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The word comes from the Sanskrit cakra

meaning "wheel" or "circle" (also cognate to
both words), and sometimes also referring
to the "wheel of life". The pronunciation of
this word can be approximated in English by
chuhkruh, with ch as in chart and both
instances of a as in yoga (the commonly
found pronunciation shockrah is incorrect).
Some traditional sources describe five or
seven chakras, others eight.
The chakras are described as being aligned
in an ascending column from the base of
the spine to the top of the head. In new age
practices, each chakra is associated with a
certain color. In various traditions chakras
are associated with multiple physiological
functions, an aspect of consciousness, a
classical element, and other distinguishing
characteristics.

They

are

visualized

as

lotuses with a different number of petals in

every chakra.
The chakras are thought to vitalise the
physical body and to be associated with
interactions of a physical, emotional and
mental nature. They are considered loci of

life energy, or prana, (also called shakti, or

chi), which is thought to flow among them
along pathways called nadis. The function of
the chakras is to spin and draw in this
Universal Life Force Energy to keep the
spiritual, mental, emotional and physical
health of the body in balance.
Traditional Chinese medicine also relies on a
similar model of the human body as an
energy system.
The New Age movement has led to an
increased interest in the West regarding
chakras. Many in this movement point to a
correspondence between the position and
role of the chakras and those of the glands
in the endocrine system. Some people in
New Age also claim that other chakras,
besides the above, exist for instance, ear
chakras and have described many more
chakras

than

made

reference

to

in

traditional texts. Frequently references are

made to the chakras in the New Age "sacred
sexuality" or neotantra movement.
The chakras are described in the tantric
texts

the

Sat-Cakra-Nirupana,

Padaka-Pancaka,

in

which

and
they

the
are

described as emanations of consciousness

from Brahman, an energy emanating from

the spiritual which gradually turns concrete,
creating these distinct levels of chakras, and
which

eventually

finds

its

rest

in

the

Muladhara chakra. They are therefore part

of an emanations theory, like that of the
kabbalah in the west, lataif-e-sitta in Sufism
or neo-platonism. The energy that was
unleashed in creation, called the Kundalini,
lies coiled and sleeping at the base of the
spine. It is the purpose of the tantric or
kundalini forms of yoga to arouse this
energy, and cause it to rise back up through
the increasingly subtler chakras, until union
with God is achieved in the Sahasrara
chakra at the crown of the head.
Apart from this primary text from India,
different Western authors have tried to
describe the chakras, most notably the
Theosophists. Many New Age writers, such
as the Danish author and musician Peter
Kjaerulff in his book, The Ringbearer's
Diary, or Anodea Judith in her book Wheels
of Life, have written their opinions about the
chakras

in

great

detail,

including

the

reasons for their appearance and functions.

The seven chakras are said by some to
reflect how the unified consciousness of

humanity (the immortal human being or the

soul), is divided to manage different aspects
of

earthly

life

(body/instinct/vital

energy/deeper
emotions/communication/having
overview

of

life/contact

to

an
God).

The

chakras are placed at differing levels of

spiritual subtlety, with Sahasrara at the top
being concerned with pure consciousness,
and

Muladhara

at

the

bottom

being

concerned with matter, which is seen simply

as crude consciousness.

Origins and development

The earliest known mention of chakras is
found in the later Upanishads, including
specifically the Brahma Upanishad and the
Yogatattva Upanishad. These vedic models
were

adapted

in

Tibetan

Buddhism

as

Vajrayana theory, and in the Tantric Shakta

theory of chakras.[citation needed]
It is the shakta theory of 7 main chakras
that most people in the West adhere to,
either knowingly or unknowingly, largely
thanks to a translation of two Indian texts,
the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, and the PadakaPancaka, by Sir John Woodroffe, alias Arthur
Avalon, in a book entitled The Serpent

Power.
This

book

complex,

is

extremely

and

later

detailed

and

ideas

were

the

developed into what is predominant western

view of the Chakras by the Theosophists,
and

largely

the

controversial

(in

theosophical circles) C. W. Leadbeater in his

book The Chakras, which are in large part
his own meditations and insights on the
matter.
That said, many present-day Indian gurus
that

incorporate

chakras

within

their

systems of philosophy do not seem to

radically disagree with the western view of
chakras, at least on the key points, and
both these eastern and western views have
developed from the Shakta Tantra school.
There are various other models of chakras
in

other

traditions,

notably

in

Chinese

medicine, and also in Tibetan Buddhism.

Even

in

Jewish

kabbalah,

the

different

Sephiroth are sometimes associated with

parts of the body. In Islamic Sufism, Lataife-Sitta ( Six Subtleties ) are considered as
psychospiritual

"organs"

sensory

suprasensory

and

or

faculties

of

perception,

activation of which makes a man complete.

Attempts are made to try and reconcile the

systems with each other, and notably there
are some successes, even between such
diverged traditions as Shakta Tantra, Sufism
and Kabbalism, where chakras, lataif and
Sephiroth

can

seemingly

represent

the

same archetypal spiritual concepts. In Surat

Shabda Yoga, initiation by an Outer Living
Satguru (Sat - true, Guru - teacher) is
required and involves reconnecting soul to
the Shabda and stationing the Inner Shabda
Master (the Radiant Form of the Master) at
the third eye chakra.

The Seven basic chakras

Sahasrara
Sahasrara or the crown chakra is said to be
the chakra of consciousness, the master
chakra that controls all the others. Its role
would be very similar to that of the pituitary
gland, which secretes hormones to control
the rest of the endocrine system, and also
connects to the central nervous system via
the hypothalamus. The thalamus is thought
to have a key role in the physical basis of
consciousness. Symbolized by a lotus with a
thousand petals.

Ajna
Ajna or the third eye is linked to the pineal
gland. Ajna is the chakra of time and
awareness and of light. The pineal gland is a
light sensitive gland, that produces the
hormone melatonin, which regulates the
instincts of going to sleep and awakening. It
has been conjectured that it also produces
trace amounts of the psychedelic chemical
dimethyltryptamine. Symbolized by a lotus
with two petals.
(Note: some argue that the pineal and
pituitary glands should be exchanged in
their relationship to the Crown and Brow
chakras, based on the description in Arthur
Avalon's book on kundalini called Serpent
Power or empirical research.)
Vishuddha
Vishuddha or the throat chakra is said to be
related

to

communication

and

growth,

growth being a form of expression. This

chakra is paralleled to the thyroid, a gland
that is

also

in the

throat,

and which

produces thyroid hormone, responsible for

growth and maturation. Symbolized by a
lotus with sixteen petals.

Anahata
Anahata or the heart/emotions chakra is
related to love, equilibrium, and well-being.
It is related to the thymus, located in the
chest. This organ is part of the immune
system, as well as being part of the
endocrine

system.

It

produces

cells

responsible for fighting off disease, and is

adversely affected by stress. Symbolized by
a lotus with twelve petals.
Manipura
Manipura or the solar plexus chakra is
related

to

energy,

assimilation

and

digestion, and is said to correspond to the

roles played by the pancreas and the outer
adrenal glands, the adrenal cortex. These
play

valuable

role

in

digestion,

the

conversion of food matter into energy for

the body. Symbolised by a lotus with ten
petals.
Swadhisthana
Swadhisthana or the sacral chakra is located
in the groin, and is related to emotion,
sexuality and creativity. This chakra is said
to correspond to the testicles or the ovaries,
that produce the various sex hormones

involved in the reproductive cycle, which

can

cause

dramatic

mood

swings.

Symbolised by a lotus with six petals.

Muladhara
Muladhara or the base or root chakra is
related to security, survival and also to basic
human potentiality. This center is located in
the region between the genitals and the
anus. Although no endocrine organ is placed
here, it is said to relate to the inner adrenal
glands, the adrenal medulla, responsible for
the fight and flight response when survival
is under threat. In this region is located a
muscle that controls ejaculation in the
sexual act. A parallel is drawn between the
sperm cell and the ovum, where the genetic
code

lies

coiled,

and

the

kundalini.

Symbolized by a lotus with four petals.

The Tantric Chakras

1. Tantric chakras
2. Sahasrara
3. Ajna
4. Vishuddha
5. Anahata
6. Manipura
7. Swadhisthana

8. Muladhara
9. Bindu
Tantra (Shakta or Shaktism) describes eight
primary inner chakras:
1. Sahasrara
2. Ajna
3. Vishuddha
4. Anahata
5. Manipura
6. Swadhisthana
7. Muladhara
8. Bindu