Do you remember where we came from? All the way down from the base, the root, the Muladhara Chakra. The root is responsible for your life, health, house, and basic necessities.

Then, we travelled up towards the Svadhishthana chakra, governing your emotional life and desires.

After that, we went to the Manipura chakra, your transformation centre; after the basic centres, we transformed our primal energy into where our destiny, willpower, etc.

Next, we arrive at the Anahata chakra. Here, we focus outward, away from our needs, and open up to helping others.

You can see the development as we are reaching the higher chakras.

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What is the Vishuddha Chakra

From the heart centre, we move up to the throat centre.

The word Shuddha means clean, pure in the sense of cleansing and purifying.
The Vishuddha chakra governs our speech and is the seat of Saraswati, the goddess of creativity, arts, and sciences.
It is associated with the ether element.
Its Bija mantra is HAM.

Its shape is hazy and flowerlike, with whitish petals merging into a big dark blue centre.

It has 16 petals, which equals 16 sounds: am, aam, im, eem, um, oom, rim, reem, lim, leem, em, aim, om, aum, am, and ah.

What is the Significance of the Vishuddha Chakra?

Its location is in the throat area, between the head (and your mind) and the heart.

It governs your sense of hearing and its organs, the ears.

It is your centre of communication, friendship, and entry into the inner world of spirituality. It can purify all negative and poisonous experiences, which can be absorbed and transformed. It helps us develop mentally and control our senses. Therefore, speaking truthfully without hurting others is of the utmost importance. The goddess Saraswati likes sweet words. We are advised not to gossip and ensure our actions live up to our words.

How do we Keep our Vishuddha Chakra open?

As mentioned:

How we talk is very important, as is consciously listening to others during a conversation.
Journal or practise free writing to express your thoughts, ideas, and plans.
Invite the colour blue into your life.
Chanting the bija mantra or any other mantras, chanting in general, is super beneficial.
Yoga practices, such as:

Neck exercises.
Sarvangasana, Halasana, shoulder stand and plough pose.
Matsyasana, fish pose.
Simhasana, the lion pose/breath
Ujjay breathing, the victorious breath.
Bhramari breathing, the humming breath.

These are a few ideas that you can integrate into your daily life.

I mentioned this in the other related posts already. When working with the chakras, we must stay safe when dealing with energy. Strong and sudden releases of energy into the wrong pathways can lead to mental disturbance, restlessness, and other nervous system-related symptoms. Therefore, it is better to follow safe practices as suggested above. Otherwise, work with an experienced teacher.

The higher we move the chakra ladder, the more subtle the chakras. Next up:

Ajna Chakra – Tap into your Intuition

Ajna = order, centre of command and monitoring

It has two petals, and its Bija mantra is KSHAM.
Its shape is a dark blue circle, the blue of the space.
The Ajna chakra is our eyebrow centre at the top of the spinal cord in the middle of the brain.
As the vishuddha chakra, the ajna chakra is also associated with the ether element.

What is the Job of the Ajna Chakra?

Ajna is our centre of judgement, willpower, rationality, emotional intelligence, and wisdom, which we can tap into our intuition. It is also seen as the guru chakra. Ida and Pingala nadi, which we balance with alternate nostril breathing to activate the middle nadi, the Shushumna nadi, meet here for the last time and merge into one stream of consciousness flowing towards the Sahasrara chakra, the crown chakra.

It is the "third eye" centre looking inwards, offering insight into the underlying nature of existence. It is the point where our mind changes from outwards to inwards. Here, we can hone our focus and willpower. With a balanced ajna chakra, you have a creative imagination and feel inspired and focused.

How to Keep the Ajna Chakra Balanced?

Good ways to get in touch with your Ajna chakra are

Candle gazing.
Drishti – focusing the eyes on one point.
Balancing poses
Balasana – child pose with the forehead supported by the floor or hands.
Sarvangasana - shoulder stand with one knee lowered to the forehead.

Final Thoughts

Vishuddha Chakra – The Purifying Power of Speech and Sound

The Vishuddha chakra, residing at the throat, is our centre of purification and communication, symbolised by a pristine flower with a dark blue core and 16 petals, each representing different sounds. Governed by Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom, creativity, and the arts, this chakra is deeply connected to the ether element and the bija mantra HAM. It empowers our ability to communicate effectively and truthfully, ensuring our words reflect our genuine intentions and help purify our mental and spiritual impurities. Practical ways to nurture this chakra include engaging in intentional conversations, practising throat-centric yoga poses like Lion's breath, and inviting the colour blue into our environments to maintain openness and purity in our communications.

Ajna Chakra – The Insightful Seat of Intuition

Sitting at the gateway of the mind and spirit, the Ajna chakra or the "third eye," is a vital centre of intuition and foresight, marked by a dark blue circle with two petals and the bija mantra KSHAM. Located at the eyebrow centre, this chakra aligns with the ether element, similar to the Vishuddha. Still, it aims to integrate our cognitive and emotional intelligence to enhance our inner and spiritual vision. To balance the Ajna chakra, practices such as candle gazing, focused meditation, and balancing yoga positions are recommended, aiding in developing mental clarity, decision-making capabilities, and a harmonised emotional state, crucial for navigating life's challenges with insight and wisdom.

Have you learned something new? Can you relate to it? Let me know. You can leave a message below, on Instagram, Facebook or even good old email.

I love hearing from you!

Katja x

P.S. Did you know that healthy eating habits also support the chakras as they connect to the organs located in the areas of the individual chakras?

The Blues: Vishuddha and Ajna Chakra