The vital role of water in the evolution of life makes it highly appropriate to see it as one of the five elements reflected throughout life.  With the human body recognized as being approximately 60 to 70% water, how interesting is it that our planet is said to similarly be comprised of approximately 70% water. Both the early East Indian Ayurvedic medical system and Traditional Chinese Medicine system included water as one of the five elements by which qualities of energy and physical manifestations were defined.  Civilizations that flourished after these earlier cultures of approximately 5,000 to 7,000 years ago, continued to interpret water as one of the influential components within everything, comprising macrocosmic and microcosmic balance in both the universe and within all life. The successful use of these definitions is apparent through today’s continued use of element interpretation within the Ayurvedic system, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Polarity Therapy. Within the Polarity perspective, water represents unconscious emotion. In looking at the state of society on a global scale, we can then see ample evidence of water imbalance moving into an extreme that demands attention.

Less than 3% of our planet’s water is accessible as drinking water with 2/3’s of this fresh water found in frozen glaciers, although that percentage is changing annually as they melt into the salty seas.  Examined within this view, as well as the context of energy and symbolic meaning, the important role of water is clear.  As a civilization at the overly-emotional stage of development struggling to fuse emotion with higher consciousness and better responses, we easily can see Water element imbalance throughout our world.  Imbalance results from either too little or too much of any element functioning within the whole.

When we have too much of the water element in our individual energy system, it may present as over-attachment, indecision, depression or overly-emotional reactions. Water imbalance is also implicated in chronic conditions of swelling, lymphatic difficulties and tumor growths, as well as reproductive problems and body fluids difficulties, such as mucus accumulation in sinus cavities or lungs. On the opposite extreme, having too little of the water element may present as detachment and inability to express our feelings, or being unable to cry for release of them. The elements work together in a synergistic blend when balanced.  Not having balanced Water element function, for instance, might result in an explosive temperament because your Fire element cannot be tempered with adequate water. In this way, categorizing the types of energy by the name and qualities of the elements provides a means to interpret and re-balance the activity of each element for improved function.

The nurturing and creative qualities of water, also associated within Polarity Therapy applications, lead us into water’s well-recognized association with “emotion’. How complimentary for salty ocean waters, renowned for healing injury or soothing a troubled soul, to be of the same salty taste as our tears. From the depths of emotion come some of the finest art, and we are not surprised then to find ‘creativity’ as another associated quality of water – similar to the creative result of the fetus supported in the salty amniotic solution to await birth into form. Water is woven through many aspects of life, supporting us through change and growth on an individual, a planetary and evolutionary scale. Its primary role within the five elements from antiquity to the present is repeated in many religious and spiritual practises as a sacred means to cleanse and purify, with the most common example being baptism. These are but a few faces of water, but all underline the need to respect and care for this precious element.

While esthetic and metaphysical qualities of water may not yet be mainstream, the subject of water has seen a welcome revival in the last decade. Clean water has suddenly become a big business and continues to grow along with education on our excesses and methods for improvement.  Water facts at drinking-water.org state that less than 3% of our planet’s water exists as freshwater with only a portion of that being accessible, and that percentage shrinking annually as the glaciers melt into salty seas. At wateraidamerica.org we read that 884 million people in the world do not have access to safe water. This represents roughly one in eight of the world’s population (WHO/UNICEF) , and we further read that every 20 seconds a child dies from a water-related disease (WHO), and that each $1 investment in basic water and sanitation services is estimated to return $8 in benefits (UNDP).  Canadian author and activist, Maude Barlow, is a National Chairperson of the Council of Canadians who also chairs the board of Washington-based Food and Water Watch. In this role, she actively promotes the free use of clean water as a basic human right, like the air we breathe, for everyone on a global basis. She is one of the first to work in opposition to the privatization of water by corporations aiming to sell it. And finally, a recent documentary on Africa detailed the Canadian innovation of using an Amish designed water-pump in a drought-plagued African village. This non-electric, traditional pump was an efficient and economical solution to access water without the complication or expense of modern technology. It provides one example of changes in society’s awareness of water importance and hopefully, represents a return to honouring the value of some traditions that should not be left behind as just a part of history.

On an individual basis, what can we do to respect water and be part of the expanding consciousness to reduce excessive use?  As simple as it sounds, we could examine our personal water containers. We have read that purchasing water in plastic bottles enforces the problems of   a) leaching plastic into the water we then drink   b) landfill accumulation of a growing plastic problem,  b) supporting privatization of water being sold as a commodity. Instead, we can now support use of personal water-bottles with filtering capabilities. As one positively-reviewed example, the ‘Aqua-Pure Traveler’ by BW Technologies, is a water bottle with a 2-micron filter that comes with an optional ‘sleeve’ for additional filtering. It cleans the water you put in it and stops providing water when the filter needs replacing. There are a number of water bottles with filtering capability appearing on the market. Some examples include Seychelle, Sport Berkey and Katadyn which has some portable bottles available with a .2-micron filtering technology for use to safely drink from untreated water sources. Water bottles with such built-in technology provide ideal containers for travelers and hikers, or when out for the day. While this may seem a small change, it will reduce the amount of plastic that is recognized as a landfill pollutant, reduce the demand for the business of selling water and provide convenience for the user on-the-go.

On a final note, the far-reaching crisis from the Gulf oil leak polluting the ocean is bringing increased awareness to all levels of society for the need to demand protection and respect of water. While we hear of improvements available for individual use of water, we now are beginning to read of new environmentally-friendly chemical or natural absorption media, as well as oil supertanks for gathering top spills that may indicate the road-to-change is expanding faster from dire necessity. Meanwhile, we can examine our individual use, our respect of water in our own life, and become a model for improvement on an individual basis that we can only hope expands into all areas of life.

As sophisticated as drums can be today, archaeological evidence dates drumming as far back as early cave drawings, and drum use in various forms has been found in all civilizations of antiquity. Drumming has always been an important part of indigenous cultures around the world, used at sacred ceremonies, during special rituals and to celebrate special occasions. In some cultures, it was also used for communication over long distances. Such is the wide reach of the voice of the drum and its key role in our history. Drumming is a form of sound therapy, as basic in our life as our heartbeat,  recognized today as a means to re-order structure through the power of resonance.

As to the revival of drumming, it represents a return to natural rhythms in an effort to find balance. The rhythmic sound is a release of tension, a natural response to the growing stress on and within our Earth – in need of that vital, basic rhythm that resonates through everything, setting a rhythm of balance in an out-of-balance world.  Regardless of the reason, all that is important is to follow our heart when drawn to the drum. Not only is a session of drumming a sedating release, it takes you into a space of quiet where you only hear the rhythm without the buzz of human chatter and humming technology.

As for the bigger meaning, drumming globally is offered in respect and value for the earth and all life on it, as the sound of a sacred song or prayer. Like the long, slow rhythm of ocean waves sweeping onto a beach that can so easily connote the respiration of the sea, the sound of the drums link from us to the heartbeat of our Earth …soothing, healing and encouraging her onward to a new resonance, new patterns and new growth for a higher consciousness within all life upon the Earth. That great Being, Gaia or Pachamama – our Mother Earth.  And so we find drumming circles prevelant everywhere around our planet at this critical time, joining people in a common cause.

In this perspective, setting an intention before the drumming session is an important component to dedicate or direct the energy, increasing its focus and effect.  In setting an intention, for example,  “healing energy for our Earth”,  increased awareness or unity, we touch all life with that intention because all is connected in the energetic web of life.  

We are witnessing a major shifting on and throughout the earth, watching the crumbling of corrupt, power-centered foundations to make way for a re-structuring. People are joining together in voice or with drums for support of an improved foundation that will respect all life instead of just use it.  It is the belief of many that we are merely blessed to be part of this shifting of power by being born during this age, and that it is the Earth herself and her increasing vibration or frequency that is taking all to a higher consciousness.

As with any birth, it is not always promised to be easy. And thus, we drum. We drum for the Earth, for the love of life, for the sharing as we offer the rhythm of our heart and the rhythm of our hands. May Gaia accept our blessings for love, balance and change.

Connections:

www.theworlddrum.com        the travelling drum

www.pachamama.org

Detoxification benefits could fill an entire page listing conditions that improve after an inner cleanse. Regardless of whether you are ridding your body of accumulated wastes from food preservatives, food additives and dye, air pollutants, refined sugar, unhealthy eating choices, or parasites…  regular detoxification keeps you healthier. It results in improvement in all body functions, including nervous systems that influence every part of our body and our mind.

With skin being the largest organ of our body and a secondary organ of elimination along with our lungs, better skin health is often one of the first noticeable improvements with inner cleansing. Clearer thinking and improved memory are initially more subtle, but it happens.

The first time you are doing an inner cleanse after many months or even years of not doing one, it will usually be a longer process before you have noticeable results. Reading the article entitled ‘Parasite Cleansing’ will give you a better idea of why. 

Maintaining your level of improved health after focused detoxification is made easier by incorporating cleansing foods into your regular diet.  Fresh vegetables and fruits offer the benefit of gentle systemic cleansing in addition to providing enzymes and nutrients, with some vegetables having antiparasitic properties.  Raw foods help to detoxify, support and balance our metabolism, including a stronger immune system. Organic produce provides much greater nutrient content and safety from genetically engineered genes that may impact your own genetic structure, according to emerging studies and reports worldwide. Why should society become the lab experiment for testing genetically modified foods  before  the unbiased safety of engineered food has been tested by many independent research laboratories?

Among food choices that have cleansing benefits for our body, there are a number of options in the vegetable category as well as in spices. As a maintenance food and adjunct to any cleansing program, you could consider trying a pure, aloe vera.  With 12 anti-inflammatory components, it may be helpful in any inflammatory condition.  Aloe Vera has been studied for its antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties and can be considered a natural anti-parasitic food that is an easy option to drink each day.  An alternative to aloe vera  is to juice regularly with fresh vegetables known to be anti-parasitic. If this becomes too intensive for your schedule, you can periodically buy detox packages at health food stores. Your reaction to a detox package containing a wide range of anti-parasitic herbs that target your whole system will depend on your particular body’s level of toxicity. If you have not done an inner cleanse for years, guidance from a health care practitioner experienced in this area is your safest and most effective choice in order to not become discouraged or need time off work because of adverse reactions from “too much, too fast”.  More detailed information on the importance of detoxification and parasites in particular can be read in the article entitled Parasite Cleansing.

It helps to remember we are not in a continuous state of deterioration as we age; that we can do much to retain our energy and vitality with lifestyle choices. Our tissues regenerate, forming new cells throughout each year. Skin, for example, normally regenerates with new cells around every 28 days. Keeping this in mind helps strengthen your self-image of vibrant health that can often be re-gained from food choices and improved lifestyle habits. Because inner cleansing lets our organs make the best use of nutrients we provide our body by improving function to ensure maximum uptake of nutrients,  detoxification is an important part of maintaining optimum health.

Our experience of reality is said to be coloured by the vibration and health of our chakras. For me, knowledge of this system means an expansion of my awareness that leads to understanding more about self, growth and change. As our awareness of energy within the body grows, we gain insight into why we attract the circumstances into our life that we do. This can help us accept our responsibility to learn the lessons involved and better yet, to perceive alternative choices.

Chakras are usually described as the energy centers or transformers in the body that bring energy in to flow through our nervous systems, influencing all body tissues and functions. Although there are said to be many chakras throughout the body, with some above and below it, seven of the twelve ’major chakras’ of the body are located along the spine, where major nerve ganglia or plexuses are located. They are also said to correspond to our endocrine system.

Influencing how we operate on many levels, these energy centers effect various physical systems as well as emotional and mental responses and resulting thought patterns. The lower body chakras vibrate at a slower or ’lower’ frequency than the upper centers. Each chakra has a different rate of vibration on a particular tone frequency, usually using notes of the major diatonic scale from ’C’ at the root or base chakra progressing to ’B’ at the crown chakra in our head. Sound and light are both forms of energy, so each center is linked to a corresponding physical and etheric colour association because colour is simply a much higher rate of vibration than sound. The physical and etheric colours differ because the physical vibration is lower on the scale than the etheric vibration. One chakra will influence another, just as striking one note on a keyboard resonates harmonic overtones on the keyboard. And, just like an instrument, we operate and sound much better when our chakras vibrate in harmony rather than in discord (with ’discord’ referring to distortions or congested energy influencing a chakra center’s vibratory rate or tone).

Our ability to make choices evolves as we grow, as does the function of our chakra centers. Each one, from the bottom to the top of the body, displays a successively more complex mode of functioning for both body and mind. Varying philosophy exists on which center develops at whatever physical age, but the concept of their development linked to our physical ages and emotions further unravels the choices of our life patterns. A key teaching in the work of Dr. Randolph Stone, D.C., D.O., N.D, (founder of Polarity Therapy) is that no polarization or balance is possible on a permanent basis, if the emotion is not dealt with.

We most often find energetic distortions occurring in the three lower chakras, the earliest to develop and the basis of our growth as an individual. Energy patterns can be held for many years. We may acquire an attitude during our early, impressionable years or from a time when we were simply unable to cope. Until we adjust the thought pattern we adopted from the experience, that energy remains part of us, influencing how we operate and the energy we attract into our life. Once aware of this, we can either adjust our perspective of the cause and our interpretation of it, or develop new positive thought forms to replace it. As Sher Smith (RN, RPP, RCST) has stated, “When our experience (trauma) is beyond our resources, it’s crystallized into the tissues until a time when we’ve accessed enough resources to deal with it.”

In most cases, lack of nurturing in our early developmental years was not intentional, but rather a reflection of the parents or care-givers personal upbringing and behavioural patterns from their life experiences. To own responsibility for changing your own personal concepts is most important for expanding your comprehension level and degree of acceptance, rather than blaming upbringing or someone else for your responses.

Varying degrees of balance are expressed among the chakra centers at different times throughout our life. They all are active, some to varying degrees. It has been said that most people who gather together are moving through the same vibrational frequency or growth of a particular chakra. Having a ’chakra balance’ should leave you feeling relaxed, but how long you hold a balance depends on the changes occurring within you, your responses to circumstances and the key people in your life.

The following outline may help pinpoint the origin of some of your emotional patterns, either by age of experience or by the type of emotions experienced.

First Chakra (Base or Root)

Development during this early growth period is on a family or ’tribal’ basis, so the first chakra resonates to our basic survival needs and physical comforts. It sets the foundation for our outlook and attitudes as experienced in group situations. Distortions can reside here when early family life contained elements of trauma, death to one of its key members, severe financial struggle or strife and division that influenced the family unit. How easily these types of trauma were handled as a family or ’tribal group’ largely determines how well you move these types of emotions through this chakra. Distortions may manifest as insecurity and fears, finding us resonating to the ’mass’ consciousness or as absent-mindedness whenever our foundation, our stability seems threatened and we feel ungrounded. The first chakra denotes our degree of acceptance or conversely, resentment and rigidity. Fear-based attitudes from this center represent the least evolved platform from which we make decisions and choices, but can show a degree of influence until we change the misconceptions earlier thought processes recorded and restructure our habit of holding that pattern. As an evolving society we are still emotion-based and society’s opinions are always ready to act as our mirror. Distortions here may help us create aspects, true or untrue, that we need at some level in order to bring areas within self to the surface to examine and expand beyond.

Second Chakra (Navel, Sexual or Sacral chakra)

This center pertains to our emotional identity and sexuality. Our consciousness first expands beyond survival of self to dualism at this chakra level, so it’s said to represent the balancing of polarities: male/female, positive/negative, relationships and how we relate to others with our ’gut-level’ emotions. Balanced energy flowing through this center would influencve the degree that we can harmoniously work with others, giving and receiving, tolerance, healthy emotional boundries, how we handle change and sexual or passionate love. Repressed emotions and trauma easily settle into this center. Energy congestion here may display as a movement to disorder, and thought forms like “It’s not safe to commit to a relationship” or “I mustn’t get close to…”

Third Chakra (Solar plexus)

A person who feels powerless in controlling the direction of their life could take a look at thought forms that may have become established around the ages of 7 to 12, when our self-concept is further expanded from family to the world outside. Balanced energy in this center might be seen as the balanced use of personal power, mastery of desire, self-control, warmth, humour and radiance. Whenever feelings of inadequacy, inferiority and helplessness occur, they may influence this chakra’s balance. Distorted energy flows may manifest as a tendancy to take on more then you can handle, or too much emphasis on power and recognition, perfectionism, anger or fear. Digestive problems may result. Thought forms indicative of distortions or congestion might include “nothing comes easy in my life”, or “my survival depends on you…” The solar plexus center has been called a great clearing house, and makes a trio of the lower three chakras that reflect up to the heart center.

Fourth Chakra (Heart chakra)

This center unites the energies above with the energies below, meaning both the lower chakras of our body with the higher chakras, and also spirit with physical. It reflects our ability to express love, for our self and for others. Not to be confused with sexuality, the heart center reacts under group impetus, group happiness or unhappiness and group relations. Here we expand beyond self. Forgiveness and compassion resonate within the heart center, as does acceptance and contentment. Growth may be expressed in compassion, non-judgmental understanding, care towards others, or loving relationships with family and friends. Feeling and wisdom are awakened at the heart center. Distortions are said to present in such thought forms as “I can’t do all I should, I feel guilty”, or “there’s always something missing in my life”.

Fifth Chakra (Throat)

This chakra governs our ability to recognize our own truth , our ability to communicate and all forms of self-expression. Energetic distortions may manifest as vocal cord difficulties, mouth, trachea, esophagus and thyroid conditions. Thought forms indicating it’s time to address the energy at this chakra may be something like, “If I express my true feelings and needs, I’ll be ridiculed”.

Sixth Chakra (Anja or Brow)

Said to govern the growth of our vision and moral discernment, this center deals with our ability to see the world around us and to perceive without prejudice. Also termed the “seat of our spirituality”, when clear-flowing, we have direct, intuitive insight into our life, accompanied with peace of mind and wisdom. When this chakra activates, between the ages 17 – 22, we usually are ready to achieve independence and explore personal values. The higher chakra centers, (from the heart up) in addition to functioning on an individual basis, also represent our growth as a society expanding in group consciousness and spirituality. If we think of the chakras as regions of mind power, or interrelated thought patterns, it paints a clearer picture of their dual role in the evolution of individual growth from the lower to the higher chakras as well as society as an evolving group. Energy distortions may manifest as being enslaved by a compulsive drive for your own brand of perfectionism, which naturally leaves you falling short, becoming prey to guilt. Cynicism and lack of concentration or imagination abilities also said to resonate from imbalance in this center.

Seventh Chakra (Crown chakra)

Our spiritual search resonates from this center, and may begin quite early in life or never happen in a given lifetime. When separated from our spiritual connection at this chakra level, there is no meaning in life apart from purpose shifting among goals to acquire worldly gain, social status or physical pleasure.

Chakra system balance

What do the chakras have to do with massage or polarity therapy? Therapies to balance either the physical body or the energy body reflect into all areas to some degree, according to the intent and skill application of a practitioner and the level of acceptance of the client. While massage therapy always moves energy to some degree as the tissue softens its holding patterns, the energy change is more noticeable when the practitioner is aware of energy and uses some energy techniques to acknowledge energy flow. Polarity therapy techniques evolved to balance the energy field of a person, with focus being to ease underlying causes that developed into physical concerns. Energy balance is achieved by adjusting the flow of energy through knowledgeable application of the various types of energy, understanding how they manifest or influence our total person and our responses. Energy is like water, continuously flowing, but distortions can occur in our system and cause an interruption in the smooth, optimum flow.

The beauty of Polarity Therapy is that rather than focus on any one aspect it uses a whole-being approach. With this perspective, it accesses all systems from the chakras to the nervous systems, to body tissues, and most importantly… thought processes. Dr. Stone largely based this energetic work on ancient Ayurvedic principles that had attained positive results for thousands of years. It incorporates an understanding of the energetic grid-work of the body as the source from which we develop, including emotional and mental makeup, as well as physical appearance. Dr. Stone recognized the importance of brain crossover patterns. Today, Polarity Therapy, One Brain, Psyche-K and Paul Dennison’s Brain Gym®, Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy are all techniques or therapies that provide yet another method to access ingrained mental and emotional patterns you wish to change, teaching the body/mind unit to revert to integration and balance.

While it often may be important to acknowledge the point where you acquired a misconception in order to change it, one worthwhile philosophy to also consider is that things are set in motion before you come into physical form. We are said to incarnate to serve a higher purpose, both for our own growth and for the good of others. Or, stated another way, we ’experience life patterns that will bring out the part of us that doesn’t yet know God’.

This theory acknowledges that mistakes can happen when someone gets their messages reversed, that the power to choose is a large component of how things unfold. You could say that represents the ’free will’ part, both on an individual basis or as a society that sometimes ’turns a blind eye’.

A quick energy balance on yourself can be done whenever you notice energy tightening in a particular chakra center. Hold your right, positive-energy hand over the front of the chakra and your left negative-energy hand over the stem of the chakra on your back. This helps adjust the flow of energy through it. You can also visualize a stream of the associated colour flowing between your hands through the chakra while closing your eyes to focus with three or four deep, diaphragmatic breaths. When you adjust your thought patterns, you are also adjusting the energy pattern flowing through the chakra that resonates to that thought or emotional vibration. Whether you start to change your lifestyle with polarity therapy, nutrition, massage therapy, yoga, fitness programs or art lessons, it all begins with your thoughts and your choices. Once you choose health for yourself, it spirals into more and more areas that assist you and those within your life to feel better on many levels.