What is color therapy?

Color or chromatherapy is the practice of treating bodily disharmonies with color and/or light, in the seven primary colors of the rainbow. It is based on the premise that specific colors have healing and restorative properties related to certain areas of the physical or emotional being. Color therapy may employ gemstones, candles, prisms, wands, baths, optical aids, and fabric.

Where did color therapy come from?

There is evidence of belief in the power of colors in Ancient Egyptian times, where houses were built with colored panes of glass in the roof, through which the sun could shine and “treat” the patient sitting inside. The wearing of colored silks according to the disorder in question, was also practiced, allowing the patient to sit in the direct sun.

In traditional Chinese medicine, each organ is associated with a color. The practice of qijong, links healing sounds with the color.

Many practitioners claim that the roots lie in Ayurveda, an ancient form of medicine in India, that dates back thousands of years. Ayurveda embraces the belief that every person contains the same five basic elements of the universe: air, water, fire, earth and space. The proportions present in each individual, is directly related to their personality and nature. When these elements are thrown out of balance by wilful act or illness, Ayurvedic medicine employs the energy inherent in the colors of the spectrum, to restore harmony.

How does color therapy work?

Since most living things depend on light in some way for survival, it is theorized that our tissues and organs live on, and in turn produce, the same energies as light. Even though light is colorless, it carries the full spectrum, where there is a frequency and vibration for each color, that relates to specific areas of the body. When the vibration and energy of a particular organ is disturbed by disease or distress, bringing that organ together with its related color, restores homeostasis. Asian medicine has shown us how meridians carry energy through our bodies, connecting to each of the organs in turn. Acupuncture is used to remove blockages in the meridians energy flow, and color is used in the same way.

Light which flows in through the human eye, triggers internal hormone production that controls the complex biochemical system of our bodies. Likewise, light absorbed through exposure to sun or artificial sources, also influences are emotional and physical well-being. Color therapy in some instances, mimics the natural absorption of color from light, to supply what we may be lacking to keep our bodies and minds in balance.

What are some of the ways color is used?

Meditation- Color is used in a variety of ways for meditation and relaxation. It may involved only colors that the individual finds peaceful and calm, or it may be a seven step program, in which the person focuses in their mind on descending a ladder while passing through seven levels containing the primary rainbow colors, until they reach their goal of relaxation.

Color Breathing- Another form of meditation, it involves visualizing specific colors according to the benefit sought, in co-ordination with specific breathing practices or routines. This is not a medical parody.

Color Puncture- Developed by a German scientist and naturopath, it involves focusing colored lights on acupuncture, and other points on the body, in order to activate the healing pulses of energy inherent in the body and the color applied.

Aura Readings- An electro-magnetic field surrounds the human body, vibrating at a speed to produce specific colors, or auras, according to the person’s health and state of mind. There are no “good” or “bad” auras, since every color has positive and negative poles. Readings allow practitioners to help someone focus on the positive aspects and thereby restore the balance.

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