The Water Tattva

Compiled by Liv Kaur and shared in the May 2009 Aquarian Times Magazine

The twenty-first century heralds the Age of Aquarius. In Western astrology, Aquarius is the water bearer. Water is one of the five tattvas¹ and it is the theme for the 2009 Solstice Sadhana Celebrations. How does the water tattva affect us and our relationships with others as we move into the Aquarian Age?

The water tattva is associated with the second chakra² which holds the energy of creativity and the ability to see outside of ourselves. According to the Aquarian Teacher³ “the second chakra … correlates in how we relate to others. A person whose second chakra is balanced can exhibit these qualities: positivity, a relaxed mental attitude toward sexuality, patience, creativity, responsible relationships … From the yogic point of view, the experiences of the second chakra provide the first taste of merger of going beyond one’s isolated self; dissolving with, through and into another. The momentary forgetfulness in the ecstasy of sexual release is a taste of the much greater bliss available to us as we let go and merge with the Infinite Polarity, where our finite and infinite have intercourse into a creative sense of awareness….

Taste is the sensory system connected with the second chakra.  Without passions, life has no taste, and taste itself is conveyed by the watery mixtures of chemicals that we take in through our tongue. When you experience great passion, then the taste within your mouth also changes. In the state of yoga, you unite with the Infinite. At that point your brain produces an amrit, a sweet nectar. To yogis, the tongue represents the male organ, and the lips represent the opening of the female organ. The constant vibration of this into speech is the production of seed, and those seeds are what give the creativity in the world. You can create on the gross material level directly through the second chakra and the physical organs, or you can create through the word and through vibration.  In both cases, you’re mastering the art of blending polarities.”

Masaru Emoto, researcher and author of The Hidden Messages in Water, asks, “Do you know that your consciousness can change water? When you send your gratitude to water, its quality improves. When you call water by names or ignore it, it deteriorates.” Through his research, he found that water responded most positively and beautifully when told the words, “Love and Gratitude.” It is through relationship and communication that giving and receiving are made manifest.

Yogi Bhajan’s teachings support this universal wisdom:

“Water, Earth, Heavens have consciousness, and knowing this is the process of life and living. You know spirit, aura, memory never die. They call it akashic records. Whatever you are doing on the Earth, the Heavens are recording it. The Earth is living it, and Water, the vibration of communication, is sustaining it.”

The key to healthy chakras is balance.  Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan gives us the tools to balance our chakras. Frog Pose and Sat Kriya are known to work on the second chakra; and the Narayan Kriya, which honors Narayan, the Lord of Water, will work on our second chakra and on healing, strengthening, and balancing the relationships we have with ourselves and with others.

Water can teach you to be compassionate to others; and to wash clean and purify all who come into contact with you. Just as water is always flowing, the sadhak (person on a spiritual path) is continuously flowing and progressive, never stagnant.

¹The five gross elements of earth, water, fire, air, ether (space)

²Eight energy centers of the human being; seven correspond to nerve plexuses in the physical body, and the eighth corresponds to the aura.  The 2nd Chakra corresponds to the sex organs.

³The Aquarian Teacher KRI International Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training Level 1