The chakras belong among the basics in Indian medicine. They serve as energy centers in the human body. Western medicine has not yet found evidence they exist at all, so science denies the existence of the the existence of chakras; however science once denied x-rays too. If we accept the idea of energy centers without scientific approval, we find new ways of healing using our flower essences.

You may see a chakra as a kind of funnel that collects energy from its surroundings. If such a funnel should be closed, a lack of energy is the result, and this may cause negative effects on our body, soul and emotions. Every chakra has its own definition and functions. This knowledge can be very helpful in diagnosis and treatment. The lack of energy in a special chakra creates related symptoms, so we can find which chakra may be blocked just from observing the symptoms. If we however check the chakras e.g. by muscle testing we can also foresee which symptoms may appear in the future unless we treat the chakra.

All the chakras are aligned to the central axis in the body, our spine -- with one exeption, the so-called Crown Chakra, which is located on top of the head. The first one, our Root Chakra, absorbs the energy from the Earth, the last one, the above-mentioned Crown Chakra, lets in the energy from the sky (or you may also say the Universe); all the others open to our front side. In each article in my chakra series, I suggest a couple of essences to treat one special chakra.

Although our will does not rule the solar plexus' activity directly, we still can influence it -- without having to practice yoga for a quarter of a century. In the 1930's a German physician developed a relaxation technique called Autogenic Training that works by autosuggestion. One of the exercises is called the Solar Plexus exercise, in which you use a verbal formula like "my belly is warm" or a similar one. The more often you do this exercise, the more effective it becomes, until finally the suggestion works like a trigger that activates the Solar Plexus.

There are two major parts of our autonomous nervous system, called the 'Sympathicus' and 'Parasympathicus' in German. The first regulates our activities and directs our blood to where it is needed most: our muscles and brain. When we take a break and relax, it is the Parasympathicus' turn. Now our blood is directed to our skin and our digestive organs. They are both representations of the good old Yin-Yang system, and work alternately. Once we are awake and active, we can be sure that our Sympathicus is doing its work. While we rest or sleep, the Parasympaticus works.

People who live a stressful life are mainly living in Sympathicus (or Yang) mode. They like to control the events of their lives and often experience problems when trying to let go. Even when they lie down and try to rest, their mind does not stop, but goes over the issues of the day again and again. In order to get our digestion to work properly, we need to switch from Sympathicus to Parasympathicus, from Yang to Yin.

When you are active the whole day long, the work of neither the work of your stomach nor intestines can be initiated by the Parasympathicus. You know what happens then: dinner lies like a big stone in your stomach and does not digest. You get heartburn and wind, because the food rots instead of being digested. These are only two of the problems that result when you are dominated by stress, hectic states, and activity that lasts all day. Taking a pause from time to time does not show that you are lazy, but instead that you are supporting your own health by supporting a healthy digestion. You have to let go...

On the emotional level, fear is one of the major signs of an improperly working solar plexus. You only see the problems and blockages, and so you become depressed and afraid of taking on a challenge. Fate rules, and you have no chance to exert influence. However, the other extreme is also possible: you always try to keep control over everything. You are afraid of what you do not know (e.g. the future) and so you try to prevent 'accidents' by keeping an eye on every detail of your life. Such behaviour is as stressful as it is unsuccessful. You will see the effects of this stress when you carry your stomach ulcer or heartburn to your doctor's practice. Even if your doctor has never heard of concepts like yin and yang, he will certainly recommend relaxation and some kind of stress management. (If he is less skilled, he gives you a handful of pills and lets you go on with your unhealthy life style).

I have made combination essences for each of the chakras, and the Solar Plexus contains the following single flower essences from native European flowers:

When your Solar Plexus Chakra works well, it is a major source of courage and trust. You develop a 'gut feeling', act according to your personality and emotions, gain strength and capacity to act, know to act spontaneously and listen to your body's needs. The rewards of a fully functioning Solar Plexus Chakra are flexibility, strength and courage, a good digestion, warm hands and feet, a healthy day and night cycle, a working instinct and the ability to go with the flow of life.

Editors' Note: You will find a series of articles about each of the chakras and Dirk's essence blends for them on his website. Each article begins with the German version, but the English translation follows further down the page.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dirk Albrodt is the maker of several essence kits and the author of several books on essences, including the Illustrated Encyclopedia of Domestic Flower Essences and Essences in Pregnancy (both in German). He offers essence education and counseling services, and distributes several lines of essences. See more of his articles from Vibration's archives here.

DESIGN CREDITS: Art from Clipart.com.