Healing With Colour

By RAJGOPAL NIDAMBOOR

Photo Courtesy: www.abstract.desktopnexus.com

There is positive evidence the influence of colour has on mood, emotion, mental performance and well-being. It is, therefore, not without reason that the importance of colour therapy is being increasingly recognised in the symptomatic treatment of several health disorders.

All of us know how colours affect our moods and emotions. This is not just an everyday observation, but a view that has been well-documented by way of scientific studies.

Sensitivity to colour is a major component of colour healing, or therapy. This form of treatment uses our sensitivity to colour to identify and correct imbalances in our internal bodily energy patterns that colour therapists relate to.

Colour therapy, in essence, aims to harmonise and enhance our body’s energy centres, or chakras in Sanskrit, by using the seven colours of the light spectrum, which are said to stimulate our body’s own healing process. Ancient wisdom also suggests that each of the seven colours reverberates with one of the seven chakras.

Colour therapists believe that since all matter is a form of energy, the application of energy to the body will have certain effects -- both good and bad. Light, as all of us know, is a form of energy. Since it can be split into colours, it is possible for therapists to deliver this energy at very precise levels, and in easily controlled doses.

Chakras Balanced

Colour therapy is said to balance the chakras of the body. In simple terms, each of the spectrum colours is basically light of varying wavelengths. This means that each colour has its own particular energy -- where each of the spectrum colours vibrates with the energy of each of the seven chakras in the body.

Therapists also observe that a sick person is lacking in one or more of the colour types. By restoring the correct energy balance by way of appropriate colours to the body, therapists note, will correct physical and/or mental imbalance.

You may think of energy or chakra centres as a set of cogs in the wheel, where each cog or wheel needs to move smoothly, and at an identical speed for the engine to work appropriately. You get the point. Good, or optimal, health and well-being are achieved by a balance of all energies in the body -- in other words, the smooth running of the wheels.

History Of Colour Therapy

The use of colour as a form of therapy has a long history. One can trace its origins from the healing temples of light and colour in ancient Egypt and also Greece. The Egyptians used colour in all aspects of their lives, especially in the form of decorative drawings and hieroglyphics in their homes, burial chambers and, of course, temples. Archaeologists note that Egyptian temples often contained rooms that allowed the incoming rays of the sun to split into colours of the spectrum. It is suggested that this allowed Egyptian healers to “colour diagnose” the sick, who were, thereafter, invited into the room which radiated with the suitable, or appropriate, colour for therapy.

Researchers also observe that solarised water was often used in healing by ancient Egyptian physicians. The tradition is still in use and involves the shining of full-spectrum light through a glass of spring water. This potion is prescribed to the patient in small doses over a specific period of time as detailed by the therapist. Also, therapists today use a variety of treatment options apart from solarised water. This includes light boxes/lamps -- fitted with colour filters -- and, colour silks.

Besides solarised water therapy, ancient Egyptians also used gems as part of their colour treatment plan. They believed, as do ancient and modern ayurvedic physicians in India, that gems contain pure, concentrated colour and, therefore, have a considerable effect on the body. It is also said that ancient Egyptian physicians used to ground gemstones into a powder and administer it to their patients -- a practice that is also a significant part of ayurvedic medicine.

Ayurveda

Colour therapy is elementary to ayurvedic medicine. Ayurvedic medicine maintains that each of us wears a cover of many colours, which is in a state of continual change, subject to the individual’s physical, emotional and mental state. Ayurveda envisages that this colour coat is composed of seven bodies which merge with each other and, thereafter, constitute the aura or the electromagnetic field around each individual. Ayurvedic physicians note that the densest of the layers, which is also the purest essence of all the aura layers, is the physical body. Each subsequent layer, they further note, tends to become finer. However, they are not usually visible following the eighth colour, even to physicians adept at seeing auras.

Ayurveda works with in tune with our aura and seven charkas, or energy centres -- in so doing, it helps correct imbalances in the body. A holistic form of therapy, ayurveda also looks at the whole being -- body, mind and spirit -- as one unit, not something related to a specific symptom and its mitigation. It is, therefore, not without reason that ayurvedic treatment also depends, in part, on colour therapy in the form of coloured gemstones or “light” therapy.

To cull one example, violet relates to the crown chakra, while red connects to the base chakra. In colour therapy, colour is absorbed by the eyes, skin and skull. The energy of colour can affect us at all levels -- physical, spiritual and emotional. Needless to say, every cell in the body needs light energy -- no wonder why colour energy, or therapy, has extensive effects on our whole body, or psyche.

Psychology Of Colour

What is life without colour? Colour is a fundamental part of our lives. We are continually fascinated by different colours, hues and tints, in the eye, as it were, although we do not always think of their influence. We may also rarely notice the colours around us. However this may be, research testifies that -- consciously and subconsciously -- colour affects our behaviour and moods, and our spirits. It lightens our world, or dulls it. In other words, it “controls” the way we “view” others and ourselves.

Let us look at how colours influence us -- or, signify their psychological impact on our lives.

• Red. A physical, energising and dynamic colour, red has the greatest emotional impact on our psyche and self-assertiveness. Its emotions cover love, passion and lust, not to speak of anger, rage and violence. The colour can, therefore, be related to being both warm and loving, or vicious and perilous. Red is used to treat anaemia, low energy, infertility or impotence, and low blood pressure. Complementary colour: turquoise.
• Pink. A sensual or physical colour, pink is often associated with the colour of flesh. It is also the colour which celebrates the parenting impulse. However, the colour in its watery, or pale form, or as a light version of red, may also denote a flaw of character.
• Yellow. A highly reflective colour, yellow is said to influence the mind to focus on creativity, hopefulness and self-worth. Yellow is also a very intense and extremely extroverted colour in its brightest form. When the colour is loaded in all its wondrous golden hues, yellow is often linked to spring and autumn, capturing the grandeur of nature in its most beautiful form. Yellow is used to treat arthritis, rheumatic disorders, and stress. Complementary colour: violet.
• Orange. Orange is said to be yellow’s mild cousin. The colour is often associated with happiness, elevated nature and spirit, not to speak of an extroverted disposition. When it is shaded with a light tinge of red, orange is said to enhance physical passion. Orange also suggests our very basic instincts -- the natural feeling to survive, the need for shelter, security and also food. Orange is used to treat depression, kidney and lung/respiratory affections, including asthma and bronchitis. Complementary colour: blue.
• Brown. A dark pigment of orange, brown is related to warmth and security. It mirrors the dark colour of earth. It is, therefore, said to denote a very strong, firm, and practical shade. Think of coffee or chocolate, and you will sure visualise brown as a luxurious colour.
• Green. Green offers the perfect balance to our psyche. It is the most peaceful, or soft, colour to the eye. It is evidenced that the retina does not need to adjust to focus on it. This is one reason why nature is predominately green! The colour reflects a positive attitude of the mind; it also denotes a sense of security and stability. On the negative or literal side, green is equated with envy or jealousy. Green is often used to balance both physical and mental imbalance. Complementary colour: magenta.
• Blue. An extremely serene colour, blue is the colour of the sky and sea. It is strongly associated with the intellect and also healing. While paler shades of blue suggest a cool, gentle and meditative disposition, the darker shades signify both power and competence. Blue is used to counteract throat affections, asthma, stress-related disorders, and migraine. It has been used with considerable success in improving verbal skills. Complementary colour: orange.
• Violet/Purple. Violet and purple connote the spiritual self. An amalgam of red and blue, violet/purple has traditionally been connected to royalty and religion. The two are also the most expensive dyes to manufacture. The two colours, singly or jointly, evoke peaceful reflection and a sense of high self-esteem. Violet/purple has been effectively used in the treatment of mental and nervous disorders -- especially with symptoms connected to anxiety and hopelessness. Complementary colour: yellow.

On A Deeper Plane

Colour therapy has been shown to be effective on the physical plane -- because it is the most tangible. However, the therapy has the ability to affect our deeper planes -- both at the psychological and spiritual levels. Since our well-being is not merely a physical concern, it is now not uncommon for practitioners, in either stream of medicine -- conventional and complementary -- to treat patients on a holistic plane.

In other words, treating individuals not on a compartmentalised format -- composed of body parts and organs -- but, as body, mind and spirit as one whole -- is what medicine is all about today. This makes sense, because none of our different body areas function entirely alone; they complement each other. This is also one huge reason why colour therapy can be quite useful -- more so, because it takes into consideration all levels of our being and addresses them as one unit, and not in isolation.

Remember the time when we, as infants, first experienced colour -- most precisely, when it’s pink form enveloped us in an extremely nurturing and comforting womb. We related to pink, unconsciously, as part of our first step in learning. The colour contributed much to our consciousness. However, as we grow, or get, older, we do not attach as much importance to our first colour “choice” [though we may to a certain extent], as much as we do to our many different feelings, memories and meanings vis-à-vis certain colours. This perception gets entrenched in our mind and memory -- and, relates itself as a part of our subconscious. This may lead to our own colour choice -- colours of different hues, denoting different connotations, such as happiness, boredom, melancholy, and so on.

It all filters to just one thing -- every life experience makes an impression on our psyche. They have both positive and negative sides. It is needless to say that negative experiences, in the long-term, often manifest themselves as physical aspects of disease state. You’d think of the time, over the years, for instance, where you have not been willing, for one reason or another, to speak your mind, express your needs, or feelings. The result is -- you may have developed a problem in the throat chakra, which connects to the spiritual aspect of self-expression. You are ever since on the defensive, even guarded. Your energy levels, therefore, in this particular aspect of your being is rigid, and not indicative of being energetic.

It is precisely in a situation such as this that appropriate colour/colours can help you put to flight negative feelings, and remove certain mental/physical distresses, or “road” blocks, and restore balance to the body.

Colour Therapy For All

A holistic, and an extremely useful, safe, and non-invasive form of treatment, colour therapy may be practised by just about anyone -- everyday. And, with good results.

Making colour therapy a part of everyday living is quite easy -- because, there is colour all around us. Also, colours do not come with a price tag. Colour is all around us -- everywhere. Everything on our planet has a purpose just as well -- so also colour.

What you need to experience when you use colour therapy is the ability to elevate your awareness of the energy of colour, and how it can change your life. With time, you can quite easily learn how to heighten your own awareness about the colours around you, because the capacity for health and well-being is within us all. Besides, you can always seek the help of a professional therapist who would be quite happy to initiate you into the world of colour healing -- well versed as the therapist would be with a wide variety of techniques used for the application of the therapy.