If you have found the information interesting, you may feel that you would like to expand your knowledge on the subject; experience colour therapy for yourself; train to become a colour practitioner; or learn more about colour in order that you may use it in conjunction with any other therapy that you are practising. Alternatively, you might like to learn how to use colour in decoration, in dress, or in art. We are affected by colour, however we may use it.

There are many excellent books on the market which explore every aspect of colour. If you belong to a local library, check to see if they have any of the books that you wish to read before going out and buying them. If they do not have them, they will often order them for you. On the other hand, you may wish to buy them for future reference, especially if you intend to take your interest in colour further.

Should you decide that you would like to be treated with colour and do not know of anyone practising in your area, there are several ways of finding your nearest colour practitioner. The first is by contacting The Institute for Complementary Medicine (ICM). The ICM is a registered charity with three main areas of work: 1. information service to the general public; 2. recognition of training standards of practitioners; and 3. encouragement of research.

The ICM will either give you the names and addresses of practitioners living in or around your area, or they will give you the name and telephone number of one of the accepted training schools. In the case of the latter, ring the school and ask if they can give you the name of a qualified colour practitioner in your area. Most schools have a register of the practitioners who have qualified through them and will send out copies to enquirers. It is important that whoever treats you should be qualified. To find out, ask them where they trained and then telephone the school to find out if they are on the register. It is important to do this if the person treating you comes either through recommendation or an advertisement for at present it is very easy for anybody to set up as a practitioner in many branches of complementary medicine. Fortunately, as British standards are being brought into line with other countries, this will become much more difficult in the near future. Treatment given by unqualified people can be dangerous, can damage the therapy by giving it a bad name, and can undermine those who have studied hard in order to practise it.

Another association which gives information on colour therapy and colour practitioners is The International Association for Colour Therapists' (IACT). This is affiliated to the Institute for Complementary Medicine, and was started by Theo. Gimbel in 1984 to promote colour consciousness in all forms of healing and complementary therapies. Its aims and objectives are:

1. To establish colour healing as a significant branch of complementary therapy.
2. To determine professional standards of practice in the use of colour therapy.
3. To improve the understanding and use of colour in healing, health, beauty, fashion, decor, industry and complementary therapies.
4. To make it easier for people to find out more about colour and how to avail themselves of colour therapy.

The associate membership is open to anyone who is interested in or working with colour in any field and to anyone who is studying colour at a recognized school. To obtain full membership, graduation from a recognized school is required plus a minimum of three years' professional experience in the therapeutic use of colour.

The activities of IACT include making information about training in the use of colour available through lectures, courses, workships, seminars and conferences; helping and supporting members and providing opportunities for them to contact others who are interested in or working with colour; promoting periodic publications throughout the year; making colour therapy available to the public; and keeping members informed about research in the use of colour.

Should you wish to train as a colour practitioner, there are several schools which run training courses. I would advise that before embarking upon a lengthy and sometimes costly course, you check that the qualifications offered by the school of your choice have been accepted by the ICM as reaching the required standard. The duration and cost of training differs from school to school, and it is advantageous to glean information from several schools before making a choice.

To give some idea of what is expected of a student and what training involves, I will cite the two schools with which I have had personal contact.

The first is The Maitreya School of Healing which was founded in 1974 by Lily Cornford and Ronald Leech (known to most people as Joseph). For many years, Lily and Joseph worked with small groups of people, teaching the information which was transmitted through their intuition from a higher level of consciousness. Over the years, more and more people were attracted to their work, and by 1990 their work had grown to such proportions that it moved to its present address.

The philosophy of the Maitreya School taken from their curriculum is:

We aspire to prepare healers for the healing work of the Aquarian age by transmitting knowledge, cultivating Heart, instilling responsibility. The school hopes to provide an environment in which the healer can purify his/her own vehicle of manifestation; discover what service she/he can offer to the kingdoms of nature (human, animal, plant and mineral kingdom) and become sensitive to the presence and healing qualities of the angels and fairies.

Training to become a practitioner through the Maitreya School consists of thirteen weekly training sessions. At the end of this period, the students are given both a practical and theoretical examination. If they are successful in passing these, they are then expected to undertake one hundred hours of training at the school under the supervision of a qualified practitioner.

The Maitreya School also runs a Mental Colour Therapy Clinic which provides treatment by qualified mental colour practitioners. The charge for adults is minimal and treatment is free of charge for children up to school-leaving age. The Maitreya School believes that the children's treatment becomes the school's investment towards creating a more spiritual future for the planet.

The second school with which I have had personal contact and where I have taught is the Hygeia College of Colour Therapy, founded by Theo. Gimbel in 1976. Over many years, Theo. has developed a comprehensive system for the therapeutic use of colour energies, and his work acknowledges that of earlier researchers such as J. W. Goethe, Rudolf Steiner, Edwin Babbitt and Dinshah P. Ghadiali. The College believes and teaches the principle that colour works at the subtle level of the auric body and with its related chakras. The physical disturbances are prefigured by imbalances in the aura which the energies of colour are able to harmonize. In so doing, negative patterns are released from the body, and this allows natural healing to take place. Attention is directed at replacing negative thoughts and emotions with positive life-affirming ones. The ultimate goals of therapy are peace and joy, and these are worked towards with insight, discipline and spiritual inspiration.

The training given for a colour practitioner at Hygeia College takes approximately two years. It consists of six weekend foundation courses, a two-week residential course, and a probationary year.

The six weekend foundation courses cover colour, healing, music, form, counselling, and colour and its application to health. After each of these weekends, the students are asked to write an essay on their understanding of the weekend. At the end of the six foundation courses, they are expected to write a dissertation of not less than 7,000 words before attending the advanced course. Their dissertation can be on any aspect of colour about which they feel drawn to write. The six weekend courses can be taken residentially at Hygeia College or non-residentially in London.

The two-week advanced course, which is residential and held at Hygeia College, incorporates three examination papers (two on colour therapy and one on anatomy and physiology); practical tests; interviews; and lectures given by practitioners from different complementary disciplines.

If and when students have reached the required standard, they are expected to work with friends and relatives for a year, submitting twelve case histories to the college. At the end of the year, if all is satisfactory, their name is added to the Hygeia Register of Colour Practitioners.

After qualifying, should a student wish to teach colour therapy, they have to study for their diploma. This normally takes a further two years.

For those of you who would like some insight into colour therapy before embarking upon a training course, and for those who would just like to know something about colour therapy, introductory days are run in London.

Other schools which teach colour from basic to diploma level are 'Aura Soma' and 'Know Yourself Through Colour'. The addresses and telephone numbers of these schools are given in the List of Addresses.

There are also schools which include colour and healing in their syllabus, and these may be of interest to those who do not wish to embark upon a full training course. Three such schools are: Living Art run by Jane Cory Wright MIACT; Promethus run by Dr Carol Brierley MIACT; and Living a Rainbow run by Noelle Lever MIACT. Their addresses and telephone numbers can be obtained from IACT.

Weekend courses on the use of colour in conjunction with reflexology are run in London. These are aimed at qualified reflexologists who wish to use colour with their treatment. During the course of these weekends, participants explore colour and its meaning, and the aura and the chakras (where these are located on the spinal reflex of the feet and the importance of working with them). Techniques are shown to help students become more sensitive to the vibrational frequencies of colour, thereby enabling a greater understanding of the effect that colour has on each individual. The group is then taught how the Reflexology Crystal Torch can be used in conjunction with a normal reflexology treatment to apply colour to the reflexes of the feet in order to promote healing. For details of these workshops, contact the author.

Courses are also run for those who wish to work with colour and yoga. These courses are suitable for people who are complete beginners as well as for those who have some knowledge of either yoga or colour. Again details can be obtained from the author.

Having read this, should you decide to work with colour in any of its many facets, I wish you the joy and wonder that it has afforded me.

May the light from the Eternal Source which radiates from your heart and is expressed in the living dancing colours which surround you, bless you with health, harmony and joy.

Matthew Bakewell

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