The Chakras

About this book

A spinning wheel of colour appears at a point in the body. Each centre carries its own arrangement of petals, currents and supposed influences on consciousness. C. W. Leadbeater presents the human being as a system of invisible energies.

His illustrated account helped establish the now-familiar Western image of the chakras, drawing on Theosophical clairvoyance and interpretations of Indian traditions. The diagrams are striking. Their precise colours and supposed mechanisms reflect Leadbeater’s clairvoyant claims, which have no established physiological basis. The book is valuable for understanding how an esoteric visual language entered popular spiritual culture.