This is what I wondered at one time. As with most things as I learned about chakras I wasn’t going to believe in this particular hocus-pocus without evidence of some sort. But the more I learned the more I realized it wasn’t so much evidence as it was awareness that I received.
Awareness of myself, my moods, my needs, my mind, my heart, my body… Yeah, that’s how powerful understanding chakras can be.
What is a Chakra?
Chakra translates from Sanscrit as “wheel” or “disc”. Chakras are energy points or centers in your body. Each of these energy centers connects to a different part of your physical and spiritual being.
There are technically 100’s of chakras throughout our bodies, but we tend to focus on seven main ones. These are arranged in a line up our bodies from the tailbone to the top of your head.
Root (Muladahara) – Located at the base of your spine near the perinium, represented by the color red, and is connected to feelings of safety and groundedness. When it is blocked you may feel threated or unstable.
Sacral (Swadhisthana) – Located just below the navel, represented by the color orange, and is connected to our creativity and sexual energy. When it is blocked you may feel a lack of control in your life.
Solar Plexus (Manipura) – Located at the base of the sternum, represented by the color yellow, and connected to confidence and self-esteem. When it is blocked you may feel shame and self-doubt.
Heart (Anahata) – Located in the center of your chest, represented by the color green, and connected to feelings of love and trust. When it is blocked you may have difficulty opening up to other people.
Throat (Vishuddha) – Located at the base of your throat, represented by light blue, and connected to truth and communication. When it is blocked you may have difficulty expressing yourself or speaking your own personal truth.
Third Eye (Ajna) – Located between the eyes at the brow, represented by dark blue, and connected to our intuition. When it is blocked you may ignore your instincts and intuition, leaving you vulnerable.
Crown (Sahasrara) – Located at the top of the skull, represented by either the color purple or is clear, and is connected to the divine or higher consciousness. When it is blocked you may feel cut off from the universe or God.
How to Unblock or Activate a Chakra
In this short article I’m focusing on unblocking stuck chakras. I do want to note that they can also be too open causing other issues, such as being so loving and trusting with a too open Heart chakra that you are not setting boundaries and prioritizing yourself in relationships.
Keep this in mind as we move forward and know that not all chakras need opening. Instead, some benefit from a little massaging to keep them in line.
That being said, let’s look at how to focus on your chakras.
Identify an area that needs attention by noticing how things are going in your life and what chakra something you are struggling with is connected to. Or mentally scan each chakra point and intuit which ones feel off or as if it needs a little love.
You can choose one of many steps from here. Options include (but are certainly not limited to) meditation on that chakra, breathing into the area, visualizing a revolving wheel (remember Chakra means “wheel”) of the color of that chakra or a blossoming flower in its location, repeating affirmations and applying related essential oils.
Affirmations
I’ll provide you with sample affirmations for each chakra. Please keep in mind that any affirmation you intuitively come up with yourself may be more powerful than anything I can offer.
Root: “In this moment I am safe”
Sacral: “I honor my creativity”
Solar Plexus: “I accept myself as I am”
Heart: “I love myself and am open to loving others”
Throat: “I speak my truth”
Third eye: “I listen to my intuition”
Crown: “I am a vessel for love and light”
Did you react to any of those affirmations? If you had a negative reaction to one or more, tensed up, or had difficulty reading them, those are chakras I’d recommend you begin focusing on ASAP.
Yoga and Essential Oils
There are also yoga postures associated with each chakra that can be used to activate or focus them. Used in conjunction with appropriate essential oils, this can be a powerful mind body connection.
You might apply a drop of Frankincense oil to your Third Eye, move into child’s pose with your forehead on the floor or a yoga block and relax here while repeating the affirmation “I listen to my intuition.”
The examples I provide here are not exhaustive, but are a wonderful place to start.
Root: Mountain Pose, Vetiver oil
Sacral: Bound Angle Pose, Blue Tansy oil
Solar Plexus: Boat Pose, Lemon oil
Heart: Camel Pose, Ylang Ylang oil
Throat: Fish Pose, Laurel Leaf oil
Third Eye: Child’s Pose, Frankincense oil
Crown: Savasana, Sandalwood oil
*A huge thank you to Lindsay Luker of Good Leaf Life for her input here.
Do What Feels Right
There are many more aspects to chakras, like sounds to chant and hand gestures (Mudras) to include, but I thought this was enough to get you started.
Start anywhere that feels right to you. Do as much or as little as suits your needs. Be gentle with yourself.
As always, if there are things that get triggered by doing this work or even by reading this article that are a little outside your realm of understanding to figure out, I’m here to walk beside you as your life coach.