The Third Eye Chakra is located at the center of the forehead between the eyes. The Third Eye Chakra governs processes of seeing on both physical and metaphysical planes.

On the physical body, the Third Eye Chakra rules our eyes, sight and ability to perceive the physical environment around us. In this sense, the Third Eye is associated with realism, lucidity, keen perception and clarity about the truth.

On the subtle body, the Third Eye is associated with the inner eye— that metaphysical “organ” of perception which apprehends the deeper meaning of the events, predicts, anticipates, manifests, visualizes or forecasts the future, and sees beyond the third dimensional plane into alternate realities or higher planes of being.

The element of this Chakra is Light. On the physical plane, light gives you the ability to see, perceive, interpret, and organize. Without light, nothing could grow or thrive, and you would not be able to function at all. In the metaphysical sense, light is associated with illumination, clarity, understanding and a philosophical orientation. Light brings order, ease, and purpose to that which had seemed confused, chaotic, or stagnant.

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Indeed, it could be said that we are made of light. When we look around at the world, we believe that we are seeing objects, but we are really seeing the light reflected by these objects. At a molecular level, a chair is not really a hard object at all, but densely moving electromagnetic energy. When a chair appears red, the chair is absorbing all the light frequencies except for the frequency of red, and so red is reflected to our eye.

In this way, scientists are now catching up to ancient ideas; magicians, prophets, and sages from a wide array of cultures have spoken since ancient times of the “fifth element” of light as the “everything-ness” that underlies reality. What is known varyingly as L.V.X., ether, astral light, akasha and other names is a magical substance identical to the light of the stars that is the vibrational root of all material. This etheric light is the essential substance of all things, and the will of intelligent beings acts directly upon this light, thereby shaping all of nature. All that manifests physically in this three dimensional Universe grew into physical being from this vibrational substance, like a flower grows from an essential seed.

In this sense, the chair only becomes a chair through its encounter with your Third Eye. What is, until that moment, buzzing, immaterial light of pure potential is formed into a utilizable tool by the organ of your Third Eye, which registers and ascribes meaning or purpose to this particular constellation of light. Human beings are meaning-oriented creatures, and the Third Eye is the seat of this meaning perception. This center has both active and receptive functions; your Third Eye registers and perceives the meaning of what already is, and it can also visualize something new, bringing new meaning into the world.

With a very open Third Eye Chakra, you may have clairvoyant or otherworldly intuitions, or extrasensory abilities. Depending on your level of spiritual development, the flashes of higher awareness that come through the Third Eye Chakra can range anywhere from subtle promptings from the unconscious— like have a “hunch” about something— all the way to enormous spiritual downloads of celestial information. With an extremely open Third Eye Chakra, one may display psychic abilities, see auras, read akashic records, channel spirits, experience visions or lucid dreams or even see through physical bodies and objects.

Sometimes these psychic flashes happen spontaneously under stress or in an emergency. Many of us have had experiences of narrowly escaping a car crash or “randomly” escaping misfortune because we had a sudden intuition in the nick of time, as though an angel interfered and quickly pointed us in the direction of safety. These flashes of clairvoyance come from the “inner eye” of the Brow Chakra, which can see beyond the physical world, as well as ahead in time. Everyone has the potential to enhance these abilities, and if you work on keeping your Third Eye Chakra open, you will keep yourself more receptive to these streams of information.

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There are many spiritual practices which work toward opening this portal. Ascetic disciplines like fasting, meditating and yoga strengthen the power of this center.

The vision quests of Native Americans, in which an individual abstains from food, water and sleep, are meant to open the Third Eye in this way. In other traditions, one is placed into total darkness and silence, so to enhance the inner light of seeing.

In Hinduism this process is known as “raising the Kundalini” up the spine, such that the raw, primordial life force is transformed into spiritual vision. Certain kinds of breath-work practices and psychedelic plants can also open us up to higher levels of awareness.

Essential oils cause frequency changes in the 7 Chakras, which are closely aligned to the amygdala, the part of the limbic system where all emotions are stored.  The only stimulus that can spark a response in this gland is fragrance.

Diffuse and/or place a few drops of the following oils on the Third Eye Chakra:

Myrrh releases deeply stuck emotional pain, teaches love and forgiveness, awakens the Soul, and attunes one to her spiritual gifts.

Marigold is considered the all-seeing, all-knowing oil. Marigold brings stillness to the mind, enhances dreams and visions, calibrates your third eye, and magnifies your energy field.

• The Magical Use of Oils

Although there are many Third Eye Chakra sounds, KAH has been commonly used to awaken this energy center.

Focus on your third Chakra as you rhythmically repeat KAH while imagining that the sound is stimulating the Chakra’s spin.

You can also try resonating the Vowel Sound, “ee” (as in ‘seed’).

Listen to the Solfeggio frequency of 639 Hertz. This frequency releases confusion and helps one re-align with the Higher Self.

Lapis Lazuli activates the psychic energy of the third eye, opens access to spiritual guidance, heightens intellect and aligns one with higher truths.

Hypersthene foments insight, especially into one’s shadow side for more comprehensive understanding and integration.

Lazulite eases headaches and eye strain, activates psychic abilities, inspires creative insights, and supports focus.

• To learn more, read our article Spirituality Tools: Stones and Sound

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