The Chakras

by C.W. Leadbeater

A clairvoyant examines the spiritual force centers in our body. With 10 color plates.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Theosophy, Occult, Religion, Philosophy, New Age

132 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Charles Webster Leadbeater was an influential member of the Theosophical Society, author on occult subjects and co-initiator with J.I. Wedgwood of the Liberal Catholic Church.

Originally a priest of the Church of England, his interest in spiritualism caused him to end his affiliation with Anglicanism in favour of the Theosophical Society, where he became an associate of Annie Besant. He became a high-ranking officer of the society, but resigned in 1906 amid a scandal. Accusations of his detractors were never proven and, with Besant's assistance, he was readmitted a few years later. Leadbeater went on to write over 69 books and pamphlets that examined in detail the hidden side of life as well as maintain regular speaking engagements. His efforts on behalf of the society assured his status as one of its leading members until his death in 1934.

Reviews

[Douglas · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've seen this book in many bookstores and libraries, but never got around to reading it. You'll only find this book to be interesting if you're already immersed in the works of the Theosophy writers like Madame Blatavsky, Annie Besant, and Leadbeater himself. There's a lot of jargon and arcane terminology in this book, such as "the Three Outpourings," "the Third Aspect of the Logos," etc., and very little usable advice as to how the chakra system could have a practical impact on one's life.

[Panda1602 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this read as interesting as his other books I have read. The writing style is typical of the era. He has a unique view on the chakra system, not only energetically but also how "sees" them interrelate with the physical. Depending the readers level of awareness, his style of writing may invoke all manners of feelings and emotions. Some may find his style dry or condescending. At the end of the day, take out what resonates and leave the rest on the page.

For me this is a great reference book and a worthy addition to my ever expanding library.

[Ghmerarí · Rating 1 out of 5]

Waaaaay too technical for a Western Teosopher's approach on an Eastern belief.
Must take this with a grain of salt, for, Leadbeater was still a Victorian/Edwardian English man, who supported Eugenics, Colonialism (and other stuff like that), and thinks he knows more about a theme than the culture that has practiced and studied it for millennia. And, when he encountered differences, he attributed them to education and even race, instead of admitting he got it wrong.

[jillian · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf even though interesting at first because i simply could not get through it. more importantly: themed around hindu + buddhist concepts but removes them completely from any cultural context, discussing them instead solely from a western ‘scientific’ standpoint (expected but still annoying).

sick picture representations of the chakras though. i really vibe with their overall description

[Amy Dale · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't realize this was written in the 20s,not that that's a bad thing,but this author is very proper,poncey and tries to sound very educated and elegant and it makes for a sort of laborous,stuck up sort of read.

The content wasn't what I was expecting,I thought it'd be about each Chakra, it's links in the body,how to work with each one and so on. This book describes what they look like and then goes off roading into some bizarre 20s ideas of chakras and how they contain "Serpent Fire" and premature awakening of certain etheric chakras can cause men to become "Satyrs,Monsters of malicious and satanic pride." Whoa... I actually had no idea what he was talking about most of the time.
It never tells you how to balance or work with them or anything reiki-esque. I skimmed through after the first chapter and aside from satyr transformations didn't see anything worthwhile.

[José Luis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Para quem tem a meditação como um hábito diário, o conhecimento sobre os Chakras, mesmo que superficial, é indispensável. Livros sobre o assunto não faltam. Resolvi seguir a linha da Teosofia, a partir do livro A voz do Silêncio (Helena Blavatsky) e cheguei nesse livro curtinho e muito denso. Não pode ser apenas lido, tem que ser estudado com calma, rabiscado, relido. Muita informação e muito esclarecimento. Muito do que é exposto no livro explica inicialmente alguns ocorridos no mundo real. Para meu esclarecimento inicial (e devo parar por aí) sobre os Chakras, é mais que suficiente.

[Erren Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leadbeater, who also wrote Thought-forms, is a man who can see the nonphysical world. He wrote about thought-forms and illustrated them and in this book he describes the chakras: the seven energy centres of the kundalini energy system in your body. They are not a rainbow, like other books suggest. Their colours are far more complex than that. If you want to know what they really look like, read this book.

[Svetlana Meritt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting even though a bit outdated...it shows how far we've come in our knowledge of Chakras since almost 100 years ago. Also shows how spiritual knowledge constantly evolves.

[Dave Lindley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic,

[Ryan Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear, concise, and full of interesting info.

[Erik Akre · Rating 2 out of 5]

... a rather esoteric treatise on human spiritual energy centers. It somewhat contradicts (or shows up?) all the other writings I've read on the subject. Does it matter?

I'm not sure this is a worthwhile read. The author's own ideas and observations--of chakra colors, functions, and relationships--are interesting at least. He writes with apparent authority, in his 1927 prose. The contradictions to other more recent teachings make me wonder... Perhaps these contradictions are irrelevant in a New-Agey kind of way. I can buy that, I guess, although not without the some expense of my convictions that this spiritual science is definitely valid.

Leadbeater concludes with an extensive discussion of the Hindu knowledge of the chakras, and some about how they are used in meditation, and to awaken kundalini. It's somewhat hard to follow, and it struggles to hold relevance I think, for the average reader anyway. (The book made me feel very much like the average reader, say what that may about it.)

I continue to be interested and intrigued, regardless, and in the long run I won't stop researching, comparing, and experimenting in my own practice. One thing can definitely be said for this book; it does foster intrigue with the topic.

[Ayelén de los Ángeles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Siendo un género que no acostumbro a leer, tenía muchas ganas de comprender el universo energético que nos envuelve a cada uno de nosotros. Siempre quise conocer sobre éste tipo de cosas, saber cómo funcionan, sus beneficios y sus peligros. Este libro ofrece aquello, pero de una forma que es un tanto compleja. Como principiante creo que no fue la mejor elección para meterme de lleno en un tema desconocido, pero me mantuvo lo suficientemente interesada a pesar de todo el lenguaje académico (porque sí, es un texto monográfico) y formal.
También contiene ilustraciones y gráficos para hacer más comprensible los temas que se tratan, y aquello sirvió bastante. De todas formas, tengo que admitir que la lectura aun así se tornaba densa y difícil de llevar en algunas ocasiones.
Es un libro para tomarse con calma, leer un capítulo por día o algo parecido. Para alguien que se está introduciendo en la temática puede ser pesado, e incluso invasivo.
En fin, de todas formas creo que cerrar el año con esta lectura estuvo más que bien porque era como un descanso de todo el género de ficción al que dediqué exclusivamente el 2020.

[Lia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Non l'ho finito, e probabilmente non lo finirò. Forse il libro di un vescovo cattolico non è la migliore fonte a cui attingere per un'infarinatura su un argomento che ha origine in una cultura completamente diversa. Per quello che ho letto mi sembra una visione un po' occidentalizzata dei chakra, che collega a massoneria e altre correnti esoteriche, dando molte informazioni e termini tecnici per scontato rendendo così il testo più complesso del necessario.

A tratti ci sono informazioni e figure interessanti, ma niente che non si possa trovare in altri libri migliori sull'argomento.

[Daniel Villa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read some of the terminology seems outdated and archaic. In general it was informative although somewhat boring and dry. Didn’t find anything on any practical applications in everyday life.

[Nicola Pennell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring and extremely difficult to read. Some parts made me think but not what I was expecting. I read to the end hoping I would find out more about actual chakras and them in day to day life. I was disappointed to say the least.

[Nataliia Moreno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro denso, habla de los chakras desde un punto de vista teosofíco pasando por el cuerpo astral, el etéreo el físico, la energía vital y el fuego Kundalini el cual me pareció lo más interesante del libro !

[Renee Goodwin · Rating 2 out of 5]

An important historical artifact, but not consistent with the way chakras are taught today.

[Shelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like I was reading a 200 level book, but had missed the first year. It did prime my brain, I think, but I need to seek further understanding to aid my comprehension.

[Leesha Boylan · Rating 1 out of 5]

not what I was looking for at all. did have one interesting chapter on love and hate.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read better explanations about this subject matter. He puts you off somewhat by making you feel unworthy of trying or possibly making it further along the Kundalini process. I had difficulty understanding the energy portion and the physics explained to substantiate his assertions.

[David Geschke · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t get very far into this book and it became clear it wasn’t the right chakra book for me. I had no idea what he was talking about, and had no desire to figure it out, either. So I moved on. Too many books for me to continue with this one.

[Patrick\ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good clairvoyant analysis, somewhat bad interpretation (always seems to be the case). When will the Buddhist Tibetans and Hindu Indians get agreement on chakras?

[C.J. Prince]

This is a very old book, originally published in what? The 30s? I read it mid 60s as I was dancing down the path of spirit. It is a classic.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty cool book on the chakras which I will refer to again in the future.

[edypekalongan · Rating 4 out of 5]

gambaran tentang cakra yang di uraikan cw .leadbeater
di buku ini
menjadi rujukan berharaga bagi para spiritualis modern.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

some good information, but overall pretty dry to me.

[Edith · Rating 1 out of 5]

No sé entiende nada, da cosas por entendidas. Si quieres empezar en este sector mejor busca otro libro

[Pri Ailen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Está bueno el libro, pero si a penas estas comenzado a leer y no tenes idea de nada, se te puede hacer un poco confuso.

[Salvatore Familia]

A clairvoyant examines the spiritual force centers in our body. With 10 color plates.