7 Chakras of Your Energy System
The Gateway to Connection, Enlightenment, & Transformation
Your consciousness, your experience of being, represents everything it is possible for you to experience. All your senses, all your perceptions, all your possible states of awareness, can be divided into seven categories, and each of these categories can be associated with a particular chakra.
Chakras & Their Meaning
Chakra is a Sanskrit word, and it means "wheel," or "vortex," of energy. Each chakra is like a solid ball of energy interpenetrating the physical body, in the same way that a magnetic field can interpenetrate the physical body.
The chakras are not physical. They are aspects of consciousness in the same way that the auras are aspects of consciousness.
Chakras are denser than the auras, but not as dense as the physical body, but they interact with the physical body through two major vehicles, the endocrine system, and the nervous system.
Each of the seven chakras is associated with one of the seven endocrine glands, and with a particular group of nerves called a plexus.
Thus, each chakra can be associated with parts of the body and particular functions within the body controlled by that plexus or that endocrine gland associated with that chakra.
Thus, the chakras represent not only particular parts of your physical body, but also particular parts of your consciousness.
When you feel tension in your consciousness, you feel it in the chakra associated with the part of your consciousness experiencing the stress, and in the parts of the physical body associated with that chakra.
Where you feel the stress depends therefore on why you feel the stress. When someone is hurt in a relationship, they feel it in their heart. When someone is nervous, their legs tremble and their bladder become weak.
When there is tension in a particular part of your consciousness, a chakra is associated with that part of your consciousness, and the tension is detected by the nerves of the plexus associated with that chakra and communicated to the parts of the body controlled by that plexus.
When the tension continues over a period, or reaches a particular degree of intensity, the person creates a symptom on the physical level.
The symptom serves to communicate to the person through their body what they had been doing to themselves in their consciousness.
When the person changes their way of being, feeling and interpreting, they can release the stress that had been creating the symptom, which in turn allows them to return to their natural state of balance and health.
Chakra Conscious®
Chakra Conscious® was developed by Caroline Volandt-Beste as a guide to attuning somatically so you and your horse can engage in 2-way connection, communication, and consensual partnership.
The process is guided through intuitive training and aids in reaching health, happiness, and well-being.
Chakras are points in the body that correspond to a specific area where multiple nerves crisscross engaging powerful energies.
It is believed that through meditating on these specific Chakras you can learn to control the energy in your body and experience everything from spontaneous healing to enlightenment.
Caroline’s work with Chakra energies teaches you many things and especially how to create a sacred space – one that honors and respects the relationship we develop with oneself and others during our personal journey of discovery, learning, healing, and recovery.
Through body awareness, attunement, balance, and relaxation Caroline has developed specific horse-human embodiment exercises designed to teach you how to align and synchronize with your horse and become one.
In addition to her signature Chakra Conscious embodiment exercises, Caroline can assist you with the following:
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Identify Chakra points, pathways, and energies, bringing awareness to imbalances, depletion within
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Develop authenticity – a deeper conscious living by awakening the soul
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Develop self-regulation and emotional agility
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Release unwanted feelings and emotions that are trapped and causing emotional, mental, and physical pain, exhaustion, and dis-ease
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Develop clear intention and ways of Being that assist in nurturing and maintaining inner balance, ease, and well-being
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Develop deeper connection to oneself and the relationships we share
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Develop clear and congruent mind-body communication and leadership skills
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Develop the balance of love and leadership
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Confidence and trust in oneself and with others
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Develop centeredness, focus and passion about one’s life
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Create clarity and purpose
7 Human Chakra’s
All species, including the horse, have a chakra system. This system is a complex network of spinning, energy vortices (often called ‘petals’ in Eastern traditions) which run throughout the entire body.
Universal energy (Prana, Chi, Ki) flows in and out of the chakras, along the meridian system, into the aura and then finally into the physical body.
The energy flows two ways; inward and out. Therefore, every thought, act and emotion affect the chakras and is mirrored in the aura. Likewise, external stimuli, both positive and negative, influence the chakras and leave their mark in the aura (including physical injuries). This is the same for animals and humans alike.
Another example of a chakra system is the car’s engine. Like a car’s engine, the subtle energy body (made up of chakras, linked to meridians and contained in the aura) called the Chakra functions similarly to the engine.
When the car starts to perform less effectively or even breaks down, it’s the engine which needs repairing or re-tuning and not the car’s external frame or body.
It’s the same with the subtle energy body. When we re-charge/realign the chakras - get them spinning in harmony and at the correct rate – you get the physical body running smoothly once again.
There are said to be seven main chakras in the human body; four in our upper body, which govern our mental properties, and three in the lower body, which govern our instinctual properties.
According to Buddhist/Hindu teaching all seven of the chakras contribute to a human's well-being.
Unfortunately, some of our chakras are not open all the way (meaning, they operate just like when you were born), and some are over-active, or near closed. Only when the chakras are balanced, can we find peace with the self and with others.
The following chart maps out the primary qualities of each chakra, its corresponding location in the body, color, physical and emotional realms of influence, and its greater significance.
1st Chakra: The Muladhara (root chakra)
2nd Chakra: The Svadhisthana (sacral chakra)
3rd Chakra: The Manipura (solar plexus chakra)
4th Chakra: The Anahata (heart chakra)
5th Chakra: The Visuddhi (throat chakra)
6th Chakra: The Ajna (third eye chakra)
7th Chakra: The Sahasrara (crown chakra)
The Root Chakra (1st Chakra and is red). It is associated with the parts of our consciousness concerned with security, survival, or trust. For most people, this concerns the parts of their consciousness concerned with money, home, and job. When this chakra is in its clear state, the person can feel secure, be present in the here and now, and be grounded. When there is tension in this chakra, it is experienced as insecurity or fear. When there is more tension, it is experienced as a threat to survival.
Parts of the body controlled by the sacral plexus and this chakra include the skeleton system, the legs, and the elimination system. Symptoms in these parts of the body represent, therefore, tensions at the level of the Root Chakra, and we therefore know that the person is seeing the world through a perceptual filter of insecurity or fear. The adrenal glands are also associated with this chakra.
If one leg is affected, we can see whether it is the male leg or the female leg, and thus whether it has something to do with trust in a male or trust in a female. We can also see it as having something to do with trust in the will, or the aspects of trust in the foundations the emotional being, related to what was happening in the person's life at the time the symptom developed.
The physical sense of smell, and therefore the organ of the sense of smell, the nose, is associated with the Root Chakra. Symptoms at the level of the nose or affecting the sense of smell reflect tensions at the level of the Root Chakra.
Each chakra is associated with an element. The Root Chakra is associated with the element of earth and reflects something about the person's association with the earth, or how they feel about being on the earth, which we call Mother Earth. This chakra is also associated with our relationship with our mother.
When someone experiences a sense of separation from their mother, or not feeling loved by their mother, they cut off their roots and experience symptoms of tensions at the level of the Root Chakra until they can again open to accept their mother's love.
When a child comes into the world in the traditional family structure, the mother provides the nourishment, and the father provides the direction. Thus, in the child's relationship with its mother, it makes certain decisions about the way things are. The relationship with the mother thus becomes a model for the person's relationship with everything that represents security - money, home, and job.
The Sacral Chakra (2nd Chakra and is orange). It is associated with the parts of our consciousness concerned with food and sex - the communication from the body to the person within it, about what the body wants or needs, and what it finds pleasurable. It also is related to what is happening in their consciousness about having children.
When this chakra is in its clear state, the person is in touch with this communication, and listening to and responding appropriately to what the body wants and needs.
Parts of the body controlled by the lumbar plexus include the reproductive system and the abdomen, and the lumbar region of the back.
The sense of taste is associated with this chakra, as is the element of water. When someone does not have a clear relationship with water (swimming, for example, or being on a boat), this reflects their attitudes about the parts of their consciousness that this chakra represents.
Tensions on the will side or the emotional side of this chakra indicate tensions in the person's consciousness as conflicts between either the will or the emotions with what the person's body is asking for.
This chakra is associated with the sense of taste, and with appetite. It is also involved with the person's willingness to feel their emotions.
The Navel or Solar Plexus Chakra (3rd Chakra and is yellow). This chakra is associated with the parts of our consciousness having to do with perceptions of power, control, or freedom. In its clear state, it represents ease of being, and comfort with what is real for one's self - being comfortable with who you are.
Parts of the body associated with this chakra include the organs closest to the solar plexus - stomach, gall bladder, spleen, liver, etc. - as well as the skin as a system, the muscular system as a system, and the face in general.
The physical sense associated with this chakra is the sense of sight. Anyone with impaired eyesight experiences tension at the level of their solar plexus chakra about the issues of power, control, or freedom.
Nearsighted people also experience tensions at the level of the Root Chakra and experience the world through a perceptual filter of fear or insecurity. Those who are farsighted experience tension also at the level of the throat chakra and see the world through a perceptual filter of anger or guilt. Astigmatics see through the emotional perceptual filter of confusion.
The endocrine gland associated with the Solar Plexus Chakra is the pancreas. We can say that diabetics are keeping sweetness from themselves. When someone gets too close with sweetness, they feel threatened in their power to be who they are, and an emotion comes up to create a safe distance again. The emotion is anger. Diabetes is associated with suppressed anger.
The element associated with this chakra is fire, and the person's relationship with the sun says something about their relationship with the parts of their consciousness associated with the Solar Plexus Chakra.
The Heart Chakra (4th Chakra and is green). This chakra is associated with the parts of the consciousness concerned with relationships and our perceptions of love. The relationships we speak of here are with those people closest to our heart - partners, parents, siblings, children.
The parts of the body associated with this chakra include the heart and lungs, and the blood circulatory system as a system. This chakra is also associated with the thymus gland, which controls the immune system. When this is affected, as with AIDS, the person's lifestyle separates them from someone they love.
The physical sense associated with this chakra is the sense of touch, in its aspect of relating to the person inside the body. For example, a massage given to someone with no sensitivity to what the person is feeling inside would be an example of the sensation we associate with the Abdominal Chakra, but when the masseur seems to have a sense of what the person inside the body is experiencing, then it includes the aspect of relating we associate with the Heart Chakra.
When someone experiences extreme sensitivity about being touched, we would ask what was happening at the level of the Heart Chakra.
This chakra is associated with the element of air. When someone has difficulty with air, with breathing (asthma, emphysema, tuberculosis, etc.), we say that their relationship with air reflects their relationship with love - difficulty letting it in, or letting it out, for example
The Throat Chakra (5th Chakra and is light blue). This chakra is associated with the parts of the consciousness concerned with expressing and receiving. Expressing can be in the form of communicating what one wants and what one feels, or it can be artistic expression, as an artist painting, a dancer dancing, a musician playing music, using a form for expressing and bringing to the outside what was within.
Expression is related to receiving, as, "Ask, and ye shall receive."
The throat chakra is associated with abundance, and with the state of consciousness called, "grace," where it seems that what you want for you is also what God wants for you. Accepting what the abundant universe offers you requires a sense of unconditionally receiving.
This chakra is also associated with listening to one's intuition, and flowing in a particular way where it seems that the Universe supports you in all that you do. It is the first level of consciousness from which one perceives another level of intelligence functioning, and one's interaction with this other level of intelligence.
Parts of the body associated with this chakra include the throat, shoulders, and arms and hands, and the thyroid gland.
The sense of hearing is associated with this chakra, and the element of ether, the most subtle physical element, corresponding to what we find in deep space. The ether is the crossover between the physical and the spiritual dimensions. Someone looking at the world through this chakra watches the manifestation of their goals.
The Will Arm represents manifesting what you want, and the Feeling Arm represents manifesting what makes you happy. Hopefully, the two point to the same thing. Blue is the color associated with this chakra.
The Third Eye or Brow Chakra (6th Chakra and is blue). This chakra is associated with the parts of the consciousness concerned with the spiritual view, and the home of the Spirit, the Being within. This level of consciousness is associated with what western traditions call the unconscious or subconscious, the part of our consciousness that directs our actions and our life. From this level we are aware of the motivations behind our actions. We can watch our outer theater from an inner point of view.
This chakra is associated with the carotid plexus, and the nerves on each side of the face, and the pituitary gland. Headaches in the temples or center of the forehead are associated with tensions at this level. This chakra controls the entire endocrine system as a system, and the process of growth.
The Brow chakra, also known as the Third Eye, is associated with extra sensory perception (ESP), the set of all inner senses that correspond to the outer senses, which together comprise spirit-to-spirit communication. The element associated with this chakra is a vibration known as the Inner Sound, the sound that one hears in their ears that does not depend upon something in the physical world. Some consider it a pathological condition. In some of the eastern traditions the ability to hear this is considered a necessary prerequisite to further spiritual growth.
The Crown Chakra (7th Chakra and is violet). This chakra is associated with the parts of the consciousness concerned with unity or separation, and just as the Root Chakra showed our connection with Mother Earth, this chakra shows our connection with Our Father.
At first, it is associated with our connection with our biological father. This becomes the model for our relationship with authority, and this becomes the model for our relationship with God.
When there is a sense of separation from our biological father, the person closes this chakra, and the effect on the consciousness is a sense of isolation and aloneness, being in a shell, and difficult to make contact with those outside the shell.
The person feels as if they are hiding from a Higher Self, or hiding from themselves, not seeing what is true for them in the deepest part of their consciousness, the part we call the soul.
This chakra is also associated with a sense of direction.
The parts of the body controlled by this chakra are the pineal gland, the brain, and the entire nervous system as a system.
WARNING: don't use this meditation for the Crown Chakra if your Root Chakra is not strong or open. Before dealing with this last chakra, you need a strong "foundation" first, which the Root exercises will present to you.
8 Equine (Animal) Chakras & Qualities.
Horses, and animals, have 8 Major chakras, 21 Minor chakras and 6 Bud chakras.
Alongside the seven Major chakras that animals share with humans (Crown, Third Eye, Throat, Heart, Solar Plexus, Sacral and Root), there is another Major chakra which is unique to animals. It is called the Brachial or Key chakra.
This chakra is located between the shoulders, below the neck and above the scapula. Caroline’s experience working with this chakra has shown that it relates to the horse’s soul and is responsible for developing relationships, bonding, and the connection of two energies, beings.
Caroline has found that 98% of the horses she has worked with are reluctant to stand next to their person, lean slightly in and share space in this area. She attributes this to fear and the inability to trust and connect deeply.
Much of Caroline’s rehabilitation and development centers around the first four chakras and the eight chakra. Through body awareness, attunement, balance, and relaxation Caroline teaches horse owners how to rehabilitate their horses, aligning them so they can create deep and meaningful relationships and move and ride as one.
Chakra Energy & Healing
According to Hindu and/or Buddhist belief, chakras are vast (yet confined) pools of energy in our bodies which govern our psychological qualities.
Everything begins with your consciousness. Everything that happens in your life, and everything that happens in your body, begins with something happening in your consciousness. Your consciousness is who you are, your experience of Being.
You decide what ideas to accept and which to reject. You decide what to think, and you decide what to feel. When these decisions leave you with residual stress, you experience the stress in your physical body.
We know that stress creates symptoms. The interesting question is, "Which stress creates which symptoms?"
When we can quantify this process, we are then able to see the body as a map of the person's consciousness, relating specific symptoms to stresses and particular ways of being, in the same way that Type "A" Behavior has been able to be associated with heart disease.
Your consciousness, your experience of Being, who you really are, is energy. We can call it "Life Energy" for now.
This energy does not just live in your brain; it fills your entire body. Your consciousness is connected to every cell in your body. Through your consciousness, you can communicate with every organ, every cell, and every tissue.
This energy which is your consciousness, and which reflects your state of consciousness, can be measured through the process known as Kirlian photography.
When you take a Kirlian photograph of your hand, it shows a certain pattern of energy. If you take a second photograph while imagining that you are sending love and energy to someone you know, there will be a different pattern of energy shown on the Kirlian photograph.
Thus, we can see that a change in your consciousness creates a change in the energy field that is being photographed, which we call the aura.
This energy field shown in the Kirlian photographs has been quantified, so that when there are "holes" in particular parts of the energy field, these are said to correspond to particular weaknesses in specific parts of the physical body.
The interesting thing about this is that the weakness shows up in the energy field before there is ever any evidence of it on the physical level.
Thus, we have an interesting direction of manifestation shown through what we have described.
1. A change of consciousness creates a change in the energy field.
2. A change in the energy field happens before a change in the physical body.
The direction of manifestation is from the consciousness, through the energy field, to the physical body.
Consciousness---------1--------->Energy Field--------2--------->Physical Body
When we look at things in this way, we see that it is not the physical body creating the energy field, the aura, but rather the aura or energy field that is creating the physical body.
What we see as the physical body is the end result of a process that begins with the consciousness.
When someone makes a decision that leaves them with stress, creating a blockage in the energy field with a sufficient degree of intensity, this creates a symptom on the physical level.
The symptom speaks a certain language, which reflects the idea that we each create our own reality.
When the symptom is described from that point of view, the metaphoric significance of the symptom becomes clear. Thus, instead of saying, "I can't see," the person would have to say, "I have been keeping myself from seeing something."
If they cannot walk, they would have to say, "I have been keeping myself from walking away from something." And so on.
We must understand that there are no accidents and no coincidences.
Things do happen according to a pattern and order. We can say that we have an inner guidance system, a connection to our Higher Self, or our Inner Being, or whatever name we choose to give this Higher Intelligence. This inner guidance system functions through what we call our intuition, or our instinct. It speaks a very simple language. Either it feels good, or it doesn't. All the rest is just noise.
The key to beginning the process of healing is trusting our inner voice, or intuition, and listening with our hearts.
Caroline’s method to healing and rebuilding is found in her Tao of Horsemanship methodology to developing horses and humans together, as one.