Chakras and Their Archetypes: Uniting Energy Awareness and Spiritual Growth

by Ambika Wauters

Ambika Wauters explores how linking classic archetypes to the seven chakras in the human energy system can reveal unconscious ways of behaving and serve as a valuable tool for transformation and healing. Archetypes, which Carl Jung defined as “patterns of behavior,” have emerged out of the core of human experience—the Mother and the Victim, the Lover and the Actor, the Warrior and the Servant.
In CHAKRAS AND THEIR ARCHETYPES, Wauters shows that creating healthy archetypes is both liberating and fundamental to our well-being. In relating the archetypes to the chakras, she guides us on a journey to understand where our energy is blocked and which attitudes or emotional issues are responsible. Using a variety of exercises, meditations, and affirmations, she helps us to free ourselves from the negative archetypes, enabling us to rise to higher levels of awareness and empowerment—where we can transcend limitations, make healthy choices, release creativity, heal our pasts, and live with joy, vitality, and love.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Psychology, Health, New Age

176 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1997

Reviews

[Wieske · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an analytical person easing my way into the yogic way of life I really enjoyed this book. I thought it would be tedious to read and expected it to be very out there. But I was very pleasantly surprised. This book provides a good background on chakra's and links them to archetypes. Every chapter is accompanied with very useful tools.
This is a book I intent to read again, even if it's just bits and pieces that I feel apply to me or people close to me.

[Anabella Trigueros · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the concept of this book and what the book was trying to achieve more than I enjoyed the actual book. There were countless insights that were very incomplete and written in such a broad way that I wouldn’t recommend it to someone who wanted to delve into this yogic way of understanding the body and mind. From a beginners point of view it lacked a lot of the essential basic knowledge and would have benefitted from simple diagrams of some of the yoga moves or meditative states that it was trying to explain. For someone who is more advanced in their spiritual journey, the book may be fine and I believe they would probably gain more from it than I personally have.

[Silvia Feldi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting (but overall a light and a more superficial read, just scratching the surface of the topic) explaining the energy and some of the psychological mechanisms behind dual archetips (victim-mother, martyr-empress, servant-warrior, actor-lover, silent child-communicator, intellectual-intuitive, egotist-guru)

[Tami · Rating 5 out of 5]

Often without even knowing it, we all act out roles in our lives. We have all met (and played) the Victim, so entrenched in suffering that they can't escape their prison. We've probably come across a Warrior who champions the needy or fearlessly fights for the environment. We may have even had the honor of meeting a Communicator who made us feel completely understood or the Guru who inspired us with his peaceful nature.

The most interesting thing is that all of these pieces and many more (the Victim, the Mother, the Martyr, the Emperor, the Servant, the Warrior, the Actor, the Lover, the Silent Child, the Communicator, the Intellectual, the Intuitive, the Egotist, and the Guru) are parts of our personality. The best part though, is that we get to choose which aspects we wish to let guide us through life. We get to determine if we want to continue being miserable while playing the Martyr or if we are willing to give our needs a voice and set the Emperor free.

Chakras and Their Archetypes examines archetypical roles as they compare to our seven main chakras. Each chakra is associated with two personality aspects. One tends to surface when the chakra energy flow is out of balance and the other illustrates a healthier expression. Being able to unequivocally identify where our issues are and knowing where to go from there is invaluable.

[Hero · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm new to studying chakras but I'm well versed in psychology, so this book was excellent starter course for me. I loved the way it was organized. Each chapter covers:
how the chakra functions,
how it appears in life as a dysfunctional archetype,
how to move on from that negative archetype (including exercises, meditations or mantras),
Case histories,
the functional archetype,
how to develop that positive archetype (exercises, mantras, and activities)
and case histories.

Happy self-developing everyone!

[Dedrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very excellent book. There are some insights that feel a little incomplete, but there are many truths in this book that any open person will find useful. I recommend this book to anyone who is evolving right now along their spiritual path.

[Cherie Kephart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed absorbing the messages of this book. I knew very little about Chakras before reading this, and I am now fascinated with what they are and the awareness that has ensued from learning about them. Reading this book exercised my spiritual muscles, and I am grateful.

[Michelle Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not okay I have read it and now I am done kind of book. This is a book you will read over and over finding new things every time. The meditations are wonderful.

[Leann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great beginner's book on understanding basic concepts of Chakras and their Archytypes as the title shares here. Easy reading and good reference.

[Grace Dadoyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good basic book about the subject. The use of the archetypes is a good way to explain the balances and imbalances of each chakra.

[Barbara Johnstone · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is okay if you want an overview of the subject without any depth. But I don't know why anyone would want such shallow and simplistic guidance. I can't recommend this book for anyone who wants a true understanding of, and help with, the subject and healing their life.
There are better authors to read. Try Caroline Myss.

[Bea Elwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've had this book for years and just finished reading it but now I'm going back a rereading sections. A bit wordy but once I broke it down into reading it in sections and pausing between chapters I found it profoundly helpful.

[Erdal · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awfully written. The author doesn’t have a good understanding of the chakra system and she is confused. She makes major mistakes in assigning archetypes to chakras. It is really a disservice to both Jung’s archetypes and to the Buddhist tradition.

[Tamz Lavender · Rating 5 out of 5]

very informative information.

clearly organized

[Timothy Outlaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh?

[Tracey Agnew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am chakra phobic so read this as a bit of a challenge to myself! There are some interesting thoughts on archetypes and some great affirmations

[Javiera Lenck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Desactualizado en cuanto a los ejemplos.
Pero entretenido

[꧁ k e l s e y ꧂ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A valuable resource that is written with such love!

[Kimberly Purcell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that I have picked up, put down, picked up and again, put down. Like for years. I don't know why, for sure. This book has seriously great info and info I need to hear and learn. It took me to look for situations that I need to complete to come upon this book on my shelf and decide that it's time to finish it. Even then, I still did the pick up, put down thing.

So, today, with just a few pages left, I was determined before any other activity to finish this. And, I am happy to have read it. I underlined the hell out of it too. I treated this read like a text book.

This book married 2 of my favorite things to study: chakras and archetypes. Even if you are not into chakras, I suggest you study the archetypes. Not only will you see how you move through these states yourself, and you are fluid: but you have one base one, you will also be able to understand those you have contact with. Study the archetypes and you will give yourself an edge up on all relationships.

Wauters' writing is deep, yet you'll grasp her meanings easily. She writes in a way that makes reading these subjects intriguing and will have you stopping along the way to digest sentence after sentence. I would give this 4.5 stars if the metric allowed.

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author identifies archetypes from Jung's theory of the collective unconscious and relates them to the Chakras, or sources of energy in the body. It was enlightening to recognize oneself in all of the negative archetypes, however the expercises suggested to release those negative patterns of behavior were overly simplistic and like most self-help books, overstated the obvious.

[Barbc]

9

[Randolph Breschini · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read!

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

it's like picking through mostly chaff to get to the good information....