Note: This article is part one of a series focused on chakras in yoga. Below is a summarization of concepts, which I have stickied to each article. If you’re familiar with chakras, or have already read the intro, feel free to jump below the pic to skip straight to the Heart Chakra!
The concept of chakras can be traced back to the early (ca. 1500 BCE) Vedic texts of Hinduism, and there are believed to be over 100 in each of our spiritual energy fields. According to modern yogic philosophy, there are 7 chakras located in our body; they are in ascending order: root, sacral, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown. Each chakra is thought to support us physically and energetically as we navigate our lives.
It’s worth mentioning that the location of each chakra in our body corresponds to part of the endocrine system, which is pretty cool when you consider how much time spanned between the conceptualization of chakras and the discovery of glands/organs. The endocrine system is responsible for regulating our hormones via a complex system of messaging and feedback loops, and is comprised of (in corresponding order as above): gonads, pancreas, adrenal glands, thymus, thyroid, pituitary, and pineal.
Chakras are thought to be spinning energy discs within the subtle (metaphysical) body, which overlaps with our physical bodies. Much like our breath can link our minds and bodies, or our endocrine system links our organs and brain, the chakras link our energetic self to our physical self.
When we work on our chakras, we are thought to be manipulating our prana, or life force energy. Often times, chakras are said to be “blocked;” when we talk about opening our chakras, we are aiming to allow unrestricted flow of prana within our subtle body, in other words, “aligning our chakras.”
Chakras can be worked on in a number of ways, including meditation, mantra, diet, reiki, and of course yoga! Other modalities for chakra work include tapping, aromatherapy, and color therapy. I will do my best in this series to touch on as many of these approaches as possible for each chakra.
Chakra meditation is really very beginner friendly once you know the basics, and can be a really fun way to add mind-body work to a busy routine. It doesn’t need to be complicated!
Color therapy: a sago palm planted by my home’s previous owner
Heart Chakra
- Sanskrit: anahata
- Bija mantra (“seed sound”): Yam
- Color: green
- Essential oils: ylang ylang; lemon; grapefruit
- Symbol: 12-petaled lotus
- Element: air
- Endocrine analogue: thymus
- Pranayama: ujjayi
- Mudra: anjali mudra
The heart chakra is the fourth chakra, which is found in the center of the chakra column. Anahata is the bridge between the lower three chakras, which pertain to our more basic human needs, and the upper three chakras, which pertain to our spirituality, intellect, and widsom. This chakra is associated with giving and receiving love, compassion, gratitude, and forgiveness.
When your heart chakra is blocked, you might feel as if your mental or emotional states are unbalanced. If you find yourself feeling stuck in negative emotions, struggling in your relationships(including the one with yourself), or unable to move on from past trauma, your anahata might need a little attention! When the heart chakra is fully open and balanced, the world can feel easier to love, and feel more loving in return. What’s not to love?
Spending time outdoors can be a wonderful way to balance the heart chakra, as it allows us time to breathe the free air and check in with our inner voice. If you have a special space for practice, you might add some green plants or other green accents to stimulate anahata. Since air is the element of the heart chakra, deep breathing is also a great start for a meditation or practice.
Other ways to help open up the heart chakra include following a meditation for anahata, chanting the Bija mantra (pronounced “yum”), or using essential oil aromatherapy. I dose a small amount of carrier oil like jojoba with grapefruit oil, and massage that into my wrists, shoulders, or hands/feet. You can do this before any asana practice to add some sensory depth to your practice, but be sure to test your skin for any reactions to essential oils before going all in!
Feel free to check out my chakra-themed lotion bars for a boost of self care in your meditation!
Poses for the heart chakra are, you guessed it: heart opening! Fish pose, dancer, camel pose, bridge/wheel, and sphinx pose all may help you clear heart chakra blockages or balance an over- or under-active heart chakra. The goal is to open the heart area and use pranayama to feel that life force flowing freely through it, opening you up to give and receive love more fully.
A quick and easy heart chakra flow vibe check could be: seated cat-cow, sphinx, child’s pose, crescent, camel, bridge, savasana. Hold each pose for 3-5+ breaths, transition in a smooth and comfortable way, and remember to repeat crescent for the other side. Using ujjayi breath can help to envision that green heart chakra energy moving through the heart space.
To meditate in your home for heart chakra balance, any scent, mudra, or breathwork that helps you channel feelings of love will be lovely. I highly value my individuality, and one of my favorite aspects of yoga practice is its customizability! If you’re looking for a starting point, though, refer to the bulleted breakdown at the top of this article.
Bring your focus to the center of your body, taking anjali mudra if possible. Practice your ujjayi breath for at least 5 rounds, focusing on drawing energy through the heart space. You can envision this however it makes sense to you; I tend to imagine a diffuse green light expanding from my heart, softening the space around it, and pulsing along with my heartbeat.
Continue your ujjayi breath for the entire meditation, or take some time to chant, using a sound element to stimulate anahata. You can use the “yum” mantra at this point, or choose a mantra of your own invention. I love the breadth of heart chakra mantras/affirmations, but for my own meditation, I prefer to keep it simple with “I am worthy of love.”
So, to recap, our heart chakra is associated with our ability to give and receive love; when it’s off balance in some way, we can feel stuggles in our relationships, a sense of loneliness, or even physically unwell. Spending some time working with your heart chakra can help you feel compassion, joy, and connection.
An aside for my skeptical hearts: if you’ve never done this kind of work, you may be thinking “I don’t think that there’s a spinning disco puck in my chest, dictating the quality of my connection to the physical realm, that needs to be fed grapefruit oil or it’ll give me anxiety.” To which I say, “Completely fair.”
But what if I told you that the heart chakra is an idea; the idea of love, connection, and joy, and that all of this asana and meditation is a ritual to tell our senses and nervous system “you are great at giving and receiving love”? In this sense, balancing the heart chakra is simply self-care for your sense of compassion.
In fact, I view the entire chakra column as a choose your own adventure of mind-body work that can be utilized at any time to bring your awareness and focus to a specific idea or emotion. Conditioning your nervous system to relax through breathwork while centering your awareness on something you would like to improve in your life can be a powerful exercise for skeptics and practitioners alike.
Does anyone have any favorite heart chakra poses or meditations? Let me know in the comments!
Love and light,
Erin