Mainstream science has relegated the subject of human auras primarily to New Age mysticism. However, that is beginning to change.
Some neurophysiologists have begun to meet New Agers halfway by suggesting that the ability to see a glowing aura surrounding a person is the product of synesthesia. This is when areas of the brain responsible for processing sensory stimuli become connected more intensely. A synesthete may be able to “taste” sound or “feel” colors.
This would explain why some people can see an area of electromagnetic energy shimmering around the form of a human body. Of course, shamans, alternative healers, and spiritual adepts have been seeing and reading auras for centuries. They consider an aura a natural component of all living creatures.
Christina Lonsdale is a Portland-based artist who uses special camera equipment to capture images of human auras. She has developed a laboratory she calls Radiant Human. She offers Polaroid photos of auras for people who want to see and gain insight about themselves via viewing their auras.
A human aura can manifest in all seven colors of the rainbow, depending on a host of factors. That can be everything from one’s physical and mental health to the person’s level of spiritual development. It can also indicate one’s current emotional state. For example, a person who is extremely angry, unforgiving, or anxious may display a vivid red aura. A red aura can also indicate a healthy ego, however.
A green aura in some traditions or schools of thought is associated with the heart and lungs. Because green is most associated with nature, a person displaying a green aura may be emotionally and psychologically well balanced, growing, and nurturing positive life changes.
A violet aura is often associated with advanced spiritual development. People with purple auras are highly intuitive, have excellent psychic abilities, and tend to be magical or artistic.
Everyone would love to have a gold aura because it signifies an enlightened person, perhaps as in the Vedic or Buddhist sense. A gold aura represents a person clothed in divine protection and is one who enjoys an advanced level of wisdom.
Keep in mind that, although every color has a specific meaning, interpretation of what they may mean varies widely depending on the tradition and the methodology of the individual aura reader.