The Ancient Natural Healing System of Colour Therapy
Colour therapy is an ancient natural healing system used to treat physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health.People have benefited from it’s non-invasive treatment for thousands of years, and still do today.
Colour Therapy has been used for thousands of years, probably having it’s origins in either Egypt, India or China. Even today, the walls of certain rooms in establishments are painted with particular colours in order to create a certain atmosphere: pink is known to calm aggression so is often used in prison cells; green is calming and balancing and is known to promote a feeling of peace conducive to healing so is found in many hospital wards; classrooms are often painted yellow because it’s mentally stimulating and therefore perfect for a learning environment
Many years ago, Colour Therapy was given by means of the patient entering a temple with a small, singular window in the ceiling. This window would be filled with coloured glass and the patient would literally bathe in the coloured light for a given period of time. It’s been demonstrated in modern times that the colour blue can have a beneficial effect on high blood pressure, reducing it quickly and without the need for any drugs. Interestingly, the positive effect will last far longer if the blue treatment is followed up by an orange treatment – orange is the opposite colour on the colour wheel. This is true of all colours and the second (or opposite) colour used in a treatment is known as the complimentary colour.
Image via Wikipedia
So, how do colours affect our moods or physical well-being? Colour is vibrational and can be measured on a spectrum; some colours are visible to the naked eye but others are not, such as ultra-violet. (In this article we’re concentrating on those we can see.) Green, being in the centre of a rainbow, is also at the centre of the colour spectrum. It contains equal amounts of yellow and blue and is therefore a balancing colour. On one side of green are the warmer colours: yellow, orange and red and on the other side we have the cooler colours: blue, indigo and violet. Red is the most stimulating colour, providing lots of energy, and violet is the calmest and is associated with spiritual wisdom and the practice of meditation. Orange stimulates the digestive system so is great for dining rooms and restaurants, while blue is perfect for bedrooms, being a very peaceful colour and, therefore, helpful for sleep and relaxation.
Image via Wikipedia
There are many ways to bring the vibrational qualities of a particular colour into your life, and all without the need to visit an ancient temple: you can eat fresh, natural foods in the colour you feel you require (we often do this subconsciously, anyway) or you can wear clothes made from natural materials in the colour of your choice; painting your room or house a new colour can have a tremendous impact on how you’re feeling and many people use crystals – another natural source of colour – in their home or placed/worn on the body.
If you enjoyed reading about Colour Therapy please watch out for articles I’ll be writing soon, focusing on each colour in turn and discussing it’s properties and associations in far greater detail.
If you liked this article you may also like the following:
The Colour Red: Symbolism & Associations
How Does Astrology Work? Why Don’t I Fit My Sign More Accurately?
Eliphas Levi: Famous French Magician & Occultist
A Powerful, Natural Aphrodisiac for Men & Women
The Amazing Health Benefits of Eating Hot Chili Peppers
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WriteEditSeek | Aug 25, 2009 | Reply
Very cool article. My husband and I are about halfway through with painting the walls in our house green. I feel so much happier in the “green” rooms. I need a whole lot of calming and balancing, so it sounds like I made the right choice for the wall color.
Mary Patricia Bird | Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
Yeah, it took me a long time to realize that the reason my daughter wasn’t sleeping through the night was because her bedroom was yellow. Great article. I look forward to future ones.
CaSundara | Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
@ Mary – I’ll be publishing the fisrt colour tomorrow. I’m starting with red and working around the colour wheel. I hope to finish a colour a day for the next two weeks. I hope you find them helpful!