Im interested in what there is to know about it, what things are similar to it. What is an aura? What ways is it usable in martial arts? Is it important for meditation or just something that can be added?
Chakras are the points of power on the body, they build the aura and allow us to cast magic. Ever wonder why chants are powerful? It is a chakra on your throat that powers them, and along with the manifestation of thoughts. You have one on every point, hands, feet, chest, shoulders, forehead, it all works together to maje the arua. The aura is your field of energy,colors change as does mood, and energy projecting. Being in touch with your aura and chakras is important for knowing how to project magic. Or use it's energy for spells. If you can see your aura you can see your mood and the reflection in energu form. So auras are really our magical identity. Do good study on it, you will see the results.
Oh and sorry got a little off topic, to answer your queston. Find a graph of the chakras, you can feel them and charge them however you want to use for martial arts. Charge with speed, or power,or both. Knowing your chakras is a good skill to exel at most anything. The aura is to see the truth, if you can use it right it is your mirror. But among marital arts, aura is not especially important.
The basic ideas have been touched on, I'll try to add some more specific detail. A person's body operates on a physical, mental/emotional and spiritual level. All three operate together and are reflective of the overall health and condition of each-other. If one is unhealthy, out of balance, or disrupted then it can have an effect on the others. (As above, So below.)
The energy of your body is fueled physically through the metabolism of food, and also through a constant connection to the energies of your environment and higher Self/soul/insert your favorite term here. Activities like sleep, meditation, spiritually focused thought and energy channeling provide a stronger connection to spirit and energy. This in turn strengthens, clears, and opens up your energy system.
The body has a constant field of energy that both fills your body and also radiates out from it. While talk of the aura generally refers to the part that radiates from the body outward, It actually fills the entire body as well. Aura is a continuation of your etheric body, which is the sum of your personal energetic field inside and out.
The energy of your etheric body moves, and tends to focus more densely along certain paths and places. A loose analogy would be to compare this flow to the etheric version of having blood vessels and organs. The paths your energy tends to focus in on as it moves about are commonly referred to as meridians. And wherever meridians meet up pools of this energy gathers, focuses, and cycles around itself. These are your chakras.
People actually have several chakras, big and small, all over the place. They coincide with the various pressure points of the physical body that have been used for therapeutic healing and also for exploiting in martial arts. (The brachial plexus strike, for example.)
Of the many points there are a few well-known major ones that are associated with many major physical, mental/emotional, and spiritual states of being. This would be the classic seven; root, sacral/groin, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown. I would go into more detail about where each one rests, and what they associate with but that in itself would eat a -ton- of space. This part you will want to research a there are entire books dedicated to the chakras, what they do, and how to balance them out. Here are a few key word though, to give a basic understanding.
Root; Base of the spine. Grounding, connection to the physical, basic survival instincts of food, shelter, reproduction (having children). Physical stability, Drawing upwards earth energy, 'rooting'.
Groin; Between your groin and navel. Inter-personal relationships, social survival, sex/mating.
Solar plexus; Between the 'v' of your chest and your navel. Physical intuition/subconscious awareness and interpretation of physical stimuli. Also one of the major storehouses/gathering points of personal energy.
heart; Center of the chest. Emotional center, programmer of emotional intent into energy. Interpersonal connectedness through sympathy/empathy. Love, relationships, and soul-mates.
Throat; Middle of the throat/neck. Speech, projection of intent and ideas, movement of energy inwards and outwards, breath. Manifesting of the physical fom the non-physical.
Third eye; Center of the brow/middle of the brain. Often associated with the Pineal gland. Spiritual awareness, spiritual intuition, occult knowledge, 'other sight', astral projection.
Crown; Rests on the top of the head, just outside of the body. Spiritual connection, communication with the Higher-self, spiritual awareness, drawing downward spiritual energy.
**A surprisingly accurate introduction to the chakras, their function and relations, can actually be gained fom Avater the last airbender. In the episode named "The Guru." The explanation is at its most basic, but the scene where Guru Pathic takes Aang to a series of pools of water and compares them to the chakras is the best simple summary I have ever encountered.
As for the Aura, Like I said it is simply the field of energy that radiates out from the core of your body, out a short distance from the surface. It is commonly seen as having three predominant, overlapping layers. Each is a combination of light, vibration, and energy and associated with a different 'level' of being.
The physical; This layer is associated with the physical condition of the body. The vibrancy, color, and surface shape are often associated with one's level of physical health with disturbances in the body reflecting a darkened, heavier, or low-vibration areas. This layer tends to only extend a short distance, staying close to the surface of the body. usually only radiating out a couple of inches.
The mental; This layer is associated with mental and emotional qualities. IE; Your mood and focus of thought. This layer tends to radiate a bit further than the physical, and is more fluid and active, changing in color, vibration, and even shape by expanding and contracting with your emotions and mental state.
The spiritual; This layer extends the farthest, and is also the most subtle for most people. Like the other two, this 'layer' is reflective of your connection with your spiritual Self and attitudes. As such it tends to be reflective of your personal state within your karma, spiritual goals and learning, and overall dominant vibration of your being.
As far as relating all of this to activities such as martial arts and self defense, it operates under the same philosophy as the physical levels of the art. IE; Understanding how a system works, where it is strong, and where/how it is weak so you can operate to maximize your strengths while exploiting your opponents weaknesses.
For example the basic premise behind Iron Shirt Qigong is to build up and focus your energy within your body, particularly surrounding your oragns and other vital areas. i have had it described to me as adding pressure to the area, like inflating a car tire, to make it more solid against attack. Other aspects include the overall improvement of personal conscious awareness of subtle detail to recognise impending attack, disrupting the flow and balance of your opponent's stance and movements (disrupting the root), and interfering with bodily operation through focused strikes to the various pressure points revealed through study of the different meridians and chakras.
Spiritual practices also help to develop mental disciplines of being calm and mentally centered as much as physically. To be a placid lake even in a storm of activity, as it were.One learns to be able to respond calmly and with awareness through stressful situations, helping to maintain deliberate conscious control over your actions and perceptions.
The core of pretty much any martial art is about alignment, balance, dispersion of the opponent's force and focusing of your own for maximum effect. This is just another facet of that same practice and philosophy.
My pleasure. Grammar is good after-all. I meant to mention there are a couple of books you might find useful as well. 'Hands of light' by Barbara Brennan, and 'Eastern body Western mind' by Anodea Judith. Both books have a lot of information in them.
