The Chakra Classes - Review & Recommended Readings

Root Chakra 
Ecology: We Are Family
Element: Earth
Location: Base of spine & pelvis to feet
Physical governance: Bones, joints, blood, immune system, skin
Human right: To be here & the right to have
Counterforce: Fear

Mantras:
"Safety"..."I am safety"..."I take safety wherever I go."

Books:
Eastern Body, Western Mind: Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self by Anodea Judith, Ph.D.
All Is Well: Heal Your Body with Medicine, Affirmations, and Intuition by Louise Hay & Mona Lisa Schulz, M.D., Ph.D.
Belonging: Remembering Ourselves Home by Toko-Pa Turner
If Women Rose Rooted: The Journey to Authenticity & Belonging by Sharon Blackie
When The Body Says No: The Cost of Hidden Stress by Gabor Mate, M.D.
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind & Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D.
The 8 Human Talents: Restore the Balance & Serenity Within You With Kundalini Yoga by Gurmukh
Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management by Amy Weintraub


Second Chakra (Belly)
Ecology: Sweet Fluid Power
Human right: To feel & the right to want
Element: Water
Location: Belly & sacrum
Physical governance: Reproductive organs, bladder, hips and low back
Counterforce: Guilt

Mantras:
"I move easily & effortlessly"..."Life is pleasurable"..."I deserve pleasure in my life"..."I absorb information from my feelings"..."I embrace & celebrate my sexuality"..."My sexuality is sacred."

DVD & Books:
Shiva Rae: Fluid Power - Vinyasa Flow Yoga (DVD)
Healing Back Pain: the Mind-Body Connection by John E. Sarno, M.D.
Goddesses Never Age by Christiane Northrup, M.D.
The Secret Pleasures of Menopause by Christine Northrup, M.D.
Pussy: A Reclamation by Regena Thomashauer

Free Talks:
Food, Health & Mental Wellness with Psychologist & Chef Dr. Theresa Nicassio
Wed, May 22nd  7 - 8:30 pm
Lynn Valley Public Library
Free, but registration required (www.nvdpl.com)

LGBTQ+ Awareness for Parents with Michele Fogal & Caroline Wedderspoon, RCC
Thur May 30th  7 - 8:30 pm
Lynn Valley Public Library
Free, but registration required (www.nvdpl.com)


Third Chakra (Solar Plexus)
Ecology: Lustrous Gem - inner authority; mastery
Human right: To act & the right to be free
Element: Fire
Location: Solar Plexus
Physical Governance: the digestive system, adrenal glands, pancreas, kidneys; weight problems & addictions
Counterforce: Shame

Mantras:
"I love & approve of myself"...."I am doing the best that I can"..."I am good enough"..."I don't have to overwork to prove my worth"..."I choose to see my self-worth"..."I nurture & support others as much as I nature and support myself"..."Life agrees with me...I assimilate the new every moment of every day"...
"I am at peace. I am calm.  All is well."

Books:
The Second Brain: Your Gut Has A Mind of Its Own by Michael D. Gershon, M.D.
Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ by Giulia Enders & Jill Enders
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction by Gabor Mate, M.D.
Open Heart, Open Mind by Canadian Olympian & Bell Let's Talk Mental Health Spokesperson Clara Hughes
Politics of Love: A Handbook for a New American Revolution by Marianne Williamson
Revolution from Within: A Book of Self-Esteem by Gloria Steinem
Outrageous Acts & Everyday Rebellions by Gloria Steinem


Fourth Chakra (Heart Centre)
Ecology: Sweet Emotion 
Human right: To love & to be loved
Element: Air
Location: Chest, upper back, arms, shoulder girdles, hands
Physical Governance: the heart, the lungs, the breasts
Counterforce: Repression / suppression of emotions, particularly anxiety, depression, anger and grief.

Blessings / quotes:

"May I be grateful for what I have,
 May I bravely acknowledge what I need, and
 May I wisely know that the path to a peaceful heart requires both." - thank you Lesley Arnould

"Be still beloved heart and know that you are safely held" - Swami Kripalu

"My beloved child, break your heart no longer.  
 Each time you judge yourself, you break your own heart." - Swami Kripalu

Let The Past Be The Past Meditation Mantra (scoop water over shoulders):
"I release all things
 That no longer work for me.
 I release all things
 That no longer serve me."

Books: 
More Beautiful Than Before: How Suffering Transforms Us by Steve Leder
The Smell of Rain On Dust: Grief & Praise by Martin Prechtel
A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson
A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are by Byron Katie
A New Earth: Awakening To Your Life's Purpose by Eckhart Tolle
Love, Medicine and Miracles by Bernie S. Siegel, MD
                            
                    
Fifth Chakra (Throat)
Ecology: Truth & Reconciliation 
Human right: To speak & hear the truth
Element: Sound
Location: Throat
Physical Governance: The mouth (teeth, gums, jaw), throat (thyroid), and neck
Counterforce: Communication struggles; lies

* Problems in the mouth are often found in people who have a hard time expressing and dealing with
   personal disappointments.
* People with thyroid problems are frequently very intuitive but are unable to voice what they see
   because they too often struggle to keep the peace or win people's approval.
​* Problems of the neck are often found in people who - even if they have flawless communication skills
   on a regular basis - become inflexible and frustrated when they are unable to control the outcome of
   a situation.

The Serenity Prayer
​"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
 courage to change the things I can;
 and wisdom to know the difference."

Books & Movies:
All Is Well by Louise Hay & Mona Lisa Schulz M.D., Ph.D.
Eastern Body, Western Mind by Anodea Judity, Ph.D.
The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America by Thomas King
They Called Me Number One by Bev Sellars
Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese (also available as a movie)
Occupy Women: A Manifesto for Positive Change In A World Run By Men by Maureen Fitzgerald, Ph.D.
I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up For Education & Got Shot By The Taliban by Malala Yousafzai

Canadian Indigenous music featured in class:
Tanya Tagaq (Inuk throat singer from Nunavut)
Jeremy Dutcher (classically-trained tenor & composer)
Buffy Sainte-Marie
A Tribe Called Red

Britain's Got Talent Auditions (youtube):
Susan Boyle singing "I Dreamed A Dream"
Paul Potts singing "Nessun Dorma" 
Kyle Tomlinson singing "Hallelujah"


Sixth Chakra (3rd eye)
Ecology: "I once was blind but now I see" - line from the song Amazing Grace 
Human right: To see
Element: Light
Location: Space between eye brows; pineal gland
Physical Governance: Eyes, ears, brain
Counterforce: Illusion
Practices: Intuition, insight, visioning, imagination, dreaming, meditation, visual arts

The health of the sixth centre depends on how well you take in information from all realms - both earthly and mystical - and use this information in your life.

Books: 
Awakening Intuition: Using Your Mind-Body Network for Insight and Healing by Mona Lisa Schulz, M.D., Ph.D.
The New Feminine Brain: Developing Your Intuitive Genius by Mona Lisa Schulz, M.D., Ph.D.
Outrageous Openness: Letting the Divine Take the Lead by Tosha Silver
Life Visioning by Michael Bernard Beckwith
The Inner Life of Asanas by Swami Lalitananda
Fierce Medicine: Breakthrough Practices to Heal the Body and Ignite the Spirit by Ana Forest (The Braid of Three Truths visualization)
​Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell
Horse Sense For People: The Man Who Listens to Horses Talks To People by Monty Roberts

The Divine Light Invocation
While standing in Mountain Pose, mentally repeat the Invocation:

I am created by Divine Light.
I am sustained by Divine Light.
I am protected by Divine Light.
I am surrounded by Divine Light.
I am ever growing into Divine Light.

- The Inner Life of Asanas by Swami Lalitananda

Seventh Chakra
Ecology: Spiritual healing
Human right: To know
Element: Thought
Location: Crown; cerebral cortex
Physical Governance: Chronic and degenerative disorders and life-challenging illnesses
Counterforce: Attachment

Radical Remission: Surviving Cancer Against All Odds by Kelly A. Turner, PhD
Dr. Turner is a researcher, lecturer, and consultant in the field of integrative oncology​.  Her specialized research focus is the radical remission of cancer, which is a remission that occurs either in the absence of conventional medicine or after conventional medicine has failed.  In her book, Dr. Turner gives the reader the results of her research on over a thousand cases of Radical Remission - people who have defied a serious or even terminal cancer.  Here are the nine key factors that Dr. Turner found among nearly every Radical Remission survivor she studied:

1. Radically Changing Your Diet
2. Taking Control of Your Health
3. Following Your Intuition
4. Using Herbs and Supplements
5. Releasing Suppressed Emotions
6. Increasing Positive Emotions
7. Embracing Social Support
8. Deepening Your Spiritual Connection
9. Having Strong Reasons for Living

The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest by Dan Buettner
Over the course of five years, explorer, educator and author dan Buettner took teams of scientists to places in the world where people have lived the longest and healthiest lives.  Buettner food five 'Blue Zones' with relatively high percentages of centenarians: "where people live 10 years longer, experience a sixth the rate of cardiovascular disease and a fifth the rate of major cancers."  

The five populations:
1. In the highlands of the Italian island Sardinia
2. On the archipelago of Okinawa in Japan
3. At Loma Lina with the Seventh-day Adventists in California
4. On the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica
5. On the island Icaria, Greece

Nine best practices:
1. Move naturally
2. Eat a plant-based diet
3. Stop eating whenever the stomach is 80% full
4. Drink moderate amounts of red wine
5. Release stress & downshift every day (meditation, pray, afternoon nap, happy hour)
6. Have a sense of purpose / a strong reason for living
7. Daily spiritual connection
8. Engaged in the care of loved ones and experience more social respect as they age
9. Have a circle of healthy friends

Other book recommendations:
Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body & Mind to Face Stress, Pain & Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D.
Heal Your Body: The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way To Overcome Them by Louise Hay
Man's Search for Meaning: The Classic Tribute to Hope From The Holocaust by Viktor E. Frankl
Conversations With God: An Uncommon Dialogue by Neale Donald Walsch
The Top Five Regrets of the Dying by Bronnie Ware
The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
Dying to be Me: My Journey From Cancer, To Near Death, To True Healing by Anita Moorjani
Climbing The Blue Mountain: A Guide For the Spiritual Journey by Eknath Easwaran
Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.
A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose by Eckhart Tolle
To Bless The Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings by John O'Donohue
Walking In Wonder: Eternal Wisdom for A Modern World by John O'Donohue
Belonging: Remembering Ourselves Home by Toko-Pa Turner
Eastern Body Western Mind: Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self by Anodea Judith
All Is Well: Heal Your Body with Medicine, Affirmations, and Intuition by Louise Hay & Mona Lisa Schulz