Imagine the chakras/energy centres as a set of cogs/wheels, as illustrated in the animation to the right. They are rather like the workings of a clock or an engine; each cog /wheel needs to move smoothly and at a similar speed for the clock/engine to work properly. Thus good health and well being is achieved by a balance of all these energies (or the smooth running of the cogs/wheels).

We can re-charge and balance these energy centres using colour since the energy wavelengths of the seven rainbow colours correspond to the energy wavelengths of these seven main chakras of the body.

Violet is the highest colour. It is the colour for the crown chakra at the top of the head, coming down through the body to the brow (indigo), throat (blue), heart (green), solar plexus (yellow), sacral (orange) and finally to the base/root chakra with red.

Colour therapy can be shown to help on a physical level, which is perhaps easier to quantify, however there are deeper issues around the colours on the psychological and spiritual levels.

Our well being is not, of course, purely a physical issue. Fortunately, many more practitioners, both orthodox and complementary are now treating patients in an holistic manner. That is to say, we are body, mind and spirit and none of these areas function entirely alone; each has an effect upon the other. This is why Colour Therapy can be so helpful since colour addresses all levels of our being.

As babies we first experience colour in the womb where we are enveloped in a nurturing and comforting pink. Then as a child we associate with colour as part of our first learning processes. These first associations contribute to our consciousness. As we get older we attach many different feelings, memories and meanings to certain colours and this can then become a feature in our subconscious. We can build up prejudices to colours which have happy, sad, or frightening connotations for us.

All life experiences have an affect upon us. Some experiences will be positive and some negative. It is these negative experiences which can manifest themselves physically over time as dis-ease. As an example:- perhaps we have, over the years, been in a situation where we have felt unable, for one reason or another, to speak our mind, or to express our needs and feelings. This can manifest as a problem in the throat chakra. The throat chakra relates in the spiritual aspect to self expression. Thus, if our self expression has been blocked, the energy in this area will not be free flowing.

Working with the appropriate colour/colours can help to dispel negative feelings, free blocks and re-balance the body.