The word "chakra" is derived from the Sanskrit word for "wheel”, and is a great visual for how you want your chakras to be working together and to feel your best both emotionally and physically.
Did you know that there are 88,000 chakras in the body! Maybe you've heard of the 12 chakra system, but there are 7 main chakras that run down the spine and that is what I will talk about today. It’s worth noting that these energetic centers are also marked by nerve endings. Chakras have a specific color, shape, texture and sound associated with them. It varies depending on the vibration they resonate at.
Why are chakras important
These energetic centers and nerves directly connect to specific organs and functions within your body. For this reason, learning how to work with your chakras can help you improve your physical health, emotional wellness and spiritual growth. We can impact our mental and emotional well-being, as well as how our bodies function by investing a little time each day cultivating the balance of our chakras. This ultimately ends up cultivating our energy flow!
Let's take a peek at each of the 7 main chakras:
The Root Chakra
- Muladhara (base of spine)
- Organs/physical: reproductive system, tailbone, legs and feet
- Stability, safety, grounding and prosperity
- Color red and music note C
The Root Chakra is located at the base of your spine and is associated with physical needs and sexuality. It is represented by the color red and the element of earth, which symbolizes survival.
This chakra governs our basic survival instincts; it's where we find our self-esteem and sense of security from others. If you aren't in touch with your root chakra, you may be more likely to take on projects or commitments that are beyond your capacity and then feel overwhelmed when they don't work out as planned because you weren't taking care of yourself first! This is so important! One way to strengthen this area is by grounding yourself through yoga poses such as tree pose or downward facing dog. Both are great for strengthening your lower body while also helping regulate breathing patterns.
The Sacral Chakra
- Svadhisthana (below belly button)
- Organs/physical: spleen, urinary tract, kidneys, ovaries and uterus, blood sugar balance
- Pleasure, relationships and desire
- Color orange and music note D
The sacral chakra is located just below the navel, in the center of your abdomen. This chakra represents your sexual energy and creativity, and it governs emotions like joyfulness and compassion.
Balancing this chakra can give you increased self-esteem, confidence and independence. It's also associated with healthy reproductive organs. When this area is balanced, it can help increase fertility and improve relationships between couples. If you're struggling with something at home and in an adjustment period this would be a good time to focus on the sacral chakra.
The Solar Plexus Chakra
- Manipura (solar plexus)
- Organs/physical: stomach, liver, gallbladder, bile and small intestine
- Self-esteem and direction
- Color yellow and music note E
The Solar Plexus Chakra is located at the center of your stomach, just below the rib cage. It is the third chakra and represents your sense of self-esteem, personal power and courage. When this chakra is balanced, you may feel more confident about yourself. Your ability to express yourself freely will also be enhanced as well as your ability to stand up for yourself when needed.
When balancing this chakra make sure you are eating healthy foods that are full of nutrients such as fruits, vegetable, and nuts. You could also try taking supplements with B-vitamins (especially B12), which help balance serotonin levels in our brains. Serotonin is known for as a mood enhancer. If these things do not work, try meditating on what it means for you to be loved unconditionally.
The Heart Chakra
- Anahata (heart)
- Organs/physical: heart, lungs, lymph, immune system, blood pressure, and circulation
- Love, kindness and sincerity
- Color green and music note F
The heart chakra is the center of unconditional love, and it’s also the most important of all the chakras for health. The energy of this center is green, and its location is on our chest in the middle of our body. It’s associated with our thymus gland, which helps regulate our immune system by producing T-cells that fight infection. The heart chakra is also linked to water because it represents how we feel and how we express love, as well as how readily we give and receive love from others.
The Throat Chakra
- Vishuddha (throat)
- Organs/physical: parathyroid, ears, sinus, and respiratory system
- Communication and creativity
- Color blue and music note G
The Throat Chakra is the voice of your soul. This chakra connects you with the world around you and is located in your throat. It is responsible for communication, expression, truth, wisdom and inspiration.
When this chakra is balanced you are able to express yourself in a way that helps others feel heard. You also find it easy to be honest about what you think or feel without fear of judgment from others because you know that there are no right or wrong answers when it comes to life. There is only how things feel, for each individual person, at a given time.
The Third Eye Chakra
- Anja (top of nose, in between eyebrows)
- Organs/physical: the brow, autonomic nervous system, hypothalamus, and eyes.
- Wisdom, speech and integrity
- Color indigo and music note A
The third eye chakra is the center of intuition and psychic abilities. It's located in between your eyebrows, although some people feel this area to be in the center of their head. The third eye chakra is associated with the color indigo because it's said to be able to see beyond what you can physically experience through your five senses.
The third eye chakra is connected to the pineal gland, which is responsible for producing melatonin (a hormone that influences sleep patterns). In addition to regulating sleep cycles, melatonin also helps us regulate wakefulness throughout our lives—from childhood until death!
The Crown Chakra
- Sahasrara (top of head)
- Organs/physical: central nervous system, head, cerebral cortex, upper spine and hair
- Knowledge and consciousness
- Color violet and music note B
The crown chakra is the topmost chakra, located at the top of your head. It's associated with spirituality, wisdom and enlightenment. The crown is also associated with the pineal gland.
When your crown chakra is balanced you feel connected to the universe/higher consciousness, and trust your own intuition.
There are many ways to work with the vibration of your chakras to keep them in balance
These are a few of my favorites:
- Use essential oils
- Eating nutritious, whole foods
- Consuming a variety of herbs and spices
- Meditation practice
- Visualization practice
- Focused breathwork
- Sound therapy
- Yoga
- Colors: with open flowing energy, work through each chakra visualization the chakra color in the order that they are located in the body (bottom of spine moving upward). This makes for a great morning and bedtime practice.
- Crystals and minerals (all-time favorite)
Shop chakra designs here
To master your chakras is to master the elements within you.
Each of the seven major chakras are associated with an element of nature and a corresponding gland in your body. When one of these glands is imbalanced, it can cause problems in other areas of our lives as well.
For example:
The first chakra (the root) is connected to stability and safety; if this one is out of balance, we may feel unsafe or unstable on a physical or mental level. If our second chakra (the sacral) is out of balance, we may become tired easily or find ourselves struggling to maintain relationships outside of our immediate circle.
It's important for us all to know what our own imbalances look like so that we can take steps toward correcting them before they become too much for us to handle alone! Awareness of the seven chakras is a key element to well-being.
I hope this article has helped you understand the chakras and has given you a sense of what they can do for your life. It’s truly amazing how much power we have inside us, but it also requires us to take responsibility for our own well-being before we can use these powers as effectively as possible. As always, I encourage you to try new things in order to find out what works best for you, as the unique person you are.