In this life we all need connection and to feel grounded, safe and stable.

Exploring how to Unblock the Lower Chakras creates space for us to Ground & Connect.

I know the idea of diving into Chakras can feel overwhelming and leave you feeling underwater.  So we are going to take it slow and explore the lower three chakras first.

There are layers in a yoga practice which include but not limited to a physical, emotional and energetic components.

Your yoga journey may be a physical practice and now may be an opportunity to explore the energies.

Chakras are apart of our subtle body. The chakras have a deep history in yoga.

Yoga means union of the body, mind and spirit.

When we endeavour to work on our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health this creates flow of energy through our chakras.

Yoga is a way to enhance and to strengthen the chakra system and strengthen the flow of energy within ourselves.

Have you heard the word prana?

Prana is our life-force energy.

Prana connects our physical and energy bodies and moves through our chakras.

What the heck does Chakra mean?

Chakra  translated is “wheels”,  “discs”.

Chakras are vortexes of energy aligning the length of your spinal cord from the base of the spine to the crown of the head.

The lower three chakras are muladhara, svadhisthana and manipura.  These chakras are connected to our walk on this earth because they relate to feelings of  safety, self-image and physical and emotional identity.

Accessing our chakras through yoga is an opportunity to harness our confidence; our health and our abundance.

The chakras are linked with to the endocrine system.

Colours and elements of the earth are also aligned with our chakras.

Anodea Judith describes in her book Chakra Yoga the following:

The chakra system is a bridge between polarities: heaven and earth, inner and outer, above and below, matter and consciousness, mind and body.

A brief overview of the first three Chakras and their Sanskrit names is below:

Root Chakra –  Muladhara

The root chakra is located at the base of the spine.

It is associated with the element of earth ? and the colour red.

This chakra is related to our feelings of safety and security in our place in this world. This chakra relates to my feelings of being grounded and connected. If you are feeling unstable move towards practices that reconnects you to the earth.

Muladhara governs your adrenal glands.

This vortex of energy relates to your roots in this world.

The root chakra is associated with your primal needs for physical body survival, trust, feeling home with self, shelter and safety. The root controls relationships with prosperity, family and giving and receiving nourishment.

If the muladhara chakra is out of balance it can manifest physically in our sacrum and impact how connected we feel to the earth. Our stability is impacted and our ability to move forward on our journey.

Feeling materialistic and heavy are the excessive qualities of the first chakra, while anxiety and fear are signs of its deficiency

When muladhara is balanced, you feel safe and body-aware, are filled with vitality and able to trust, as well as enjoy good health and abundance.

To help balance your root chakra, you may include grounding walking, connecting to the earth, walking barefoot in the grass. 

Create time to nourish your body with self care.  Enjoy nutritious foods such as root vegetables like sweet potatoes, carrots. Make time for a yoga practice that includes poses such as sphynx pose, child’s pose and squat.  If moving through asanas explore a warrior sequence. 

 

Sacral Chakra – Svadhistana 

This chakra is located in the lower abdomen below the belly button in front of your sacrum. It is related to our emotions, sensuality, our sexuality and our desire for pleasure.  The sacral chakra is also represents creation.

The sacral chakra is associated to the element of water ? and the colour of orange. \

This chakra speaks to our desires, our dreams and our emotional identity.

Connecting to this chakra creates space to allow your emotions to flow through you instead of feeling the need to shut down what is present.

The second chakra governs reproductive organs (testes/ovaries), together with the urinary and circulatory systems.

When this chakra is unbalanced, your life may be controlled by impulsive behaviours, dissatisfaction with sex, relationships with poor boundaries, materialistic attachments and excessive need to control.

If you are experiencing an excess in this chakra it may appear as self-indulgence, addictive behaviours and heightened sensitivity. A deficient chakra would be denying yourself pleasure, guilt and emotional.

When it’s balanced, you know you have enough and are able to share your emotions with others. You move through your life with fluidity and are able to adapt to the situations that arise in life.

Creating a yoga practice balancing the sacral chakra would focus on opening your hips and groin while supporting the sacrum. Bringing in hips circles, butterfly and pigeon. Also including in your practice to support and encourage creativity such as journalling, colouring, dancing.

Solar Plexus Chakra – Manipura

Manipura means lustrous gem.

This chakra is located in our solar plexus area just above the belly button.

It is associated with the colour of yellow and the element of fire ?.

I often think of the term fire in your belly when I think of the solar plexus chakra and the connection to my own inner power and strength to walk this earth my way. This chakra inspires change or transformation.

Manipura relates to your liver/kidneys, muscles and metabolism, as well as your power and will.

The manipura chakra is access to your personal power, your internal fire, accessing your inner strength to act.

The chakra is in excess when our energies show up as lack of compassion and arrogance.  When the chakra is deficient it may result in shame and low confidence.

When we have the manipura chakra in balance our gut is functioning, you have confidence and self esteem and are moving through life with purpose and determination.

Bring balance to the Manipura chakra in a yoga practice may include heat generating movements such as Sun Salutation, planks and restorative twists also support this beautiful chakra.

This is a quick snapshot of the first three chakras and how to identify blocks and relieve these blocks.

In fact I imagine you could study the chakra for years and continue to learn more.

There are many layers to peel back and explore with this area of the subtle body.

The Chakras may be described separately above and yet they work together. When we are connecting with one chakra we are in fact connecting with all chakras. They work in harmony with each other. For example when we explore our root chakra and find stability and move to our sacral chakra to connect to our fluidity of life.

Teaching with the Chakras

As a yoga teacher I enjoy integrating the chakras into the practice with sprinkling information throughout the class and integrating the poses to activate, balance or bring awareness to this area of the subtle body.

As a restorative yoga teacher and working with people who are moving through illness or injury it is my intention to bring awareness and create connection to the subtle body and in particular the chakras. This is because the chakras are a part of our subtle body and connect us to healing and our inner wisdom.

If your curiosity is piqued I invite you to check out my FREE CHAKRA MEDITATION.

Looking to dive deeper into your chakras?  I am super excited to be offering a new ONLINE Lower Chakra Series starting November 12th at 5:30pm. Learn more  HERE

Looking forward to connecting. I would love to hear from you about your experience with the Chakras.

Much love,

Misty