Prana The Elixir of Life
Prana, the vitality and flow of life force energy that courses through and between all living beings, determines our physical health, our zest for life and is a channel for the energy of our Soul.
This vital essence interpenetrates and interrelates all living systems from Cosmic galaxies to the atoms in the cells of our body, giving rise to our experience as a separate entity as well as our knowledge of the Universal connection we share with all of life.
Through an exploration and deeper understanding of the nature of Prana we come to realise that the way we live our life can make a profound difference to the quality of our etheric energy, the health of our physical body and our capacity to be a vehicle of Soul emanation.
Prana is the Sanskrit word for 'vital life', derived from pra, forth and an, to breathe, move and live, translating as 'to breathe forth', 'the life breath' or 'life force energy'.
In "The Key to Thesophy" HPB explains that 'Prana' or 'Life' is strictly speaking, the radiating force or Energy of Atma - as the Universal Life and the ONE SELF, - Its lower or rather (in its effects) more physical, because manifesting, aspect. Prana or Life permeates the whole being of the Objective Universe; and is called a 'principle' only because it is an indispensable factor and the deus ex machina of the living man."
This Universal life force energy is absorbed by all living organisms, with a sufficient supply of it being necessary for their very existence.
Mankind receives Prana in three forms, Solar Prana, Planetary Prana and Prana emitted from the Animal, Plant and Mineral kingdoms.
Our Sun receives Cosmic Prana, from outside our Solar system. Recent scientific discoveries collaborate with ancient wisdom teachings that name the star system Sirius as the source of Prana to our Sun and its worlds. All things absorb Prana to their maximum capacity to survive, radiating any excess imbued with their own particular qualities which then feeds the next kingdom evolving in nature, creating one vast interdependent system of energy transmission.
Solar Prana radiating from our Sun is transmitted to our planetary etheric body where it is absorbed by the Earth's spleen centre and any excess is given off as surface radiation that contains this essential solar Prana plus the individual and distinctive quality of our particular planet. This is the heat the earth gives off after nightfall and the energy we connect to when we ground our energy through a direct communion with nature, by for example, walking barefoot on dewy grass or paddling in the ocean.
Prana is abundant in areas of unspoilt natural beauty, especially where land embraces water like the seaside, rivers or lakes. We are drawn to these special places where we can feel and some can see its 'sparkly effervescence'.
Modern science measures the negative ions emitted by Pranic energy in such areas and recognises their benefits to health and convalescence.
Built up cities congested with high population densities and an absent of trees or parks and any areas depleted of natural resources have low levels of Prana. This is why we intuitively seek wide open spaces, woods, mountains, lakes and rivers where we experience and appreciate the restorative effects of being in nature to our health and well-being. However we need to remember that this is a reciprocal relationship and it is imperative that we come to realise that in destroying our natural world and interfering with our planets etheric body we are in fact disturbing her and therefore our own potential life force energy as well as that of the animal, plant and mineral kingdoms.
It is no coincidence that we find in cultures past and present a common and intuitive worship of the Sun as the giver of love and life. There is an inherent appreciation of the Sun's transmission of the electrical fohat energies of heat and light, of kundalini fire and this life essence we call Prana or Chi. From Solstice rituals, to sun gazing, to simply enjoying the sun on your skin there is an intuitive recognition of the power of its rays to lift our vibration, our mood and its importance spiritually in expanding our consciousness. As Prana pours forth into the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual planes we open up to this inpouring energy and can experience a feeling of joy and uplift with spiritual clarity especially on sunny days.
Prana, radiates from our sun and is transmitted to man's etheric body, filtered through certain high level deva entities to ensure its intensity is not harmful. In brilliant sunshine this vitality is constantly abundant and refreshed, whereas in cloudy weather it is diminished and is totally absent at night.
C.W. Leadbeater, was able to observe clairvoyantly what he called a 'vitality globule' composed of seven atoms charged with Prana, each having a different colour (violet-blue, yellow, green, rose and orange-red) that he associated with the five different forms of Prana in Vedic teachings. When the globule is absorbed by our body, it is decomposed in the etheric spleen into its original seven atoms, and five different streams or rays are produced that flow through the different chakras and circulate around the body, giving energy to the various organs.
The main centre for the reception of Prana is found between the shoulder blades, together with a secondary solar plexus centre forming a triangle of reception with the spleen. In a Treatise on Cosmic fire by Alice Bailey, the Tibetan master hints that we need to realise the necessity for the exposure of these two centres to the rays of the sun for a corresponding improvement in our physical vitality and the health of our physical vehicle as a receptacle for the emanations arising from our Higher Self.
This raises the question whether we have gone too far in our advice to avoid exposure of the skin to the rays of the sunshine. Scientific investigation has brought to light the vital importance in many diverse functions in our body of Vitamin D that is produced in our skin when exposed to sunlight. Recent studies suggest that up to half of the UK population are deficient in Vitamin D, which plays a key role in the health of our bones, teeth, muscles, immunity, cellular growth, repair and metabolism.
The etheric body is the mechanism of distribution of Prana in our physical body. It has been described as a network of fine energy strands permeated with fire or golden light. These strands attract physical plane matter and interpenetrate with them, acting as an integrating energy to co-ordinate the physical atoms and hold them together as a definite organism.
'It is the life-breath within the organism, the portion of the Universal Life-Breath, appropriated by a given organism during the period of bodily existence that we speak of as 'a life', Arthur E. Powell, The Etheric Double
Without Prana the body would be nothing more than a collection of independent cells. In this way we come to see that Prana is in fact a flow of energy or information, a flow of inherent intelligence in the Universe that unites all of life into its myriad of forms. When this flow is interrupted it creates an imbalance that results in physical or psychological dis-ease and the ensuing disharmony is a result of the disruption of this flow of information that keeps the physical form organised.
With vigorous good health there is an abundance of this vital essence circulating, and we are adept at radiating that which we don't require imbued with our own particular vibrational essence out into our aura. This shedding of healthy vitality becomes a source of health and strength to all who come in contact with us, and more intensely so if we consciously work to heal others.
Poor physical health, especially diet and living conditions, misalignment of the upper spine or congestion in the solar plexus chakra all contribute to an inability to absorb and a breakdown in the circulation of Prana through the etheric body. This causes the individual to become an unconscious sponge, drawing vitality from any sensitive person nearby and accounts for those feelings of weariness with the draining of our vitality we experience near people who lack good physical, emotional or mental health.
It is of interest to note that past unhealed or unresolved emotional issues or attachments block the solar plexus chakra and this has a detrimental effect on the flow of life force energy and is the root cause of depression, anxiety and disorders associated with overwhelming fear and doubt and their debilitating fatigue. Many people are aware and consciously releasing and healing these blockages in their lower chakras as life experiences and challenges reveal these unredeemed aspects of their personality nature. By transmuting these blocked energies to especially the heart chakra and higher centres we develop a greater capacity to cope with increased levels of Prana in our etheric body, which increases the vibrational frequency we emit, which enables a corresponding increase in the energy we have available for life and ensures we become an effective vehicle for our Soul's work in the world.
With an increased sedentary and especially seated lifestyle people are becoming aware of their posture and caring for the structure and alignment of their physical spine especially releasing the area between the shoulder blades through practices like Yoga, Tai chi and Qi gong. The beauty of these practices is that they can gently release any blocks to the flow of Prana through the etheric body, further enhancing physical health and vitality.
The health aura projected by these particles ejected from the body serves to protect us from invading disease germs and microbes, thus strengthening our immune system as these are thrown out with the Prana radiating from our body. Conditions such as physical weakness, over-fatigue, a wound, addictive behaviours, stress, depression or a life that lacks the regularity and balance needed for good health causes a diminution in the quality of this Prana emitted and a consequent decline in this protection.
When we are ill or injured considerable Prana is required in the process of self-repair and we lack vitality. However with proper rest and convalescence our health aura strengthens and our flow of life force energy is restored. Sun stroke or heat stroke esoterically is a condition in which there is an excess of Prana absorbed into our body as a result of a poor relationship between the physical and etheric body.
Both Prana and etheric matter are very responsive to the human will so that it is possible to mentally influence both our uptake, assimilation, distribution and therefore the protective emanation of Prana from our being through the power of creative visualisation, and the use of powerful intention. We are coming to understand the function of Prana and the relationship of the breath to enhance the flow of Prana in our system and create powerful mind-body interactions in conscious balancing and healing. This ensures our Pranic energy radiation is of the highest quality having a positive effect on those around us including the lower kingdoms in nature.
Progressive modern Science is starting to recognise and study the nature of Prana in relation to understanding its effects on our physical health. The traditional Chinese model of health recognises that dis-ease in the body occurs when the flow of Prana or Chi energy is disrupted. This is also the fundamental basis of Ayurvedic medicine and many emerging health practices that work with balancing the body's energy vibrations, (Homeopathic, Nautropathic, Sound Healing, Light Healing, Crystal Therapy and Flower Remedies to name a few). These work to facilitate our body's natural self-healing capacity through balancing the energies of the etheric body. In time there will emerge a complete change in our modern paradigm of the health of the physical body with this understanding of the importance of the free flow of the life force energy through our etheric body that vitalises the physical.
We naturally assume that tiredness, exhaustion and fatigue and the desire for sleep are caused by a lack of Prana circulating. However it is just the opposite.
We all vary in our ability to handle and cope with the constant influx of Prana into our physical bodies during waking life.
'Sleep is a sign that the waking life has become too strong for the physical organism and the force of the life current must be broken by changing the waking for the sleeping state.' H.P. Blavatsky, Transactions of the Blavatsky Lodge
Throughout our waking day this life force energy rushes into our body with greater energy every hour. When this gets too much for us, we desire and will naturally sleep. During sleep we relax and these life waves are assimilated and adjust themselves to the molecules of the body till our equilibrium is restored and we wake again to continue with life. This is why a short nap or regular deep relaxation is so restorative and a life of chronic stress interrupts and impedes this natural waking/sleeping restorative process.
The elementals that work on this process are most active in the hours before midnight and least active in the small hours of the morning, which explains why sleep earlier in the night is more regenerative and most people die in the wee small hours.
We absorb Prana from the animal, plant and mineral kingdoms especially through the food we eat. Food that is organic, unprocessed, eaten straight from its source has more Prana than processed, microwaved, genetically modified or synthetic food produced in factories or food from animals living in poor conditions. It is no surprise that Food grown and prepared with love has an abundance of life force energy.
To ensure the free flow of Prana, and therefore information or conscious intelligence through all of our bodies we need a healthy physical, mental and emotional diet and lifestyle. Too often we sacrifice this aspect of our spiritual growth for the attainment of more knowledge, focusing on the development of our mental body and forgetting the importance of our physical and etheric bodies in creating an effective vehicle for our Soul. By maintaining a high conscious vibrational energy in this way we are creating a clear channel for the energies emanating from our Soul to guide us and enable us to work effectively in our own unique way in the world. This is imperative to the integration and coordination of the personality. By modifying the way we live to be mindful of enhancing the flow of Prana through our body we become a beautiful channel for these higher Spiritual energies to infuse and transform the lower densities of matter and change our world for the better while enhancing our experience of living with joy and vitality on a daily basis.
Namaste Teresa