Kundalini.Tantra.by.Satyananda.Saraswati

Chakra perception
The chakras, kundalini and the mind have subtle aspects on all levels of vibration.
This is extremely complicated and most of the realization of these levels must be very
personal. Even then, different people see these occult aspects from different points of
view. For instance, if they have realizations about the chakras, these will be colored by
their own personal tendencies. Some concentrate on their more subtle mystical aspects,
some on their energy and pranic manifestations, some on their functional reality, some on
their psychological effects, and still others on their physical concomitants. These are
usually all correct and when various authorities get together, they find that they are
talking about the same things but from different points of view. If we look at a man
through binoculars he looks large. If we look at him by ordinary vision he looks the usual
size. If we view him through an X-ray screen we see his skeleton, and if we look through
a gastroscope we see the inside of his stomach. Same man - different viewpoints.
In the same way, whereas a mystic or yogi will describe the chakras in a spiritual or
symbolic way, the surgeon may describe the chakras as bunches of nerve fibers making
up what he calls the plexuses, and a clairvoyant will describe the energy manifestations
of the chakras in yet a different way. These people may have disagreements, but actually
they are seeing the same thing from different viewpoints. Discrepancies are largely
semantic due to differing cultural, educational and personal understandings. This is a
common problem amongst men when they try to communicate in words any idea or
experience.
Whereas I have great respect for the tantric concept, I have my own experience, and
therefore, in my descriptions of the chakras I'll make references to both. However, rather
than trying to understand the chakras through the written or verbal descriptions of others,
you must experience them for yourself and gain your own personal knowledge. Tantra is
essentially a practical science rather than an intellectual one, and only practice leads to
true experience and real understanding.
Chakra symbology
If you are practising kundalini yoga or kriya yoga, you will need to know the different
colors and symbols of the chakras. They are all very beautiful and form an intrinsic part
of the awakening of the individual chakras. Each chakra has a particular color, mantra,
situation and range of experiences associated with it.
Whereas the various esoteric cults and spiritual systems use different symbols to
represent the chakras, in tantra and yoga the chakras are symbolized by lotus flowers. As
a symbol, the lotus is very significant. Man must pass through three clear stages in
spiritual life, which represent his existence on three different levels: ignorance, aspiration
and endeavor, and illumination. The lotus also exists on three different levels - mud,
water and air. It sprouts in the mud (ignorance), grows up through the water in an effort
to reach the surface (endeavor and aspiration) and eventually reaches the air and the
direct light of the sun (illumination). Thus the lotus symbolizes man's growth from the