

The vitality coursing along the nerves must not be confused with what weusuallycallthemagnetismoftheman—hisownnerve-fluid,specializedwithinthe spine, and composed of the primary life-force intermingled with thekundalini. It is this fluid which keeps up the constant circulation of ethericmatter along the nerves, corresponding to the circulation of blood through thearteries and veins; and as oxygen is conveyed by the blood to all parts of thebody, so vitality is conveyed along the nerves by this etheric current. Theparticles of the etheric part ofmans body are constantly changing, just as arethoseofthedenserpart;alongwiththefoodwhichweeatandtheairwhichwebreathewetakeinethericmatter,andthisisassimilatedbytheethericpartofthebody. Ethericmatter is constantly being thrown off from the pores, just as isgaseousmatter, so that when two persons are close together each necessarilyabsorbsmuchofthephysicalemanationsoftheother.

Whenonepersonmesmerizesanother, theoperatorbyaneffortofwillgatherstogetheragreatdealof thismagnetismand throws it into the subject,pushingbackhisvictimsnerve-fluid,andfilling itsplacewithhisown.As thebrain isthecentreof thisnervouscirculation, thisbrings thatpartof thesubjectsbody

which is affected under the control of the manipulators brain instead of thevictims and so the latter feels what the mesmerist wishes him to feel. If therecipients brain be emptied of his ownmagnetism and filled with that of theperformer, the former can think and act only as the latterwills that he shouldthinkandact;heisforthetimeentirelydominated.

Evenwhenthemagnetizeristryingtocure,andispouringstrengthintotheman,he inevitably gives alongwith the vitalitymuch of his own emanations. It isobviousthatanydiseasewhichthemesmerizerhappenstohavemayreadilybeconveyed to the subject in this way; and another even more importantconsiderationisthat,thoughhishealthmaybeperfectfromthemedicalpointofview,therearementalandmoraldiseasesaswellasphysical,andthat,asastralandmentalmatterare throwninto thesubjectby themesmeristalongwith thephysicalcurrent,thesealsoarefrequentlytransferred.

Nevertheless,amanwhoispureinthoughtandfilledwiththeearnestdesiretohelphisfellowsmayoftendomuchbymesmerismtorelievesuffering,ifhewilltakethetroubletostudythissubjectofthecurrentswhichenterthebodythroughthechakrasandflowalongthenerves.Whatisit thatthemesmeristpoursintohissubject?Itmaybeeitherthenerve-etherorthevitality,orboth.Supposingapatient tobeseriouslyweakenedorexhausted,sothathehaslost thepowertospecialize the life-fluid for himself, the mesmerist may renew his stock bypouring some of his own upon the quivering nerves, and so produce a rapidrecovery. The process is analogous towhat is often done in the case of food.Whenapersonreachesacertainstageofweaknessthestomachlosesthepowertodigest,andsothebodyisnotproperlynourished,andthefeeblenessistherebyincreased. The remedy adopted in that case is to present to the stomach foodalreadypartiallydigestedbymeansofpepsinorothersimilarpreparations;thiscanprobablybeassimilated,andthusstrengthisgained.Justso,amanwhoisunabletospecializeforhimselfmaystillabsorbwhathasbeenalreadypreparedbyanother,andsogainstrengthtomakeanefforttoresumethenormalactionoftheethericorgans.Inmanycasesofdebilitythatisallthatisneeded.

Thereareotherinstancesinwhichcongestionofsomekindhastakenplace,thevital fluid has not circulated properly, and the nerve-aura is sluggish andunhealthy. Then the obvious course of proceeding is to replace it by healthynerve-etherfromwithout;butthereareseveralwaysinwhichthismaybedone.Some magnetizers simply employ brute force, and steadily pour in resistlessfloodsoftheirownetherinthehopeofwashingawaythatwhichneedsremoval.

Successmaybeattainedalongtheselines,thoughwiththeexpenditureofagooddealmoreenergythanisnecessary.Amorescientificmethodisthatwhichgoestoworksomewhatmorequietly,and firstwithdraws thecongestedordiseasedmatter,and thenreplaces itbyhealthiernerve-ether, thusgraduallystimulatingthe sluggish current into activity. If the patient has a headache, for example,therewillalmostcertainlybeacongestionofnoxiousetheraboutsomepartofhisbrain,andthefirststepistodrawthataway.

Howisthistobemanaged?Justinthesamewayastheout-pouringofstrengthis managed by an exercise of the will. We must not forget that these finersubdivisions of matter are readily moulded or affected by the action of thehumanwill.Themesmeristmaymakepasses,but theyareat themostnothingbutthepointingofhisguninacertaindirection,whilehiswillisthepowderthatmoves the ball and produces the result, the fluid being the shot sent out. Amesmerizerwhounderstandshisbusinesscanmanageaswellwithoutpassesifhewishes; Ihaveknownonewhoneveremployed them,butsimply lookedathissubject.Theonlyuseofthehandistoconcentratethefluid,andperhapstohelptheimaginationoftheoperator;fortowillstronglyhemustbelievefirmly,andtheactionnodoubtmakesiteasierforhimtorealizewhatheisdoing.

Justasamanmaypouroutmagnetismbyaneffortofwill,somayhedrawitawaybyaneffortofwill;andinthiscasealsohemayoftenuseagestureofthehands to help him. In dealing with the headache, he would probably lay hishands upon the foreheadof the patient, and thinkof themas sponges steadilydrawing out the deleterious magnetism from the brain. That he is actuallyproducingtheresultofwhichhethinks,hewillbeverylikelysoontodiscover,for unless he takes precautions to cast off the bad magnetism which he isabsorbing,hewilleitherhimselffeeltheheadacheorbegintosufferfromapaininthearmandhandwithwhichtheoperationisbeingperformed.Heisactuallydrawing into himself diseasedmatter, and it is necessary for his comfort andwell-beingthatheshoulddisposeofitbeforeitobtainsapermanentlodgmentinhisbody.

Heshouldthereforeadoptsomedefiniteplantogetridofit,andthesimplestisjust to throw it away, to shake it from the hands as one would shake water.Althoughhedoesnotseeit,thematterwhichhehaswithdrawnisphysical,andwecandealwith itbyphysicalmeans. It is thereforenecessary thatheshouldnot neglect theseprecautions, and that he shouldnot forget towashhis handscarefullyaftercuringaheadacheoranymaladyofthatnature.Then,afterhehas

removed the cause of the evil, he proceeds to pour in good strong healthymagnetismto take itsplace,and toprotect thepatientagainst thereturnof thedisease.Onecanseethatinthecaseofanynervousaffectionthismethodwouldhavemanifoldadvantages.Inmostofsuchcaseswhatiswrongisanirregularityofthefluidswhichcoursealongthenerves;eithertheyarecongested,ortheyaresluggishintheirflow,orontheotherhandtheymaybetoorapid;theymaybedeficientinquantity,orpoorinquality.Ifweadministerdrugsofanysort,atthebestwe can act only upon the physical nerve, and through it to some limitedextentuponthefluidssurroundingit;whereasmesmerismactsdirectlyuponthefluidsthemselves,andsogoesstraighttotherootoftheevil.

CHAPTERIV

THEDEVELOPMENTOFTHECHAKRAS

THEFUNCTIONSOFTHEAWAKENEDCENTRES

BESIDES keeping alive the physical vehicle, the force-centres have anotherfunction,whichcomesintoplayonlywhentheyareawakenedintofullactivity.Eachof theethericcentrescorrespondstoanastralcentre, thoughas theastralcentre is a vortex in four dimensions it has an extension in a direction quitedifferentfromtheetheric,andconsequentlyisbynomeansalwaysco-terminouswithit, thoughsomepartisalwayscoincident.Theethericvortexisalwaysonthe surface of the etheric body, but the astral centre is frequently quite in theinteriorofthatvehicle.

Thefunctionofeachoftheethericcentreswhenfullyarousedistobringdowninto physical consciousnesswhatevermaybe the quality inherent in the astralcentrewhichcorrespondstoit;so,beforecataloguingtheresultstobeobtainedbyarousingtheethericcentres intoactivity, itmaybewell toconsiderwhat isdone by each of the astral centres, although these latter are already in fullactivity in all cultured people of later races. What effect, then, has thequickeningofeachoftheseastralcentresproducedintheastralbody?

THEASTRALCENTRES

The first of these centres, as has already been explained, is the home of theserpent-fire. This force exists on all planes and by its activity the rest of thecentresarearoused.Wemustthinkoftheastralbodyashavingbeenoriginallyan almost inert mass, with nothing but the vaguest consciousness, with nodefinitepowerofdoinganything, andno clearknowledgeof theworldwhichsurrounded it. The first thing that happened, then, was the awakening of thatforceinthemanattheastrallevel.Whenawakeneditmovedontothesecondcentre,correspondingtothephysicalspleen,andthroughitvitalizedthewholeastralbodyenablingthepersontotravelconsciously,thoughwithonlyavagueconceptionasyetofwhatlieencounteredonhisjourneys.

Then itmovedon to the third, thatcorresponding to thenavel,andvivified it,

therebyawakeningintheastralbodythepoweroffeeling-asensitivenesstoallsorts of influences, though without as yet anything like the definitecomprehensionthatcomesfromseeingorhearing.

The fourth centre, when awakened, endowed the man with the power tocomprehendandsympathizewiththevibrationsofotherastralentities,sothathecouldinstinctivelyunderstandsomethingoftheirfeelings.

Theawakeningofthefifth,thatcorrespondingtothethroat,gavehimthepowerofhearingon theastralplane; that is tosay, itcaused thedevelopmentof thatsensewhichintheastralworldproducesonourconsciousnesstheeffectwhichonthephysicalplanewecallhearing.

The development of the sixth, that corresponding to the centre between theeyebrows, in a similar manner produced astral sight—the power to perceivedefinitelytheshapeandnatureofastralobjects,insteadofvaguelysensingtheirpresence.

Thearousingoftheseventh,thatcorrespondingtothetopofthehead,roundedoffandcompletedforhimtheastrallife,andendowedhimwiththeperfectionofitsfaculties.

Fig8-ThePituitaryBodyandthePinealGland

With regard to this centre a certaindifference seems to exist, according to thetypetowhichmenbelong.Formanyofus theastralvorticescorrespondingto

thesixthandseventhofthesecentresbothconvergeuponthepituitarybody,andfor those people the pituitary body (Fig. 8) is practically the only direct linkbetween the physical and the higher planes.Another type of people, however,while still attaching the sixth centre to the pituitary body, bend or slant theseventhuntilitsvortexcoincideswiththeatrophiedorgancalledthepinealgland(Fig. 8), which is by people of that type vivified and made into a line ofcommunication directly with the lower mental, without apparently passingthroughtheintermediateastralplaneintheordinaryway.ItwasforthistypethatMadame Blavatsky was writing when she laid such emphasis upon theawakeningofthatorgan.Dr.Besantalsomentionsthisfactthatthestarting-pointofdevelopmentbeginsatdifferentlevelswithdifferentpersons,inthefollowingpassagefromAStudyinConsciousness:

Thebuildingofthecentresandthegradualorganizationofthemintowheels,canbebegunfromanyvehicle,andwillbebeguninanyindividualfromthatvehiclewhich represents the special type of temperament to which he belongs.Accordingasamanbelongs toone typical temperamentoranother,sowillbethe place of the greatest activity in the building up of all the vehicles, in thegradual making of them into effective instruments of consciousness to beexpressedonthephysicalplane.Thiscentreofactivitymaybeinthephysical,astral, lower, or higher mental body. In any of these, or even higher still,according to the temperamental type, thiscentrewillbe found in theprinciplewhich marks out the temperamental type, and from that it works upwards ordownwards,shapingthevehiclessoastomakethemsuitablefortheexpressionofthattemperament.[18]

ASTRALSENSES

Thus thesecentres to someextent take theplaceof sense-organs for theastralbody; yet without proper qualification that expression would be decidedlymisleading,foritmustneverbeforgottenthatthough,inordertomakeourselvesintelligible,weconstantlyhavetospeakofastralseeingorastralhearing,allthatwe really mean by those expressions is the faculty of responding to suchvibrationsas convey to themansconsciousness,whenhe is functioning inhisastral body, information of the same character as that conveyed to himby hiseyesandearswhileheisinthephysicalbody.

Butintheentirelydifferentastralconditionsspecializedorgansarenotnecessary

fortheattainmentofthisresult.Thereismatterineverypartoftheastralbodywhichiscapableofsuchresponse,andconsequentlythemanfunctioninginthatvehicleseesequallywell theobjectsbehindhim,abovehim,andbeneathhim,withoutneedingtoturnhishead.Thecentres,therefore,cannotbedescribedasorgans in theordinary senseof theword, since it is not through them that themanseesorhears,ashedoesherethroughtheeyesandears.Yetitisupontheirvivification that the power of exercising these astral senses depends, each ofthemasitisdevelopedgivingtothewholeastralbodythepowerofresponsetoanewsetofvibrations.

Asalltheparticlesoftheastralbodyareconstantlyflowingandswirlingaboutlikethoseofboilingwater,alloftheminturnpassthrougheachofthecentresorvortices,sothateachcentreinitsturnevokesinalltheparticlesofthebodythepowerofreceptivitytoacertainsetofvibrations,andsoalltheastralsensesareequallyactiveinallpartsofthebody.Butevenwhentheseastralsensesarefullyawakeneditbynomeansfollowsthatthemanwillbeabletobringthroughintohisphysicalbodyanyconsciousnessoftheiraction.

THEAROUSINGOFKUNDALINI

Whileall thisastralawakeningwas takingplace, then, themaninhisphysicalconsciousness knewnothingwhatever of it.The onlyway inwhich the densebodycanbebroughttosharealltheseadvantagesisbyrepeatingthatprocessofawakening with the etheric centres. That may be achieved in various ways,accordingtotheschoolofyogawhichthestudentispractising.

SevenschoolsofyogaarerecognizedinIndia:1.RajaYoga;2.KarmaYoga;3.JnanaYoga; 4.HathaYoga; 5.LayaYoga; 6.BhaktiYoga; 7.MantraYoga. IhavegivensomeaccountoftheminthesecondeditionofTheMastersandthePath,andProfessorWoodhasdescribedthemfullyinhisbookRajaYoga;theOccult Training of the Hindus. They all recognize the existence and theimportanceofthechakras,andeachhasitsownmethodofdevelopingthem.Theplan of the Raja Yogi is to meditate upon each in turn and bring them intoactivitybysheerforceofwill—aschemewhichhasmuchtorecommendit.TheschoolwhichpaysmostattentiontothemisthatofLayaYoga,anditssystemisto arouse the higher potentialities of the serpent-fire, and force it through thecentresonebyone.

Thatarousingneedsadeterminedandalongcontinuedeffortofthewill,forto

bringthatfirstchakraintofullactivityispreciselytoawakentheinnerlayersoftheserpent-fire.Whenoncethatisaroused,itisbyitstremendousforcethattheothercentresarevivified. Itseffecton theotherethericwheels is tobring intothephysicalconsciousnessthepowerswhichwerearousedbythedevelopmentoftheircorrespondingastralchakras.

THEAWAKENINGOFTHEETHERICCHAKRAS

Whenthesecondoftheethericcentres,thatatthespleen,isawakened,themanisenabled to rememberhisvagueastral journeys, thoughsometimesonlyverypartially.Theeffectofaslightandaccidentalstimulationofthiscentreisoftentoproducehalf-remembranceofablissfulsensationofflyingthroughtheair.

Whenthe thirdcentre, thatat thenavel,comesintoactivity, themanbegins inthe physical body to be conscious of all kinds of astral influences, vaguelyfeelingthatsomeofthemarefriendlyandothershostile,orthatsomeplacesarepleasantandothersunpleasant,withoutintheleastknowingwhy.

Stimulationofthefourth,thatattheheart,makesthemaninstinctivelyawareofthejoysandsorrowsofothers,andsometimesevencauseshimtoreproduceinhimselfbysympathytheirphysicalachesandpains.

Thearousingof the fifth, that at the throat, enableshim tohearvoices,whichsometimes make all kinds of suggestions to him. Also sometimes he hearsmusic,orotherlesspleasantsounds.Whenitisfullyworkingitmakesthemanclairaudientasfarastheethericandastralplanesareconcerned.

Whenthesixth,betweentheeyebrows,becomesvivified,themanbeginstoseethings,tohavevarioussortsofwakingvisions,sometimesofplaces,sometimesof people. In its earlier development, when it is only just beginning to beawakened, itoftenmeansnothingmorethanhalf-seeinglandscapesandcloudsofcolour.Thefullarousingofthisbringsaboutclairvoyance.

Thecentrebetweentheeyebrowsisconnectedwithsightinyetanotherway.Itisthrough it that the power of magnification of minute physical objects isexercised.Atinyflexibletubeofethericmatterisprojectedfromthecentreofit,resemblingamicroscopicsnakewithsomethinglikeaneyeattheendofit.Thisisthespecialorganusedinthatformofclairvoyance,andtheeyeattheendofitcan be expanded or contracted, the effect being to change the power ofmagnificationaccordingtothesizeoftheobjectwhichisbeingexamined.This

iswhatismeantinancientbookswhenmentionismadeofthecapacitytomakeoneself large or small at will. To examine an atom one develops an organ ofvisioncommensurateinsizewiththeatom.Thislittlesnakeprojectingfromthecentre of the foreheadwas symbolized upon the head-dress of the Pharaoh ofEgypt,whoasthechiefpriestofhiscountrywassupposedtopossessthisamongmanyotheroccultpowers.

Whentheseventhcentreisquickened,themanisablebypassingthroughittoleavehisbody in full consciousness, and also to return to itwithout theusualbreak,sothathisconsciousnesswillbecontinuousthroughnightandday.Whenthefirehasbeenpassedthroughallthesecentresinacertainorder(whichvariesfor different types of people) the consciousness becomes continuous up to theentry into the heaven-world at the end of the life on the astral plane, nodifferencebeingmadebyeitherthetemporaryseparationfromthephysicalbodyduringsleeporthepermanentdivisionatdeath.

CASUALCLAIRVOYANCE

Before this is done, however, themanmay havemany glimpses of the astralworld,forspeciallystrongvibrationsmayatanytimegalvanizeoneorotherofthechakrasintotemporaryactivity,withoutarousingtheserpent-fireatall;oritmayhappenthatthefiremaybepartiallyroused,andinthiswayalsospasmodicclairvoyancemaybeproducedforthetime.Forthisfireexists,aswehavesaid,insevenlayersorsevendegreesofforce,anditoftenhappensthatamanwhoexertshiswillintheefforttoarouseitmaysucceedinaffectingonelayeronly,andsowhenhethinksthathehasdonetheworkhemayfinditineffective,andmay have to do it all over again many times, digging gradually deeper anddeeper,untilnotonlythesurfaceisstirredbuttheveryheartofthefireisinfullactivity.

THEDANGEROFPREMATUREAWAKENING

Thisfierypower,asitiscalledinTheVoiceoftheSilence, isinverytruthlikeliquid fireas it rushes through thebodywhen ithasbeenarousedby thewill;and the course through which it ought to move is spiral like the coils of aserpent. In its awakened state it may be called theWorldsMother in anothersensethanthatalreadymentioned,becausethroughitourvariousvehiclesmaybevivified,sothatthehigherworldsmayopenbeforeusinsuccession.

Fortheordinarypersonitliesatthebaseofthespineun-awakened,anditsverypresenceunsuspected,duringthewholeofhislife;anditisindeedfarbettertoallow it thus to remain dormant until the man has made definite moraldevelopment,untilhiswill isstrongenoughtocontrol itandhisthoughtspureenough to enable him to face its awakening without injury. No one shouldexperimentwith itwithout definite instruction from a teacherwho thoroughlyunderstands the subject, for the dangers connected with it are very real andterribly serious.Someof themarepurelyphysical. Its uncontrolledmovementoften produces intense physical pain, and itmay readily tear tissues and evendestroy physical life. This, however, is the least of the evils of which it iscapable,foritmaydopermanentinjurytovehicleshigherthanthephysical.

Oneverycommoneffectofrousingitprematurelyisthatitrushesdownwardsinthebody insteadofupwards,and thusexcites themostundesirablepassions—excites them and intensifies their effects to such a degree that it becomesimpossibleforthemantoresistthem,becauseaforcehasbeenbroughtintoplayinwhose presence he is as helpless as a swimmer before the jaws of a shark.Suchmenbecomesatyrs,monstersofdepravity,becausetheyareinthegraspofaforcewhichisoutofallproportiontotheordinaryhumanpowerofresistance.Theymayprobablygaincertainsupernormalpowers,but thesewillbesuchaswillbringthemintotouchwithalowerorderofevolutionwithwhichhumanityis intended to hold no commerce, and to escape from its awful thraldommaytakethemmorethanoneincarnation.

Iamnotinanywayexaggeratingthehorrorofthisthing,asapersontowhomitwasallamatterofhearsaymightunwittinglydo.Ihavemyselfbeenconsultedbypeopleuponwhomthisawfulfatehasalreadycome,andIhaveseenwithmyown eyes what happened to them. There is a school of black magic whichpurposelyutilizesthispowerforsuchpurposes,inorderthatthroughitmaybevivified a certain lower force-centre which is never used in that way by thefollowersof theGoodLaw.Somewritersdeny theexistenceof suchacentre;but Brahmanas of Southern India assure me that there are certain yogis whoteach their pupils to use it—though of course not necessarilywith evil intent.Still, the risk is too great to beworth takingwhen one can achieve the sameresultsinasaferway.

Even apart from this greatest of its dangers, the premature unfoldment of thehigheraspectsofkundalinihasmanyotherunpleasantpossibilities.Itintensifieseverythingin themansnature,andit reaches thelowerandevilqualitiesmore

readilythanthegood.Inthementalbody,forexample,ambitionisveryquicklyaroused,andsoonswellstoanincrediblyinordinatedegree.Itwouldbelikelytobringwithitagreatintensificationofthepowerofintellect,butatthesametimeitwouldproduceabnormalandsatanicpride, suchas isquite inconceivable totheordinaryman. It isnotwise foraman to think thathe isprepared tocopewith any force thatmay arisewithin his body; this is no ordinary energy, butsomethingresistless.Assuredlynouninstructedmanshouldever trytoawakenit,andifsuchanonefindsthatithasbeenarousedbyaccidentheshouldatonceconsultsomeonewhofullyunderstandsthesematters.

Iamspeciallyrefrainingfromanyexplanationastohowthisarousingis tobedone,nordo Imention theorder inwhich the force (whenaroused)shouldbepassedthroughthesevariouscentres,forthatshouldbynomeansbeattemptedexcept at the express suggestion of aMaster, who will watch overHis pupilsduringthevariousstagesoftheexperiment.

I should like most solemnly to warn all students against making any effortwhatever in the direction of awakening these tremendous forces, except undersuchqualifiedtuition,forIhavemyselfseenmanycasesof the terribleeffectswhich follow from ignorant and ill-advised meddling with these very seriousmatters.Theforceisatremendousreality,oneofthegreatbasicfactsofnature,andmost emphatically it is not a thingwithwhich to play, not amatter to belightly taken in hand, for to experimentwith itwithout understanding it is farmoredangerous than itwouldbe for a child toplaywithnitroglycerine.As isvery truly said in The Hathayoga Pradipika: It gives liberation to yogis andbondagetofools(III,107.).

In matters such as these, students so often seem to think that some specialexception to the laws of nature will bemade in their case, that some specialinterventionofprovidencewillsavethemfromtheconsequencesoftheirfolly.Assuredlynothingofthatsortwillhappen,andthemanwhowantonlyprovokesanexplosionisquitelikelytobecomeitsfirstvictim.Itwouldsavemuchtroubleanddisappointmentifstudentscouldbeinducedtounderstandthatinallmattersconnectedwithoccultismwemean just exactly and literallywhatwe say, andthatitisapplicableineverycasewithoutexception.Forthereisnosuchthingasfavouritismintheworkingofthegreatlawsoftheuniverse.

Everybodywantstotryallpossibleexperiments;everybodyisconvincedthatheisquitereadyforthehighestpossibleteachingandforanysortofdevelopment,

andnoone iswilling toworkpatientlyalongat the improvementofcharacter,andtodevotehistimeandhisenergiestodoingsomethingusefulfortheworkofTheSociety,waitingforalltheseotherthingsuntilaMastershallannouncethathe is readyfor them.AsIhavealreadysaid in thepreviouschapter inanotherconnection, the old aphorism still remains true: Seek ye first theKingdom ofGodandHisrighteousness,andallthesethingsshallbeaddeduntoyou.

THESPONTANEOUSAWAKENINGOFKUNDALINI

There are some cases in which the inner layers of this fire awakenspontaneously, so that adullglow is felt; itmayevenbegin tomoveof itself,though this is rare.When this happens, itmay cause great pain, as, since thepassages are not prepared for it, it would have to clear its way by actuallyburning up a great deal of etheric dross—a process that cannot but engendersuffering.Whenitthusawakesofitselforisaccidentallyaroused,itusuallytriesto pass up the interior of the spine, following the course already taken by itslowest and gentlest manifestation. If it be possible, the will should be set inmotiontoarrestitsupwardmovement,butifthatprovestobeimpossible(asismost likely)noalarmneedbe felt. Itwillprobably flashout through theheadand escape into the surrounding atmosphere, and it is likely that noharmwillresult beyond a slight weakening. Nothing worse than a temporary loss ofconsciousnessneedbeapprehended.Thereallyappallingdangersareconnectednotwithitsupwardrush,butwiththepossibilityofitsturningdownwardsandinwards.

Its principal function in connectionwith occult development is that, by beingsentthroughtheforce-centresintheethericbody,asabovedescribed,itquickensthese chakras and makes them more fully available as gates of connectionbetweenthephysicalandastralbodies.ItissaidinTheVoiceoftheSilencethatwhentheserpent-firereachesthecentrebetweentheeyebrowsandfullyvivifiesit,itconfersthepowerofhearingthevoiceoftheMaster—whichmeansinthiscase the voice of the ego or higher self. The reason for this statement is thatwhenthepituitarybodyisbroughtintoworkingorderitformsaperfectlinkwiththe astral vehicle, so that through it all communications from within can bereceived.

It is not only this chakra; all the higher force-centres have presently to beawakened,andeachmustbemaderesponsivetoallkindsofinfluencesfromthe

variousastralsub-planes.Thisdevelopmentwillcometoall induecourse,butmost people cannot gain it during the present incarnation, if it is the first inwhich they have begun to take thesematters seriously in hand. Some Indiansmightsucceedindoingso,astheirbodiesarebyhereditymoreadaptablethanmostothers;butitisreallyforthemajoritytheworkofalaterRoundaltogether.Theconquestoftheserpent-firehastoberepeatedineachincarnation,sincethevehiclesareneweachtime,butafterithasbeenoncethoroughlyachievedtheserepetitionswillbeaneasymatter. Itmustberemembered that itsactionvarieswith different types of people; some, for example, would see the higher selfrather than hear its voice. Again, this connection with the higher has manystages; for the personality it means the influence of the ego, but for the egohimselfitmeansthepoweroftheMonad,andfortheMonadinturnitmeanstobecomeaconsciousexpressionoftheLogos.

PERSONALEXPERIENCE

ItmaybeofuseifImentionmyownexperienceinthismatter.IntheearlierpartofmyresidenceinIndiaforty-twoyearsagoImadenoefforttorousethefire—notindeedknowingverymuchaboutit,andhavingtheopinionthat,inordertodoanythingwith it, itwasnecessary tobebornwithaspeciallypsychicbody,whichIdidnotpossess.ButonedayoneoftheMastersmadeasuggestiontomewith regard to a certain kind of meditation which would evoke this force.Naturally Iatonceput thesuggestion intopractice,and incourseof timewassuccessful. I have no doubt, however, that He watched the experiment, andwould have checkedme if it had become dangerous. I am told that there areIndian ascetics who teach this to their pupils, of course keeping them undercareful supervisionduring theprocess.But Idonotmyselfknowofanysuch,norshouldIhaveconfidenceinthemunlesstheywerespeciallyrecommendedbysomeonewhomIknewtobepossessedofrealknowledge.

PeopleoftenaskmewhatIadvisethemtodowithregardtothearousingofthisforce.IadvisethemtodoexactlywhatImyselfdid.Irecommendthemtothrowthemselves into Theosophical work and wait until they receive a definitecommand from someMaster who will undertake to superintend their psychicdevelopment, continuing in the meantime all the ordinary exercises ofmeditation that are known to them.They should not care in the leastwhethersuchdevelopmentcomesinthisincarnationorinthenext,butshouldregardthematter from the point of view of the ego and not of the personality, feeling

absolutely certain that theMasters are alwayswatching for thosewhomTheycanhelp,thatitisentirelyimpossibleforanyonetobeoverlooked,andthatTheywillunquestionablygiveTheirdirectionswhenTheythinkthattherighttimehascome.

I have never heard that there is any sort of age limit with regard to thedevelopment,andIdonotsee thatageshouldmakeanydifference,so longasonehasperfecthealth;butthehealthisanecessity,foronlyastrongbodycanendurethestrain,whichismuchmoreseriousthananyonewhohasnotmadetheattemptcanpossiblyimagine.

Theforcewhenarousedmustbeverystrictlycontrolled,anditmustbemovedthroughthecentres inanorderwhichdiffersforpeopleofdifferent types.Themovement also, to be effective, must bemade in a particular way, which theMasterwillexplainwhenthetimecomes.

THEETHERICWEB

Ihavesaidthat theastralandethericcentresareinveryclosecorrespondence;butbetweenthem,andinterpenetratingtheminamannernotreadilydescribable,isasheathorwebofcloselywoventexture,asheathcomposedofasinglelayerof physical atomsmuch compressed and permeated by a special formof vitalforce. The divine life which normally descends from the astral body to thephysical is so attuned as to pass through this with perfect ease, but it is anabsolutebarrier to all other forces—allwhich cannotuse the atomicmatter ofboth the planes. This web is the protection provided by nature to prevent apremature opening up of communication between the planes—a developmentwhichcouldleadtonothingbutinjury.

Itisthiswhichundernormalconditionspreventsclearrecollectionofwhathashappened during sleep, and it is this also which causes the momentaryunconsciousnesswhichalwaysoccursatdeath.But for thismercifulprovisionthe ordinary man, who knows nothing about all these things and is entirelyunpreparedtomeetthem,couldatanymomentbebroughtbyanyastralentityunder the influenceofforces tocopewithwhichwouldbeentirelybeyondhisstrength.Hewould be liable to constant obsession by any being on the astralplanewhodesiredtoseizeuponhisvehicles.

Itwill therefore be readily understood that any injury to thisweb is a serious

disaster.Thereareseveralwaysinwhichinjurymaycome,anditbehovesustouseourbestendeavourstoguardagainstit.Itmaycomeeitherbyaccidentorbycontinuedmalpractice.Anygreatshocktotheastralbody,suchforexampleasasudden terrible fright, may rend apart this delicate organism and, as it iscommonly expressed, drive themanmad. (Of course there are other ways inwhichfearmaycauseinsanity,butthisisone.)Atremendousoutburstofangermayalsoproduce thesameeffect. Indeed itmayfollowuponanyexceedinglystrongemotionof anevil characterwhichproducesakindof explosion in theastralbody.

THEEFFECTSOFALCOHOLANDDRUGS

Themalpracticeswhichmaymore gradually injure this protectiveweb are oftwoclasses—useof alcoholornarcoticdrugs, and thedeliberateendeavour tothrowopenthedoorswhichnaturehaskeptclosed,bymeansofsuchaprocessasisdescribedinspiritualisticparlanceassittingfordevelopment.Certaindrugsand drinks—notably alcohol and all the narcotics, including tobacco—containmatterwhichonbreakingupvolatilizes,andsomeofitpassesfromthephysicalplanetotheastral.(Eventeaandcoffeecontainthismatter,butinquantitiessoinfinitesimal that it isusuallyonlyafter long-continuedabuseof them that theeffectmanifestsitself.)

Whenthistakesplaceinthebodyofmantheseconstituentsrushoutthroughthechakras in the opposite direction to that for which they are intended, and indoingthisrepeatedlytheyseriouslyinjureandfinallydestroythedelicateweb.This deterioration or destructionmay be brought about in two differentways,according to the type of the person concerned and to the proportion of theconstituentsinhisethericandastralbodies.First,therushofvolatilizingmatteractuallyburnsawaytheweb,andtherefore leaves thedooropentoallsortsofirregularforcesandevilinfluences.

The second result is that these volatile constituents, in flowing through,somehowhardentheatom,sothatitspulsationistoalargeextentcheckedandcrippled,anditisnolongercapableofbeingvitalizedbytheparticulartypeofforcewhichweldsitintoaweb.Theresultofthisisakindofossificationoftheweb,sothatinsteadofhavingtoomuchcomingthroughfromoneplanetotheother,wehaveverylittleofanykindcomingthrough.

Wemaysee theeffectsofboth these typesofdeterioration in thecaseofmen

who yield themselves to drunkenness. Some of those who are affected in theformerwayfallintodeliriumtremens,obsessionorinsanity;butthoseareafterallcomparativelyrare.Farmorecommonisthesecondtypeofdeteriorationthecaseinwhichwehaveakindofgeneraldeadeningdownofthemansqualities,resulting in grossmaterialism, brutality and animalism, in the loss of all finerfeelings and of the power to control himself.He no longer feels any sense ofresponsibility;hemaylovehiswifeandchildrenwhensober,butwhenthefitofdrunkennesscomesuponhimhewillusethemoneywhichshouldhavebroughtbread for them to satisfy his own bestial cravings, the affection and theresponsibilityhavingapparentlyentirelydisappeared.

THEEFFECTOFTOBACCO

The second type of effect is very commonly to be seen among thosewho areslaves of the tobacco habit. Its effects are obvious in the physical, astral andmentalbodies.

It permeates the man physically with exceedingly impure particles, causingemanationssogrosslymaterial thattheyarefrequentlyperceptibletothesenseofsmell.Astrallyitnotonlyintroducesinpuritybutitalsotendstodeadenmanyofthevibrations,anditisforthisreasonthatitisfoundtosoothethenerves,asit is called. But of course for occult progress we do not want the vibrationsdeadened,northeastralbodyweigheddownwithpoisonousparticles.Weneedthecapacityofanswering instantly toallpossiblewave-lengths,andyetat thesame timewemusthaveperfect control, so thatourdesires shallbeashorsesguidedbytheintelligentmindtodrawuswherewewill,nottorunawaywithuswildly,asdoesthetobaccohabit,andcarryusintosituationswhereourhighernatureknowsthatitoughtnevertobefound.Itsresultsafterdeatharealsoofthemost distressing character; it causes a sort of ossification and paralysis of theastral body, so that for a long time (extending toweeks andmonths) themanremains helpless, supine, scarcely conscious, shut up as though in a prison,unable to communicate with his friends, dead for the time to all higherinfluences.Isitworthwhileincurringallthesepenaltiesforthesakeofapettyindulgence?Foranypersonwhoreallymeanstodevelophisvehicles,toawakenhischakras,tomakeprogressalongthepathofholiness,tobaccoisundoubtedlytobesedulouslyavoided.

All impressionswhich pass from one plane to the other are intended to come

only through the atomic sub-planes, as I have said; but when this deadeningprocess sets in, it presently infectsnotonlyother atomicmatter, butmatterofeventhesecondandthirdsub-planes,so that theonlycommunicationbetweenthe astral and the etheric is when some force acting on the lower sub-planes(uponwhichonlyunpleasantandevilinfluencesaretobefound)happenstobestrongenoughtocompelaresponsebytheviolenceofitsvibration.

THEOPENINGOFTHEDOORS

Nevertheless,thoughnaturetakessuchprecautionstoguardthesecentres,shebynomeansintendsthattheyshallalwaysbekeptrigidlyclosed.Thereisaproperwayinwhichtheymaybeopened.Perhapsitwouldbemorecorrecttosaythattheintentionisnotthatthedoorsshouldbeopenedanywiderthantheirpresentposition, but that theman should sodevelophimself that he canbring agreatdealmorethroughtherecognizedchannel.

Theconsciousnessoftheordinarymancannotyetusepureatomicmattereitherin the physical body or in the astral, and therefore there is normally nopossibilityforhimofconsciouscommunicationatwillbetweenthetwoplanes.The proper way to obtain that is to purify both the vehicles until the atomicmatterinbothisfullyvitalized,sothatallcommunicationsbetweenthetwomaybeabletopassbythatroad.Inthatcasethewebretainstothefullestdegreeitspositionandactivity,andyetisnolongerabarriertotheperfectcommunication,while it still continues to fulfil its purpose of preventing the close contactbetweenlowersub-planeswhichwouldpermitallsortsofundesirableinfluencestopassthrough.

Thatiswhywearealwaysadjuredtowaitfortheunfoldingofpsychicpowersuntil they come in the natural course of events as a consequence of thedevelopmentof character, aswe see from the studyof these force-centres thattheysurelywill.Thatisthenaturalevolution;thatistheonlyreallysafeway,forby it thestudentobtainsall thebenefitsandavoidsall thedangers.That is thePathwhichourMastershavetroddeninthepast;thatthereforeisthePathforustoday.

CHAPTERV

THELAYAYOGA

THEHINDUBOOKS

ITisnearly twentyyearssinceIwrote themajorpartof the informationaboutthechakraswhichappears in theprecedingpages,andIhadat that timebutaveryslightacquaintancewiththeextensiveliteraturewhichexistsonthesubjectin theSanskrit language.Since then, however, several importantworkson thechakrashavebecomeavailableinEnglish,amongwhichareTheSerpentPower(whichisatranslationbyArthurAvalonofTheShatchakaraNirupana),ThirtyMinor Upanishads, translated by K. Narayanaswami Aiyar, and The ShivaSamhita, translatedbySrisChandraVidyarnava.Theseworksdealextensivelywiththespecialsubjectofchakras,buttherearemanyotherswhichtouchuponthecentres inamorecasualway.Avalonsbookgivesusanexcellentseriesofcolouredillustrationsofallthechakras,inthesymbolicalforminwhichtheyarealwaysdrawnbytheHinduyogis.ThisdepartmentofHinduscienceisgraduallybecomingknownintheWest;forthebenefitofmyreadersIwillattempttogiveaverybriefoutlineofithere.

THEINDIANLISTOFCHAKRAS

ThechakrasmentionedintheseSanskritbooksarethesameasthosewhichwesee today, except that as I have already said, they always substitute theirSvadhishthana centre for that at the spleen. They differ slightly amongthemselves as to the number of petals, but on the whole they agree with us,though for some reason they do not include the centre at the top of head,confining themselves to six chakras only, and calling the centre the SahasraraPadma—the lotus of a thousand petals. The smaller chakra of twelve petalswithinthiscrowncentrewasobservedbythem,andisdulynoted.Theyspeakoftwopetalsinsteadofninety-sixinthesixthchakra,buttheyrefernodoubttothetwodivisionsofthediscofthatcentre,mentionedinChapterI.

Thediscrepanciesastothenumberofpetalsarenotimportant;forexample,TheYogaKundaliniUpanishadspeaksofsixteenpetalsintheheartchakrainsteadof

twelve, andTheDhyanabinduUpanishad andThe Shandilya Upanishad bothmention twelve spokes insteadof ten in thenavel chakra.Anumberofworksalso refer to another chakra that is below the heart, and to several centresbetweenthebrowchakraandthecrownlotus,allasbeingofgreatimportance.TheDhyanabinduUpanishadsaysthatthelotusofthehearthaseightpetals,butitsdescriptionoftheuseofthatchakrainmeditationindicates(asweshallseelater)thatitisprobablyreferringtothesecondaryheartchakratowhichIhavejust referred. In the matter of the colours of the petals there are also somedisagreements, aswill be seen from tableV, comparing some of the principalworkswithourownlist.

It isnotsurprisingthatsuchdifferencesastheseshouldbeonrecord,forthereareunquestionablyvariantsinthechakrasofdifferentpeopleandraces,aswellasinthefacultiesofobservers.WhatwehaverecordedinChapterIistheresultof careful observationon the part of a number ofWestern students,whohavetakeneveryprecautiontocomparenotesandtoverifywhattheyhaveseen.CHAKRA OUROBSERVATIONS SHATCHAKRA

NIRUPANASHIVA

SAMHITAGARUDAPURANA

1 Fieryorange-red Red Red2 Glowing,sunlike Vermilion Vermilion Sunlike3 Variousredsandgreens Blue Golden Red4 Golden Vermilion Deepred Golden5 Blue,silvery,gleaming Smokypurple Brilliantgold Moonlike6 Yellowandpurple White White Red

TABLEVColoursofLotusPetals

ThedrawingsofthechakrasmadebytheHinduyogisfortheuseoftheirpupilsare always symbolical, and bear no relation to the actual appearance of thechakra, except that an attempt is usuallymade to indicate the colour and thenumberofpetals.Inthecentreofeachsuchdrawingweshallfindageometricalform,aletteroftheSanskritalphabet,ananimal,andtwodeities,onemaleandtheother female.Wegive inFig.9a reproductionof thedrawingof theheartchakra,borrowedfromArthurAvalonsTheSerpentPower.Weshallendeavourtoexplainwhatisunderstoodbythevarioussymbols.

THEFIGURESOFTHECHAKRAS

TheobjectofLayaorKundaliniYogaisthesameasthatofeveryotherformofIndian yoga, to unite the soul with God; and for this purpose it is always

necessarytomakethreekindsofefforts—thoseoflove,ofthoughtandofaction.Thoughinaparticularschoolofyogathewillmustbeespeciallyused(asisthecase in the teaching ofThe Yoga Sutras), and in another great love is chieflyprescribed (as in the instruction given by Shri Krishna to Arjuna in TheBhagavadGita), still it isalwaysproclaimed thatattainmentsmustbemade inallthreedirections.ThusPatanjalipropoundsforthecandidateatthebeginningacourseof tapasorpurificatoryeffort,svadhyaya or studyof spiritual things,andIshvarapranidhana,ordevotiontoGodatalltimes.ShriKrishna,similarly,after explaining to His pupil that wisdom is the most valuable instrument ofservice,thegreatestofferingthatonecanmake,addsthatitmaybelearntonlybydevotion,enquiryandservice,concludingHisstatementwiththesignificantwords:TheWiseOnes,SeersoftheTruth,willteachyouthewisdom.InAttheFeetoftheMaster,whichisthemostmodernrenderingoftheEasternteaching,the same triplicity appears, for the qualifications include discrimination, thepractice of good conduct, and the development of love towardsGod,Guru orTeacher,andman.

TounderstandthesediagramsofthechakraswhichareusedbyIndianyogis,itmustbeborne inmind that theyare intended toassist theaspirant inall thesethree linesofprogress. It isnecessary thatheshouldacquireknowledgeabouttheconstitutionof theworldandofman(thatwhichwenowcallTheosophy),and that he should develop deep and strong devotion through worship of theDivine,whileheisstrivingtoawakentheinnerlayersofKundaliniandconducther (for this force is always spoken of as a goddess) in a tour through thechakras.

Fig9-HinduDiagramoftheHeartChakra

Becauseallthesethreeobjectsareinview,wefindineachchakrasomesymbolswhich are concerned with teaching and devotion and need not necessarily beregarded as constituting any essential or working part of the chakra. In theservices—orcollectiveyogapractices—oftheLiberalCatholicChurchwehaveaWesternexampleof thesamething.Therealsowestriveat thesametimetostimulate devotion and to convey spiritual knowledge, while practising themagic involved in therites.Wemust rememberalso that inolddays theyogiswhowanderedaboutordweltintheforestshadlittlerecourseeventothewrittenpalm-leafbooksof thosetimes,andthereforerequiredmnemonicaids,suchasmanyofthesesymbolsgive.Theysatattimesatthefeetoftheirgurus;andtheycouldafterwardsrememberandrecapitulatetheTheosophywhichtheylearntonthoseoccasions,withtheaidofsuchnotesasareconveyedbythesedrawings.

THEHEARTCHAKRA

Itishardlypossibleheretoattemptacompleteexplanationofthesymbologyofall thesechakras; itwillbesufficient togivean indicationofwhat isprobablymeant in the case of the heart or Anahata chakra, of which our figure is anillustration.Oneof thegreatestdifficulties inourway is that thereare several

interpretations ofmost of these symbols, and that the yogis of India present afront of impenetrable reticence to the inquirer, a stone-wall unwillingness toimpart theirknowledgeor thoughts toanybut thestudentwhoputshimself instatupupillariwiththesetpurposeofgivinghimselfutterlytotheworkofLayaYoga, determined if necessary to spend his whole life at the task in order toachievesuccess.

Thischakraisdescribedinvv.22-27ofTheShatchakraNirupana,ofwhichthefollowingisAvalonssummarizedtranslation:

TheHeartLotusisofthecolouroftheBandhukaflower[red],andonitstwelvepetals are the lettersKa toTha, with theBindu above them, of the colour ofvermilion.InitspericarpisthehexagonalVayu-Mandala,ofasmokycolour,andabove it Surya-Mandala, with the Trikona lustrous as ten million flashes oflightningwithinit.AboveittheVayuBija,ofasmokyhue,isseatedonablackantelope,four-armedandcarryingthegoad(ankusha).Inhis(Vayu-Bijas)lapisthree-eyed Isha. Like Hamsa (Hamsabha), His two arms are extended in thegestures of granting boons and dispelling fear. In the pericarp of this Lotus,seated on a red lotus, is the Shakti Kakini. She is fourarmed, and carries thenoose(Pasha),theskull(Kapala)andmakestheboon(Vara)andfear-dispelling(Abhaya)signs.Sheisofagoldenhue,isdressedinyellowraiment,andwearseveryvarietyofjewel,andagarlandofbones.Herheartissoftenedbynectar.InthemiddleoftheTrikonaisShivaintheformofaVana-Linga,withthecrescentmoonandBinduonhishead.Heisofagoldencolour.Helooksjoyouswitharushofdesire.BelowhimistheJivatmalikeHamsa.Itislikethesteadytaperingflameofalamp.

Below the pericarp of thisLotus is the red lotus of eight petals,with its headupturned.Itisinthis(red)lotusthattherearetheKalpaTree,thejewelledaltarsurmountedbyanawninganddecoratedbyflagsandthelike,whichistheplaceofmentalworship.[19]

THEPETALSANDLETTERS

Thepetalsofanyoneoftheselotuses,aswehaveseen,aremadebytheprimaryforces, which radiate out into the body along the spokes of the wheel. Thenumberofspokesisdeterminedbythenumberofpowersbelongingtotheforcewhichcomesthroughaparticularchakra.Inthiscasewehavetwelvepetals,andthe letters given to these evidently symbolize a certain section of the total

creativepowerorlife-forcecomingintothebody.ThelettersmentionedherearefromKatoTha,takenintheregularorderoftheSanskritalphabet.Thisalphabetis extraordinarily scientific—apparently we have nothing like it in Westernlanguages—andits49lettersareusuallyarrangedinthefollowingtabularform,towhichkshaisaddedinordertosupplyenoughlettersforthefiftypetalsofthesixchakras.

TableVITheSanskritAlphabet

Thisalphabetisconsideredforyogapurposestoincludethesum-totalofhumansounds,tobefromthepointofviewofspeechamateriallyextendedexpression

of the one creative sound or word. Like the sacred word Aum (the sound ofwhichbegins in thebackof themouthwitha, traverses thecentrewithu,andendsuponthelipsinm)itrepresentsallcreativespeech,andthereforeasetofpowers.Theseareassignedasfollows:thesixteenvowelstothethroatchakra,KatoThatotheheart,DatoPhatothenavel,BatoLatothesecond,andVatoSa to the first.Ha andKsha are given to theAjna chakra, and the SahasraraLotusorcrownchakraisconsideredtoincludethealphabettakentwentytimesover.

There is no apparent reasonwhy the letters should have been assigned to theparticularchakrasmentioned,butthereisanincreasingnumberofpowersasweascendthechakras.ItispossiblethatthefoundersoftheLayasystemmayhavehadadetailedknowledgeofthesepowers,andmayhaveusedtheletterstonamethem much as we use letters in referring to angles in geometry, or to theemanationsfromradium.

Thepracticeofmeditationon these lettershas evidently something todowithreachingtheinnersoundwhichkillstheouter,touseaphrasefromTheVoiceoftheSilence. The scientificmeditation of theHindus beginswith concentrationupon a pictured object or a sound, and only when the mind has been fixedsteadilyuponthatdoestheyogitrytopassontorealizeitshighersignificance.Thus in meditating upon a Master he first pictures the physical form, andafterwardstries tofeel theemotionsof theMaster, tounderstandHis thoughts,andsoon.

Inthismatterofsoundstheyogitriestopassinwardfromthesoundasknowntousandutteredbyus,totheinnerqualityandpowerofthatsound,andthusitisanaidtothepassageofhisconsciousnessfromplanetoplane.ItmaybethoughtthatGodcreatedtheplanesbyrecitingthealphabetandthatourspokenwordisitslowestspiral.Inthisformofyogatheaspirantstrivesbyinnerabsorptionorlayatoreturnuponthatpathandsodrawnearer to theDivine.InLightonthePathweareexhortedtolistentothesongoflife,andtotrytocatchitshiddenorhighertones.

THEMANDALAS

Thehexagonalmandalaorcirclewhichoccupiesthepericarpoftheheartlotusistakenasasymboloftheelementair.Eachchakraisconsideredtobeespeciallyconnectedwithoneoftheelementsearth,water,fire,air,etherandmind.These

elementsare tobe regardedasstatesofmatter,notelementsasweunderstandthem inmodernchemistry.Theyare thusequivalent to the terms solid, liquid,fieryorgaseous,airyandetheric,andaresomewhatanalogoustooursub-planesand planes-physical, astral, mental, etc. These elements are represented bycertainyantrasordiagramsofasymboliccharacter,whicharegivenasfollowsinTheShatchakraNirupana,andareshownwithinthepericarpsofthepicturedlotuses.

Sometimes in the following list orange-red is given instead of yellow, blueinstead of smoky, and black instead of white in the fifth chakra, though it isexplainedthatblackstandsforindigoordarkblue.CHAKRA ELEMENT FORM COLOUR

123456

EarthWaterFireAirEtherMin

AsquareAcrescentmoonAtriangleTwointerlacedtriangles(ahexagonalfigure)Acircle

YellowWhiteBrightredSmokyWhitewhite

TABLEVIITheSymbolicFormsoftheElements

ItmayseemcurioustotheWesternreaderthatthemindshouldbeputamongtheelements,butthatdoesnotappearsototheHindu,forthemindisregardedbyhimasbutaninstrumentofconsciousness.TheHinduhasawayoflookingatthings fromaveryhighpointofview,oftenapparently from thestandpointoftheMonad.Forexample,intheseventhchapteroftheGita,ShriKrishnasays:Earth, water, fire, air, ether, manas, buddhi and ahamkara—these are theeightfolddivisionsofmymanifestation(prakriti).AlittlelateronHespeaksoftheseeightas,mylowermanifestation.

Theseelementsareassociatedwith the ideaof theplanes,asbeforeexplained,but it does not seem that the chakras are especially connectedwith them.Butcertainlyastheyogimeditatesupontheseelementsandtheirassociatedsymbolsineachchakraheremindshimselfoftheschemeoftheplanes.Hemayalsofindthisformofmeditationameansforraisinghiscentreofconsciousness,throughthe levelsof theplane inwhich it is at the time functioning, to the seventhorhighest,andthroughthattosomethinghigherstill.

Quite apart from the possibility of going out into a higher plane in fullconsciousness,wehavehereameansofraisingtheconsciousnesssothatitmayfeeltheinfluencesofasuperiorworldandreceiveimpressionsfromabove.The

forceorinfluencesoreceivedandfeltisnodoubtthenectarofwhichthebooksspeak,ofwhichwewillsaymoreinconnectionwiththeraisingoftheawakenedkundalinitothehighestcentre.

THEYANTRAS

InNaturesFinerForces[20]PanditRamaPrasadpresentsuswithathoughtfulstudyofthereasonsforthegeometricalformsoftheseyantras.Hisexplanationsaretoolengthyforreproductionhere,butwemayverybrieflysummarizesomeofhismainideas.Hearguesthatjustasthereexistsaluminiferousether,whichisthebeareroflighttooureyes,sothereisaspecialformofetherforeachoftheotherformsofsensation—smell, taste, touchandhearing.Thesesensesarecorrelatedwith the elements represented by the yantras—smell with the solid(square),tastewithliquid(crescent),sightwiththegaseous(triangle),touchwiththe airy (hexagon), and hearing with the etheric (circle). The propagation ofsound, the Pandit argues, is in the form of a circle, that is of a radiation allaround;hencethecircleinthefifthchakra.Thepropagationoflight,hesays,isin the form of a triangle, for a given point in the light-wave moves a littleforwards and also at right angles to the line of progress, so that when it hascompleted itsmovement it has performed a triangle; hence the triangle in thethirdchakra.Hearguesthatthereisamovementintheetheralsointhecasesoftouch,tasteandsmell,andgivesreasonsfortheformswhichwefindassociatedwiththeseintheirrespectivechakras.

THEANIMALS

The antelope, on account of its fleetness of foot, is a suitable symbol for theelementair,and thebijaorseed-mantra(that is, thesoundinwhich thepowergoverningthiselementmanifestsitself)isgivenasYam.Thiswordissoundedasthelettery,followedbytheneutralvoweln,(whichisliketheainIndia),andanasalafter-soundsimilartothatwhichfrequentlyoccursintheFrenchlanguage.It is the dot over the letterwhich represents this sound, and in that dot is thedivinitytobeworshippedinthiscentre—thethree-eyedIsha.Otheranimalsarethe elephant, associated with earth on account of its solidity and with etherbecauseofitssupportingpower;themakaraorcrocodileinthewaterofChakra2;andtheram(evidentlyregardedasafieryoraggressiveanimal)inChakra3.For certainpurposes theyogimay imaginehimself as seatedon theseanimalsandexercisingthepowerwhichtheirqualitiesrepresent.

THEDIVINITIES

Thereisabeautiful idea insomeof thesemantras,whichwemayillustratebyreferencetothewell-knownsacredwordOm.Itissaidtoconsistoffourparts—a,u,m,andardhamatra.ThereisareferencetothisinTheVoiceoftheSilence,asfollows:

AndthenthoucanstreposebetweenthewingsoftheGreatBird.Aye,sweetisrestbetweenthewingsofthatwhichisnotborn,nordies,butisAumthroughouteternalages.

AndMadameBlavatskyinafootnotetothisspeaksoftheGreatBirdas:

Kala Hamsa, the bird or swan. Says the Nadavindu-upanishat (Rig-veda)translated by the Kumbakonam Theosophical Society The syllable A isconsidered to be the bird Hamsas right wing, U its left, M its tail, and theArdhamatra(halfmetre)issaidtobeitshead.

The yogi after reaching the third syllable in his meditation, passes on to thefourth, which is the silence which follows. He thinks of the divinity in thatsilence.

Inthedifferentbooksthedeitiesassignedtothechakrasvary.ForexampleTheShatchakraNirupanaplacesBrahma,VishnuandShivainthefirst,secondandthird chakras respectively, and different forms of Shiva beyond them, butTheShivaSamhitaandsomeotherworksmentionGanesha(theelephant-headedsonofShiva)inthefirst,BrahmainthesecondandVishnuinthethird.Apparentlydifferencesaremadeaccordingtothesectoftheworshipper.

AlongwithIshainthepresentinstancewehaveasfemininedivinitytheShaktiKakini.Shaktimeanspowerorforce.Thought-powerisdescribedasashaktiofthemind. In each of the six chakras there is one of these feminine divinities-Dakini, Rakini, Lakini, Kakini, Shakini and Hakini—which are by someidentifiedwiththepowersgoverningthevariousdhatusorbodilysubstances.InthischakraKakiniisseatedonaredlotus.Sheisspokenofashavingfourarms(fourpowersorfunctions).WithtwoofherhandsshemakesthesamesignsofgrantingboonsanddispellingfearsasareshownbyIsha; theother twoholdanoose(asymbolwhichisanotherformoftheankhcross)andaskull(assymbol,nodoubt,oftheslainlowernature).

THEBODYMEDITATION

Sometimesthemeditationsusuallyprescribedfor thesechakrasareassignedtothebodyasawhole,asinthefollowingextractfromTheYogatattvaUpanishad:

Therearefiveelements,earth,water,fire,air,andether.Forthebodyofthefiveelements,thereisafivefoldconcentration.Fromthefeettothekneesissaidtobe the region of earth; it is four-sided in shape, yellow in colour and has theletterLa.CarryingthebreathwiththeletterLaalong theregionofearth (fromthefeettotheknees)andcontemplatingBrahmawithfourfacesandofagoldencolour,oneshouldperformmeditationthere.

Theregionofwaterisdeclaredtoextendfromthekneestotheanus.Thewateris semi-lunar in shape and white in colour, and has Va for its bija (seed).Carryingup the breathwith the letterVa along the region ofwater, he shouldmeditateuponthegodNarayana,havingfourarmsandacrownedhead,asbeingofthecolourofpurecrystal,asdressedinorangeclothsandasdecayless.

From theanus to theheart is said tobe the regionof fire.Fire is triangular inshape,ofredcolour,andhastheletterRa,foritsbijaorseed.Raisingthebreath,made resplendent through the letter Ra, along the region of fire, he shouldmeditateuponRudra,whohasthreeeyes,whograntsallwishes,whoisofthecolourofthemiddaysun,whoissmearedalloverwithholyashes,andwhoisofapleasedcountenance.

Fromthehearttothemiddleoftheeyebrowsissaidtobetheregionofair.Airishexangularinshape,blackincolour,andshineswiththeletterYa.Carryingthebreathalongtheregionofair,heshouldmeditateuponIshvara,theomniscient,aspossessingfacesonallsides.

From the centre of the eyebrows to the top of the head is declared to be theregion of ether; it is circular in shape, smoky in colour, and shiningwith theletterHa.Raisingthebreathalongtheregionofether,heshouldmeditateuponSadashivainthefollowingmanner—asproducinghappiness,asoftheshapeofbindu(adrop),astheGreatDeva,ashavingtheshapeofether,asshininglikepure crystal, aswearing the rising crescentmoon on his head, as having fivefaces, ten hands and three eyes, as beingof a pleasing countenance, as armedwithallweapons,asadornedwithallornaments,ashavingthegoddessUmainone-half of his body, as ready to grant favours, and as the cause of all thecauses.

This, tosomeextent,confirmsoursuggestionthat insomecasestheprinciplesuponwhichweareaskedtomeditateareappliedtopartsofthebodyforpurelymnemonicpurposes,notwiththedirectintentionofaffectingthoseparts.

THEKNOTS

Inthecentreoftheheartlotusatrikonaorinvertedtriangleisfigured.Thisisnotafeatureofall thecentres,butonlyoftheroot,heartandbrowchakras.Thereareinthesethreespecialgranthisorknots,throughwhichkundalinihastobreakinthecourseofher journey.Thefirst issometimescalledtheknotofBrahma;thesecondthatofVishnu;thethirdthatofShiva.Theideawhichthissymbolismseems to imply is that the piercing of these chakras in some way involves aspecial change of state, possibly from the personality to the higher self andthencetotheMonad—theregionsoverwhichtheseAspectsmaybesaidtorule.Itcan,however,beonlyinasubordinateorsecondarymannerthatthisistrue,forwehaveobservedthattheheartchakrareceivesimpressionsfromthehigherastral,thethroatcentrefromthemental,andsoforth.Ineachtrianglethedeityisrepresentedasalinga,orinstrumentofunion.TheJivatma(literallylivingself)pointing upwards like the flame of a lamp is the ego, represented as a steadyflameprobablybecauseheisnotdistressedbytheaccidentsofmateriallife,asisthepersonality.

THESECONDARYHEARTLOTUS

The second small lotus represented as just beneath the heart chakra is also aspecialfeatureofthiscentre.ItisusedasaplaceformeditationupontheformoftheguruortheAspectoftheDeitywhichespeciallyappealsorisassignedtotheworshipper.Here thedevotee imaginesan islandofgems,containingbeautifultrees,andanaltarforworship,whichisdescribedasfollowsinTheGherandaSamhita:

Lethimcontemplatethatthereisaseaofnectarinhisheart;thatinthemidstofthatseathereisanislandofpreciousstones,theverysandofwhichispulverizeddiamondsandrubies.ThatonallsidesofitthereareKadambatrees,ladenwithsweetflowers;that,nexttothesetrees,likearampart,thereisarowoffloweringtrees, suchasmalati,mallika, jati,kesara, champaka,parijata, andpadma,andthat the fragranceof these flowers is spreadall round, in everyquarter. In themiddleof this garden, let theyogi imagine that there stands a beautifulKalpa

tree, having four branches, representing the four Vedas, and that it is full offlowersandfruits.Insectsarehummingthereandcuckoossinging.Beneaththattree, let him imagine a rich platform of precious gems, and on that a costlythrone inlaid with jewels, and that on that throne sits his particular Deity, astaught to him by his Guru. Let him contemplate on the appropriate form,ornamentsandvehicleofthatDeity.[21]

Theworshipperuseshisimaginationincreatingthisbeautifulscenesovividlyastobecomeenwrappedinhisthoughtandtoforgettheouterworldentirelyforthetimebeing.Theprocessisnot,however,entirelyimaginative,forthisisameanstoobtainconstantcontactwiththeMaster.Justastheimagesofpersonsmadebyonewho is in the heaven-world after death are filledwith life by the egos ofthose persons, so the Master fills with his real presence the thought-formproduced by his pupil. Through that form real inspiration and sometimesinstructionmaybegiven.AninterestingexampleofthiswaspresentedbyanoldHindugentlemanwhowaslivingasayogiinavillageintheMadrasPresidency,whoclaimedtobeapupiloftheMasterMorya.WhenthatMasterwastravellingin Southern India years ago he visited the village where this man lived. Thelatterbecamehispupil,anddeclaredthathedidnotlosehisMasterafterhewentaway,forheusedfrequentlytoappeartohimandinstructhimthroughacentrewithinhimself.

TheHindus laymuchstressuponthenecessityforaGuruorMaster,and theyreverencehimgreatlywhenheisfound.Theyconstantlyreiteratethestatementthathemustbe treatedasdivine;TheTejobinduUpanishad says:The furthestlimit of all thoughts is the guru. Theymaintain thatwere one to think of thegloriousqualitiesof theDivineBeing,ones imaginationwould still fallbelowtheperfectionsoftheMaster.WewhoknowtheMasterswellrealizethetruthofthat; their pupils find in them heights of consciousness splendid and gloriousbeyondallexpectation.ItisnotthattheyconsidertheMasterequaltoGod;butthat that portion of the Divine which the Master has attained outshines theirpreviousconceptionsofit.

EFFECTOFMEDITATIONINTHEHEART

TheShivaSamhita thus describes the benefitswhich are said to accrue to theyogifrommeditationupontheheartcentre:

He gets immeasurable knowledge, knows the past, present and future; has

clairaudience,clairvoyanceandcanwalkintheair,wheneverhelikes.

He sees the adepts, and the goddesses known as Yoginis; obtains the powerknownasKhechari,andconquersthecreatureswhichmoveintheair.

He who contemplates daily on the hidden Banalinga undoubtedly obtains thepsychicpowerscalledKhechari(movingintheair)andBhuchari(goingatwillallovertheworld).[22]

It is not necessary to comment upon these poetic descriptions of the variouspowers; the student will read between the lines. Still, there may also besomethingintheliteralmeaningofsuchstatementsasthese;fortherearemanywondersinIndia—themysteriouspowersof thefire-walkers,andtheperfectlymarvelloushypnoticabilityshownbysomeconjurerswhoperformthefamousropetrickandsimilarfeats.

KUNDALINI

The Hindu Yogis, for whom the books which have come down to us werewritten, were not particularly interested in the physiological and anatomicalfeatures of the body, but were engaged in practising meditation and arousingkundalini for the purpose of elevating their consciousness or rising to higherplanes.ThismaybethereasonwhyintheSanskritworkslittleornothingissaidaboutthesurfacechakras,butmuchaboutthecentresinthespineandthetransitofkundalinithroughthese.

Kundalini is described as a devi or goddess luminous as lightning, who liesasleepintherootchakra,coiledlikeaserpentthreeandahalf timesroundthesvayambhulingawhichisthere,andclosingtheentrancetothesushumnawithher head.Nothing is said as to the outer layer of the force being active in allpersons, but this fact is indicated in the statement that even as she sleeps shemaintains all breathing creatures. [23] And she is spoken of as the ShabdaBrahman in human bodies. Shabda means word or sound; we have here,therefore,areferencetotheThirdAspectoftheLogos.Intheprocessofcreationoftheworldthissoundissaidtohaveissuedinfourstages;probablyweshouldnotbefarwronginassociatingthesewithourWesternconceptionsofthethreestatesofbody, soul and spirit, and a fourthwhich is unionwith theDivineorAll-spirit.

THEAWAKENINGOFKUNDALINI

Theobjectoftheyogisistoarousethesleepingpartofthekundalini,andthencause her to rise gradually up the sushumna canal. Various methods areprescribed for this purpose, including the use of the will, peculiar modes ofbreathing, mantras, and various postures and movements. The Shiva Samhitadescribes tenmudraswhich itdeclares tobe thebest for thispurpose,mostofwhichinvolvealltheseeffortsatthesametime.Inwritingoftheeffectofoneofthesemethods,Avalondescribestheawakeningoftheinnerlayersofkundaliniasfollows:

The heat in the body then becomes very powerful, and kundalini, feeling it,awakensfromhersleep,justasaserpentstruckbyastickhissesandstraightensitself.ThenitenterstheSushumna.[24]

Itissaidthatinsomecaseskundalinihasbeenawakenednotonlybythewill,butalsobyanaccident—byabloworbyphysicalpressure.Iheardanexampleof the kind in Canada.A lady,who knew nothing at all of thesematters, felldownthecellarstepsinherhouse.Shelayforsometimeunconscious,andwhenshe awoke she found herself clairvoyant, able to read the thoughts passing inotherpeoplesminds,andtoseewhatwasgoingonineveryroominthehouse;andthisclairvoyancehasremainedapermanentpossession.Oneassumesthatinthiscaseinfallingtheladymusthavereceivedablowat thebaseof thespineexactly in such a position and of such a nature as to shock the kundalini intopartialactivity;orofcourse itmayhavebeensomeothercentre thatwas thusartificiallystimulated.

Sometimesthebooksrecommendmeditationuponthechakraswithoutthepriorawakeningofkundalini.ThisappearstobethecaseinthefollowingversesfromTheGarudaPurana:

Muladhara,Svadhishthana,Manipuraka,Anahatam,VishuddhiandalsoAjnaarespokenofasthesixchakras.

Oneshouldmeditate, inorder, inthechakras,onGanesha,onVidhi(Brahma),onVishnu,onShiva,onJiva,onGuru,andonParabrahman,all-pervading.

Having worshipped mentally in all the chakras, with unwavering mind, heshouldrepeattheAjapa-gayatriaccordingtotheinstructionsoftheTeacher.

He shouldmeditate in theRandhra,with the thousand-petalled lotus inverted,upontheblessedTeacherwithintheHamsa,whoselotus-handfreesfromfear.

HeshouldregardhisbodyasbeingwashedintheflowofnectarfromHisfeet.Havingworshippedinthefivefoldwayheshouldprostrate,signingHispraise.

Thenheshouldmeditateon thekundaliniasmovingupwardsanddownwards,asmakingatourofthesixchakras,placedinthreeandahalfcoils.

Thenhe shouldmeditateon theplace called sushumna,whichgoesoutof theRandhra;therebyhegoestothehigheststateofVishnu.[25]

THEASCENTOFKUNDALINI

Thebookshintat,ratherthanexplain,whathappenswhenkundalinirisesupthechannelthroughthesushumna.TheyrefertothespineasMerudanda,therodofMeru,thecentralaxisofcreation,presumablyofthebody.Inthat,theysay,thereis the channel called sushumna,within that another, calledVajrini, andwithinthatagainathirdcalledChitrini,whichisasfineasaspidersthread.Uponthatarethreadedthechakras,likeknotsonabamboorod.

KundalinirisesupChitrinilittlebylittleastheyogiuseshiswillinmeditation.Inoneeffortshemaynotgoveryfar,butinthenextshewillgoalittlefarther,andsoon.Whenshecomestooneofthechakrasorlotusesshepiercesit,andthe flower, which was turned downwards, now turns upwards. When themeditation isover, thecandidate leadsKundalinibackagainby the samepathintotheMuladhara;butinsomecasessheisbroughtbackonlyasfarastheheartchakra, and there she enters what is called her chamber. [26] Several of thebookssaythatkundaliniresidesinthenavelchakra;wehaveneverseenittherein ordinary people, but this statement may refer to those who have roused itbefore,andsohaveasortofdepositoftheserpent-fireinthecentre.

It isexplained thataskundalinientersand leaveseachchakra in thecourseofher ascent in the abovementioned variety of meditations she withdraws intolatency(hencethetermlaya)thepsychologicalfunctionsofthatcentre.Ineachchakrawhichsheentersthereisagreatenhancementoflife,butasherobjectistoreachthehighestsheproceedsupwards,untilshereachesthetopmostcentre,theSahasraralotus.Here,asthesymbologyhasit,sheenjoystheblissofunionwithherlord,Paramashiva;andasshereturnsonherpathshegivesbacktoeachchakraitsspecificfaculties,butmuchenhanced.

All this describes a process of partial trance into which one who meditatesdeeplynecessarilypasses,forinconcentratingallourattentionuponsomelofty

subjectweceaseforthetimebeingtopayheedtothevarioussoundsandsightswhichsurroundandplayuponus.AvalonmentionsthatitgenerallytakesyearsfromthecommencementofthepracticetoleadthekundaliniintotheSahasrara,thoughinexceptionalcasesitcanbedoneinashorttime.Withpracticecomesfacility,sothatanexpert,itissaid,canraiseandlowertheShaktiwithinanhour,thoughheisofcourseperfectlyatlibertytostayaslongashewillinthecrowncentre.

Somewriterssaythataskundalinirises in thebody, theportionbeyondwhichshegoesgrowscold.Nodoubtthisisthecaseinthosespecialpracticesinwhichayogigoesintotranceforalongperiod,butnotintheusualemploymentofthispower.InTheSecretDoctrineMadameBlavatskycitesthecaseofayogi,whowasfoundonanislandnearCalcutta,roundwhoselimbstherootsoftreeshadgrown.She adds that hewas cut out, and in the endeavour to awakenhim somanyoutrageswereinflictedonhisbodythathedied.Shementionsalsoayoginear Allahabad who—for purposes no doubt well understood by himself—remained sitting upon a stone for fifty-three years. His chelas or discipleswashedhimintherivereverynightandthenliftedhimback,andduringthedayhisconsciousnesssometimesreturnedtothephysicalworld,andhewouldthentalkandteach.[27]

THEGOALOFKUNDALINI

The concluding verses of the Shatchakra Nirupana beautifully describe theconclusionofthetourofkundalini,asfollows:

TheDeviwho isShuddha-sattvapierces the threeLingas,and,having reachedall the lotuseswhichareknownas theBrahmanadi lotuses, shines there in thefullnessofher lustre.Thereafter, inhersubtlestate, lustrous like lightningandfinelikethelotusfibre.Shegoestothegleamingflame-likeShiva,thesupremeBliss,andofasuddenproducestheblissofLiberation.

ThebeautifulKundalidrinks the excellent rednectar issuing fromParaShiva,and returns from there,where shines Eternal and TranscendentBliss in all itsglory, along the path of Kula, and enters the Muladhara. The yogi who hasgainedsteadinessofmindmakesoffering(Tarpana)totheIshta-devataandtheDevatasinthesixchakras,Dakiniandothers,withthatstreamofcelestialnectarwhich is in the vessel of Brahmanda, the knowledge whereof he has gainedthroughthetraditionoftheGurus.

IftheyogiwhoisdevotedtotheLotusFeetofhisGuru,withheartunperturbedand concentrated mind, reads this work, which is the supreme source of theknowledgeofLiberationandisfaultless,pureandmostsecret,thenofasuretyhisminddancesattheFeetofhisIshta-devata.[28]

CONCLUSION

Likeourselves,theHindusholdthattheresultsofLayaYogacanbeattainedbythemethodsofallthesystemsofyoga.InthesevenschoolsofIndia,andamongthestudentsintheWest,allwhounderstandarightareaimingatthehighestgoalof human endeavour, at that libertywhich is higher than liberation, because itincludesnotonlyunionwithGodinhighrealms,beyondearthlymanifestation,butalsothosepowersoneachplanewhichmakethemananAdhikariPurusha,anoffice-bearerorworkerintheserviceoftheDivine;intheworkofliftingthetoilingmillions of humanity towards the glory and happinesswhich awaits usall.

OM,AIM,KLIM,STRIM

TheTheosophicalPublishingHouse.

[4]Not tobeconfusedwithaetherwhichsomeconsider tobe themediumforelectromagneticwaves.(Ed.)

[5] Individuality, not to be confused with the use of the term in psychology.(Ed.)

[6]TheTheosophicalPublishingHouse.

[7]TheTheosophicalPublishingHouse.

ThespleenchakraisnotindicatedintheIndianbooks;itsplaceistakenbyacentrecalledtheSvadhishthana,situatedintheneighbourhoodofthegenerativeorgans, towhich the samesixpetals areassigned.Fromourpointofview thearousingofsuchacentrewouldberegardedasamisfortune,asthereareseriousdangers connected with it. In the Egyptian scheme of development elaborateprecautionsweretakentopreventanysuchawakening.(SeeTheHiddenLifeiii

Freemasonry.)

[9]TheSecretDoctrine,FifthAdyarEdition,Vol.V,p.480.

[10]TheSecretDoctrine,FifthAdyarEdition,Vol.V,p.510.

[11]Ibid.,p.520.

[12]TheHiddenLifeinFreemasonry.

[13]The termatomusedhereand throughout theremainderof thebookrefersnottoachemicalatombuttothebasictypeofmatterinthehighestsub-planeofeachplaneofnature.Similarly,moleculereferstoagroupingofsuchatomsinawaysimilartothatbywhichchemicalatomsformchemicalmolecules.(Ed.)

[14]Op.cit.,(SecondEdition)p.25;(ThirdEdition,1951)p.25.

[15]Op.cit.,pp.104-5.

[16]Op.cit.,vv.61-2.SacredBooksoftheHindusSeries.Trans.SrisChandraVidyarnava.

[17]Garuda Purana, XV, 10-3. Sacred Books of the Hindus Series. Trans.Wood.

[18]Op.cit.,p.252.

[19]TheSerpentPower,byArthurAvalon,2ndedition,Text,p.64.

[20]Op,cit.,p.2,etseq,outofprint.

[21]Op.cit.,V1,2-8.Trans.SrisChandraVidyarnava.

[22]TheShivaSamhita,V,86-88.

[23]TheSerpentPower.

[24]TheSerpentPower.

[25]Op.cit.,XV,72,76,83-87.

[26]SeeTheVoiceoftheSilence,Fragment1.

[27]Op.cit.,Vol.V,p.544.

[28]Op.cit.,vv.51,53,55.

[1]adjunct,naturalattachment;rightfulpossession;provisionforthesubsistenceofroyaldescendants