Month: February 2020

Sahasrara is our Crown Chakra.  We have journeyed up the ladder of the chakras these past 7 weeks to arrive here.  It is important to know that while we have been moving up the chakras, we can also move down them.  The path up is considered the journey to enlightenment, while the trek down is the path of manifestation.  Some of us like to stay in our own heads where we have lots of ideas, but never really bring them to fruition.  The manifesting path would be useful to bring those ideas into daily living!

The crown chakra is located at the top of the head and is said to connect us to higher consciousness.  When it is off balance we might struggle to learn new things, feel depressed or isolated.  We could also find ourselves being rigid about our beliefs.  When we are in balance, we live in the present with trust in our own inner guidance and understand the impermanent nature of reality.

Things are always changing and we go with the flow!

Since this chakra is located at the top of the head, it is also related to our cognition…how we think about things and what we believe we know.  This can lead to over intellectualizing things.  When this chakra is open, we should feel the flow of energy.  Thinking about things in a purely intellectual way often shuts down energy and keeps it trapped in ‘facts’.  How this pertains to mental health????  Ever notice how those ‘facts’ change based on our mood?  When we are depressed, everything is bad.  When we are anxious, everything is scary.  When we are mad, everyone sucks.

The right of the crown chakra is TO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND.  The work is to RELEASE ATTACHMENTS.  Attachment can be to physical things or to our own ego.  Attachment is seen as the source of our suffering because it blocks the fluidity of the universe.  Another way to think of this in more practical terms is look at how often we people please.  We agree to things or overcommit because we fear of losing an attachment.  True non-attachment might be to admit that we have other responsibilities right now, but maybe I could come back to this later if the time is right.  Non-attachment is to understand and be open to the path we are on; not stubbornly trying to control the path or move faster or slower.

How do we know if this chakra is blocked?

• Feeling a sense of separation or isolation
• Having trouble trusting the universe
• Lacking knowledge of purpose
• Feeling disconnected from humanity
• Having trouble connecting with higher self
• Inability to empathize with others
• Feeling concerned with individuality often

Sometimes this chakra can be over-active leading to:

• Being overly intellectual
• Addicted to “spirituality”
• Criticizing the spirituality of others
• Lacking an individual identity
• Feeling overwhelmed by knowledge

SO HOW DO WE GET THERE????

• Positive affirmations “I am one with my higher self.  I trust and follow intuition.  I am open to the abundance the Universe offers.”
• Actions: Lay outside at night and stare at the vastness of the night sky, or go somewhere in nature that inspires a sense of awe.  Pray. Meditate, meditate, and meditate!  Visualize a white light spreading from the top of your head down through all your chakra points.  Volunteer your time or energy to a cause that helps you feel connected.

Some ideas to journal on:

• Who or what could I have more faith in?
• How might I be blocking grace?
• Do I allow myself to experience stillness?  Can I simply be?
• Who would I be without my limiting beliefs?

Visit the Facebook and Instagram pages for more ideas on how to support your crown chakra, or schedule an appointment to come in and discuss how to best get this energy unblocked!

The third eye chakra is in the middle of our brain (although we sometimes place it at the brow as a reference point) and is associated with our pineal gland. We interpret information we see outside of ourselves.  We can also use our imagination to build the scene around those details to get a feel for what we believe is happening around us.  The more we tune into this, the stronger it gets.

Sometimes Ajna is also referred to as our intuition or our conscience.  This is what we are using when we give ourselves a “reality check” or access our wisdom and self realization.  Those “aha moments”!

Now, here is some fun sciency-type stuff.  The pineal gland is tucked into the middle of our brain and actually has some of the same retinal tissue that our eyes have.  It responds to light.  When the pineal gland is processing the light that we see when we open our eyes during the day, it signals the body to produce serotonin.  Serotonin is the hormone that helps us feel motivated and positive.  When it is completely dark out, the pineal gland signals the body to produce melatonin.  That is the hormone that kicks in our relaxation response and helps us fall asleep.

We know that when our sleep/wake cycles get thrown off, we have difficulty managing our emotions or making wise decisions.  It becomes difficult to think and we may even be more likely to hallucinate.  Artificial light is becoming more and more of an issue in our daily lives and it is important to reset ourselves with a balance of natural outdoor light and complete darkness.

The right of the third eye chakra is TO SEE AND PERCEIVE.  The work is to release illusion.

When this chakra is BLOCKED:

• Sense of denial or feeling narrow minded
• Trouble setting goals or planning for your future
• Poor memory
• Inability to connect to intuition
• Lack of imagination
• Rejection of anything spiritual
• Migraines, sinus issues, poor vision
• Inability to see the big picture

When this chakra is OVERACTIVE:

• Feeling overly paranoid
• Spacing out and difficulty concentrating
• Inability to do mundane tasks
• Setting unrealistic goals or over planning for your future
• Frequent nightmares

And when it is JUST RIGHT, a BALANCED Third Eye chakra looks:

• Intuitive
• Imaginative
• Focused
• Spiritual connection

This week practice mindfulness or other meditation.  Daydream or visualize what you want to manifest in your life.  Draw a yantra or mandala.  Keep a dream journal.  Notice the times when your first feeling is right to develop trust in intuition.  Go outside to be in natural light or spend time in complete darkness to activate pineal gland.

Repeat to yourself:

I see the truth in all situations

I trust my inner wisdom

I think clearly

I trust my decisions

Check the Facebook and Instagram pages for more ideas!

Vishuddha is the Throat Chakra.  It is located in the throat region and it connects us to our expressive self.  When it is off balance, we may feel we have no power or fear speaking up for ourselves.  Often this comes from lessons we learned in early childhood when we were told to be quiet, or people we cared about did not believe us.  We learned to shut down our voice or not to trust our instincts about what to say.

Over time, we overthink what we say before it comes out of our mouth so our truth is edited.  We may feel like we don’t really connect to others because we don’t feel like we can be totally honest with them….or…we start to tell everyone everything to see who will stick around.

When our throat chakra is in balance, we tend to have more confidence and feel we communicate effectively.  We feel more freedom and harmony between our inner and outer selves.  Honesty and openness because easier.  We may become more creative and be more productive in bringing those creative projects into reality.

This chakra is the source of our will to SPEAK.  To express ourselves. To identify our purpose. To connect with others through communication.

How do we know if this chakra is blocked?

• Suppressing our feelings and being fearful of expressing ourselves
• Being afraid of offending others
• Inability to focus on conversation
• Being interrupted frequently
• Misunderstanding body language
• Being unable to share ideas clearly
• Feeling talked at, rather than talked to

Sometimes this chakra can be over-active leading to:

• Talking too much
• Gossiping frequently
• Interrupting others often
• Lying
• Not listening to others

SO HOW DO WE GET THERE????

• Positive affirmations “I speak from my highest truth. My voice is strong and clear.”
• Actions: Go somewhere that echoes, so you can yell and have your voice come back to you. Sing or chant. Talk to others or journal. Laughing.

 

Some ideas to journal on:

• Do I honestly speak what I feel is true?
• What judgement might I hold against those who are expressing themselves authentically?
• If I express myself authentically, I am afraid….
• I express myself through…

Visit the Facebook and Instagram pages for more ideas on how to support your throat chakra, or schedule an appointment to come in and discuss how to best get this energy unblocked!