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done in an attitude of non-attachment to the fruits of one’s labor. I believe that the insight of chakra 4 is that higher states of selfless love, of which this type of service is an expression, not only influence and shape consciousness, but are a necessary precondition in the process of merging with Universal Consciousness.
Wilber calls the two higher transition points Apollo and Vishnu. I would rather call them Vishnu and Shiva, respectively, since these are the names yogis give to the granthis or knots associated with chakras 4 and 6. In addition, Vishnu is that aspect of the Hindu Godhead (the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva) who manifests in human form as the Avatar to help mankind reach fourth chakra consciousness and beyond. He teaches the path of love and selfless service, and his exemplary life serves as a perfect role model. Sai Baba says that the Avatar incarnates from age to age when man’s consciousness has fallen and darkness overwhelms the world: “To grant peace, joy and a sense of fulfillment to seekers who have striven long; to foster dharma (righteousness); to suppress evil and overwhelm the wicked. The descent of God to earth, the incarnation of the formless with form, is the concretiza- tion of the yearning of the seekers.”
Incarnations such as those of Christ, Buddha and Krishna have the power to change the course of history, as they elevate human consciousness beyond selfishness to selflessness, beyond duality to divinity.
CHAKRAS 5, 6, AND 7
The expanded consciousness of those who have attained the fourth chakra clearly sees that the world of duality leads to suffering and death—to bondage. It also brings direct experience of an inner divine love which transcends duality. Hence arises a heightened yearning to avoid attachment to the duality of the outer world in order to fully merge with divine love. This is the stage of renunciation and detachment, the challenge of the fifth chakra.
The fifth chakra is located at the level of the larynx and is called the bishuddsha chakra, which means purification. It is associated with the third cervical vertebra, the pharyngeal sympathetic plexus, the thyroid gland and the sense of hearing. Symbolized by an oval shape, it is supposedly mauve in color, and its element is ether or space. It has a lotus of 16 petals of a smoky purple hue. The yogi able