The Throat Chakra

Symbol: 16 lotus petals containing Sanskrit vowels thought to represent Spirit. Within the lotus is a triangle symbolising speech and full moon. 

Colour: Blue.

Location: Centrally at base of neck.                

Life lesson:  Power of choice/personal expression.

Associated body parts:  Throat, ears, nose, teeth, mouth or neck.  

Physical dysfunctions: Sore throat, neck ache, thyroid problems, hearing problems, tinnitus or tonsillitis. 

Emotional dysfunctions: Perfectionism, inability to express emotions and blocked creativity.

Crystals: Turquoise, Lapis Lazuli, Aquamarine, Agate, Celestite, Sodalite, Sapphire.

Foods: Fruit

Element: Ether – the cross over between the physical and Spirit world. Metaphorically it represents a person’s relationship with their space and the movie that is playing around them. 

Incense/oil: Chamomile, Myrrh.

Associated animal:  Elephant, Bull

Developing the throat chakra means choosing words that bring value to communication. From conversing with people at work, home or everyday activities like shopping to banking and so on, every conversation you ever have either adds or depletes the energy at this point in your body. 

Communication is a relationship involving two parties. It involves listening as much as speaking.  An earache could be energy from the Throat Chakra insisting you speak up and listen to a response. It is also blocked when you hold back from saying what you want or you choose not to listen. It doesn’t always manifest in the form of a physical irritation. You may have a dream of being strangled or suddenly a desire to wear turtlenecks or scarfs – by covering the front of your neck is a manifesting concern over the blocked energy in your Throat Chakra.

The expression of self is a communication about what one wants and what one feels. Receiving is just as important as the universe provides all your needs with no effort. Abundance, therefore is associated with this chakra, receiving and accepting abundance from the universe. Try the following to balance chakra:

Sing: Create a relationship of trust between what you want to say and what you actually deliver when communicating.

Sing your favorite songs, as this will begin to relax your Throat Chakra. Confidently releasing your voice in the shower is a rehearsal of your ability to be heard.

Creating: Communicate through creating an expression of you. A quilt that is made by a family member and passed down to the next generation is a way that a family communicates its values over time. How you create isn’t important, but providing it is an expression of you and it is still communicating to an audience.  It may be how you express yourself in clothing, gardening or baking. 

Rehearsing: Acting out what you want to say assists you in actually saying it.  Confrontations are an undesired interaction, however, learning to assert yourself and speak your mind and truth is what matters to your Throat Chakra.  Say exactly what you want to say even if what you say is rejected and belittled, the continual strengthening of your Throat Chakra benefits from following through with the delivery of your rehearsed statements.

CHARACTERISTICS:

Excessive: Over talkative . . . Self righteous or arrogant. Not a good listener.

Deficient: Holding back from self expression, unreliable and holds inconsistent views. 

Balanced: Good communicator, excellent listener, finds it easy to mediate and artistically inspired.

ARCHETYPES: The archetypal patterns can be seen in someone who has trouble expressing truthfully, holds down chin when communicating or constantly clear their throat? It is all because they are choked by the truths they are having to swallow.

Negative Archetype – Masked Self

Can’t open and honestly express feelings.  Always agreeing or saying yes when they really want to disagree and say no.  Sufferers of sore throats, glandular fever, stiff neck and thyroid problems are all indicators. Often these people clown around and  joke putting on the mask of comedy in an attempt to hide true feelings.

Positive Archetype – Communicators

Have no fear of telling the truth and walk the talk!  These people have pleasant speaking voices which are easy to listen to. They make great teachers, personal development trainers and great therapists. Communicators recognize their right to express their hurt or anger, but do so in such a way this it doesn’t diminish the other person. Communicators know that if others don’t “hear” what they have to say this merely demonstrates that the recipient is not yet at a stage when they can take on board what is being said.

AFFIRMATIONS:

I AM STARTING TO SPEAK UP FOR MYSELF.

WHAT I HAVE TO SAY IS WORTHY OF BEING LISTENED TO.

I LISTEN TO AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE NEEDS AND WANTS OF OTHERS.

I DELIGHT IN MY SELF EXPRESSION AND IN MY CREATIVE PURSUITS.

MY THOUGHTS AND SPEECH ARE CONSIDERED BEFORE I UTTER THEM.

I ALWAYS SPEAK FROM THE HEART.

When your communication is honest and inquisitive, your throat Chakra pulsates with positive energy and charisma that leads to deep and passionate relationships with friends, colleagues, family and inevitably with your soul mate. The Throat Chakra insists on your personal integrity to thrive. Treat it well.

Heart Chakra

Symbol: Lotus of 12 petals containing two intersecting circles making up a 6 pointed star demonstrating the perfect balance between spirit descending towards matter and the upward pointing matter rising towards Spirit.

Key lesson: Learning to feel love and to balance the love of others and the love of self.  Mastering the Heart Chakra helps us to enhance our emotional development and recognize that potency of that powerful energy we call “love”.

This central chakra is the passage through which we move from the lower to the higher centres, shifting us from the realm of basic needs into the realm of blessings.  Our challenge is to pass the tests of unconditional love, compassion and forgiveness with which we are challenged daily, in order to move on to the higher centres.

The heart is centre of your emotional power, where love and compassion are both given and received. As our emotional sensor, it tells us whether we feel love or wounded. Problems with this chakra arise when there is a limited experience of love, either receiving or giving love.  Eg.  Doing something when your heart isn’t in it; feeling unworthy of being loved; withholding love or affection from others or a lack of loving feeling towards certain people or even life in general. 

We tend to think of the heart as only concerned with “soft” irrational feelings. We prefer to put greater emphasis on “head” activity, yet when allowed, the heart can be a far more accurate barometer of deeper needs. Listening to the heart in matters of love is vital to maintaining healthy, mutually respectful relationships. As we make our journey towards the Higher Self our relationships painfully expose us to how little we love ourselves. When we strip away the thin veneer that covers the lack of self-intimacy and fill it energetically with joy, peace and self acceptance, we start to build the solid foundation upon which unconditional love flourishes.

Those that dismiss or shun intimacy demonstrate their fear of looking inward. They neglect the opportunities that relationships offer for self knowledge – acknowledging and loving our dark side as well as the parts we admire.  This is the basis of unconditional love.

Element: Air…. If you feel stifled or suffocated by life, it may be time for a “change of air”. Freeing up your energy at your heart chakra is like taking a breath of fresh air. It allows you to experience life with fewer mental limitations. A person’s relationship with air reflects their relations with love.

Colour:  Pink (external love), Green (self love).

Emotional Dysfunctions:  Co-dependency, fears concerning loneliness, commitment and /or betrayal.

Physical Dysfunctions: Shallow or difficult breathing, high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer.

Conscious Dysfunctions: Perception of love, relationships with people close to the heart. 

Associated Body Parts:  Heart and circulatory, chest, lungs, shoulders, arms, ribs, breasts, diaphragm and thymus gland. 

Sense:  Touch… When we hug, we can feel what each other feel within. Sensitivity about being touched indicates heart chakra insensitivity. 

Foods: Vegetables.

Incense/Oils: Rose, Bergamot, Melissa.

Crystals: Watermelon Tourmaline, Rose Quartz, Emerald, Green Calcite, Jade, Azurite, Aventurine, Malachite and Moonstone.

Associated Animal:  Gazelle/Antelope

Chakra Characteristics:

Excessive: (Too fast)  Possessive, loves conditionally, withholds emotionally, overly dramatic.

Deficient: (Blocked or sluggish) Fears rejection, loves too much, feels unworthy to receive love, self pity.

Balanced: Compassionate, loves unconditionally, nurturing, desires spiritual experience in love making.

Archetypes: 

 “Performer” – Some people mask personal wounds by playing at being  “in love”; a very different experience to truly loving someone. A common example of this personality is the co-dependent, who looks outside for the love they crave, kidding themselves that their wounds can be healed by finding someone else to draw strength from. It doesn’t have to be a “sexual” relationship, it can be just another source of emotional release sometimes materialistic.  

We can also love too much . . . So often we profess to love another person but we wrap the love up in a cloak of jealousy, possessiveness and emotional instability. We may misinterpret the strong feelings engendered by these dysfunctional attitudes for “love”, where in fact this is really about externalizing something that needs to come from within, in order to avoid facing up to long held fears concerning heart and betrayal. 

However,  true “lovers” have the capacity to love themselves unconditionally. 
They don’t need other people to buoy them up, they freely open their hearts and share self acceptance with others.  These generous free spirited individuals offer themselves wholeheartedly to others because they know that the core of their being is secure. Being in touch with emotions, they take a lighter approach to relationships, in the certain knowledge of forgiveness and compassion which their dysfunctional counterparts look for others to provide, is available to them internally at any time.

Lovers are magnetic, radiant individuals who truly  “own” themselves. They are easily recognizable because it is impossible not to be affected by their positive energy.

  

Ask yourself:

·       Do you respond to others through the mind and intellect rather than the Heart?  If so, begin to tune into the hearts messages, focus on what you truly feel without judging. The heart has the answers.

·       How much do you feel connected with others? Smile more . . . amazing how many connect with you through smiling back at you. 

·       Are you hard on yourself for failing? Balance is required . . . with yourself as well as others.

·       Do you put on your “good face”? Learn to detach from your feelings.  When you heart is full of pain, acknowledge that it represents another lesson.  Accept the lesson and move forward.

·       Are you compassionate or do you judge others? Know that no one can hurt you . . . it's how you react to what they do to you . . . that is the cause of your pain.

·       Do you feel lonely or neglected in your relationships? Do you project the true love outwardly for others and inwardly for self? Be true and integral with your inner essence and project it outwardly with others.   

AFFIRMATIONS:

 I SEND LOVE TO EVERYONE I KNOW, ALL HEARTS ARE OPEN TO RECEIVE MY LOVE.

I ACCEPT THAT PAIN IS AN ESSENTIAL PART OF MY GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT.

I LOVE MYSELF FOR WHO I AM AND THE POTENTIAL WITHIN ME.

ALL PAST HURT – I RELEASE INTO THE HANDS OF LOVE.

THE LOVE I FEEL FOR MYSELF AND OTHERS IS UNCONDITIONAL.

LOVE WILL SET ME FREE, OTHERS LOVE THE BEST THEY CAN.  IF SOMEONE DOESN’T LOVE ME ENOUGH, THEY MAY BE LIMITED IN THIER EXPRESSION OF LOVE AND DESERVE MY COMPASSION. 

The Solar Plexus Chakra

Location: Between navel and base of sternum. (Breast Plate)
The key lesson: Personal identity – power and self will. To simply BE!
Element: Fire and the sun.            
Associated sense: Sight... power to see the light in truth.
Colour: Yellow
Associated animal: Ram


The third chakra completes the physical trilogy of the human energy system.  Like chakras one and two, it primarily relates to a “physical” form of power.  The first chakra resonates to tribal power, and the second chakra resonates to power between the self and others, the third chakra relates to our personal power as in self control and self freedom.


Working with this chakra helps to bridge differences to accomplish wholeness.  This can be achieved on a personal level, so that we don’t succumb to our head ruling hearts or our left logical side of the brain overwhelming our creative intuitive right side. 

The solar plexus chakra represents our identity, or how we see and feel about ourselves.  It is the house of self-esteem, inner power and sense of responsibility. Problems with this chakra arise from:

• Fear of our own identity or losing our identity,  
• The need to excessively control others or ourselves, the inability to take responsibility for ourselves or others,
• Prone to criticism and judgment,
• Poor decision making, 
• Fear of failure,
• Feeling invisible or overlooked by others.

By strengthening and stimulating the Solar Plexus Chakra you will reach a state in which you can drop the fears of rejection, criticism, and stand tall and create your own unique identity.

You will find self acceptance, self respect and to have the ability to take risks in the knowledge that you can handle any situation with which are you are faced.  This is true inner personal power.

Chakra characteristics:


Excessive (too open or spinning to fast): Angry, controlling, workaholic, judgemental, dictator, projecting superiority, overpowering, forceful, intrusive, quarrelsome, threatening, pushy, intense goal oriented, viciously competitive, ruthless, consistently active, chaotic, burnt out, exhausted, disconnected and lack of tolerance.

Deficient (blocked or spinning sluggishly or not at all): Overly concerned with what others think, fearful of being alone, insecurities, needing constant reassurance.  Weak intentions, fragile determination, negative internal dialogues, lack of confidence, inferiority complex, loss of self worth, shrinking courage, feeling inner void, weak inner strength, negative self image, disconnected from gut, loneliness, energy vampire, insecure and phobic.


Balanced: Respects self and others, owns personal power, spontaneous and uninhibited. Successful in every aspect of business and material world, has vitality and full of self confidence.
 
Physical symptoms of solar plexus chakra imbalance: Ulcers, diabetes, anorexia, bulimia, indigestion, insomnia, panic attacks, confusion, fatigue, stress and allergies.

Emotional Dysfunctions: Need to control, over sensitive to criticism, low self esteem.

Archetypes: 
The Solar Plexus (third chakra) is more internally focused on our relationship with ourselves.  The ways in which we demonstrate our self esteem and personal power is played out in the archetypes associated with this chakra – “The Drudge” and “The Spiritual Warrior”


A drudge mentally depends on others for recognition and approval investing in everyone else’s qualities and power that they wished they owned themselves. Drudges hand over their power as they are dependant on others.

When we reject or suppress our psychic sensitivity this can lead to blockages in this area, resulting in excess weight around the middle, digestive problems and stomach ulcers.

The power of the spiritual warrior lies in inner strength, tempered by a belief that guidance comes from a Devine force.  This strength becomes refined through facing and overcoming external challenges. By meeting constant rejection or conflict, the Spiritual Warriors are forced to look inside themselves to make sense of those sets of circumstances and give them meaning. It is a truly powerful archetype when a spiritual philosophy of growth and development through facing life’s obstacles is combined with acting with integrity, no matter how unpopular to others those actions may be.


Foods: Complex carbohydrates (starches)
Incense/oils: Vetivert, Rose Bergamot, Ylang Ylang, Cinnamon and Carnation.
Crystals:  Yellow Citrine, Topaz, Aventurine Quartz and Sunstone.

Ask yourself:  
Am I ruled by doubt and fear?  How can I transform this into positive energy?
Am I the kind of person who has trouble making decisions?  When I finally decide on a course of action, do I lack the energy to carry it though?
Do I feel a need to be right in every discussion?
Am I emotionally needy?  Do I always have to be the centre of attention?
Do I lack will power?  Do I compensate by being a “control freak”?
Do I allow other people’s opinions to control my life?  How can I stop this without becoming emotionally rigid or overly aggressive?

AFFIRMATiON:  I TREAT MYSELF WITH HONOUR AND RESPECT NOW! 

The Sacral Chakra

Six orange petals with a crescent moon. 

Location:  Lower abdomen, between navel and genitals.                  

The key lesson:  Learn to relate to others and self.

Element: Water – a person’s relationship with the element of water is a reflection of their relationship with the parts of their consciousness associated with this chakra. There is a connection between the planet and your body; both are made up of a significant amount of water.

Take a moment to reflect on these questions and be honest with yourself.  

How much are you prepared to embrace change?

What sacrifices do you make to suit others?

Do you respect your male and female sides?

Is it better to give than receive?

Do you believe that for your desires to be met, you first have to make a sacrifice?

The Sacral Chakra houses your creative and sexual energies – your ability to nurture and give birth to the seeds of life. It is considered to be the “relationship chakra” because it represents our ability to relate to ourselves and other people. It relates to sexuality, creativity, emotions, anger, fear and instinct, perceptions concerning food or sex, feelings, women's power, female identity.

The challenge of the sacral chakra is to interact consciously with others and allow the creative flow of life to guide and shape continual change in our lives.  

Physically, the sacral chakra affects the sexual organs being the ovaries and testes. It also affects the bladder, circulatory system, prostate and womb. This chakra influences fertility, reproduction, and sexual energy in general.

Emotionally, the sacral chakra affects our stability and willingness to feel emotion.  

Psychologically, its goal is to allow pleasure and creative expression and enthusiasm.

Spiritually, your ‘being’ flourishes with sensitivity and intuition. Allowing one to go with the flow of life with a strong sense of self.   

Sacral Chakra Stones: Emotional stability, creative expression and experiencing pleasure in life, all relate to this chakra, which are enhanced by these Crystals.

Citrine – encourages the openness needed to tackle emotional stagnancy in relationships. It also helps to support and develop emotional maturity.

Carnelian – helps stimulate initiative and dispel passivity. It is particularly useful for promoting the physical energy needed to take action in emotionally challenging circumstances. Carnelian is also said to help dissipate sorrow from the emotional self.

Golden Topaz – Actively stimulates the first three chakras. It helps promote inner peace and lightness of spirit, in turn helping you take a new perspective on problems.  It is also thought of as a “battery” that helps energize those physically, mentally or emotionally under the weather.

Moonstone – It helps enhance your feminine side. Benefits include a calming of the emotions so that you can take a more objective view of a situation, and balance oversensitivity.  It is also said to arouse a greater feeling of tenderness and compassion towards yourself.

Rutilated Quartz – Invaluable on any of the chakras.  Helps connect one to the inner self through meditation and spiritual healing.

Foods that Fuel Your Sacral Chakras

·       Sweet fruits: melons, mangos, strawberries, passion fruit, oranges, coconut, etc.

·       Honey

·       Nuts: almonds, walnuts, etc.

·       Spices: cinnamon, vanilla, carob, sweet paprika, sesame seeds, caraway seeds

Incense/oils: Jasmine, Rose and Sandalwood.

Balanced Energy: Shows concern for others, friendly, creative, intuitive, good humored, balanced, desire for pleasure, vitality, sexual satisfaction, discrimination and prosperity. 

Excessive Overactive Energy: Explosive, aggressive, manipulative, self-serving . Selfish, arrogant, lustful, overly proud or conceited, highly strung emotionally, constant power seeking.

Deficient Under active Energy : Shy, timid, hides emotions, overly sensitive, emotionally hurt, guilt feelings.  Mistrustful of others, introverted, unable to show emotions, worrying about what others think, anti-social.

Archetypal  Characteristics: The Sacral Chakra further develops the theme of the Root Chakra of personal responsibility and self expression. Its archetypes are the “Sovereign” and the “Martyr” which are attitudes towards abundance and how much we believe that we deserve to enjoy life. These two associates represent the polarities of pleasure and fulfillment, against suffering and sacrifice.

The negative Archetypal characteristic is the Martyr. They are less likely than Victims to blame external influences for what they perceive as a life of suffering but share a similar belief that they don’t deserve anything better. Martyrs involve being entrenched in a pit of self pity with no motivation to shift the negative attitudes contributing to the situation. 

Martyrs lives are steeped in a sense of lack, which underpins a justification for not changing beliefs and behaviours because there is just not enough good fortune in the world to go around – and they have drawn the short straw. So,  they whine and complain, but never take any action. Theirs is a passive acceptance of life rather than the active desire to change and develop. Without a proper regard for personal needs and desires, mothers very often develop into Martyrs.

The positive Archetypal characteristic is the Sovereign – those who allow good things of life to be part of their everyday experiences. They are magnetic personalities whom everyone enjoys being with.   These individuals do not necessarily live charmed lives, it’s simply that when confronted with a challenging situation they see the positives and negatives.    

They know that Winter always turns to Spring. Their more developed inner world gives them permission to rejoice in their own achievements. Nurturing their own desires is a high priority for the Sovereigns of this world. To them life is bountiful and they, as much as anyone else, deserve a share in the beauty and rewards that surround them, including sexual fulfillment. Sex to them is something to be celebrated and enjoyed. They are always on the look-out for the benefits rather than disadvantages.

Affirmation:

I am moving towards a time when I am totally happy and fulfilled, life offers me everything I need for that journey.

I am prepared to honor my body and feel good about my sexuality.

I have the right to express my desires to myself and others.

Life is unfolding as it should.

The Root Chakra

To cope with life in the present moment, we need to recognize our selves as energy beings, and what effects our energy centres (what we refer to as our chakras). Use your inner essence, your inner guidance to discover where you have blocks, or dysfunction, empower your truth about self and create a healthy happy life for yourself.  

The Root Chakra is symbolically shown as a 4 petal lotus flower encompassing a downward pointing triangle, set within a square.  It resonates to the colour red and is located at the base of the spine, between the anus and genitals. It has the lowest vibration and spins clockwise in males and anti clockwise in females.

Connected to the earth element, this chakra is represented by the square and the inverted triangle that denotes downward movement of energy.  It symbolizes being grounded to the earth.

Root Chakra contains the primary 8 cells that have all the knowledge of creation and remain the only cells in your body that don’t change in your lifetime.  It is the profound connection to nature.

The overall concept of this chakra represents your physical vitality and grounding. It pertains to your sense of security in terms of abundance, materiality and possession. A healthy base chakra is important for a strong foundation to support your decisions and desires in life. 

Problems with this chakra arise when there is a fear for physical safety or fear of not being able to provide for yourself or your family, feeling like your life is under threat in any way or feeling like you don’t belong or are unsupported in your world. Blockage causes inability to trust nature or too much focus on material possessions. 

Its challenge is to feel secure and safe in your physical environment:  your family, your physical situation and the whole of society.  I often refer to it as the “tribal” chakra –  depicts human survival.        

To master this chakra is to grasp the importance of balance within our physical body as you travel upwards through the higher levels of consciousness. An excessive chakra means that it spins too fast and is too open – opening one up to be bullied or self centered. A deficient or blocked chakra means it appears to be sluggish or not spinning –  opening up to be needy, low self esteem, self destructive behavior and fearful. When balanced, it spins at the correct speed – allows grounding, high physical energy and abundance.

Strengths:  Loyalty to self, assertiveness, courage, strong will to live.

Weaknesses:  Insecurity, self-pity, lack of abundance or inability to retain wealth, indecisiveness.

Foods: That support this chakra are proteins and meats.

Associated Animal: Elephant.

Incense/oils:  Cedarwood, Patchouli, Myrrh, Musk and Lavender.

Associated Sense: Smell

Crystals:   Place over root chakra to balance physical energy, self expression, ambition, consistency and security.  Agate – to build up low self esteem.

Bloodstone – to boost the renewal process and help clear physical blockages.  

Tiger’s eye – to encourage the optimism and discipline needed to move forward and become secure and independent .

Smokey Quartz – to help face future challenges with enthusiasm. 

Goals:  Physical health and fitness, grounding, stability and security.

  

Archetypes

Whether we are conscious of it or not, our emotional security comes from a sense of belonging to a group.  This fundamental aspect of our psychological well being relates to the Root Chakra. 

Archetypes that affect the root chakra are “Earth Mother” and “Victim”.  Archetypes are what describe our personal characteristics reflecting who we are and life lessons. 

The “Victim” allows themselves to feel vulnerable, needy and hence ungrounded, because they regard every disappointment, separation, or loss as something that they cannot control or change. Only be recognizing this dysfunctional archetype allows you to find the power to provide everything you need for yourself can you reframe your experiences into opportunities for self sufficiency, strength and emotional wholeness.   Changing this negative archetype involves taking personal responsibility for ones life, acknowledging that you have choices and deserve the best that life has to offer. 

“Earth Mother” is associated with nourishment, caring and unconditional love. By recognizing Earth Mother within you, acknowledge that you are capable of providing all the physical and emotional security you need for yourself by yourself.  Attend to one’s inner child by mothering oneself and keeping safe and comforted, nurtures this positive functional archetype.

Summary:   Do you feel insecure?   Basic survival, security, shelter and safety are dealt with here.  If this chakra is out of balance, you may feel as though your very survival is threatened.  If you feel ungrounded, rootless or not “at home in your own skin”, this chakra may need some work. Fear is often stored here, as is separation from mother.  If you live too much in the physical world, work here.

Life lesson is to stand up for oneself.

Affirmation:   “I am safe and secure and good things are coming my way now”.