Sushumna
The most
important and fundmental forms of energy enter the human system
through the Root and Crown chakras. These two chakras are connected by
a nadi called, sushumna.
The sushumna
runs up and down the central axis of the body within the spine, between the crown
(top of the head) and sacrum. The sushumna is also connected to all seven primary
chakras via the "stems," which provides each chakra
with this vital energy.
This primary current runs "between the sun and earth"
- "from heaven above and earth below."
As Above,
So Below.
This
current induces other currents at right angles to itself, which
flow between the spine and the outer edges of our etheric body
(aura.) Thus
we have a vital etheric body consisting of an interweaving mesh
of stream of energy with the spinal current as an axis. This
axis actually holds the "etheric body" (our aura) together
and gives it coherent form. Think of this like a magnet surrounded by lines
of force in which the metal fillings are drawn into a pattern
and held in place in a magnetic field.
FIGURE 6
Besides the sushumna, there are two additional energy channels
that play an important role in our energy system. These channels are
known in Sanskrit as: "ida" and "pingala."
The pingala channel is the carrier of solar energy. It
is full of heat and drive. It begins on the right hand side of
the Root chakra and ends in the upper area of the right nostril.
The ida channel is the carrier of the cool and calming
lunar energy. It begins on the left hand side of the Root chakra
and ends in the left nostril.
These two
channels wind their way around the sushumna from the Root chakra
to the nose, meeting at the 6th chakra and polarizing each of
the chakras in between, thus contributing to their spin (see
Figure 6 above).
FIGURE 7
Only when one attempts to arouse the energy latent in the inner
layers does the dangerous serpent fire begin to show itself.
Think of this serpent fire as a ball or sphere of fire, or energy,
and the ball is made up of layers, like a ball within a ball
within a ball within a ball, etc.
The harmless
fire of the outer skin of the ball or sphere travels up the spinal
column using the three lines of sushumna, ida and pingala simultaneously.
"It is the pure Akasha that passes up Sushumna and its two
aspects flow in Ida and Pingala...Ida and Pingala play along
the curved wall of the spinal cord...They are the positive and
the negative, the sun and the moon...They have there distinct
paths of their own, otherwise they would radiate all over the
body." - Madame Blavatsky "The Secret Doctrine"
C.S. Leadbeater in "The Hidden Life in Freemasonry"
explains it this way: "...in the First Degree, it effects
the Ida, or feminine aspects of the force, thus making it easier
for the person to control passion and emotions; in the Second
Degree, it is the Pingala, or masculine aspect which is strengthened
in order to facilitate control of the mind; but in the Third
Degree, it is the central energy itself, the Sushumna, which
is aroused, thereby opening the way for the influence of the
pure spirit on high. It is passing up through this channel of
the Sushumna that a yogi leaves his physical body at will in
such a manner that he can retain full consciousness on higher
planes and bring back into his physical brain a clear memory
of the experience."
The
wings of the caduceus depicted in Figure 7 is a symbolic representation
of this astral flight.
- Now
you know the hidden (secret) meaning behind the caduceus symbol :-)
I repeat,
at the center of each chakra, in its deepest point, there is
a stem-like channel that extends to the spine and merges with
it. The
chakras are connected to the sushumna via these stems, which
provides each chakra with "vital energy."
FIGURE 8
In Figure 8 above, you can see the general location of the flower-like
chakras, their respective stem, and the location of their connection
to the spinal cord.
As you can see, the stem bends downwards, it droops if you will,
in the coeliac (or solar plexus) cardiac (heart) plexus, and
the throat plexus. The reason for this involves the cerebro-spinal
and sympathetic nervous systems, which I am not going to explain
here.
Before we leave this segment, it should be noted that the Crown Chakra is NOT
connected with any of the sympathetic plexus of the physical
body.
The Crown Chakra is associated with the pineal gland and pituitary body and is related to the development
of the brain and spinal system of nerves.
The pineal gland is separated from the pituitary gland by a heavy cartilaginous tissue. For many, the astral
vortices corresponding to the 6th and 7th chakras converge upon
the pituitary body - the pituitary body being the only direct
link between the physical and the higher planes.
For another type of people, the pituitary vortex is bent, or
slanted until it coincides with the pineal organ, which is vivified
and made into a line of communication directly with the lower
mental plane without having to pass through the intermediate
astral plane in the ordinary way.
The goal
here is to develop and bridge the 6th and 7th chakras, creating
an avenue of communication between them. This connecting link is called the
antahkarana, or simply, the psychic
bridge.
The
antahkarana is
the link between
your personality
and your
Higher SELF.
As you
develop these higher chakras, this psychic bridge is enlarged
and strengthened, and so will be your intuitive powers or abilities. Note: This break-through
in separation between the higher and lower halves of the head
center is NOT like cutting through or puncturing the bone or
tissue; This channel or bridge is created in the psychic areas
and NOT in the physical sense.
The
6th chakra is associated with
the pituitary
gland,
and the 7th
chakra
is associated with the pineal gland.
Some text
say the 6th chakra (Pituitary
Gland)
is the human Third
Eye, whereas
other text say the Pineal
Gland is
the human Third
Eye, with
biological evidence to suggest that perhaps it WAS a real, physical-biological
Third Eye at one time long ago during our early mammalian evolution.
I find
this theory very interesting.
So what
is it?
After musing over a wealth of research information, I think they
may be one of the same, meaning, they work in tandum with each
other. You
cannot SEE with your Third Eye without developing both the pituitary
and pineal glands simultaneously. In other words, only when the 6th and 7th chakras are
developed will the Third Eye open for you to see with.
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Let's examine these two Higher Chakras in greater detail
