We live in an invisible sea of consciousness or mind substance, an atmosphere of thoughts and their associated feelings. Each one of us receives mind substance from the environment. We process it through our own consciousness and then transmit it back into the collective unconscious, the atmosphere of the global mind. In this way, our contribution to world consciousness is automatic. As you think and feel, so you affect the global mind in your own way.

Traditionally, the seven major chakras are viewed from the front of the body. They appear as doorways of consciousness, located just in front of the physical body. Each chakra is a spinning vortex of etheric energy which channels its own specific frequency band of consciousness to or from the local environment. From the base of the spine upwards, these are the traditional names of seven major chakras:

1. Root chakra (base of the spine)
2. Sex chakra
3. Solar plexus chakra
4. Heart chakra
5. Throat chakra
6. Third eye chakra (forehead)
7. Crown chakra (above the head)

The root, sex and then the solar plexus chakras are activated as children grow into adulthood. Having reached adulthood, many people go on to activate their heart chakras and some venture into the realm of the throat chakra, especially during meditation.

The functions of the chakras are as follows:

1. Instinctual. The root chakra prepares vitality, or life energy, for the chakras above it. It provides the base frequency of human existence including the instinct for survival.

2. Emotional. The sex chakra powers the basic emotions and passions of human life.

3. Intellectual. The solar plexus chakra is used in the development of intellect or mental ability in a linear direction. Examples of thought expressed as linear intellect include the performing of arithmetic and the operating of machinery.

4. Holistic. The heart chakra is developed as issues of separation are resolved and integrated. Mind, body & spirit are seen as facets of a human being with integrity or wholeness.

5. Creative. The throat chakra's function is creativity. It is capable of inspiring the imagination to create new ideas, inventions and works of art. Most scientific thinking today is still in its early, linear phase. With the addition of imagination, science will enter a phase of great expansion where it will solve many mysteries of the universe. The further development of the throat chakra results in gaining the power of conscious creation, the ability to consciously transform your reality.

6. Spiritual. The third eye chakra is the home frequency of your soul family. While a person's closest soul mates can be usually counted on the fingers of two hands, soul families are much larger. They are extended, related groups of, typically, 2,000 individuals. When you feel a yearning for your true spiritual home, you are remembering your connection to this level of consciousness. In the cycle of reincarnation, it is to this frequency of consciousness that you ultimately ascend in spirit before planning your next physical incarnation.

7. Universal. The crown chakra is your connection to the universe on a cosmic scale. Its complete activation brings the ultimate state of human achievement and enlightenment, that of cosmic consciousness.

Owen Waters is editor and cofounder of Infinite Being LLC. He promotes a philosophy of spiritual empowerment through inner connection to the source of your ultimate potential. For more Spiritual Words of Empowerment subscribe to his free weekly newsletter. For the full picture, read Owen's book, The Shift: The Revolution in Human Consciousness.

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