View source for Chakra

{{Short description|Subtle body centers in esoteric traditions}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Distinguish|Chakram}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Contains special characters|Indic}}A '''chakra''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|tʃ|ʌ|k|r|ə|,|ˈ|tʃ|ae|k|-|,|ˈ|tʃ|ɑː|k|-}};<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Wells |editor-first=John |editor-link=John C. Wells |title=Longman Pronunciation Dictionary |publisher=Pearson Longman |edition=3rd |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4058-8118-0}}</ref> {{langx |sa|text=चक्र |translit=cakra |translit-std=IAST |lit=wheel, circle}}; {{langx|pi|cakka}}) is a meditation-aid in the form of a [[psychic]] or psychospiritual energy-center in the [[subtle body]], as visualized in a variety of [[Hinduism|Hindu]] and [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Tantra|tantric]] [[yoga]] and [[meditation]] practices.<ref name="britchakra"/><ref name="grimes100"/><ref name="Lochtefeld2002p137"/>

Medieval Buddhist texts from 8th century CE mention four or five chakras, while Hindu sources have various numbers.<ref name=britchakra/><ref name="grimes100"/><ref name="Heilijgers-Seelen 1992"/> The best-known variant has seven chakras, as described in Sir [[John Woodroffe]]'s 1919 book ''The Serpent Power'', a rough translation of Pūrṇānanda Yati's ''Ṣaṭ-chakra-nirūpaṇa'' ("Explanation of the Six Chakras," 1577).<ref name="hareesh">[https://hareesh.org/blog/2016/2/5/the-real-story-on-the-chakras The real story on the chakras]</ref>

Modern Western [[Occultism]] views chakras as actual though esoteric energy-centers. This view arose in the 1880s with [[H. P. Blavatsky]] and other [[Theosophists]],<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 616.</ref> and was subsequently shaped by Woodroffe's ''The Serpent Power'', and [[Charles W. Leadbeater]]'s 1927 book ''The Chakras''. Psychological and other attributes, [[rainbow colour]]s, and a wide range of correspondences with other systems such as [[alchemy]], [[astrology]], gemstones, [[homeopathy]], [[Kabbalah]] and [[Tarot divination]] were added later.

== Etymology ==
{{see also|Yantra|Mandala}}

Lexically, ''chakra'' is the Indic reflex of an ancestral [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] form ''*kʷékʷlos'', whence also "wheel" and "cycle" ({{langx|grc|κύκλος|kýklos}}).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mallory |first1=J.P. |last2=Adams |first2=D.Q. |title=Encyclopedia of Indo-European culture |date=1997 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-884964-98-5 |page=640 |edition=1}}</ref><ref name=britchakra>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/chakra Chakra: Religion], Encyclopaedia Britannica</ref><ref name="grimes100">{{cite book |last=Grimes |first=John A. |title=A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy: Sanskrit Terms Defined in English |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qcoUFYOX0bEC |year=1996 |publisher=[[State University of New York Press]] |isbn=978-0-7914-3067-5 |pages=26, 30, 100–101, 265}}</ref> It has both literal<ref>{{cite book |last=Staal |first=Frits |author-link=Frits Staal |title=Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HcE23SjLX8sC |year=2008 |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=978-0-14-309986-4 |page=34}}</ref> and metaphorical uses, as in the "wheel of time" or "wheel of dharma", such as in ''Rigveda'' hymn verse 1.164.11,<ref>{{cite book |last=Staal |first=Frits |author-link=Frits Staal |title=Discovering the Vedas: Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HcE23SjLX8sC |year=2008 |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=978-0-14-309986-4 |pages=333–335}}</ref><ref>[https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/ऋग्वेद:_सूक्तं_१.१६४ ऋग्वेद: सूक्तं १.१६४], verse ॥११॥, Rigveda, Wikisource</ref> pervasive in the earliest [[Vedic]] texts.

In [[Buddhism]], especially in [[Theravada]], the [[Pali]] noun ''cakka'' connotes "wheel".<ref>{{cite book |last=Collins |first=Steven |title=Nirvana and Other Buddhist Felicities |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z2go_y5KYyoC |year=1998 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-0-521-57054-1 |pages=473–474}}</ref> Within the Buddhist scriptures referred to as the [[Tripitaka]], [[Shakyamuni Buddha]] variously refers the "dhammacakka", or "wheel of dharma", connoting that this dharma, universal in its advocacy, should bear the marks characteristic of any temporal dispensation. [[Shakyamuni Buddha]] spoke of freedom from cycles in and of themselves, whether karmic, reincarnative, liberative, cognitive or emotional.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Edgerton |first1=Franklin |title=Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary |date=1993 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-0999-8 |page=221 |edition=Repr}}</ref>

In [[Jainism]], the term ''chakra'' also means "wheel" and appears in various contexts in its ancient literature.<ref>{{cite book |first=Helmuth |last=von Glasenapp |title=Jainism: An Indian Religion of Salvation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WzEzXDk0v6sC&pg=PA427 |year=1999 |orig-date=1925 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-1376-2 |pages=280–283, 427–428, 476–477}}</ref> As in other Indian religions, ''chakra'' in esoteric theories in Jainism such as those by [[Buddhisagarsuri]] means a yogic energy center.<ref>{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Tantra in Practice |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hayV4o50eUEC |year=2001 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-1778-4 |pages=426–427}}</ref>

==Origins==
{{see also|Yoga|Nadi (yoga)}}
[[File:Yajna1.jpg|thumb|Chakra iconography may derive from the five symbols of [[yajna]], the Vedic fire altar.<ref name="White 2001 p555"/>]]

The word ''chakra'' appears to first emerge within the [[Vedas]], though not in the sense of psychic energy centers, rather as ''chakravartin'' or the king who "turns the wheel of his empire" in all directions from a center, representing his influence and power.<ref>{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Tantra in Practice |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hayV4o50eUEC |year=2001 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-1778-4 |page=25}}</ref> The iconography popular in representing the ''Chakras'', states the scholar [[David Gordon White]], traces back to the five symbols of [[yajna]], the Vedic fire altar: "square, circle, triangle, half moon and dumpling".<ref name="White 2001 p555">{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Tantra in Practice |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hayV4o50eUEC |year=2001 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-1778-4 |page=555}}</ref>

The hymn 10.136 of the ''Rigveda'' mentions a renunciate [[yogi]] with a female named ''kunannamā''. Literally, it means "she who is bent, coiled", representing both a minor goddess and one of many embedded enigmas and esoteric riddles within the ''Rigveda''. Some scholars, such as D.G. White and [[Georg Feuerstein]], have suggested that she may be a reference to [[kundalini]] shakti and a precursor to the terminology associated with the chakras in later tantric traditions.<ref>{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Kiss of the Yogini: "Tantric Sex" in its South Asian Contexts |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5RwARVMg2_4C |year=2006| publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]]|isbn=978-0-226-02783-8|pages=33, 130, 198}}</ref><ref name="Georg Feuerstein 1998 15–17">{{cite book |last=Feuerstein |first=Georg  |author-link=Georg Feuerstein |title=Tantra: Path of Ecstasy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4O6_AwAAQBAJ |year=1998 |publisher=Shambhala Publications|isbn=978-0-8348-2545-1 |pages=15–17}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Flood |first=Gavin D. |author-link=Gavin Flood |title=An Introduction to Hinduism |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo |url-access=registration  |year=1996 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-0-521-43878-0|pages=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo/page/77 77]–78, 285}}</ref>

Breath channels ([[Nadi (yoga)|nāḍi]]) are mentioned in the classical [[Upanishads]] of Hinduism from the 1st millennium BCE,<ref name="YIP14" /><ref>Trish O'Sullivan (2010), ''Chakras''. In: D.A. Leeming, K. Madden, S. Marlan (eds.), ''Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion'', Springer Science + Business Media.</ref> but not psychic-energy chakra theories. Three classical Nadis are Ida, Pingala and Sushumna in which the central channel Sushumna is said to be foremost as per Kṣurikā-Upaniṣhad.<ref>[https://scimonk.com/index.php/2021/05/06/ida-pingala-sushumna-nadis/ "Ida Pingala Sushumna, Nadis" ], ''Scientific Monk'', Retrieved 28 August 2021</ref>

According to [[David Gordon White]], hierarchies of inner energy centers were introduced about 8th-century CE in Buddhist texts such as the ''[[Hevajra Tantra]]'' and ''Caryāgiti''.<ref name="YIP14">White, David Gordon. ''[https://press.princeton.edu/chapters/i9565.pdf Yoga in Practice]''. Princeton University Press 2012, pages 14–15.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Kiss of the Yogini |year=2003 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |isbn=0-226-89483-5 |page=224}}</ref> These are called by various terms such as ''cakka'', ''padma'' (lotus) or ''pitha'' (mound).<ref name="YIP14"/> These medieval Buddhist texts mention only four chakras, while later Hindu texts such as the ''[[Kubjikāmatatantra|Kubjikāmata]]'' and ''Kaulajñānanirnaya'' expanded the list to many more.<ref name="YIP14"/>

In contrast to White, according to Feuerstein, early Upanishads of Hinduism do mention ''chakras'' in the sense of "psychospiritual vortices", along with other terms found in tantra: ''[[prana]]'' or ''vayu'' (life energy) along with ''nadi'' (energy carrying arteries).<ref name="Georg Feuerstein 1998 15–17"/> According to [[Gavin Flood]], the ancient texts do not present ''chakra'' and kundalini-style yoga theories although these words appear in the earliest Vedic literature in many contexts. The ''chakra'' in the sense of four or more vital energy centers appear in the medieval era Hindu and Buddhist texts.<ref>{{cite book |last=Flood |first=Gavin D. |author-link=Gavin D. Flood |title=An Introduction to Hinduism |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo |url-access=registration |year=1996 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-0-521-43878-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo/page/98 98]–100}}</ref><ref name="YIP14" />

The 10th century [[Kubjikāmatatantra]] <!--chapters 14 to 16--> describes a system of five chakras which serve as the seats of five sets of divine female beings, namely the [[Devi|Devī]]s, the Dūtīs, the Mātṛs, the [[Yogini|Yoginīs]] and the Khecarīs.<ref name="Heilijgers-Seelen 1992">{{Cite thesis |last=Heilijgers-Seelen |first=Dorothea Maria |title=The system of five cakras in Kubjikāmatatantra 14–16: a study and annotated translation |publisher=Egbert Forsten |location=Groningen |date=1992 |oclc=905777672 |isbn=978-9069800592 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EOD7EAAAQBAJ}}</ref>

==Classical traditions==
[[File:Sapta Chakra, 1899 (cropped).jpg|thumb|''Sapta Chakra'', an 1899 manuscript, illustrates the esoteric correspondence(s) between subtle energy and Tibetan psycho-physiology.<ref>[http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/expfaith/hindumanu/spatachak/033add000024099u00118000.html Sapta Chakra], The British Library, MS 24099</ref><ref>[https://www.academia.edu/figures/9100410/figure-1-sapta-chakra-from-yoga-manuscript-in-braj-bhasha Sapta Chakra], Academia.</ref>]]

===Meditation aid===
The important chakras are stated in Hindu and Buddhist texts to be arranged in a column along the spinal cord, from its base to the top of the head, connected by vertical channels.<ref name="Lochtefeld2002p137"/><ref name="JonesRyan2006p102">{{cite book |first1=Constance |last1=Jones |first2=James D. |last2=Ryan |title=Encyclopedia of Hinduism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OgMmceadQ3gC |year=2006 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=978-0-8160-7564-5 |page=102}}</ref> The tantric traditions sought to master them, awaken and energize them through various breathing exercises or with assistance of a teacher. These chakras were also symbolically mapped to specific human physiological capacity, [[seed syllable]]s (bija), sounds, subtle elements (tanmatra), in some cases deities, colors and other motifs.<ref name=britchakra/><ref name="Lochtefeld2002p137"/><ref>{{cite book |first=Klaus K. |last=Klostermaier |title=A Survey of Hinduism |edition=Third |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8CVviRghVtIC |year=2010 |publisher=[[SUNY Press]] |isbn=978-0-7914-8011-3 |pages=238–243}}</ref>

The chakras are traditionally considered meditation aids. The yogi progresses from lower chakras to the highest chakra blossoming in the crown of the head, internalizing the journey of spiritual ascent.<ref name="Banerjea175">{{cite book |first=Akshaya Kumar |last=Banerjea |title=Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ljn1koKa0CQC&pg=PA175 |year=1983 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-0534-7 |pages=175–184}}</ref> In both the Hindu kundalini and Buddhist candali traditions, the chakras are pierced by a dormant energy residing near or in the lowest chakra. In Hindu texts she is known as [[Kundalini]], while in Buddhist texts she is called Candali or [[Tummo]] (Tibetan: ''gtum mo'', "fierce one").<ref name=johnston40/>

The ''chakra'' relates to subtle body, wherein it has a position but no definite nervous node or precise physical connection. The tantric systems envision it as continually present, highly relevant and a means to psychic and emotional energy. It is useful in a type of yogic rituals and meditative discovery of radiant inner energy (''prana'' flows) and mind-body connections.<ref name="JonesRyan2006p102"/><ref>{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Harvey |title=An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices, 2nd Edition |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u0sg9LV_rEgC |year=2013 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn=978-0-521-85942-4|pages=190–191, 353–357}}</ref> The [[meditation]] is aided by extensive symbology, [[mantra]]s, diagrams, models (deity and [[mandala]]). The practitioner proceeds step by step from perceptible models, to increasingly abstract models where deity and external mandala are abandoned, inner self and internal mandalas are awakened.<ref>{{cite book |first1=E. A. |last1=Mayer |first2=C. B. |last2=Saper |title=The Biological Basis for Mind Body Interactions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M6Kky0bTDkkC |year=2000 |publisher=[[Elsevier]] |isbn=978-0-08-086247-7 |pages=514–516}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Annette |last1=Wilke |first2=Oliver |last2=Moebus |title=Sound and Communication: An Aesthetic Cultural History of Sanskrit Hinduism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9wmYz_OtZ_gC |year=2011 |publisher=[[Walter de Gruyter]] |isbn=978-3-11-024003-0|pages=735–740}}</ref>

===Subtle body===
[[File:Chakras of the Subtle Body (detail), folio 2 from the Nath Charit. Attributed to Bulaki, 1823 (Samvat 1880); 46 x 122 cm. © Mehrangarh Museum Trust..jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|An illustration of a [[Shaivism|Shaiva]] [[Nath]] chakra system, folio 2 from the Nath Charit, 1823. Mehrangarh Museum Trust.]]

{{Quote box
| quote = '''Chakra and divine energies'''
<poem>
Shining, she holds 
the noose made of the energy of will,
the hook which is energy of knowledge,
the bow and arrows made of energy of action.
Split into support and supported,
divided into eight, bearer of weapons,
arising from the ''chakra'' with eight points,
she has the ninefold ''chakra'' as a throne.
</poem>
| source = —''Yoginihrdaya 53–54''<br />(Translator: Andre Padoux)<ref>{{cite book |first=Andre |last=Padoux |title=The Heart of the Yogini: The Yoginihrdaya, a Sanskrit Tantric Treatise |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ieOdAAAAQBAJ |year=2013 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-998233-2 |page=44}}</ref>
| bgcolor = #FFE0BB
| align = left
}}

The chakras are part of esoteric ideas and concepts about physiology and psychic centers that emerged across Indian traditions.<ref name="YIP14"/><ref>{{cite book|first=Basant |last=Pradhan |title=Yoga and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy: A Clinical Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=maUxBQAAQBAJ |year=2014 |publisher=[[Springer Verlag]] |isbn=978-3-319-09105-1 |pages=154–155}}</ref> The belief held that human life simultaneously exists in two parallel dimensions, one "physical body" (''sthula sarira'') and other "psychological, emotional, mind, non-physical" it is called the "[[subtle body]]" (''sukshma sarira'').<ref name="Sharma2006p193">{{cite book|first=Arvind |last=Sharma |title=A Primal Perspective on the Philosophy of Religion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PiO8lKUs9-YC |year=2006 |publisher=[[Springer Verlag]] |isbn=978-1-4020-5014-5 |pages=193–196}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|The roots to this belief are found in [[Samkhya]] and [[Vedanta]] which attempt to conceptualize the permanent soul and impermanent body as interacting in three overlapping states: the gross body (sthula sarira), the subtle body (sukshma sarira), and causal body (karana sarira). These ideas emerged to address questions relating to the nature of body and soul, how and why they interact while one is awake, one is asleep and over the conception-birth-growth-decay-death-rebirth cycle.<ref name="Sharma2006p193"/><ref name=muller227>{{cite book|first=Friedrich Max |last=Müller |title=The Six Systems of Indian Philosophy|url=https://archive.org/details/sixsystemsindia00mlgoog |year=1899 |publisher=[[Longmans]] |pages=[https://archive.org/details/sixsystemsindia00mlgoog/page/n265 227]–236, 393–395|author-link=Friedrich Max Müller}}</ref>}} This subtle body is energy, while the physical body is mass. The psyche or mind plane corresponds to and interacts with the body plane, and the belief holds that the body and the mind mutually affect each other.<ref name="Lochtefeld2002p137"/> The subtle body consists of nadi (energy channels) connected by nodes of psychic energy called ''chakra''.<ref name=britchakra/> The belief grew into extensive elaboration, with some suggesting 88,000 chakras throughout the subtle body. The number of major chakras varied between various traditions, but they typically ranged between four and seven.<ref name=britchakra/><ref name="grimes100"/>

The classical eastern traditions, particularly those that developed in India during the 1st millennium AD, primarily describe ''nadi'' and ''chakra'' in a "subtle body" context.<ref name=samuel5/> To them, they are in same dimension as of the psyche-mind reality that is invisible yet real. In the ''nadi'' and ''cakra'' flow the ''prana'' (breath, life energy).<ref name=samuel5/><ref>{{cite book |first=Adrian |last=Snodgrass |title=The Symbolism of the Stupa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nzqK8dDCM0UC |year=1992 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |isbn=978-81-208-0781-5 |pages=317–319 |author-link=Adrian Snodgrass }}</ref> The concept of "life energy" varies between the texts, ranging from simple inhalation-exhalation to far more complex association with breath-mind-emotions-sexual energy.<ref name=samuel5/> This prana or essence is what vanishes when a person dies, leaving a gross body. Some of this concept states this subtle body is what withdraws within, when one sleeps. All of it is believed to be reachable, awake-able and important for an individual's body-mind health, and how one relates to other people in one's life.<ref name=samuel5/> This subtle body network of ''nadi'' and ''chakra'' is, according to some later Indian theories and many [[New Age]] speculations, closely associated with emotions.<ref name=samuel5>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |pages=5–8, 38–45, 187–190}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Harish |last=Johari |title=Chakras: Energy Centers of Transformation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=99thvrs56AMC |year=2000 |publisher=[[Inner Traditions]] |isbn=978-1-59477-909-1 |pages=21–36}}</ref>

===Buddhist tantra===
{{Main|Vajrayana}}
[[File:Chakras and energy channels 2 (3749594497).jpg|thumb|A Tibetan illustration of the [[subtle body]] showing the central channel, two side channels, and five chakras]]
[[File:Cosmic Man with Diagrams of Newar Yogic Six Chakra Transformation LACMA M.91.118.jpg|thumb|A Tibetan [[thangka]] showing six chakras<ref>{{cite book |first1=John C. |last1=Huntington |first2=Dina |last2=Bangdel |title=The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art |publisher=Serindia Publications |year=2003 |pages=232–233 |isbn=978-1932476019}}</ref>]]

The esoteric traditions in Buddhism generally teach four chakras.<ref name=britchakra/> In some Buddhist tantric sources, these chakras are identified as: ''manipura'' (navel), ''anahata'' (heart), ''vishuddha'' (throat) and ''ushnisha kamala'' (crown).<ref name="Olson2009p78">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EwTnQcFjCQsC&pg=PA78 |title=Historical Dictionary of Buddhism |first=Carl |last=Olson |publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-8108-6317-0 |page=78}}</ref> In one development within the Nyingma lineage of the Mantrayana of Tibetan Buddhism, a popular conceptualization of chakras emerged, arranged in increasing subtlety and order. The names of the four basic Buddhist cakras are derived from the four [[Trikaya|kayas]] (bodies of the Buddha): nirmana (genitals), sambhoga (throat), dharmakaya (heart), and mahāsukha (crown of the head),<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |page=40|quote=The names of these four cakras are derived from the names of one of the standard sets of four kāyas or bodies of the Buddha (nirmāṇa = creation, dharma = essential nature, sambhoga = enjoyment, mahāsukha = great bliss). These are then correlated with the four moments of actualization, the Four Noble Truths, four tattvas, four joys, and four main doctrinal schools.}}</ref> which correspond to four of the seven chakras in the [[Shaiva]] Mantramarga universe, namely Svadhisthana, Anahata, Visuddha, and Sahasrara.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |page=40, Table 2.1}}</ref> However, depending on the meditational tradition, these vary between three and six.<ref name="Olson2009p78"/> The chakras are considered psycho-spiritual constituents, each bearing meaningful correspondences to cosmic processes and their postulated Buddha counterpart.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Or99AgAAQBAJ |title=New Buddhist Movements in Thailand: Towards an Understanding of Wat Phra Dhammakaya and Santi Asoke |first=Rory |last=Mackenzie |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-134-13262-1|pages=108–109}}</ref><ref name="Olson2009p78" />

A system of five chakras is common among the [[Anuttarayoga Tantra#Mother Tantras|Mother class of Tantras]] and these five chakras along with their correspondences are:<ref>John C. Huntington, Dina Bangdel, ''The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art'', Serindia Publications, Inc., 2003, p. 231.</ref>
* Basal chakra ([[Mahābhūta|Element]]: Earth, [[Five Tathagatas|Buddha]]: [[Amoghasiddhi]], [[Bija mantra]]: LAM)
* Abdominal chakra (Element: Water, Buddha: [[Ratnasambhava]], Bija mantra: VAM)
* Heart chakra (Element: Fire, Buddha: [[Akshobhya]], Bija mantra: RAM)
* Throat chakra (Element: Wind, Buddha: [[Amitābha]], Bija mantra: YAM)
* Crown chakra (Element: Space, Buddha: [[Vairochana]], Bija mantra: HAM)

Chakras play a key role in [[Tibetan Buddhism]], and are considered to be the pivotal providence of Tantric thinking. And, the precise use of the chakras across the gamut of tantric sadhanas gives little space to doubt the primary efficacy of Tibetan Buddhism as distinct religious agency, that being that precise revelation that, without Tantra there would be no Chakras, but more importantly, without Chakras, there is no Tibetan Buddhism. The highest practices in Tibetan Buddhism point to the ability to bring the subtle pranas of an entity into alignment with the central channel, and to thus penetrate the realisation of the ultimate unity, namely, the "organic harmony" of one's individual consciousness of Wisdom with the co-attainment of All-embracing Love, thus synthesizing a direct cognition of absolute [[Buddhahood]].<ref name="Gyatso 2014">{{cite book | last=Gyatso | first=Geshe Kelsang | title=Clear Light of Bliss : Tantric Meditation Manual | publisher=[[Tharpa Publications]] | location=Cumbria, England | year=2014 | isbn=978-1-910368-03-9 | oclc=904051195 | at=Channels, Winds and Drops |quote=The ten doors are located along the central channel as follows: ... the point between the eyebrows ... the apex of the cranium ... near the back of the throat ... between the two breasts ... the navel channel wheel ... }}</ref>

According to Samuel, the Buddhist esoteric systems developed cakra and [[Nadi (yoga)|nāḍi]] as "central to their [[soteriology|soteriological]] process". The theories were sometimes, but not always, coupled with a unique system of physical exercises, called ''yantra yoga'' or ''{{'}}phrul {{'}}khor''.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston|title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |page=38}}</ref> Chakras, according to the [[Bon]] tradition, enable the gestalt of experience, with each of the five major chakras, being psychologically linked with the five experiential qualities of unenlightened consciousness, the [[six realms]] of woe.<ref name="Tenzin 2002">{{cite book |first=Tenzin Wangyal |last=Rinpoche |editor=Mark Dahlby |date=2002 |title=Healing with Form, Energy, and Light: The Five Elements in Tibetan Shamanism, Tantra, and Dzogchen |location=Ithaca, NY |publisher=[[Snow Lion]] |isbn=1-55939-176-6 |pages=84–85}}</ref>

The [[Tsa Lung]] practice embodied in the [[Trul khor]] lineage, unbaffles the primary channels, thus activating and circulating liberating prana. [[Yoga]] awakens the deep mind, thus bringing forth positive attributes, inherent gestalts, and virtuous qualities. In a computer analogy, the screen of one's consciousness is slated and an attribute-bearing file is called up that contains necessary positive or negative, supportive qualities.<ref name="Tenzin 2002"/> Tantric practice is said to eventually transform all experience into clear light. The practice aims to liberate from all negative conditioning, and the deep cognitive salvation of freedom from control and unity of perception and cognition.<ref name="Tenzin 2002"/>

===Hinduism===

==== Shaiva and Shakta tantra====
{{further|Kundalini energy}}

Some early [[Shaivite]] formulations of chakras can be seen in the six-cakra system of the [[Netra Tantra]] (700-850 CE){{sfnp|Sanderson|n.d.|p=19}} and the eight-cakra system of the ''Kaulajñāna-nirṇ aya''.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |page=40}}</ref> However, the chakra methodology is extensively developed in the goddess tradition of Hinduism called [[Shaktism]]. It is an important concept in Shakta practice, along with yantras, mandalas, and kundalini yoga. In Shakta Tantrism, a chakra means a "circle" or an "energy center" within, as well as being a term for group rituals such as ''chakra-puja'' (worship within a circle), which may or may not involve tantric practice.<ref>{{cite book |last=McDaniel |first=June |title=Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=caeJpIj9SdkC |year=2004 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-534713-5 |pages=96–97, 101–123}}</ref> The chakra-based system is a part of the meditative exercises that came to be known as [[yoga]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Philipp H. |last=Pott |title=Yoga and Yantra: Their Interrelation and Their Significance for Indian Archaeology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qNPoCAAAQBAJ |year=2013 |publisher=[[Springer Verlag]] |isbn=978-94-017-5868-0 |pages=8–12}}</ref>

Within [[Kundalini yoga]], the techniques of [[Pranayama|breathing exercises]], [[Creative visualization|visualizations]], [[mudra]]s, [[Bandha (yoga)|bandhas]], [[Kriyā|kriya]]s, and [[mantra]]s are focused on manipulating the flow of subtle energy through chakras.<ref name="JonesRyan2006p102"/><ref name="Beer 2003">{{cite book |last=Beer |first=Robert |title=The Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-3804Ud9-4IC |year=2003 |publisher=[[Serindia Publications]] |isbn=978-1-932476-03-3 |pages=242–243}}</ref><!--in what period?-->

====Contrast with classical yoga====
Chakra and related beliefs have been important to the esoteric traditions, but they are not directly related to mainstream [[yoga]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ferretti |first1=Andrea |title=The Chakras: A Beginner's Guide to Understanding the 7 Chakras |date=11 June 2021 |url=https://www.yogajournal.com/practice/yoga-sequences-level/beginners-guide-chakras/ |publisher=Yoga Journal |access-date=10 February 2022}}</ref> According to the Indologist [[Edwin Bryant (author)|Edwin Bryant]] and other scholars, the goals of classical yoga such as spiritual liberation (freedom, self-knowledge, [[moksha]]) is "attained entirely differently in classical yoga, and the ''cakra / nadi / kundalini'' physiology is completely peripheral to it."<ref>{{cite book |first=Edwin Francis |last=Bryant |title=The Yoga sūtras of Patañjali: a new edition, translation, and commentary with insights from the traditional commentators |url=https://archive.org/details/yogastrasofpataj0000brya |url-access=registration |year=2009 |publisher=North Point Press |isbn=978-0-86547-736-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/yogastrasofpataj0000brya/page/358 358]–364, 229–233}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Stefanie |last=Syman |author-link=Stefanie Syman |title=The Subtle Body: The Story of Yoga in America |url=https://archive.org/details/subtlebodystoryo0000syma |url-access=registration |year=2010 |publisher=[[Farrar, Straus and Giroux]] |isbn=978-1-4299-3307-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/subtlebodystoryo0000syma/page/72 72]–74}}</ref>

===Similar concepts===
These ideas are not unique to Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Similar and overlapping concepts emerged in other cultures in the East and the West, and these are variously called by other names such as subtle body, [[spirit body]], esoteric anatomy, sidereal body and etheric body.<ref>{{cite book |first=Jay |last=Johnston |editor=Elizabeth Burns Coleman and Kevin White |title=Medicine, Religion, and the Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=omg8nBZ1IRIC |year=2010 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-17970-7 |pages=69–75}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Christine |last1=Göttler |first2=Wolfgang |last2=Neuber |title=Spirits Unseen: The Representation of Subtle Bodies in Early Modern European Culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iciTSSs1IvUC |year=2008 |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |isbn=978-90-04-16396-6 |pages=55–58, 294–300}}</ref><ref name=muller227/> According to [[Geoffrey Samuel]] and Jay Johnston, professors of Religious studies known for their studies on Yoga and esoteric traditions:
{{blockquote|Ideas and practices involving so-called 'subtle bodies' have existed for many centuries in many parts of the world. (...) Virtually all human cultures known to us have some kind of concept of mind, spirit or soul as distinct from the physical body, if only to explain experiences such as sleep and dreaming. (...) An important subset of subtle-body practices, found particularly in Indian and Tibetan Tantric traditions, and in similar Chinese practices, involves the idea of an internal 'subtle physiology' of the body (or rather of the body-mind complex) made up of channels through which substances of some kind flow, and points of intersection at which these channels come together. In the Indian tradition the channels are known as ''nadi'' and the points of intersection as ''cakra''. |Geoffrey Samuel and Jay Johnston, ''Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body''<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author1-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |pages=1–5}}</ref>}}

Belief in the chakra system of Hinduism and Buddhism differs from the historic [[Meridian (Chinese medicine)|Chinese system of meridians]] in [[acupuncture]].<ref name="JonesRyan2006p102"/>

==Seven chakra system==
[[File:Chakras map.svg|thumb|left|One schema of six chakras plus the sahasrara is as follows, from bottom to top: 1. [[Muladhara]] 2. [[Svadhishthana|Svadhisthana]] 3. [[Manipura]] 4. [[Anahata]] 5. [[Vishuddha|Vishuddhi]] 6. [[Ajna]] 7. [[Sahasrara]].<ref name="grimes100"/> The colours are modern.<ref name="Leland 2017"/>]]

Esoteric traditions in Hinduism mention numerous numbers and arrangements of chakras, of which a classical system of six-plus-one, the last being the Sahasrara, is most prevalent.<ref name=britchakra/><ref name="grimes100"/><ref name="Lochtefeld2002p137">{{cite book |first=James G. |last=Lochtefeld |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M |url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch |url-access=registration |year=2002 |publisher=[[Rosen Publishing Group]] |isbn=978-0-8239-3179-8 |page=137}}</ref> It incorporates six major chakras along with a seventh centre generally not regarded as a chakra. These points are arranged vertically along the axial channel ([[Nadi (yoga)|sushumna nadi]] in Hindu texts, Avadhuti in some Buddhist texts).<ref>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher= Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |pages=39–42}}</ref> According to Gavin Flood, this system of six chakras plus the ''sahasrara'' "center" at the crown first appears in the ''Kubjikāmata-tantra'', an 11th-century [[Kaula (Hinduism)|Kaula]] work.<ref>{{cite book |last=Flood |first=Gavin |author-link=Gavin Flood |title=The Tantric Body: The Secret Tradition of Hindu Religion |publisher=[[I.B.Tauris]] |year=2006 |isbn= 978-1845110123 |page=157}}</ref>

It was this chakra system that was translated in the early 20th century by [[Sir John Woodroffe]] (also called Arthur Avalon) in his book ''The Serpent Power''. Avalon translated the Hindu text ''Ṣaṭ-Cakra-Nirūpaṇa'' meaning the examination (nirūpaṇa) of the six (ṣaṭ) chakras (cakra).<ref name="White 2003 221">{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Kiss of the Yogini |year=2003 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |location=Chicago |isbn=0-226-89483-5 |page=221}}</ref>

===Correspondence with yoginis===
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right;"
|+ Association of six [[yogini]]s with chakra locations in the ''Rudrayamala Tantra''<ref name="White 2003 pp221-229"/>
|-
! Place in [[subtle body]] !! [[Yogini]] !! Place in the Body
|-
| 1. [[Muladhara]] || [[Dakini]] || Around the [[Perineum]]
|-
| 2. [[Svadhisthana]] || Rakini || Around the [[Genitals]]
|-
| 3. [[Manipura]] || Lakini || Around the [[Navel]]
|-
| 4. [[Anahata]] || Kakini || Around the [[Celiac plexus|Heart]]
|-
| 5. [[Vishuddhi]] || Shakini || Around the [[Throat]]
|-
| 6. [[Ajna]] ||| Hakini || Around the [[Third eye|Forehead]]
|}

Hindu Tantra associates six [[Yogini]]s with six places in the subtle body, corresponding to the six chakras of the six-plus-one system.<ref name="White 2003 pp221-229">{{cite book |last=White |first=David Gordon |author-link=David Gordon White |title=Kiss of the Yogini |year=2003 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |location=Chicago |isbn=0-226-89483-5 |pages=221–229}}</ref>

=== Western esoteric seven chakra system ===
[[File:Nervous plexi.jpg|thumb|left|Chakra positions in supposed relation to nervous plexuses, from [[Charles W. Leadbeater]]'s 1927 book ''The Chakras'']]

Kurt Leland, for the [[Theosophical Society in America]], concluded that the western chakra system was produced by an "unintentional collaboration" of many groups of people: esotericists and clairvoyants, often theosophical; [[Indologist]]s; the scholar of myth, [[Joseph Campbell]]; the founders of the [[Esalen Institute]] and the psychological tradition of [[Carl Jung]]; the colour system of [[Charles W. Leadbeater]]'s 1927 book ''The Chakras'',<ref>{{cite book |last=Leadbeater |first=Charles Webster |title=The Chakras |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BRbtL7_Q_i0C |year=1972 |orig-year=1927 |publisher=[[Theosophical Publishing House]] |isbn=978-0-8356-0422-2}}</ref> treated as traditional lore by some modern Indian yogis; and energy healers such as [[Barbara Brennan]].<ref name="Leland 2017"/><ref name="Leland 2016">{{cite book | last=Leland | first=Kurt | title=Rainbow body : a history of the western chakra system from Blavatsky to Brennan | publisher=Ibis Press | location=Lake Worth, Florida | year=2016 | isbn=978-0-89254-219-2 | oclc=945949596}}</ref> Leland states that far from being traditional, the two main elements of the modern system, the rainbow colours and the list of qualities, first appeared together only in 1977.<ref name="Leland 2017"/>

The concept of a set of seven chakras came to the West in the 1880s; at that time each chakra was associated with a nerve plexus.<ref name="Leland 2017"/> In 1918, Sir [[John Woodroffe]], alias Arthur Avalon, translated two Indian texts, the ''Ṣaṭ-Cakra-Nirūpaṇa'' and the ''Pādukā-Pañcaka'', publishing and commenting on them both in his book ''The Serpent Power'' drew Western attention to the seven chakra theory.<ref>{{cite book |last=Woodroffe |first=Sir John |author-link=John Woodroffe |title=The Serpent Power |publisher=[[Dover Publications]] |year=2000 |isbn=978-0486230580 |pages=317ff |url=https://archive.org/details/serpentpowerbein0000wood}}</ref>

In the 1920s, each of the seven chakras was associated with an endocrine gland,<ref name="Leland 2017"/> a tradition that has persisted.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gardiner |first1=Philip |last2=Osborn |first2=Gary |title=The Shining Ones: the world's most powerful secret society revealed |date=2006 |publisher=Watkins |location=London |isbn=1-84293-150-4 |pages=44–45 |edition=Revised and updated}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5n4dkTw7e0QC&pg=PA20 |title=Wheels of Life: A User's Guide to the Chakra System |isbn=9780875423203 |last=Judith |first=Anodea |author-link=Anodea Judith |year=1999 |page=20|publisher=Llewellyn Publications }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.edgarcayce.org/ps2/mysticism_interpretating_revelation.html |title=John Van Auken : Mysticism - Interpretating the Revelation |publisher=Edgarcayce.org |access-date=5 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120526075243/http://www.edgarcayce.org/ps2/mysticism_interpretating_revelation.html |archive-date=26 May 2012 }}</ref> More recently, the lower six chakras have been linked to both nerve plexuses and glands.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sturgess |first=Stephen |title=The Yoga Book: a practical guide to self-realization |date=1997 |publisher=[[Element Books]] |location=Rockport, Massachusetts |isbn=1-85230-972-5 |pages=19–21}}</ref> The seven rainbow colours were added by Leadbeater in 1927; a variant system in the 1930s proposed six colours plus white.<ref name="Leland 2017"/> Leadbeater's theory was influenced by [[Johann Georg Gichtel]]'s 1696 book ''Theosophia Practica'', which mentioned inner "force centres".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archeosofica.org/en/index.php/Theosophical-Excerpts/Gichtel-and-the-Theosophia-Practica.html |title= Archeosophical Society - founded by Tommaso Palamidessi|website=www.archeosofica.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304194144/http://www.archeosofica.org/en/index.php/Theosophical-Excerpts/Gichtel-and-the-Theosophia-Practica.html |archive-date=4 March 2012}}</ref>

Psychological and other attributes such as layers of the [[Aura (paranormal)|aura]], developmental stages, associated diseases, [[Aristotelian element]]s, emotions, and states of consciousness were added still later.<ref name="Leland 2017"/> A wide range of supposed correspondences such as with [[Alchemy|alchemical]] metals, [[astrological sign]]s and [[Planet (astrology)|planets]], foods, herbs, [[gemstone]]s, [[Homeopathy|homeopathic]] remedies, [[Kabbalah|Kabbalistic]] spheres, musical notes, totem animals, and [[Tarot]] cards have also been proposed.<ref name="Leland 2017"/>

===New Age===
{{further|New Age}}

In ''[[Anatomy of the Spirit]]'' (1996), [[Caroline Myss]] described the function of chakras as follows: "Every thought and experience you've ever had in your life gets filtered through these chakra databases. Each event is recorded into your cells...".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://myss.com/library/chakras/ |title=Myss Library: Chakras |publisher=Myss |access-date=5 March 2015}}</ref> The chakras are described as being aligned in an ascending column from the base of the [[spine (anatomy)|spine]] to the top of the head. [[New Age]] practices often associate each chakra with a certain colour. In various traditions, each chakra is associated with a physiological functions, an aspect of [[consciousness]], and a [[classical element]]; these do not correspond to those used in ancient Indian systems. The chakras are visualised as [[Lotus (genus)|lotuses]] or flowers with a different number of petals in every chakra.<ref name="Leland 2017"/>

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 (spirituality)|spiritual energy]] or [[prana]], which is thought to flow among them along pathways called [[Nadi (yoga)|nadi]]. The function of the chakras is to spin and draw in this energy to keep the spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health of the body in balance.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Neff |first=Dio Urmilla |title=The Great Chakra Controversy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nusDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA50 |journal=[[Yoga Journal]] |issue=November–December 1985 |date=1985 |pages=42–45, 50–53}}</ref>

[[Rudolf Steiner]] considered the chakra system to be dynamic and evolving. He suggested that this system has become different for modern people than it was in ancient times and that it will, in turn, be radically different in future.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wn.rsarchive.org/Books/GA010/English/MAC1909/GA010b_c01.html |title=GA010: Chapter I: The Astral Centers |location=Fremont, Michigan |access-date=5 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=http://wn.rsarchive.org/Books/GA010/English/MAC1909/GA010b_index.html | title=Contents - GA 10. Initiation and Its Results (1909) - Rudolf Steiner Archive }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://wn.rsarchive.org/Books/GA010/English/MAC1909/GA010b_index.html |title=GA010: Initiation and Its Results|location=Fremont, Michigan |access-date=5 March 2015}}</ref><!--Steiner described a sequence of development that begins with the upper chakras and moves down, rather than moving in the opposite direction. He gave suggestions on how to develop the chakras through disciplining thoughts, feelings, and will.<ref>Rudolf Steiner, ''How to Know Higher Worlds''{{pn|date=December 2024}}</ref>--><!--According to Florin Lowndes, a "spiritual student" can further develop their consciousness by moving from the "ancient path" of schooling to the "new path" of Steiner's ''[[The Philosophy of Freedom]]''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lowndes |first=Florin |title=Enlivening the Chakra of the Heart: The Fundamental Spiritual Exercises of Rudolf Steiner |date=2000 |publisher=Sophia Books |location=London |isbn=1-85584-053-7 |edition=2nd |page=}}{{pn|date=December 2024}}</ref>-->

Below are the common [[new age]] description of these six chakras and the seventh point known as sahasrara. This [[new age]] version incorporates the [[Spectrum|Newtonian colours]] of the rainbow not found in any ancient Indian system.<ref name="Leland 2017">{{cite journal |last=Leland |first=Kurt |title=The Rainbow Body: How the Western Chakra System Came to Be |url=https://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/the-rainbow-body-how-the-western-chakra-system-came-to-be |journal=[[Quest (Theosophical magazine)|Quest Magazine]] |publisher=[[Theosophical Society in America]] |volume=105 |issue=2 (Spring 2017) |date=2017 |pages=25–29}}</ref>{{Clear}}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ [[New age]] descriptions of the chakras
|-
! style="width:  60px;" | Image 
! style="width:  60px;" | Name 
! style="width:  60px;" | [[Sanskrit]]
! style="width:  60px;" | Location 
! style="width:  60px;" | No. of petals 
! style="width:  60px;" | Modern colour 
! style="width:  60px;" | Mantra & element 
! style="width: 500px;" | Description
|-
| [[File:Sahasrara Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Sahasrara|Sahasrāra]]''' || सहस्रार  <br /> "Thousand-petaled" || Crown || 1000 || White or Violet || ''-''<br />(Time & Space, Divine Consciousness) || Highest spiritual centre, pure consciousness, containing neither object nor subject. When the feminine [[Kundalini energy|Kundalini]] Shakti rises to this point, it unites with the masculine [[Shiva]], giving self-realization and [[Samadhi]].<ref name="grimes100"/> In esoteric Buddhism, it is called Mahasukha, the petal lotus of "Great Bliss" corresponding to the fourth state of [[Four Noble Truths]].<ref name=johnston40>{{cite book |first1=Geoffrey |last1=Samuel |author-link=Geoffrey Samuel |first2=Jay |last2=Johnston |title=Religion and the Subtle Body in Asia and the West: Between Mind and Body |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w_qOz641rV0C |year=2013 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-136-76640-4 |pages=40–42}}</ref>
|-
| [[File:Ajna Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Ajna|Ajñā]]''' || आज्ञा <br /> "Command" || Between<br />eyebrows || 96 or 2 large petals of 48 each || Indigo || ''Om''<br />(Light Or Darkness) || Guru chakra, or in New Age usage third-eye chakra, the subtle center of energy, where the tantra [[guru]] touches the seeker during the  [[shaktipat|initiation ritual]]. He or she commands the awakened [[kundalini]] to pass through this centre.<ref name="grimes100"/>

Corresponds to the upper dantien in the Qigong system.
|-
| [[File:Vishuddha Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Vishuddha]]''' || विशुद्ध <br /> "Purest" || Throat || 16 || Blue || ''Ham''<br />(Space) || 16 petals covered with the sixteen Sanskrit vowels. Associated with the element of space ([[akasha]]). The residing deity is Panchavaktra shiva, with 5 heads and 4 arms, and the Shakti is Shakini.<ref name="grimes100"/> 
In esoteric Buddhism, it is called Sambhoga and is generally considered to be the petal lotus of "Enjoyment" corresponding to the third state of [[Four Noble Truths]].<ref name=johnston40/>
|-
| [[File:Anahata Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Anahata|Anāhata]]''' || अनाहत (अन्-आहत) <br /> "Unstruck" || Heart || 12 || Green || ''Yam''<br />(Air) || Within it is a yantra of two intersecting triangles, forming a [[hexagram]], symbolising a union of the male and female, and the element of air ([[vayu]]). The presiding deity is Ishana Rudra Shiva, and the Shakti is Kakini.<ref name="grimes100"/>
In esoteric Buddhism, this Chakra is called Dharma and is generally considered to be the petal lotus of "Essential nature" and corresponding to the second state of [[Four Noble Truths]].<ref name=johnston40/>

Corresponds to the middle dantien in the Qigong system.
|-
| [[File:Manipura Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Manipura|Maṇipura]]''' || मणिपुर (मणि-पुर) <br /> "Jewel city" || Navel || 10 || Yellow || ''Ram''<br />(Fire) || For the [[Nath]] yogi meditation system, this is described as the ''Madhyama-Shakti'' or the intermediate stage of self-discovery.<ref name="Banerjea175"/> This chakra is represented as a downward pointing triangle representing fire in the middle of a lotus with ten petals. The presiding deity is Braddha Rudra, with Lakini as the Shakti.<ref name="grimes100"/>
|-
| [[File:Swadhisthana Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Svadhisthana|Svādhishthāna]]''' || स्वाधिष्ठान (स्व-आधिष्ठान) <br /> "Self-standing" || Root of<br />sexual organs || 6 || Orange || ''Vam''<br />(Water) || Svadhisthana is represented with a lotus within which is a crescent moon symbolizing the water element. The presiding deity is Brahma, with the Shakti being Rakini (or Chakini).<ref name="grimes100"/> 
In esoteric Buddhism, it is called Nirmana, the petal lotus of "Creation" and corresponding to the first state of [[Four Noble Truths]].<ref name=johnston40/>

Corresponds to the lower dantien in the Qigong system.
|-
| [[File:Muladhara Mandala.svg|center|80px]] || '''[[Muladhara|Mulādhāra]]''' || मूलाधार (मूल-आधार) <br /> "Root" || Base of<br />spine || 4 || Red || ''Lam''<br />(Earth) || Dormant [[Kundalini energy|Kundalini]] is often said to be resting here, wrapped three and a half, or seven or twelve times. Sometimes she is wrapped around the black Svayambhu linga, the lowest of three obstructions to her full rising (also known as knots or granthis).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Brown|first1=C. Mackenzie|title=The Devī Gītā: the Song of the Goddess: a translation, annotation, and commentary|date=1998|publisher=State university of New York press|location=Albany (N.Y.)|isbn=978-0-7914-3940-1|page=195}}<!--|access-date=18 December 2014--></ref> It is symbolised as a four-petaled lotus with a yellow square at its center representing the element of earth.<ref name="grimes100"/>
The seed syllable is ''Lam'' for the earth element<!--ref: Mumford (1988)-->. All sounds, words and mantras in their dormant form rest in the muladhara chakra, where [[Ganesha]] resides,<ref>{{cite book |last= Tigunait |first= Rajmani |title= Tantra Unveiled: Seducing the Forces of Matter & Spirit |publisher= Himalayan Institute Press |date=1999 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=EudU6IxUxYUC&q=ganesha+muladhara&pg=PA87|page=87|isbn= 9780893891589 }}</ref> while the Shakti is [[Dakini#In Hinduism|Dakini]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Ecstasy Through Tantra |first=John |last=Mumford |publisher=[[Llewellyn Worldwide]] |year=1988 |edition=Third |page=72 |isbn=0-87542-494-5}}</ref> The associated animal is the elephant.<ref>{{cite book |title= Dreambody: the body's rôle in revealing the self |last1=Mindell |first1=Arnold |last2=Sternback-Scott |first2=Sisa |author3= Goodman, Becky |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |year=1984 |isbn=0-7102-0250-4 |page=38}}</ref>
|}

== Skeptical response ==

{{further|Scientific skepticism}}

There is no scientific evidence to prove chakras exist, nor is there any meaningful way to try to measure them scientifically.<ref>{{cite web |last=Novak |first=Sara |title=The Science Behind Your Chakras: What Are Chakras and How Many Are There? |url=https://www.discovermagazine.com/health/the-science-behind-your-chakras |website=Discover Magazine |publisher=Discover |access-date=19 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260211013024/https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-science-behind-your-chakras-43074 |archive-date=11 February 2026 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Edinburgh Skeptics|Edinburgh Skeptics Society]] claimed that there has never been any evidence for chakras.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chakras |url=https://www.edinburghskeptics.co.uk/skepdayJan/Chakras |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231211083327/https://www.edinburghskeptics.co.uk/skepdayJan/chakras |archive-date=11 December 2023 |publisher=Edinburgh Skeptics Society |access-date=9 February 2021 |date=17 January 2019}}</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Aura (paranormal)|Aura]]
* [[Dantian]] – energy centre in Chinese Taoist systems
* [[Surya Namaskar]] – the Sun Salutation, in which each posture is sometimes associated with a chakra and a mantra

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==

{{refbegin|30em}}
* [[Anodea Judith|Judith, Anodea]] (1996). ''Eastern Body Western Mind: Psychology and the Chakra System As A Path to the Self''. Berkeley, California, USA: Celestial Arts Publishing. {{ISBN|0-89087-815-3}}.
* {{cite book |last=Apte |first=Vaman Shivram |title=The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary |year=1965 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-0567-4 |edition=fourth revised & enlarged |ref=none}}
* Banerji, S. C. ''Tantra in Bengal''. Second Revised and Enlarged Edition. (Manohar: Delhi, 1992). {{ISBN|81-85425-63-9}}.
* {{cite book |last1=Bucknell |first1=Roderick |last2=Stuart-Fox |first2=Martin |year=1986 |title=The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism |publisher=[[Curzon Press]] |location=London |isbn=0-312-82540-4 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Edgerton |first=Franklin |title=Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary |year=2004 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] Publishers |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-0999-8 |edition=Reprint |orig-year=1953 |ref=none}} (two volumes)
* {{cite book |last=Flood |first=Gavin |author-link=Gavin Flood |title=An Introduction to Hinduism |url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo |url-access=registration |year=1996 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |location=Cambridge |isbn=0-521-43878-0 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last1=Chia |first1=Mantak |last2=Chia |first2=Maneewan |title=Awaken Healing Light of the Tao |year=1993 |publisher=Healing Tao Books |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Dale |first=Cyndi |title=The Subtle Body: An Encyclopedia of Your Energetic Anatomy |date=2009 |publisher=Sounds True |location=Boulder, Colorado |isbn=978-1-59179-671-8 |ref=none}}
* Goswami, Shyam Sundar. ''Layayoga: The Definitive Guide to the Chakras and Kundalini'', [[Routledge & Kegan Paul]], 1980.
* Khalsa, Guru Dharam Singh; O'Keeffe, Darryl. ''The Kundalini Yoga Experience'', [[Simon & Schuster]], 2002.
* Lowndes, Florin. ''Enlivening the Chakra of the Heart: The Fundamental Spiritual Exercises of Rudolf Steiner'' {{ISBN|1-85584-053-7}}, first English edition 1998 from the original German edition of 1996. comparing 'traditional' chakra teaching, and that of C. W. Leadbeater, with that of Rudolf Steiner.
* {{cite book |last=Monier-Williams |first=Monier |author-link=Monier Monier-Williams |title=A Sanskrit-English Dictionary |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |location=Delhi |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Prabhananda |first=S. |title=Studies on the Tantras |year=2000 |publisher=The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture |location=Calcutta |isbn=81-85843-36-8 |edition=Second reprint |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Rinpoche |first=Tenzin Wangyal |title=Healing with Form, Energy, and Light |year=2002 |publisher=Snow Lion Publications |location=Ithaca, New York |isbn=1-55939-176-6 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |chapter=Saiva Literatures |last=Sanderson |first=Alexis |title=Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism |volume=10 |pages=10–42 |date=n.d.}}
* {{cite book |last=Saraswati |first=Swami Sivananda |title=Kundalini Yoga |location=Tehri-Garhwal, India |publisher=[[Divine Life Society]] |date=2009 |isbn=81-7052-052-5 |no-pp=true |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Sharp |first=Michael |year=2005 |title=Dossier of the Ascension: A Practical Guide to Chakra Activation and Kundalini Awakening |edition=1st |publisher=Avatar Publications |isbn=0-9735379-3-0 |url=http://dossier.michaelsharp.org |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121221033639/http://dossier.michaelsharp.org/ |archive-date=21 December 2012 |url-status=dead |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Tulku |first=Tarthang |title=Tibetan Relaxation. The illustrated guide to Kum Nye massage and movement&nbsp;– A yoga from the Tibetan tradition |year=2007 |publisher=Dunkan Baird Publishers |location=London |isbn=978-1-84483-404-4 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Woodroffe |first=John |author-link=John Woodroffe |title=The Serpent Power |location=Madras, India |publisher=Ganesh & Co. |orig-date=1919 |year=1974 |isbn=0-486-23058-9 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Saraswati |first=Satyananda |author-link=Satyananda Saraswati |title=Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha |location=Bihar, India |publisher=Yoga Publications Trust |orig-date=1969 |year=2013 |isbn=978-81-86336-14-4 |page=526}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==

* {{wikiquote-inline}}
* {{Wiktionary-inline|chakra}}
* {{Commons category-inline|Chakras}}

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