Table of Contents
Contents Introduction 20 Section 1: Chakra Fundamentals and Basic Practices 26 Part I: What Are Chakras? A Pocket Guide to Your Body’s Points of Light 27 Chapter 1: Your Spinning Wheels of Light 31 Chapter 2: What Is Kundalini? The "Rainbow Serpent" That Activates Our Chakras 72
Part II: The Hindu Chakra System 89 Chapter 3: The Stories Inside You: The Hindu Chakra System 91 Chapter 4: Muladhara—The First Hindu Chakra 118 Chapter 5: Svadhisthana—The Second Hindu Chakra 137 Chapter 6: Manipura—The Third Hindu Chakra 153 Chapter 7: Anahata—The Fourth Hindu Chakra 168 Chapter 8: Vishuddha—The Fifth Hindu Chakra 187 Chapter 9: Ajna—The Sixth Hindu Chakra 203 Chapter 10: Sahasrara—The Seventh Hindu Chakra 225
Part III: Fundamentals of Chakra Medicine 260 Chapter 11:Why Are Chakras Important? The Benefits of Chakra Medicine 263 Chapter 12: Chakra Medicine Methods I: Preparation and Analysis 280 Chapter 13: Chakra Medicine Methods II: Healing 312 Chapter 14: Chakra Medicine Practices: Eastern Methods 335 Chapter 15: Chakra Techniques: From Mantras to Gemstones—and Everything in Between 368
Section 2: Chakras in Depth—Historical, Scientific, and Cross-Cultural Understandings 405 Part IV: The History of Chakra Knowledge Through the Lens of Ancient India 407 Chapter 16: Ancient Vedic Scripture: The Four Canons 409 Chapter 17: Chakras Taking Form—Divining Three Movements from the Upanishads and Other Early Sacred Texts 434 Chapter 18: Following the Light of Tantra and Yoga 465
Part V: The Science of Subtle Energy 487 Chapter 19: Your Energy Primer: Understanding Physical and Subtle Energy (And a Few Matters in Between) 490 Chapter 20: Chakras as Part of the Subtle Energy Anatomy 555 Chapter 21: The Science and Structure of Chakras 596 Chapter 22: Kundalini Rises—The Chakra Serpent 650
Part VI: Chakra Systems of Asia 701 Chapter 23: Chakra Systems of India 703 Chapter 24: Tibet: Indian Tantra Meets Buddhism 732 Chapter 25: Other Asian Chakra Systems 771
Part VII: Ancient Chakra Systems Across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas 797 Chapter 26: The African Continent 800 Chapter 27: Chakra Systems of Old Europe 817 Chapter 28: The Middle East 840 Chapter 29: Chakra Medicine in the Americas 864 Part VIII: Modern Western Chakra Systems 914 Chapter 30: Early Western Mystics and Esoteric Orders 918 Chapter 31: The Theosophical Society 949 Chapter 32: Chakras Come of Age in the West 990 Part IX: Chakras "Et Cetera:" Natural and Unusual Chakras 1048 Chapter 33: Chakras in Nature 1050 Chapter 34: The New and Unusual Chakras and Chakra Systems 1086 Conclusion: Your "Great Perhaps" 1114 Glossary Endnotes Index