Since most of people knows the gist about the ‘usual’ main nine chakras, I decided to dedicate my second C entry to one among the less popular chakras, one I knew absolutely nothing until I started researching the ‘extras’ (there’s also chakras in the hands, at the chin level, and others vary with the sources considered) : Bindu.
The Bindu Chakra is located in the occipital region of the head, at the level of that cowlick we have at the back of the head. Brahmins used to grow a tuft of hair in corresponded of Bindu to honor (and protect, possibly) it as it is considered very important in tantric Yoga as the health and vitality centre, the ‘fountain of eternal youth’. It is represented graphically as a Lotus with twenty-three petals, it is associated with the moon (the waxing, young moon most especially), and with the color white. Its deity is Lord Krishna. Bindu means ‘drop, point’ and that is a reference to the belief that this chakras produces Amrita, the nectar of immortality. Amrita usually drops into the Manipura Chakra where it is burned by the digestive fire without being fully utilised by the body so in order to exploit its rejuvenating and healing qualities, Rishis of ancient times elaborated a technique to collect it using the energy points located in the tongue and teaching themselves to touch the back of their throat with the point of their tongue during yoga. There was supposing that managing to fully absorb all the Amrita Bindu produced could lead to near-immortality and eternal youth.
Even today there are theories among tantric Yoga practitioners about how by asking the help of one’s spiritual guides to direct correctly the flow of energy that comes from an open Bindu, it would be possible to slow down cellular aging and promote body healing. Idealistically, it’s even suggested that you might eventually become an anti-vampire and live off Amrita alone, never eating a thing. To counter that, I even read opinions about how trying to unblock or try to direct energy from chakra without ‘help from the above’ results in it producing poison.
Colourful, is it?
I am, no need to say, very amused about the mythology around Bindu.
Less romantically, it seems to be experience of a few spirit-workers that an activated Bindu helps to archive clearer mediumship.
A few sources, if you are interested in reading more about Bindu:
http://www.chakras.net/energy-centers/bindu
http://www.pranaspace.com.au/2012/06/bindu-the-8th-chakra/
http://www.duneitalia.com/mdpro/print.php?sid=123 (this one is in Italian, sorry – you can do with a google translator if you dare)
Very interesting, thank you for the info, I had no idea there were chakras beyond the nine most well-known to the west! Definitely something I’m going to have to read about further.
Glad to share!