What is the Etheric Body?

Be Grateful for the Chakras

To further explain, each of your subtle bodies interpenetrates the Physical Body connected to a whirling energy point called a chakra. The chakras direct the energy throughout your Physical Body via a meridian system, much like the circulation system for our blood. Indeed, without these ever-spinning vortexes of energy, we humans would essentially be two-dimensional and live a minimal existence.

Image description: Showing the seven primary chakras within the subtle body.

Back to the Etheric Body

Significantly, the first of the subtle bodies is the Etheric Body. Notably, “Etheric” comes from the word Ether, which means “the state between energy and matter.” In particular. the Etheric Body is considered a vehicle for Prana, life force energy absorbed from the sun’s rays, which keeps us alive.

The Etheric Body is composed of tiny energy lines likened to a sparkling web of light beams. These beams are similar to the lines on a TV screen.

The web-like structure of the Etheric Body is in continual motion. Those trained to view the Etheric Body with their physical eyes can see sparkles of bluish light moving along its energy lines.

Everything that Exists Has an Etheric Counterpart

Everything that exists in our earthly dimensional plane has its own subtle corresponding Etheric Body counterpart.

With this in mind, envision the human etheric body as a constant vibrating web of energy from which our energetic blueprint forms. It vibrates at a slightly higher frequency than the Physical Body. Therefore, it’s not ordinarily perceived by the physical eyes. However, there are exceptions, which you’ll read about below.

Of vital importance, this subtle body, which carries our strength, is ultimately essential for our well-being. But, more interestingly, when impacted by shock, trauma, and extensive drug use as well as unresolved issues, the Etheric Body becomes damaged, and thus, so do our levels of vitality.

Is the Etheric Body Actually the Astral Body?

According to some, the Astral Body is an energetic body closely associated with the Etheric Body. Some individuals even claim that the astral body IS the etheric body! However, this is not the case. I can see why this might happen. The Etheric and Astral bodies play a huge part in how we leave our Physical Body at death and make the transition to the Plane of Spirits. Just know that the Etheric Body stands on its own and is the base subtle body of the seven subtle bodies.

The Discovery of the Etheric Body:

No one had heard of the etheric body until C. W. Leadbeater, early theosophist (see below), claimed to have discovered it through his clairvoyant powers sometime around the early 1900s.

Leadbeater and Annie Besant then altered the existing description and definition of the astral body to fit the “newly discovered” Etheric Body into the details of man’s inner constitution.

More specifically, at the same time, they altered the definition and details of all the other human components, resulting in terrible confusion for many individuals studying the human aura ever since.

The Early Theosophists

Theosophists Arthur E. Powell, C. W. Leadbeater, Annie Besant, and other metaphysicians call the Etheric Body various names. The most common is the Etheric Double, Etheric Template, and the Vital Body. These early Theosophists proposed that the subtle body is less dense than the Physical Body vibrating at a much faster rate of frequency. And, that the subtle body is less dense than the Physical Body vibrating at a much faster rate of frequency. 

As mentioned previously, the Etheric subtle body serves as the blueprint for the Physical Body, meaning it provides the physical form and framework for our Physical Body.

The Etheric Body Occupies the Same Space

By occupying the same space as the Physical Body, the Etheric Body is separated from the Physical Body by its faster vibratory frequency as are all the subtle bodies.

Again, the Etheric Body is the only subtle body viewable with the physical eyes. 

As seen, the Etheric Body radiates whitish-blue energy that appears as a tiny pulsating spike of energy surrounding the human form by those trained in viewing the Aura, such as clairvoyants and energy healers. The energy spikes flare outwards, and just as quickly contract as individuals undergo various emotions.

How Some People See the Etheric Body

In particular, some people can naturally see the Etheric Body Aura around a Physical Body. Individuals that can see this faint Aura aren’t aware they see something unusual. To them, it’s so natural; they may think that everyone can see it. Markedly, through *Kirlian photography, the Etheric Body is made evident. The Etheric Body’s field extends from 1/4 inch to 1 inch beyond the skin’s surface. It’s estimated that the Etheric Body pulsates at about 15-20 cycles per minute. And, as mentioned, this radiant energy increases and decreases in size, and when observed, will periodically flare outwards in response to continual changes in thoughts and emotions.

The Etheric Body Contains Two Parts:

1. Firstly, the primary part is the Etheric Double. This double is an exact duplicate of our human body right down to the atoms, cells, tissues, muscles, and organs. Think of the Etheric Body as a photographic negative. Additionally, the first part of the Etheric Body also contains our chakras and countless energy channels called meridians.
2. Secondly, the aura is the next part of the Etheric Body. It’s an egg-shaped electromagnetic field of luminous waves which surrounds us. Every person has an aura. Comprised of moving colors, the aura extends out roughly three feet from the physical body. The colors of the aura are in constant flux and are continually shaped and reshaped by patterns of thought and feeling. It can reflect our personalities, lifestyles, and physical condition. Likewise, the Aura contains past, present, and even future lifetime data.
3. Thirdly, find out more about how the aura provides this information in our Akashic Records Course at Imagine Spirit.

The Phenomena of Phantom Limbs

Surprisingly, individuals who’ve lost a limb sometimes complain that they can feel pain at the extremities where the appendage once existed. This phenomenon occurs because the etheric part of the appendage stays with the physical body. And, under certain conditions of stimulus, people claim that feeling sensations happen where the missing limb once was.

The Etheric Body and Reincarnation

Of primary note, the Etheric Body plays an integral part in determining the type of physical vehicle incarnating individuals decide to inhabit. At death, the Etheric Body separates from the Physical Body. And, like the Physical Body, it dies and decomposes in due course, releasing the “soul” to the Astral Body for the next stage of the soul’s never-ending journey.

Incredibly, a series of photo images taken by Hereward Carrington and John R. Meader, and included in their book, Death: Its Causes and Phenomenon, 1912, clearly demonstrates this. In the first experiment of its kind, Madam Baraduc granted the macabre permission to be photographed at death and in the hours afterward for the sake of science.