Root Chakra
“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair” – Khalil Gibran
The Sanskrit word for the root chakra is Muladhara. Mula meaning “root” and Adhara means “support” or “base”. It is associated with the color red and brown, and the element connected with the root chakra is earth. The root chakra is located at the base of the spine, along with the underlying three vertebrae.
It is the chakra closest to the earth, and it is your energetic grounding with mother earth. Other part of the body that relates to the root chakra is the lower back, spine, sexual organ and stool.
The root chakra is all about the primal aspects of life. How you are surviving in this world or your will to live. Your “flight or fight” responses. It is the energy field that holds your experience of safety, basic needs and instincts here on your earthly journey. It gives us information about our family relations, misconceptions, opinions and grief. Your ability to stand up for yourself is held here, including your sense of prosperity and self-respect.
The Muladhara is usually the most constricted and blocked energy field within our bodies. It can easily come out of balance if you have experienced some sort traumas that relates to your lack of safety and stability growing up. These life lessons can manifest as an imbalance in the root chakra throughout life if we do not transform and heal the experience that caused the trauma in the first place. Growing up in poverty, living in a dangerous place, imbalanced relationship with father figure, or lack of father figure altogether, parents that struggles with insecure financial situation, violence or abuse could all cause an unbalanced root chakra.
The root chakra is the base for creating an opening of the chakras above. When you work on balancing your ground foundation, it will help to create an energy flow throughout your body.
Other symptoms of an unbalanced root chakra might be:
– Insecurity
– Excessive anger and aggression
– Greed
– Impatience
– Obsession with materialistic matter
– Fears and anxieties
Still unsure if your Root chakra needs to be healed and balanced?
Ask yourself these following questions:
– Do I feel safe in my environment?
– Am I holding on to grudges toward family members that has caused me pain?
– Am I spending enough time with nature?
– Do I feel safe in my own body?
– Are my basic needs in life covered?
– Do I worry a lot over my financial situation?
Suggestions on how to heal the Root Chakra
Healing the root chakra with color
This chakra vibrates with the color red. It is the first chakra in the chakra system and can be found at the base of your spine. If you want to heal and balance your root chakra, wear a lot of red. Wear red outfits, red pearls; especially root chakra stones, and red jewelry.
Try wearing some Red Jaspers or Garnets. You can also beautify your space at home or at work with red furniture, elaborate design, or wallpaper and paint.
Healing the Root chakra with Element
The root chakra is the energetic vortex that is your connection with mother earth. You can heal your root chakra by being outside and communing with nature. Breathe in the outside air, feel the ground on your feet, and bask yourself in the sun.
When you have the possibility, take your shoes off and feel the earth underneath your feet. Allow the earth to charge your body with life force energy.
Healing Root chakra through sound
Listening to sounds:
Research shows that the Root chakra responds to certain frequencies and sounds. With the 396Hz solfeggio frequencies and singing-bowls in note C being most potent. Listen to root chakra music for about 20 min a day to assist the root chakra in being balanced.
Instruments that effect the root chakra is didgeridoo, drums, contrabass, bass
Singing:
While meditation sing the sound “UUUUUUUUUUUUUUU”
Chanting:
LAM
Healing root chakra with food
The element of the root chakra is earth. To assist the root chakra in healing it is important to feel grounded and connected with the natural world. There are foods that has a grounding effect on our body. Include these foods in your diet if you suspect that your root chakra is to passive or active.
– Meat, chicken, eggs, beans, lentils, chickpeas, nuts and seeds (especially almonds), cottage cheese
– Minerals
– Red colored fruits and vegetables
– Root vegetables.
Healing Root chakra with mindfulness and meditation
Meditation suggestion:
Preparation;
Be in a place where you are undisturbed for about 30 min. Preferably with your back against a tree. Your house or in a place where you feel peaceful and safe works fine as well.
In this meditation it is important to be completely relaxed before starting. We suggest a relaxation exercise before starting this visualization meditation. Lie on the floor and focus on the breath. With every breath you inhale compassion and peacefulness, and with every exhale you release whatever stress or anxieties that you are currently focusing on. Now breath into your feet. Feel that they are completely relaxed. Do the same with all your body parts. When you are ready and feel present with your body, Sit with your back straight against a tree, in a chair or on the floor with your spine straight.
Breath organically. Follow the rhythm of inhaling and exhaling. Become aware of the ground beneath you. Imagine a strong root, like that of a strong and big tree, growing from the bottom of your spine and into the earth. Hold the image of yourself as a seed growing into a tree. Little roots expands from your big root, anchoring you to the ground. Imagine the little roots growing out from the soles of your feet, into the earth looking for water beneath the ground. Even with the biggest winds these roots will help you to stay grounded and steady. The little roots make you flexible and no storm can shake your foundation of life.
Now move your attention from the roots to the trunk. Imagine that your body is like the trunk of a living tree that gives nutrition to your spiritual growth. Your roots in life is your foundation for nutrition. How you thrive in the world of light. Imagine you drawing lifeforce energy from the roots up the spine in into your body. Control that your body is balanced on each side of the spine. Think about your branches. Are they strong?
Focus your attention on the neck and head. Imagine strong and flexible branches that grows out of it in four directions: north, south, west and east. What kind of leaves does your tree hold? Maybe the leaves are green and healthy with big juicy fruits growing. Maybe the branches are naked and withering? Whatever image that is arising, accept it.
Focus on your inner strength. You are like a tree that is always growing from the ground and darkness towards the sun and light. Thank the water for giving you life. Thank the sun for its nutrition. Thank the wind for removing dead branches and leaves. Remember that you are connected through your roots with the whole forest. You are connected with everything on this holy earth. Nothing is separate
When you are done visualising, start to breath deeper. Move your body in your own rhythm to wake up. Touch and rub your feet. Now finish this meditation with rising on your feet, and stretch your hand towards the sky, like a strong and vibrant tree.
Suggestion for after-work: Keep a journal of the progress you are making on this meditation. Make a drawing of your “personal” tree.