Some people wonder, “what is all this talk about chakras?”. Many energy workers talk about them along with words like aura and meridians. You may have heard of chakras, but aren’t really sure what they are or what they do. So here is some simple information about the chakras.
Picture a person sitting cross-legged on the floor or ground. Now imagine the front of the person having circular, flower-like, fans located at the pelvis (root chakra), an inch or so below the navel (sacral chakra), a couple inches above the navel (solar plexus), middle of the chest (heart chakra), center of the throat (throat chakra), slightly above and in-between the eyes (brow chakra), and the center top of the head (crown chakra).
I have read that the chakras appear as flower-like or oscillating structures from the front of the body, with stems the go through towards the back of the body, except for the crown and root chakras. The petal-like structure of the crown chakra faces the sky with the stem running down the central column or middle of the body connecting to the stem of the root chakra. The petals of the root chakra face downward towards the ground from the pelvis area, or perineum, between the thighs.
The chakras spin in a circular clockwise pattern. Each chakra’s speed increases from the root up toward the crown. When any of the chakras are over active, too open, and/or too large, they are considered imbalanced and not functioning at their fullest potential, resulting in difficulties or challenges in life.
The same goes for underactive, shrunken, closed, and/or dirty chakras; they are considered imbalanced and we may notice difficulties or challenges in life. There is an exception with some closed chakras, that sometimes they are closed temporarily for restoration and healing.
The root cause of challenges and difficulties can be found in the energy fields. Energy workers understand the importance of resolving the underlying issues that present as physical, mental, emotional, and/or spiritual ailments or difficulties. By attending to balancing and restoring the chakras, the surfacing issues also fade away.
Each chakra represents certain aspects of our lives. Here are some key points about each chakra:
Body Level Chakras
Root Chakra
Keywords: basic needs / survival / manifestation / sexuality
This root chakra is located at the perineum (mid-way between the anus and the genitals). The color associated with this chakra is red and it is the slowest moving chakra compared to the others.
The root chakra represents the very primal needs of survival. This can include anything from our physical safety (volunerable/at risk of victimization or feeling safe), needs (having enough food and clothes for you and your family), our financial matters (money coming in and out, our bills, savings, etc.), our jobs/careers (job security, the benefits related to the job, commuting to/from your job, etc.), our home (safe environment, condition of your home, wanting to move, etc.), our sexuality and primal need to procreate, to our possessions (transportation, furniture, and work-related equipment, etc).
The issues related to survival and protection are related to this chakra.
Sacral Chakra
Keywords: self-worth / emotions / relationships / creativity
The sacral chakra is located just below the navel. The color associated with this chakra is orange. It moves slightly faster than the root chakra.
The sacral chakra represents creativity, the body’s muscle system, our emotions, and sexuality in terms of gender roles and identities. In terms of our body, this chakra relates to our exercise routines, weight, sleep patterns, and our thoughts/perceptions of our appearance. The sacral chakra relates to the cravings of physical pleasures (food, drink, sex, thrill-seeking) along with any addition (drugs, alcohol, food, sex, gambling, shopping, etc).
Solar Plexus Chakra
Keywords: personal power / will / self-esteem
The solar plexus chakra is located below the sternum and is yellow in color. It moves slightly faster than the sacral chakra.
This is the chakra representing thought and intellect. More specifically, how we think about power (our own power, the power of others, authority figures, etc). Our sense of self, or our self-esteem, is related to this chakra. Do you desire or fear being powerful? Do you fear being controlled or have you been in the past and it affects you currently? Are you satisfied with your role and the degree of authority that is expected? These are some situations that can be identified with the solar plexus.
Spirit Level Chakras
Heart Chakra
Keywords: love / trust / compassion / forgiveness
The heart chakra is located at the same level of your actual heart, but in the center of the body. The color associated with the heart chakra is green (sometimes pink is represented in an area called the “high-heart” chakra). It spins slightly faster than the solar plexus. This is the midpoint of the 7 main chakras. The chakras below this point move or spin at a slower speed and the chakras above the heart chakra spin or move at a quicker speed.
The heart chakra represents our self-love, loving others, receiving love, and loving unconditionally. This chakra relates to our relationships (with family members, past/current lovers/spouses, friends/peers, co-workers/employers, mentors/teachers, and strangers), love (romantic, platonic, familial, and/or spiritual/divine love such as God), attachments to others (dysfunctional relationships, obsessions, and/or co-dependency), and the ability to forgive or not (toward yourself, others you personally know, strangers, countries, and/or organizations).
This is the first chakra of the spiritual level chakras. It can be a gate-keeper of spiritual information to the physical chakra and from the physical chakras to the spiritual ones.
Throat Chakra
Keywords: communication / self-expression
The throat chakra is located at the neck and the color associated with this chakra is turquoise. It moves or spins slightly faster than the heart chakra. This chakra is affiliated with the ability to communicate and adapt to change.
When you’re able to speak with truth it is balanced, whether it’s to yourself, speaking to others (family, friends/peers, co-workers/employers/employees, clients/customers, and/or your audience). This also represents any communication projects and/or teaching.
This is the center of clairaudience, or the ability to hear from the spiritual world.
Brow Chakra
Keywords: intuition/connections to Higher Self
The brow or “third-eye” chakra is located slightly above and between the eyes. The color associated with the brow chakra is blue and moves/spins slightly faster than the throat chakra. It is affiliated with intuition, divine knowing, and looking inward. It also represents discernment, unemotional judgement, and information retrieval and processing. This chakra may be affected depending on the intensity of your desire or reluctance to knowing about your future. It may also be affected with any fears or intense desire to see those of the spiritual world (e.g. angels and/or those who have passed).
This is the center of clairvoyance, or the ability to see the spirit world.
Crown Chakra
Keywords: enlightenment / spiritual connection.
The crown chakra is located at the top or crown of the head. The color associate with the crown chakra is violet or purple. It moves or spins the fastest of all the main 7 chakras discussed here. Above the crown chakra is another called the Soul Star Chakra, however we will not discuss this chakra at this time.
This is the chakra affiliated with receiving pure spiritual information from our angels, spirit guides, or that of God. It represents our thoughts about our relationship with God (or our higher power), our thoughts and/or experiences with religions (our own or others), our thoughts/beliefs about receiving spiritual/divine guidance, and/or our willingness (or not) to receive such information.
This chakra is affiliated with claircognizance, or the ability to know or become aware.
Reducing the challenges in your life
There are many ways to clear, balance, return the chakras to their proper functioning. There are many chakra balancing techniques and meditations available. Meditating with visualization and breath work can be very helpful and something you can do on your own.
Some prefer the assistance of energy workers. There are a number of holistic alternatives that engage in chakra work. An overall Reiki session or a Reiki balancing session can address the chakras. Crystal therapy, yoga, and yoga therapy are other modalities that can be useful. Single sessions can be rejuvenating. As with any form of energy work, it may take multiple sessions for improvement, however the accumulative effect will have lasting benefits.
