Colour Therapy

Colour is the tiny visible portion of the vast spectrum of electromagnetic energy that is one of the four fundamental forces of the universe. Light functions at the sub-atomic (quantum) level of matter as well as filling the whole of space (as microwave background radiation - an echo of the Big Bang of cosmic creation). All life on earth is dependent of the nutritious energy of light from the sun, which is conveniently stripped of dangerous levels of ultra-violet radiation by the earth's atmosphere. Light, as bio-photons, is also working within the body's cells as communication, and outside the body to infuse the auric energy field. As the energy field extends outside the body, it can be sensed by the healer, and it is the goal of therapy to sensitively clear and re-balance the energies as a means of similarly affecting the mind and body of which it is the subtlest part.
An individuals life and psychology is symbolically related to colours and the colours occur in the aura. You may be 'seeing red' or 'feeling blue' rather literally.
You may be 'in the dark' (depressed) or fired with enthusiasm, 'a bright spark'. Growing spiritual awareness is linked with pale hues and the golden white light that unifies all colours and represents the Unity or Source of All.
Modern medicine deploys specific colours in the treatment of several illnesses, such as migraine, cancer, neonatal jaundice and dyslexia. Colour therapy or healing is very broad in its applicability because it aims to treat the underlying energetic causes of illness.
It is readily combinable with such techniques as reflexology, acupuncture (no need for needles!), aromatherapy, and crystals. Early research into the efficacy of colour was conducted by Goethe, then Babbitt, Rudolf Steiner and Ghadiali, and more recently by Theo Gimbel, Vicky Wall, Max Luescher, Mikhael Aivanhov, Faber Birren et al. The most well known colour therapy systems include colour and light therapy, Colourpuncture, Aura Soma, and Light Boxes for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

A healing conducted in the energy field feeds down through the vortices called chakras into the nervous system of the body that conveys messages to the endocrine system which largely controls the bodily and mental functions. Today, the seven major chakras are predominantly associated with the rainbow colour in sequence starting with red at the base and ending with violet at the crown.
Colour practitioners train for at least two years and work to a code of ethics laid down by the International Association of Colour.
Treatments do not replace the advice of a G.P. In treatment sessions, the required treatment colour is established and then applied, commonly in conjunction with its complementary colour, via lamps, silks, torches or psychically through the hands.
Treatment duration is about twenty minutes and perhaps seven sessions would be the norm, but clients will make their own choices about how many sessions they need, especially if treatment is combines with brief therapy techniques. Clients may also help themselves by colour-breathing, visualisations, etc. In the end the goal is to tap into the unconscious resources of the mind/body and allow the desired therapeutic goal to be accomplished.

The major Colour Therapy systems are:
Dinshah Method - Pioneered by Dinshah Ghadiali in the UK, involving the application of colour lights through plastic filters.
Hygeia Method - Theo Gimbel in Gloucestershire (England) re-awakened interest in colour light therapy in the 1970's and remains a powerful international lecturer and teacher. Theo Gimbel founded the International Association of Colour in 1984. In Gimbel's Hygeia Colour Therapy Method, appropriate shapes are built into the masks of stained glass filters that are used to shine coloured light onto the body. Gimbel's approach is based on spiritual principles and the chakras.
Aura-Soma - is a very popular method of gaining self-insight and using colour in a gentle way; through looking at a large and strikingly-lit display of bottles containing twin-coloured liquids. The chosen colours reveal an insight into a person's soul and purpose; and they can be used by applying the shaken mixture to the skin, and by dispersing perfumed essences (pomanders and quintessences) into the aura. Vicky Wall was the originator of the Aura-Soma.
Mandel Colour Puncture - An increasing number of complementary therapies are incorporating colour. The classic example is colour and acupuncture (acucolour or colourpuncture). This work has been developed over several years, notably by Dr Peter Mandel of Germany.
Information provided by: The International Association of Colour
Website: www.internationalassociationofcolour.com