Chakras, Chakra Removal, and Spiritual Growth

When the request for this post came in, I thought about it for a while, and contemplated, and considered, and decided to write it out anyway, because why not? Because there has been quite a lot of discussion lately that I've seen about chakras being permanent subtle organs, like the kidney, or being artificial implants by aliens, or being sparks of divinity leftover from creation, and I think it's time to clarify some things.

Firstly, all three of these are at least partially correct. But they are all misinformed, which is due to a pervasive tendency of western occultism to pick up on a concept that it understands about 5% of and run with it. And this isn't a recent thing, it's been going on for quite some time. Even the books I grew up with were filled with western understandings of eastern concepts, and I am still unlearning much of what I started with. So, to begin, I think we should properly define what chakras are.

Chakras are, at their heart, concepts. There are many different systems of chakras from many different lineages and teachings, and all are correct in the context of their teaching. For instance, when I started training with a teacher, rather than studying what books I could find, I learned a 5 chakra system, based on the five elements, because that is what that system called for. But when I studied qigong, we focused on a three chakra system, the dantians. And studying as Aghori, I've learned about many more than the traditional seven. And studying acupuncture, I've learned about the many, many chakras in the body. And studying... You get it. There are many systems, and each are true in context. So why is that? Because the chakras, outside of three, are less 'set points' within the body, and more of a focus.

The three chakras that are essentially universal to every system are the one at the base of the spine, the one at the solar plexus, and the one at the third eye, as these are places where humans feel their energy most easily, which is the basis for chakra 'location'. These can easily be identified as the three jewels of qigong, the three dantians. Aside from that, the other locations commonly focused on for chakra work are based upon where we feel energy and emotion, and what we are trying to bring in. So in a sense, they are real aspects of the subtle body, insofar as we focus on them to generate that chakra. But they are also artificial, as we create them through our direct focus. And they are also sparks of divinity, because the seed mantras associated with chakras are meant to invoke aspects of divinity to these areas for spiritual growth.

So, now that we know what chakras actually are (tl;Dr: they are concepts that we develop by focusing on them and working with them), what about chakra removal? Well... You created them, you can stop focusing on that concept and purify yourself from it if you so wish. The three dantians are more or less permanent, so they will still exist, gathering energy as always, but beyond that, you do not have to work with any singular concept of chakras that you do not wish to. For me personally, as someone who's primary system relies on chakras, I have no intentions of doing so. Building the chakras up over time, and then working with them in a specific way, is the path to the rainbow body, which is one of my end goals. But there are many ways to build this spiritual cohesion that do not rely on chakras at all. So is it possible, and beneficial, to remove the idea of chakras from your practice? Sure, if your practice does not rely on them. You can focus instead on treating your body as the chakra, drawing in energy and building it up, or you can work with your own system. What matters is that you focus on the energetic model that works for you, rather than forcing yourself to conform to one you don't like.

Now, all that said, what happens when you do focus on the chakras? Over time, they grow stronger, becoming more than mere concepts and becoming energy centers. These centers empower you, elevating your energetic body and raising your vibrations. As the petals of the chakras develop, they unlock hidden layers of wisdom and enlightenment. Over time, they become a solidified system and can lead into the rainbow body, which is a dissolution of the self into pure spiritual essence at death. Can this happen without chakras? Yes, but in a different way. Am I going to expound on this? Not here, because this is already getting long. But perhaps in the future. For now... Have fun exploring your own concept of the subtle body!