Chakra Systems of Old Europe
Behind your image, below your words, above your thoughts, the silence of another world waits.
John O’Donohue
We now turn our attention to Europe, recognizing that the Europe of today is an amalgam of hundreds of different cultures across time; thus, we acknowledge that our discussion can only touch a few highlights. One of the more interesting questions about European chakra concepts is the question of the role Europeans played in the origination of the chakra system. Some think that the prevailing view of chakra knowledge arising in the East is merely a persistent myth—that, in fact, it first appeared in the West.
Theorists in this vein point to the spirituality of cave painters in the Magdalenian culture, one of the later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic in Western Europe, dating from around 17,000 to 12,000 bce. The images in these caves are indicative of many chakra medicine concepts, which could have been carried eastward into the steppes of central Russia where the Aryans dwelled. The Aryans would then have adopted a Tree of Life–based spirituality, along with the chakra system, and brought it with them when they invaded the Indus Valley during the early second millennium bce.1
Whether this is truly the way chakra lore traveled the globe in ancient times, in this chapter you will discover that early Europe certainly played a significant role in the development of chakra concepts. The mythology of Scandinavian and Teutonic cultures incorporated a cosmological view similar to others that rely on the Tree of Life and chakra-related understandings, their stoic contributions providing a backbone for contemporary thought. As well, modern esoterics have analyzed Celtic beliefs to find find echoes of chakras lurking in their mystical knowledge.
It is in Greece, however, where we find clear indications of chakras bearing similarities to Hindu concepts. The sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi, for example, featured an omphalos: a large oval-shaped stone they called the “center of the world.” It exactly resembles an Indian lingam: a stone with a serpent coiled around it and leaves scattered upon it, as is depicted and described in chapter 16’s Illustration 42.2
Greece reflects dozens of other chakra-like ideas as well, as it was a true mixing ground of dozens of cultures; therefore, it is little wonder that chakra concepts are embedded within its philosophies. Greek ideas are extremely important even today in the West, and this is why I include several “history lessons” in our discussion, analyzing the links between Greece and other sources of ideas that appear in Western occult chakra medicine. We bring along this same lens of analysis as we swing over into the world of Eastern orthodoxy. Here we discover Hesychasm, a Christian practice that includes many chakra medicine processes. And we also find chakras in the last book of the Christian Bible, shining like lamps unto the world.
As you review the material in this chapter, turn your antennae on. Much of our contemporary chakra knowledge emanates from understandings we can trace to Europe.
Scandinavian Chakras: The Vikings Go Esoteric
Did the Vikings have an understanding of chakras? Norse and Teutonic mythology speak of an evocative symbol, a world tree called Yggdrasil. The tree holds nine worlds and is graphically pictured much like a diagram of the chakras. Whether our wild Teutonic tribes created their own systems or stole this one from other lands while raiding for food, riches, and brides, Norse and German legends present their own deeply magical versions of chakras and kundalini, the stuff of ancient truths.
The Creation of the World
The Nordic and German races portray the earth as having formed from the slain body of Ymir, the first living creature, a giant who was fashioned in the void from various natural elements. He is comparable to Purusha, the cosmic man whose body, as the Rig Veda explains, was the source of the universe. Children sprang forth from Ymir, and three of them killed their father. From Ymir’s slain body grew a vital gift to the universe—Yggdrasil, which bridges the void.
The largest tree ever to grow, Yggdrasil joins hands—or branches—with the other stories of a world tree. Within Yggdrasil lie the nine worlds, each of which can be described as a chakra. There are several portrayals of this relationship. Illustration 73 shows one system; another is offered in the section “Chakras and the Scandinavian World.”
Chakras and the Scandinavian World
|
Chakra |
Chakra Description |
Nordic World |
Nordic World Description |
|
First |
Coiled kundalini, survival |
Nefelhel |
A dragon; the unconcious |
|
Second |
Emotions and opposites |
Jotunheim/Hel |
Jotunheim is male and chaotic; Hel is feminine and half black and half white |
|
Third |
Information; transformation through willpower |
Swartalfheim/ Lightalfheim |
Lightalfheim represents thinking; Swartalfheim is transmutation of base materials |
|
Fourth |
Heart, our center |
Midgard |
The middle world |
|
Fifth |
Sound, communication |
Vanaheim |
Water; feelings |
|
Sixth |
Intuition |
Muspelheim |
Intuition |
|
Seventh |
Transcendence |
Asgard |
Highest plane; spirituality 3 |
Chakras on the World Tree
Yggdrasil represents the spinal column as well as the eternal Tree of Life, an assertion emboldened by yet another Norse story. Around Hel, depicted on the lower right side of the tree, lies coiled the Nidhoegg serpent, which gnaws continually at the tree—just as the serpent kundalini impatiently gnashes until it can uncoil. The following is an alternative Norse-chakra system, based on different sources than the “Chakras and the Scandinavian World” chart above. I’m deliberately sharing another possible system in order to emphasize one of the main points of this book: systems vary according to culture and creator. This means that we are invited to draw our own conclusions based on our individual needs and preferences.
This is one version of how seven of the tree’s nine worlds relate to the seven classical Hindu chakras:
Swartalfheim: The root chakra, concerned with self-preservation and ego. Associated with the Norse black elves, who were known for their materialism.
Muspelheim: The second chakra, representing burning sensual passion, is a perfect match for Muspelheim, also called the Land of Fire.
Jotunheim: This third chakra world is the headquarters of giants who desire to displace the gods. Both the third chakra and this land share a common focus on power.
Midgard: This land of human beings correlates to the heart chakra. In both, the motivation is love.
Vanaheim: Similar to the fifth chakra, this world is the center for creativity and the dwelling place of Kvasir, the divine artificer.
Lightalfheim: This sixth chakra planet is the center of awareness, and in Norse tradition it is the dwelling place of the light elves, renowned for their foresight.
Asgard: Here is the home of the gods, which mirrors the seventh chakra site of spiritual connection.
What might the additional two Norse realms represent? We can answer that question by borrowing from certain Taoist and Buddhist constructs, both of which are known as revered and authentic chakra systems. Within this framework, Hel is the location of the kundalini serpent, Nidhoegg. Niflheim, the realm of ice and cold, could be a variant on the root chakra at Swartalfheim.
The bowtie on Yggdrasil is a rainbow bridge that connects Midgard, the human realm, and Asgard, the gods’ abode. The seven colors of the rainbow sparkle in the Hindu chakra system, just as they do in the rainbow bridge that links our human to our divine selves.4
Celtic Chakras
While the Celts of Neolithic Britain left behind no diagrams of chakras, the chakras just might be imbedded in stories of the goddesses and lore about caers (castles) and cauldrons.
As one story goes, the Welsh name for Arianrhod of the Spinning Towers, one of the Celtic goddesses, means “silver” and “wheel.” Arguably, Indo-European ancestors familiar with Sanskrit originated this name. In Sanskrit her name would be “arganto-rota,” which also means “silver wheel.”
Yet another goddess, Elen, asks the king to build her three caers as a bridal gift. Potentially these three towers symbolize three pairs of chakras:
Caer y n’Arfon: Possibly representing the first and seventh chakras, this castle looks across to other worlds, such as the place of the faeries. Spanning heaven and earth, it enables us to walk between worlds, as do the first and seventh chakras.
Caer Leon: The site of flowing waters, this caer stands for the third and fourth chakras. Built at the lowest crossing point of the sacred River Usk, the cycling of the waters enables our vocation or life path.
Caer Myrddin: A stronghold by the sea, this caer stores the wisdom of the ages, the knowledge of Merlin, thus invoking the brilliance of the fifth and sixth chakras.
Another clue to Celtic chakra knowledge is the consistent appearance of the spiral in Celtic legend, art, and building. According to expert and author Elen Sentier, the Celtic chakras travel a spiral path: from the heart center down through the third chakra, up to the fifth chakra, down to the second chakra, up into the crown, down to the first chakra, and finally to the brow. There, all the chakra energies meet in the manner represented by an image similar to the infinity sign—the duality of the Lady and the Lord (do you hear echoes of Shakti and Shiva?), the dark and the light, the feminine and the masculine.5
Greek Chakras
Paraphrased in my own words, following are a few thoughts of famous greats among the ancient Greeks. Do they not sound akin to those of the ancient Hindus?
- • I have a chest full of thoughts that I have heard from others. (Socrates to Plato)
- • The soul consists of vapor and winds. (Alcmaeon of Crotin, affiliated with Pythagoras)
- • There is a ray that goes forth from the eyes and returns again, not only receiving light, but also what is breathed from objects. (Pythagoras)
- • Sight is a fusion of rays, the light of our eyes flowing out to kindred air, the light from objects meeting it. (Plato)
Consider these with what is stated so succinctly in the Upanishads:
- • The vital breath is all of these—speech, sight, hearing, and mind. All causes us to know all things. (Chandogya Upanishad, 5.1)6
These and thousands of other Greek writings reveal uncanny synchronicities between Greek and Hindu thinking, including common descriptions of the power in the diaphragm area, the heart as the emotional and spiritual center of the body, the intuitive way of knowing without seeing, and the presence of a wind or air that separates into other winds.
For example, Plato posited that there is an interior fire or light in the eye. This idea is derived from several of Plato’s works, as researchers Eduard Zeller and Alfred Goodwin describe in their book Plato and the Older Academy.7 When this light passes from the eye, it unites with a “kindred fire” that comes out of the “luminous bodies,” transmitting motion through the entire body to the soul. A variety of colors are associated with these lights. Plato also asserts that sleep is derived from this interior fire.8
Various Greek authors present ideas that relate to the nadis as well. The sushumna appears in Greek thought in the description of the spine, which was called the hiera surinx or “holy tube.” Like the sushumna, it is considered a channel for energy, doubling also as a symbol of the Tree of Life.9
Orphic poet Pindar of the fifth century bce associated the spinal marrow with life or life-span. And the Greek philosopher Heraclitus, who was influenced by Orphism, also held the doctrine that the spinal channel was surrounded with two “veins” and, in fact, was also connected with the testicles. These descriptions are quite similar to our Hindu-based knowledge of the three major nadis: the ida, pingala, and sushumna.
Yet another potential sighting of the nadis appears in a long fragment from Aristotle’s writings, which speaks of two veins extending through the belly along the backbone, one to the left and one to the right, past the collarbones and through the throat. Both of these veins are said to pass through the spinal marrow to the testicles.10
Analysis of the Greek explanations of consciousness and the soul hint strongly that the Greeks had developed a chakra-like understanding of energy, as have so many other cultures. Roman beliefs are quite similar, as the two cultures were tied together. Probably the best known of them are attributed to Plato. Many of his chakric allusions are recorded in the dialogue Timaeus.
In the fifth century bce, Plato taught that the psyche or soul could be divided into three grades. These are often related to Vedic ideas about the chakras in the following ways and have been attributed to the chakras as follows:
|
Plato’s Part of Soul |
Part of Body |
Possible Chakras |
|
Epithymia (desire) |
Stomach |
First and second |
|
Thymos (righteous anger) |
Chest |
Third, fourth, fifth |
|
Nous or logos (mind) |
Head |
Sixth and seventh 11 |
Based on the scholarship of R. B. Onians’s work The Origins of European Thought12 as well as Plato’s book Timaeus written in 360 bce,13 author and Hellenic divination expert John Opsopaus also relates the parts of the soul according to Plato and other Greek writers, each found within a bodily area, to the Hindu chakras. Included in this description is mention of the Latin word for the area.
Seventh Chakra: Crown
Greek: Koruphe
Latin: Vertex
Meaning: Illumination. Plato asserted that humans stand upright because the brain connects the heavens and the soul. As early as the third century bce, those in great power were shown with a nimbus or halo around their heads.
Sixth Chakra: Brain
Greek: Enkephalos
Latin: Cerebrum
Meaning: Intellect. Among the Greeks and Romans, the brain contains “genius,” and to Homer and Plato this area is the immortal part of the soul.
Fifth Chakra: Neck
Greek: Trachelos
Latin: Collum
Meaning: Purification. Plato called this area the isthmus between the superior soul (in the head) and the mortal soul. This area allows the two to communicate while keeping the inferior soul from polluting the divine soul.
Fourth Chakra: Heart and Lungs
Greek: Phrenes
Latin: Cor
Meaning: Affection. Herein lies the higher part of the mortal soul. In Homer’s times, this area was restricted to the conscious spirit, which expressed through thought and emotion. Later, the qualities of spirit, courage, and anger were added. Plato also described an area below the heart that corresponds to the diaphragm, associating it with spirit and desire. This region is most likely linked with the hrit chakra, described in chapter 7.
Third Chakra: Belly
Greek: Gaster
Latin: Abdomen
Meaning: Appetite. This is the lower part of the mortal soul and affiliated with nutrition and sexual desire.
Second Chakra: Gonads
Greek: Gonades
Latin: Genitalia
Meaning: Procreation. Here are the “marrows” that unite the soul and body to create life.
First Chakra: Sacrum
Greek: Hieron Osteon
Latin: Os Sacrum
Meaning: Basic life. The sacrum or holy bone is the base of the spine, able to generate life force.
Traditions Related to Greek and Other Western Thought
Before we explore a couple of the chakra systems related to Christianity, it’s important to bridge Greek and Middle Eastern thought with that appearing in various forms of the Christian world. This information will be fodder for our next chapter, which explores modern Western chakra systems, and it will show you how several traditions tie together.
Hermeticism is a collection of beliefs that center on acknowledging the way heavenly forces influence the physical world. The Hermetic tradition encompasses ideas that flowed from the East to the West as well as ideas from ancient Egypt and Greece. All Hermetic ideas embrace chakra-related philosophies—such as a belief in invisible energies, human consciousness, and the subtle anatomy—and have at their core the “mystery tradition,” a set of practices that enable contact with the invisible universe inside and outside of us.
Mystery traditions such as those in early Egypt and Greece were primarily introduced to the West with the writings of Hermes Trismegistus, a Pagan prophet whose actual identity, and even time period, is hard to place—although by the sixteenth century he was revered in many places around the world. A number of acclaimed works are attributed to him, including The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus (a recent edition of which is authored by Dennis William Hauck18), which intertwines alchemy, astrology, and theurgy: the effects of the supernatural in human affairs, typically through interaction with the gods.19
No one really knows who wrote The Emerald Tablet or exactly when. Possible dates range from 3000 bce to the end of the third century ce. Some scholars suggest that the knowledge contained in it actually goes back to foreigners who mysteriously visited Egypt about twelve thousand years ago, leaving behind a sort of spiritual technology. We do know, however, that the Tablet shows uncanny similarities to Taoism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. In fact, many of the concepts we’ve been linking to the chakras are contained within this work, such as the idea that direct knowledge of a higher reality can be attained through psychological discipline and meditative exercises. Hermeticism also employs the symbol of the ouroborus, the snake eating its own tail, which is related to kundalini and illustrates the phrase “as above, so below,” similar in meaning to most tantric ideas.20
Hermetic traditions also assert that there is one Prime Creator, although within this oneness are dual aspects of creation (male and female). This is the backdrop that calls for humans to become self-realized, to merge our subtle and gross energies through the “gentle heat” of kundalini to create unity where there is division.21
The Hermetic tradition either spawned or is related to several movements, many of which emerged in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, incorporating chakra-related ideas. Some of these Hermetic systems even incorporate chakras themselves. Manly Hall, a Canadian-born author and mystic who lived between 1901 and 1990, offers a good understanding of the importance of the Hermetic tradition. According to Hall, author of The Secret Teachings of All Ages: An Encyclopedic Outline of Masonic, Hermetic, Qabbalistic, and Rosicrucian Symbolic Philosophy, many movements following the ancient Greek and Egyptian eras have included the same “secret teachings.”22 (Much of Hall’s information is attributed to Paracelsus, a Swiss physician and author from the 1500s who weighs in heavily on Hermetic and other orders. He is featured in his own section in chapter 30.) Many of these movements incorporated the thoughts of the Essenes, a pious group of ascetics who embraced Hermetic viewpoints and, according to Hall, taught them to Jesus. These concepts include doctrines such as the immortality of the soul. Some also believe that Christ was educated in the ways of the East, studying in the same temple where Pythagoras, discussed in “The Greek Shoulders
Upon Which We Stand” section, taught six centuries earlier.23 Thus Christianity actually had Asian as well as Hermetic influences.
The mysteries of Persia, India, and Egypt, tied together by Hermetic influences, also made their way to Europe through the Rosicrucians and the Knights Templar.24 The Rosicrucian movement is a philosophical secret society founded in late medieval Germany by Christian Rosenkreuz. Based on the esoteric truths of the ancient past, it presents ways to see through physical reality and into the spiritual realm. Drawing on the knowledge of alchemists and sages, this order influenced the arts, science, religion, and politics.25 The Rosicrucian Order, still alive and well today, teaches its members how to access seven psychic centers, points in the body used to access the energies of the cosmic realm.26
Yet other mystical orders incorporating Hermetic ideas, according to Hall, include the Knights Templar and the Freemasons. Founded in 1118 ce during the Crusades, the brotherhood of the Knights Templar, which was supposedly entirely destroyed, acknowledged the chakra system, at least according to Rudolf Steiner, a famous philosopher you will meet in chapter 32. Steiner writes that the Knights Templar was exposed to mystical non-Christian beliefs in the Middle East and learned about the chakras there.27
The influential Hermetic association of Freemasons is a secret society that traces its birth back to medieval times, culling beliefs from the Greeks, Romans, and Rosicrucians as well as other Hermetic traditions.28 A fraternal organization, Freemasonry currently boasts millions of members and employs the seven basic Hindu chakras, coaching its members in how to direct kundalini in the search for enlightenment. The Freemasons influenced major chakra aficionados, including C. W. Leadbeater, one of the founders of the Theosophical Society.29
Another order that emerged from the Hermetic tradition is the Golden Dawn, originating in the late nineteenth century, its founders having been involved in Freemasonry or Rosicrucianism. The Golden Dawn, which still exists, combines theurgy, Neoplatonism (which is discussed in the section “The Greek Shoulders
Upon Which We Stand”), and several other occult influences.30 One of its orders in particular encompasses the chakras; we will further explore the Golden Dawn in chapter 30.31
Gnosticism is a philosophical path that emerged from the Middle East while the four Christian apostles were still living. It caused quite a stir in the early Christian church—in fact, it was considered heretical. First flourishing between 80 and 200 ce, Gnosticism differed from Christianity in that it preached salvation through direct experience rather than through God or Christ, presenting a view that has been compared to tantra; as does tantra, Gnosticism encourages the individual to reach beyond the illusion of duality to experience unity. Gnosticism also employs serpent imagery and a hierarchical system of powers, as tantra does. Potentially, Gnostic principles could be traced back to Judaic sects as well as the mystery cults of Greece and Persia.32
Gnosticism contributed greatly to Theosophy, along with other modern mystical traditions. In fact, Theosophy is often considered a modern version of Gnosticism in that both emphasize that our birthright is sophia, or wisdom.33
As you can see, non-Asian views of chakra medicine created widespread effects, anchored in the following two types of Christian chakra systems.
Hesychasm: Chakras in Eastern Orthodox Christianity
In some ways comparable to Hindu-based yogic traditions and Islamic Sufi traditions, Hesychasm, or Hesychia, is an Eastern Orthodox practice that dwells on the interior realm of the spirit. This path unfolds in a way similar to that described in kundalini-based systems.
One of the main questions this path answers is based on an admonition Paul writes in the New Testament: “Glorify God in your body.”34 But how do we do this? The fourteenth-century Hesychia movement provides a Christian response to this desire, concentrating on psycho-somatic forms of prayer similar to those found in Eastern chakra-based systems.
As a spiritual path, it begins with directing one’s entire focus to God. In chakra methodology this initiates a process of the kundalini ascending from the root to the crown. Hesychasm is similar except that the journey involves confronting our sin (amartia) to lead to repentance (metanoia). The unfolding awareness invites watchfulness of the present moment, or nepsis. At this point we evolve to nous, the use of the intuitive or mystical mind, and then into theosis, union with the Divine. This process has been compared to the chakra climb to enlightenment.
These teachings, which evolved from at least the early fourth century onward, are aligned with those of Patanjali, laying out devotional methods similar in both goal and practice. These include the use of single-word prayers with rhythmic breathing as well as the use of concentrated breathing. Longer prayers are often coordinated with rhythmic breathing as well, especially the Jesus Prayer: “Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” These techniques are similar to techniques employing mantras, pranayama, and meditation. Other practices include bodily postures for attaining attentiveness that are comparable to the asanas, and an emphasis on entering the heart for inner exploration.
One of the most apt comparisons to the chakra system involves focusing on parts of the body while repeating the Jesus Prayer. Mircea Eliade, a famous scholar, describes four of these areas in this way:
Cerebrofrontal Center: Between the brows
Buccolaryngeal Center: Place of common thought, intelligence, and the conversation of prayer
Pectoral Center: In the upper region of the heart, stabilizing thought and providing emotional coloring
Cardiac Center: In the upper part of the heart, near the left breast, providing “perfect attention”35
As a variant, the Jesus Prayer without the finals words (“a sinner”) can be said while in a restful position with the chin pressed against the chest and eyes focused on the navel, which I compare to the second chakra. However, most practitioners focus on the heart, which is said to govern and reign over the entire body and soul.36
As we are reminded by Theophane the Monk, one of the great masters of Hesychasm, “Experience teaches one, not words.” Thus can we use our bodies to better understand our spirit.37
Does Christianity contain a chakra path? According to author and former president of the Theosophical Society in Boston, Zachary F. Lansdowne, it does. As he sees it—and as other esoteric experts, including Paramahansa Yogananda, perceived it—the Revelation of St. John, the last book in the Bible, presents such a courseway.
Interpreting the book psychologically, Lansdowne asserts that it outlines the stages of the human spiritual journey, conveyed with symbols including various beasts, churches, stars, angels, places, books, and candlesticks, the latter symbol being comparable to the shining chakras. Several other components also signify the chakras, including the seven Asian churches that St. John is addressing through his revelation. Because the name of each church holds a specific meaning, Lansdowne is able to match each to a chakra.38
According to Lansdowne, and in accordance with Theosophical beliefs, there are four parts to the personality: the physical, vital (causal), emotional, and mental bodies. The causal is the heart of God and holds our most laudable thoughts. The soul operates as an intermediary between the streams of living energy that flow from God’s heart to our physical selves. These streams express as seven rays of color that are transformed by seven archangels during meditation. As we start to function consciously, we experience a kundalini awakening and the awakening of our chakric gifts.39
Lansdowne starts his chakra exploration with the sacral chakra, believing it is the first to be mastered on the spiritual journey. While he acknowledges that the first or base chakra lies underneath the second chakra, he also believes that it is dormant or asleep until we have developed our second through seventh chakras. At this point, the causal body sends energy downward through the spinal column, all the way into the first chakra. The seventh, fifth, and fourth chakras unite and now awaken the kundalini, which arises and acts sequentially on each of the seven chakras.40
Following are Lansdowne’s ideas about the chakras based on the Revelation of St. John. Included in the descriptions are his ideas about the most vital activities of each chakra, the state of consciousness it represents, and the associated churches.
second chakra
The sacral chakra relates to the church of Ephesus, which means “desirable” or “appealing”; likewise, this chakra represents deep-seated personal desires and motives. After a time, we become disgusted with our base motives, and then this chakra enables us to cultivate higher ideals such as charity, love, and mercy. This chakra highlights the sensual state of consciousness.
third chakra
The solar plexus chakra is associated with the church of Smyrna, meaning “gall,” “sorrow,” and “bitterness.” An appropriate relationship to this chakra allows us to observe the illusions of emotions with detachment, inviting insight through the crown chakra that brings freedom and right mindfulness. This chakra invokes the aesthetic state of consciousness.
fourth chakra
The heart chakra is affiliated with the church of Pergamos, meaning “elevated” and “closely knit.” Through this chakra we can embrace the spiritual love that overcomes the falsity of separateness and know the body as the temple for the soul. The fourth chakra calls forth the compassionate state of consciousness.
fifth chakra
The Thyatira church is a “white castle,” and that’s what this chakra is: a transformative space for purifying our motives and feelings so we can rely on higher truths. When this chakra is developed, we can be objective toward concrete thoughts. This chakra increases our creative state of consciousness.
sixth chakra
The name of the Sardis church means “precious stone” and “prince of joy.” When our soul transforms the brow chakra, we understand the principles of wisdom and can access our intuition. We are also able to achieve the intuitive state of consciousness.
seventh chakra
Philadelphia, the name of the seventh chakra church, means “brotherly love.” Here we become untainted by selfishness and realize that spiritual love is the key to self-observation. Hence we also attain the state of self-consciousness.
base chakra
Once we’ve attained the “crowning achievement” of the seventh chakra, we can shift from self-centeredness to spiritual will. We now achieve objective consciousness, with a resulting awareness of the truth about the world and our soul.41 The name of the church is Laodicea, which means both “lukewarm” and “justice of the people.” It is interesting that among Christian believers, it was thought that the church of the Philadelphians (seventh chakra) needed to be safe before the Laodiceans could rise.42
As we hopscotched across Europe, we uncovered a rich collection of traditions. Perhaps predecessors to the now well-known Vikings were already roaming the earth, borrowing mystical information well before 800 ce or so, or maybe they had uprooted and were replanting ideas from an earlier age because we find Scandinavian and Teutonic mythology featuring a version of the worlds and planets surprisingly reminiscent of the chakras. In the British Isles we spied ideas similar to those found in India and in Greece. Finally, we examined Christian philosophies, specifically Hesychasm and a more modern esoteric system that embraces chakras.
Now it is time to head for the Middle East, where energetic philosophies and systems abound.