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Ajna
Ajna is the sixth primary chakra according to
the Indian Tantric tradition (Shakta).
Description
Ajna, ( 'command' in Sanskrit ) is positioned at the eyebrow region
and it has two petals, said to represent the psychic channels Ida
and Pingala, which meet here with the central Shushumna channel,
before rising to the crown chakra, Sahasrara. One the left hand
petal is the letter 'ham', and on the right the letter 'ksham', the
bija mantras for Shiva and Shakti respectively.
It is here that all energies of the body meet up and become one, and
meditation on this chakra is said to bring about the dissolution of
the individual mind into the cosmic mind.
Manas, the subtle mind, is said to be here, and Ajna is considered
the chakra of the mind. When something is seen in the mind's eye, or
in a dream, it is being 'seen' by Ajna. A developed Ajna is said to
bring about extraordinary intuition, and the ability to see the
underlying reasons behind everything.
Residing in the chakra is the deity Ardhanarishvara a hermaphrodite
form of Shiva-Shakti, symbolising the primordial duality of Subject
and Object, and the deity Hakini Shakti is also present in this
chakra.
Practices
In kundalini yoga, different practices are said to stimulate the
Ajna chakra, including Trataka ( steady gazing ), Shambhavi Mudra (
gazing at the space between the eyebrows ), and some forms of
Pranayama ( breath exercises ).
Other Associations
In the West, Ajna has been associated with the Pineal gland, a
light-sensitive gland in the brain which produces Melatonin.
Melatonin is the hormone responsible for bio-rhythms in living
organisms, such as when to wake, and when to sleep.
Various occultists have tried to make kabbalistic assocations with
Ajna, and it has been associated variously with the sephirah Kether,
Da'at and the primal duality of Chokmah and Binah ( who represent a
similar archetypal concept to that of Shiva and Shakti in tantric
cosmology ).
Alternative names
* Tantra: Ajita-Patra, Ajna, Ajna-Pura, Ajna-Puri, Ajnamhuja,
Ajnapankaja, Bhru-Madhya, Bhru-Madhya-Chakra, Bhru-Madhyaga-Padma,
Bhru-Mandala, Bhru-Mula, Bhru-Saroruha, Dwidala, Dwidala-Kamala,
Dwidalambuja, Dwipatra, Jnana-Padma, Netra-Padma, Netra-Patra,
Shiva-Padma, Triweni-Kamala
* Vedas (late Upanishads): Ajna, Baindawa-Sthana, Bhru Chakra,
Bhruyugamadhyabila, Dwidala
* Puranic: Ajna, Dwidala, Trirasna
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