Balancing the Chakras

The chakras, from Sanskrit meaning wheel, are spinning energy centres in the body that are believed to regulate processes like organ function, our immune system & emotions. There are 7 main chakras from the base or the spine to the crown of the head. Each chakra has it's own vibrational frequency that affects us from our survival strategies to how we communicate. Here is a bit more about them & how they relate to us physically, emotionally & even spiritually & how to find more balance through them.

1st Chakra:

Root (Muladhara) meaning: root support, element: Earth, sound: LAM, color: Red, verb: “I have” Located: pelvic floor, legs, hips, feet, teeth About: survival – we work to understand & heal our bodies

Malfunctioning: Negativity, eating disorders, digestive issues, insecurity, fear, greed, living in survival mode.

To help balance: Connecting with nature & the earth, creating safe feelings, physical activity, working on self esteem & self reliance, re-enforcing personal abundance

Affirmation: I AM

2nd Chakra:

Sacral (Svadhisthana) meaning: sweetness, element: Water, sound: VAM, color: orange, verb: “I feel” Located: lower abs, sacrum, genitals (also womb on women) About: movement & change Desire creates movement which creates change = the consciousness thrives on change

Malfunctioning: Bladder issues, low back pain, ruled by or disconnected from emotions, overindulgence, feeling stuck

To help balance: Dancing/moving the body, releasing emotional baggage, opening the hips, be gentle & kind to yourself, baths, celebrate achievements

Affirmation: I FEEL

3rd Chakra:

Solar Plexus (Manipura) meaning: lustrous gem element: Fire, sound: RAM, color: Yellow, verb: “I can” Located: solar plexus (between navel & sternum) About: energy Matter + Movement = Energy True will, power, belonging

Malfunctioning: Digestive disorders, ulcers, excess control or helplessness, overly focused, manipulative, misuse of power, lack of ambition, not following through on things

To help balance: Get out in the sun, learn assert yourself, encourage harmonious relationships, find an effortless effort in life, become empowered, limit negative self talk

Affirmation: I DO

4rd Chakra:

Heart (Anahata) meaning: unstruck or unhurt element: Air, sound: YAM, color: Green, verb: “I love” Located: Heart, arms, hands, lungs About: Love, compassion, empathy, gratitude Centre of healing & peace, unity between physical world (lower 3 chakras) & spiritual/ethereal (upper 3)

Malfunctioning: Asthma, heart/lung disease, high blood pressure, overly defensive, closed down emotionally, fear of intimacy, co-dependent, feeling a victim, antisocial

To help balance: Unconditional love & connection, see beauty in things, encourage deep relationships, find integration between earthly & spiritual aspirations, do something you love, be generous & loving

Affirmation: I LOVE

5th Chakra:

Throat (Vissuddha) meaning: purification or cleansing, element: Ether (or sound), sound: HAM, color: Blue, verb: “I speak” Located: throat, thyroid, parathyroid, neck, shoulders, arms, hands About: communication, creativity, truth, voice, rhythm, self expression Beginning of ethereal space (non-physical, lightness, intangible) or spirit realm.

Malfunctioning: Throat issues, neck pain/stiffness, hearing problems, not being able to listen, lack of control over ones speech, lack of connection to vocation

To help balance: Expressing your truth, work on communication verbal or non-verbal, really listen, speak/sing, be open & honest,

Affirmation: I SPEAK

6th Chakra:

Third Eye (Anja) meaning: to perceive – to command, element: Ether (or Light), sound: OM, color: Indigo, verb: “I see” Located: third eye (between brows, little higher), eyes pineal gland About: seeing physically & intuitively, visualization, wisdom Malfunctioning: eye issues, headaches, nightmares, indecisiveness, disconnected from reality, lack of clarity

To help balance: Be intuitive, charismatic, master of yourself, work on visualizations (power of intention, what you “see” comes to fruition)

Affirmation: I SEE

7th Chakra:

Crown (Sahasrara) meaning: thousandfold, element: Ether (or thought), sound: silence, color: violet to while, verb: “I know” Located: a few inches above the crown of the head, connected to cerebral cortex, pituitary, central nervous system About: transcending the physical to something beyond – greater consciousness

Malfunctioning: depression, alienation, confusion, and boredom, disconnection to sacredness, disconnection from the body by living in your head, close minded

To help balance: Meditate, be understanding, find quite time, find your bliss, let go of attachment, liberate from limiting patterns, be present, read inspirational writings

Affirmation: I UNDERSTAND

This is just a bit of info I've collected over the years on the chakras that make sense to me. If find the idea of them intriguing & seems to resonate with me. You may find more ways to help to feel more balance with them & therefore in yourself. Just be curious & you will find your own way to work with them.

To help connect to the chakras in an easy way, here is the Seven Petaled Lotus Meditation, as inspired by a friend & teacher of mine Pamela Alexander http://compassionatevoice.ca

Explore it & make it your own.

Seven Petaled Lotus Meditation

This meditation uses the seed sound of the 7 chakras (energy centres)

You can use the hand movement suggested, & move up & down as you sound out loud or in your mind. You may want to stay on one chakra & repeat that sound over & over with or without the hand movement.

Start from any position seated, standing or lying. Start with both hands in from for the pelvis. Leave one hand in front of the pubic bone to keep you grounded, and bring the other up to each area of awareness (chakra) in a smooth, gliding, travelling motion, until you get to the Crown sound, the So-Hum. Don’t bounce from spot to spot with your hand, just draw a steady line of energy, and notice your awareness travelling up through the chakras as you sound.

Just use a tone, any tone & use for all the 1st 6 chakras & when you reach the crown the sound goes up a tone as you sound SO then move the hand back down to the pelvis as you sound HAM. You may want to switch hands & stretch the hands overhead to add a lovely stretch to the meditation.

As you move through the areas of awareness in the practice, the goal is not to change or fix or otherwise alter what is there, simply to bring awareness in conjunction with your sounding.

LAM - Root chakra - base of pelvis

VAM - Sacral chakra - below navel

RAM - Solar plexus chakra - above navel (solar plexus)

YAM - Heart chakra - centre of chest

HAM - Throat chakra - throat

OM - Third eye chakra - just above centre of eyebrows

SO HAM - Crown chakra - just above the crown of the head

"The body is the vehicle, consciousness the driver, Yoga is the path, and the chakras are the map". Anodea Judith author of Wheels of Life - A users guide to the chakra system.

-- Namaste,