Auras

(Part 1)

by Graham Furnell

Have you ever met someone new or been somewhere for the first time and immediately felt strangely uncomfortable, even though there seemed to be no pre-existing reason why you should feel that way? … Just something you sensed through your own intuition or "inner-voice", which provided you with a subtle warning. In a similar and more positive way, have you ever encountered people or places that immediately make you feel joyous, comfortable and at ease? Science seems unable to satisfactorily explain such subjective sensations, especially when the validity of the subconscious message is confirmed by later events. What I would suggest is that in such situations, you have actually sensed the psychic energy field or "aura" associated with the particular person or place in question. But what exactly is an aura? And can we improve our ability to sense and work with auras for the betterment of our daily lives? In this 2-part article I will attempt to provide some answers to these fascinating questions, with the hope of providing a better understanding and appreciation of this most interesting and important psychic phenomenon.

Auras have been revered as a sacred form of spiritual energy, particularly associated with divine beings, for thousands of years. In the oldest continuous culture on Earth, that of Australia’s Aboriginals, a deep and profound spirituality exists which encompasses the concept of an aura, or Mullowill as it is called. The Mullowill is a subtle energy field which surrounds one’s body to protect it from unwanted external emotional and psychic influences. Of the many spiritual mysteries embraced by this most ancient of cultures, perhaps the most enigmatic are the timeless rock-art depictions of Wandjina – ancestral creation spirits who have a distinct "otherworldly" look, and display prominent halos.

Other representations of auras can be seen in the sacred iconography of many of the world’s great religions, where they most noticeably appear as a golden cloud or ring referred to as an "aureole" which surrounds the entire subject. Less conspicuously, auras also appear represented as a smaller disc, ring or halo near the upper regions of the body. One of the best examples of a complete aureole appears in images of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who interestingly is always depicted standing on a Crescent Moon, and is worshipped by millions of Catholics throughout Mexico. Other notable examples can be seen in various representations of the Taoist Goddess Kwan Yin, the Hindu God Shiva as Nataraja [Lord of the Dance], and the Islamic prophet Muhammad - where for all cases, the aureole takes the form of a surrounding divine fire. Disc and halo representations appear in images of the ancient Egyptian God Ra, the Greco-Roman God Apollo, Gautama Buddha, and Jesus Christ. Buddhism strongly recognizes the significance of auras, to such a degree that the colors of the Buddhist flag [blue, yellow, red, white, orange] represent the colors of the aura believed to have emanated from the body of Gautama Buddha when he attained Enlightenment.

Indeed, perhaps the most comprehensive and systematic theory of auras comes from India, where auras feature as an important component of Yoga teachings. According to these teachings, as expressed for example by Yogi Ramacharaka [see source listing below], an aura is associated with each of the Seven Principles of Man – Physical Body, Astral Body, Prana or Vital Force, Instinctive Mind, Intellect, Spiritual Mind and Spirit. These auras all intermingle to form a composite energy field about the physical body, which, and when viewed psychically, is seen as an egg-shaped vapour-like cloud which gradually begins to fade away at ranges of roughly 0.5 to 1 meter from the physical body; however, the full range of influence of the auras may lie well beyond this visible range. The observed color of the auric egg will be due to a combination of effects from each individual aura, which can make interpretations difficult. However, each aura does have its own basic characteristics which may be recognized as follows:

- The aura of the Physical Body characterizes the health of a person, and produces visible streaks in the auric egg which look like stiff outward-pointing bristles when the subject is in good health, but look more like the fibers of a droopy fur coat when not. It is claimed that remnants of a person’s Physical Body aura left in an environment can be tracked like a "scent" by dogs and other sensitive animals.

- The aura of the Astral Body has a steam-like appearance and color, and can be observed surrounding apparitions such as ghosts - which themselves are actually the disconnected Astral Bodies of beings, past or present.

- The aura of the third principle Prana, resembles the look of electric spark-like particles being ejected from the body, particularly from extremities such as the fingertips. This aura has a light rosy color which fades at ranges of little more than centimeters from the body. The Pranic aura may be drawn away from a strong and healthy person when in the presence of those who are weaker and less healthy, which is why one can feel "drained" by such experiences.

- The aura of the Instinctive Mind is associated with the "automatic" lower functions of the physical body and typically takes on a dull reddish appearance which is more visible when the subject is asleep, as it may be easily obscured by the brighter colors of the other auras during waking hours.

- The aura of the Intellect is manifested by those who are highly developed in this regard, producing a predominantly golden yellow glow about the upper head and shoulders region. Higher intellectual thoughts on spirituality will also bring a distinctively luminous and clear light-blue color to the edges of the aura of the Intellect.

- The aura of the Spiritual Mind is centered round the head of the subject, and produces a peculiar glow in the form of a halo. Only those who have reached the highest levels of human spiritual development manifest any degree of this aura.

- Finally, the aura of the seventh principle, Spirit, is claimed to be comprised of such a pure white light that no human at our current stage of development could possibly observe it. Such things are the reserve of those who have travelled The Path long before us - who were once mortals like us, and who now bid us to follow them ever onward.

Having discussed specific characteristics of each of the seven auras, here it should be noted that the entire auric egg will take on a more uniformly recognizable colored appearance when the subject experiences significant emotions or feelings of specifically one kind or another. For example, a violent fit of anger will show as bright red flashes upon a black background looking somewhat like fire and smoke. Similarly a strong wave of love will produce a crimson color, the shade depending upon the nature of the passion; and religious feelings will bring a blue tinge to the aura. Effects such as these generally last for a period reflecting the degree and extent of the emotion.

Non-spectral and tainted colors are generally considered to have negative connotations for an aura. For example: Black – hatred, malice, revenge; Brown – [reddish tinge] avarice and greed; Gray – [bright shade] selfishness, [corpse-like shade] fear, terror, [dark shade] melancholy, depression; Green – [dirty shade] jealousy, [slate-like shade] deceit.

Before moving on from the current discussion of auras according to the teachings of Yoga, the phenomenon of "spirit of place" should also be briefly considered in this context. According to the Yoga teachings, one’s thoughts are considered to be real entities – or as it has been succinctly expressed "Thoughts are Things". Indeed, an aura is considered to be not only a real manifestation of one’s physical condition, but also of one’s thoughts, and the aura so created need not necessarily be confined to the vicinity of one’s own body, but can also be taken up by the surrounding environment. In such a manner, an environment will accumulate an aura as a result of contributions from those who have previously been there. This explains the feelings of woe and despair that can be sensed when visiting places such as prisons, or battlefields. Similarly, places of worship will tend to accumulate a more positive and uplifting aura, as will the happy home.

As a final inclusion in Part 1 of this article, a table is presented which summarizes general associations and correspondences for the seven spectral colors that may appear in an aura. The contents of this table are based on information obtained from various sources, including an essay on auras and colors by the renowned psychic and medium Edgar Cayce [for all sources see listing below]. This table will be a useful reference for Part 2 of this article - where various techniques for sensing, cleansing and enhancing auras will be considered. So until then, blessed be.