In the early 1980s, while working in the Personnel Department of a large organization, I noticed a paperback book that had been left on my desk. Scanning its pages, I found it to be a book about developing personal power. Since life has no real purpose, the author stated, we should give it meaning by making it a game of power and supremacy. Those who wield the most power at the time of death, he claimed, win the game of life.
Though the person who wrote that book was clearly confused, it gave me the idea that making a game of our life experiences might be fun – especially if that game leads to spiritual growth and inner joy. So, let me introduce the Chakra Game!
The Chakra Game is based on the esoteric truth that the spiritual path is about three feet long. It begins with the coiled-up energy at the base of the spine and ends in liberation when we draw that energy up to the spiritual eye and offer it into the thousand petaled lotus – the crown chakra.
The Chakra Game is a game of awakening. Each upward movement brings us closer to enlightenment. Each movement increases our sense of inner peace, harmony and joy. We are not competing against others, but only with ourselves. The goal of the game is our own self-improvement. The gameboard is the astral spine and the 7 energy centers or chakras situated along it.
Each of these centers is a vortex of energy comprised of past life memories, karma, and personality traits. The lower chakras deal with the physical realm and the higher chakras relate to the more refined realities of Spirit. As we learn to live more in the upper chakras, we find that life becomes more enjoyable and expansive.
The idea of the Chakra Game is to tune into stuck energies in the chakras, clear those blockages through spiritual practices, and offer the freed-up energies into the chakras above. We want to consistently strive to lift our energies, even if just a little bit, to higher levels than where we currently find it. We do this without judgement, accepting what is, with an ongoing desire for self-improvement.
To play the game, we must have an understanding of the chakras and their attributes. Here is a very basic outline:
1st Chakra: The first chakra is located at the base of the spine, at the coccyx region. Its element is Earth, and it is associated with primal instincts such as the will to survive. When our energies are flowing freely through this chakra, we express the following positive 1st chakra attributes: being grounded, steadfast, trustworthy, tolerant, centered, courageous, and loyal. If the energy is blocked, we may express the following negative 1st chakra attributes: being fearful, insecure, obstinate, dogmatic, overly disciplined, stubborn, and self-centered.
2nd Chakra: The second chakra is located an inch and a half above the base of the spine, opposite the sex organs. Its element is water, and it is associated with creativity and reproduction. Its positive attributes are the ability to flow with life, being open-minded, intuitive, resourceful, sensitive, easy-going, and understanding other’s realities. Its negative attributes are being too wishy-washy, ungrounded, weak, flippant, irresolute, mercurial, untrustworthy, undependable, and over-indulging in sensual activities.
3rd Chakra: The third chakra is located at the solar plexus just above the navel. Its element is fire, and it is associated with energy and power. Its positive attributes are fiery self-control, vigorousness, leadership, enthusiasm, vitality, and eagerness. Its negative attributes are being ruthless, judgmental, bigoted, partisan, intolerant, greedy, and lacking compassion.
4th Chakra: The fourth chakra is located at the heart center. It is associated with our ability to love and connect with others. It is the doorway between the physical and the spiritual realms. Its positive attributes are empathy, compassion, devotion, self-surrender, selflessness, forgiveness, and a desire to heal others. The negative attributes include being possessive, hateful, prideful, jealous, disharmonious, whiny, gossipy, and conceited.
5th Chakra: The fifth chakra is located at the cervical center and is associated with communication and higher truth. Its positive attributes include calmness, tranquility, peacefulness, communication, and expansiveness. Its negative attributes include feeling spacy, ungrounded, bored, caged, and a lack of involvement with the world around us.
6th Chakra: The sixth chakra is located at the spiritual eye (the point between the eyebrows). Its element is super-ether and it is associated with a state of absolute oneness. Its positive attributes include attunement with higher realities, true wisdom, being in the present moment, experiencing the presence of the Divine, radiance, and living in higher consciousness. Its negative attributes include egotism, self-centeredness, pride, vanity and an inability to relate to other people’s realities.
7th Chakra: The seventh chakra is the seat of supreme liberation. Since it is beyond duality, there are no positive and negative attributes for this chakra. We achieve liberation by drawing all of the life force energy up the spine where it passes through the spiritual eye to the thousand petaled lotus or crown chakra.
How to Play:
Tune In: Is the energy flow in the spine blocked at a specific chakra? Are you feeling fearful and insecure? Since these are negative attributes of the 1st chakra, the energy is most likely blocked in that center. Are you experiencing disharmony in your relationships? This is a negative attribute of the 4nd chakra, so the energy might be blocked there. By tuning into what you are experiencing and comparing it to the attributes listed above, you can discern which chakra you need to work with.
Make Your Move: Once you’ve established where the flow of energy is stuck, you can get it flowing again by affirming the positive qualities of the next higher chakra. For example: If you find you are being too dogmatic (a negative aspect of the 1st chakra), you can offer the blocked energy up to the next level by affirming intuitive understanding and open-mindedness, which are positive qualities of the 2nd chakra. If you are feeling intolerant (a negative attribute of the 3rd chakra), you can affirm compassion which is a positive attribute of the 4th chakra. Having disharmony in your relationships? This is a 4th chakra issue, and you can overcome it by affirming calmness and tranquility which are 5th chakra attributes.
By now, you get idea. Match any negative experiences you are having with the negative attributes listed above to figure out where the energy is stuck. Then work to overcome it by affirming one of the positive attributes of the next higher chakra. The goal is to continually lift the energy up to higher levels along the spine. (Note: if you are experiencing negative qualities of the 6th chakra, meditate deeply on that center and offer yourself up to the Divine presence.)
The Chakra game is, of course, a simplification of how the chakras work and what we can do to clear blockages. It is, however, a good way to develop our ability to perceive and control the subtle energies in the astral spine and energy centers. Challenge yourself to live more and more in the joy of the higher chakras!
If you would like to learn more about the chakras, Devaki Soupios and Suryadas Holliman will be teaching a class called THE CHAKRAS: REPROGRAMMING YOUR KARMIC SOFTWARE on September 29.