Ancient Tower Press

The Seventh Chakra: Extract from Tracking the Soul by Joe Landwehr

In anticipation of the first Tracking the Soul Workshop this Fall (October 12-18, 2012), Ancient Tower Press presents a series of extracts from the book that inspired this offering. The 6-day experiential workshop will integrate the exquisite spiritual psychology of the seven chakras with a personal, image-based approach to astrology called astropoetics.  All workshop participants will receive a free copy of Tracking the Soul (a $25 value).   We hope these book extracts will entice you; and, if you cannot join us, you can of course obtain your own copy direct from Ancient Tower Press.

The extract below is from Chapter Seven.

The seventh chakra is the place of transcendence, the gateway between this physical realm and realms beyond the reach of human imagination. When the seventh chakra is open and in balance, one becomes a pure channel for Spirit, and one’s every thought, word, and deed becomes a vehicle for spiritual awakening. One's purest spiritual essence is expressed without impedance through the personality and one becomes a god or goddess in physical form. At this point in the journey, the soul is faced with a choice: either remain in physical form to grace other sentient beings with her Presence – a commitment known in Buddhism as the vows of the bodhisattva – or leave this plane to merge with Spirit on some other plane, incomprehensible to mere mortals on this one. There are no words in our language to describe this experience of reunion with Spirit, although mystical poets throughout the ages have tried. If the soul at this level takes the vows of the bodhisattva, the rules governing ordinary spiritual evolution no longer apply.

The Sixth Chakra: Extract from Tracking the Soul by Joe Landwehr

In anticipation of the first Tracking the Soul Workshop this Fall (October 12-18, 2012), Ancient Tower Press presents a series of extracts from the book that inspired this offering. The 6-day experiential workshop will integrate the exquisite spiritual psychology of the seven chakras with a personal, image-based approach to astrology called astropoetics.  All workshop participants will receive a free copy of Tracking the Soul (a $25 value).   We hope these book extracts will entice you; and, if you cannot join us, you can of course obtain your own copy direct from Ancient Tower Press.

The extract below is from Chapter Six.

The sixth chakra is associated with mental functions, thoughts, beliefs, internal imagery, dreams, intuitive understanding, and the faculty of vision.  The so-called objective world, measured by scientists and reinforced through a common language, is perceived differently by each of us, according to the subjective belief systems that we bring to it.  This subjective perception of the world is translated at the level of the sixth chakra as the ability to see, and the tendency to see selectively, that which tends to reinforce our worldview.

The Fifth Chakra: Extract from Tracking the Soul by Joe Landwehr

In anticipation of the first Tracking the Soul Workshop this Fall (October 12-18, 2012), Ancient Tower Press presents a series of extracts from the book that inspired this offering. The 6-day experiential workshop will integrate the exquisite spiritual psychology of the seven chakras with a personal, image-based approach to astrology called astropoetics.  All workshop participants will receive a free copy of Tracking the Soul (a $25 value).   We hope these book extracts will entice you; and, if you cannot join us, you can of course obtain your own copy direct from Ancient Tower Press.

The extract below is from Chapter Five.

The throat center relates to expression, communication, the capacity for living and teaching one's truth, and the dawning of spiritual awareness – that is to say, awareness of one’s place within the outworking of a larger cosmic design.  Those with a balanced throat chakra will be articulate, willing and able to communicate the subjective truth of their being in each moment, receptive to divine grace, at peace with the seeming imperfection in the world, often amused by the cosmic humor that pervades it, and in a position spiritually to teach others.

The Fourth Chakra: Extract from Tracking the Soul by Joe Landwehr

In anticipation of the first Tracking the Soul Workshop this Fall (October 12-18, 2012), Ancient Tower Press presents a series of extracts from the book that inspired this offering. The 6-day experiential workshop will integrate the exquisite spiritual psychology of the seven chakras with a personal, image-based approach to astrology called astropoetics.  All workshop participants will receive a free copy of Tracking the Soul (a $25 value).   We hope these book extracts will entice you; and, if you cannot join us, you can of course obtain your own copy direct from Ancient Tower Press.

The extract below is adapted from Chapter Four.

Psychologically, the fourth chakra governs the formation of relationships, learning to love self and others, the awakening of empathy and compassion, and the urge toward community. A balanced fourth chakra will be experienced as satisfying relationships and a sense of interconnection, a strong sense of purpose and a steady experience of quiet joy.

Love is the natural state of the heart when it is open and clear. Love is the alchemical elixir in which all core issues dissolve, the Universal Solvent in which all troubling emotion is released.  A friend once said, “There is no problem that more love cannot fix.”  Though at the time I thought his words a bit overly optimistic, if not delusional, I have since come to see the wisdom of this simple approach to life.  At the very least, there is no problem that more love cannot benefit.  Regardless of the outer face of our core issues, at the fourth chakra, the remedy will on some level always be opening the heart to an increased capacity for love.

The Third Chakra: Extract from Tracking the Soul by Joe Landwehr

In anticipation of the first Tracking the Soul Workshop this Fall (October 12-18, 2012), Ancient Tower Press presents a series of extracts from the book that inspired this offering. The 6-day experiential workshop will integrate the exquisite spiritual psychology of the seven chakras with a personal, image-based approach to astrology called astropoetics.  All workshop participants will receive a free copy of Tracking the Soul (a $25 value).   We hope these book extracts will entice you; and, if you cannot join us, you can of course obtain your own copy direct from Ancient Tower Press.

The extract below is from Chapter Three.

The psychology of the third chakra outwardly revolves around the cultivation of a healthy ego, which will generally manifest as an increasing ability to function with ease and comfort within the embodied world.  With a healthy ego, we are able to define a sense of territory, or sphere of influence, and to rise to a certain level of respect and recognition among our peers.  The most visible arena in which this evolutionary process plays itself out will be career.  But since our sense of alignment with ourselves in general governs how comfortable we are in our own skin, it manifests across the board through feedback about how well we are doing in the art of living the embodied life, and in meeting its many challenges.