Feeling a bit distracted? Out of sorts? In a rut? Maybe your chakras are out of balance!
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Ancient wisdom of many sorts says we have seven of them. (“Chakra” is Sanskrit for “wheel.”) Each is said to correspond with one of seven basic energy centres in the body, as well as states of consciousness, developmental stages of life, archetypal elements, body functions, colours, sounds and much more.
So here are your power centres – go wild: root (base of the spine), sacral (ovaries/prostate), solar plexus (navel area), heart, throat (includes neck area), third eye (pineal gland) and crown (top of the head).
When they’re out of whack, so, apparently, are you. Here’s how to keep them serene.
What the experts say
“A balancing activity is finding ways to engage each chakra. For the first chakra, it might be entering into physical activity like gardening, cultivating a connection to the body and the earth. At the second, the pleasure chakra, we need to experience enjoyment rather than reaching for more. That brings balance. The third is something to do with self-control the fourth learning to love unconditionally the fifth finding and expressing our truth the sixth taming the mind, praying or meditating. The seventh, the crown, is where we need to simply be and allow ourselves to be absorbed. When you get into the seventh, it’s about a kind of silence.”
DAVID POND, astrologer, author, Chakras For Beginners, The Pursuit Of Happiness, Olympia, Washington
“I was taught that there is a correspondence between various glands and the chakras. So, for example, the third is adrenals, liver and spleen the fourth thymus fifth thyroid sixth pituitary seventh pineal – though some people reverse those last two. It’s not so much about balancing as it is about establishing a flow of energy. The best thing is to be grounded. A simple way to do this is to stand in the yard with your shoes off.”
ROBERT ALCORN, psychiatrist, shamanic practitioner, Cleveland, Ohio
“There are two ways to restore balance and harmony using crystals. Place a loonie-size piece of rutilated clear quartz crystal on each chakra for five to seven minutes. The rutile looks like golden rods, and they work to clear out obstacles and provide alignment. The other method is to take a piece of blue kyanite and hold it vertically for up to three minutes over each chakra. With either you will feel refreshed and more balanced.”
KAREN RYAN, crystal healer, Toronto
“Having a healthy chakra system means balancing your prana and apana through breathing and posture. The simplest thing to do is a breathing exercise – inhale through your left nostril, exhale through the right [alternating holding the other closed], inhale through the right, exhale through the left. Breathe for 10 to 15 minutes, taking about four breaths a minute. At the end, you inhale and simply pull the navel in, sense the path from the navel, up the spine, all the way to the brow and around. Then let the breath go. Hold the breath three to five times. This simple exercise can give you an immediate balance that will clear up your mind to let you know what to do next.”
GURUCHARAN SINGH KHALSA, director of training, Kundalini Research Institute, Santa Cruz, New Mexico
