The Healing Qualities of Colors
"In theory, every color has healing qualities associated with it that will affect us on many levels — physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Barbara Ann Brennan, in her book Light Emerging: The Journey of Personal Healing, discusses how color is essential to our health. She believes that our bodies respond to color through the chakra system as well as through the colors of the foods we eat, the clothes we wear, and the colors we use to decorate our living spaces. Sitting in our work space, surrounded by all the colors of the beads we have chosen to work with, we are stimulating and nourishing ourselves with color on all these levels.
"As light reflects off the bead surfaces, it enters those portions of our brain called the hypothalamus, the pituitary, and the pineal. The stimulation of these light-sensitive centers has an immediate effect on our physical, emotional, and mental state, depending on how we interpret the colors and what emotions we associate with them. Our response to the colors of our beads is personal and, most likely, predictably consistent. If we have a strong negative response to a particular color, it might relate to an old unresolved emotional issue that gets triggered when we see that color. It may also correspond to a chakra center in our body where we are holding stress or perhaps have developed a debilitating illness or injury. We can use these as clues in our path of self-development.
"Over the years I have been interested in how color can be used as a healing tool and have investigated many different sources for information on the therapeutic use of color. Drawing on these sources, I have compiled some information on certain colors and the healing, spiritual qualities attributed to them. Please remember that this information is theoretical and is only meant to be a guideline. I offer these characteristics of colors as suggestions about how you might use color as a therapeutic tool in your beadwork. (If you are interested in gaining a deeper knowledge of these characteristics, I recommend reading the following authors' books: Barbara Ann Brennan, Light Emerging; Ted Andrews, How to Heal with Color; and Linda Clark, The Ancient Art of Color Therapy.)
"Remember that how people respond to color is subjective, so while a color may mean one thing to one person, it may have an entirely different meaning for you. The key is how you feel when you focus on a particular color and bring it into your energy field. Questions to ask yourself include: How do I feel when I see this color? Do I have a strong negative or positive reaction to it? If so, can I remember what might have triggered this response from my past? Do I feel energized by this color? Do I feel excited, calm, peaceful, or happy when I see it? Do I feel repulsed or tense when I see it? How you feel about the colors you work with (or do not work with) in your beadwork are keys to opening doors to your own sacred center, not anyone else's."
