Yoga

The sanskrit word yoga means union and from english means yoke implying to harness our latent psychic energies.  Yoga is the science of physical, mental and spiritual integration.  It is a systematic method of self development and mystical ascent to universal wholeness on all levels of being.  The main objective of yoga is the purification of the soul in order that the incarnated ego may be liberated from the karmic wheel.

Bhakti Yoga - Union through devotion
Dharma Yoga - Union through the virtues of religious duties
Hatha Yoga - Union through physical discipline, breathing and postures
Kriya Yoga - Union through the sacred outlook in everyday life, domestic ritual and purification
Laya Yoga - Union through developing the serpent fire or kundalini force
Mantra Yoga - Union through spells and incantations
Raja Yoga - Union through meditation

Prana - the vital life force that courses through the human body by means of a network of canals known as nadis.

Chakras - the wheels or lotus flowers are power centers within the aura that correspond to certain glands or organs in the body.  The are reservoirs of vibrant energy, psychic sense organs where prana energy is concentrated in the human body.  They can be described as spinning whirlpools of energy that exist at certain points where mind and body or spirit and matter meet.  These centers are listed in both position and level of consciousness from the lowest to the highest and are visualized as colored orbs running up the center of the body.  The mental, psychic, and physical state of any individual can be characterized by analyzing the level of vibrant energy at every chakra.  In the average human being this vital energy is confined to the three lowest centers.  As the individual undergoes the process of spiritual growth the majority of energies are transferred to the higher chakras.  These psychic centers must be developed like any growing flower so that their petals are allowed to open and bloom.

Tattvas - means quality and is used to describe a characteristic, essence truth or element.  There are five primary tattvas which conform to the five basic elements.

Charkra Awareness Exercise

Visualization of yellow at the base of spine using the tonation of Lam.
Visualization of blue at the naval, using the tonation of Vam.
Visualization of red at the sternum using the tonation of Ram.
Visualization of green at the heart using the tonation of Yam.
Visualization of violet at the throat using the tonation of Ham.
Visualization of translucent blue at forehead using the tonation of Om.
Visualization of clear disk of light above the head with a lotus flower of 1000 petals every hue of the rainbow in silence.

After all the centers have been meditated on descend the path of the chakras from the crown to the base visualizing each center briefly on your journey downward.