7. The Crown Chakra

We’ve finally made it to the last of the 7 Chakras, the Crown Chakra. We have worked our way up from the base Root Chakra, to the Sacral, Solar, Heart, Throat, and Third Eye. So today, we conclude the introduction to the Chakras series by discussing the Crown Chakra.

Also known by it’s Sanskrit name “Sahasrara”, this chakra is located at the crown of the head. I like to envision a string that, when pulled, makes me stand up straight and where that string sit on the head is where my crown is. This Chakra is associated to the colors violet and white, and works with crystals that are purple, violet, or clear, or white. The sacred sound for this chakra is the classic “Om” and the musical note that it aligns to is “B”. Here at the Crown Chakra, is where we become connected on a spiritual level to the energies around us, the divine beings, the powers of the universe, or simply, a sense of your higher self. Whether you call it enlightenment, reflection, or deeper knowing, here at the Crown is where we comprehend that the powers and energies surrounding us are all interconnected.

When your Crown Chakra is aligned and healed, you feel a deep sense of understanding with the world, inner peace, joy, and closeness to your deity or your religious views…if you have any. If you do not have a specific religion, then you may feel pleasantly close to yourself in the sense that you understand where your head is at, what your place is in this world, and how you may go about your days with the knowledge you’ve gained through life experiences.

Signs that your Crown Chakra needs to be cleansed would be if lost faith, or not knowing where to turn to look for the divine. You may also feel like humanity is a mess, or your contributions aren’t helping to make this world any better. You may feel absorbed by materialism, or you may feel claustrophobic because of social norms and constructs in this world. You may lack a feeling of deeper meaning. You may also feel clumsy or awkward physically, or socially.

To cleanse your Crown chakra many violet and clear/white crystals are useful. The three I will explain to you today are Moonstone, Selenite, and Apophyllite.

Moonstone helps you become more receptive to divine guidance or callings and aids to form inspiration out of your experiences. It is also supposed to help you love yourself, accept flaws and drive towards the future with internal trust.

Selenite is a very high vibration crystal. I’m still trying to understand what that means exactly, but what I’ve gather so far is that high energy stones could knock other chakras out of balance, so it’s safe to also have a grounding crystal (like smokey quartz) in hand while you are working with high vibration crystals. Selenite brings you closer to spiritual energies and makes you more receptive to guidance and communication. It is said to expand the Crown chakra while eliminating any psychic roadblocks that may be present in the mind, emotions, or Sacred Space. You can find Selenite Wands and Scepters which aid to magnify and direct the high intensity vibrations from this crystal.

And finally, Apophyllite–like both the crystals mentioned above–helps open the crown chakra to receive higher guidance, but also helps you evolve into higher states of being. This crystal is great if you are having issues with ego-based desires.

So there you have it folks! Some basics and some details on each of the standard Chakras! I hope you were able to take something away from these readings whether it was simply that chakras exist, how they work, what order they go in, or possibly (but I hope not!)… the fact that you couldn’t possibly believe in such a thing. Whatever you took away, I know I enjoyed sharing. Thanks for listening.

4. The Heart Chakra

The Heart Chakra is in the center of the 7 Chakras and maintains the balance between the upper three and lower three. Also known as “Anahata”, this chakra is aligned to the color green, the musical note F, the planet Venus, the element Air, and the Sacred sound “Yam”. The Heart Chakra is located right on the heart and is attuned to the Cardiac Plexus.

I find it interesting that all our lives we already know about the Heart Chakra since many believe the heart is the location of love in the human body. Especially during the holidays, we “open our hearts” to give gifts to family, friends, and the less fortunate. So you really already know about the Heart Chakra. This chakra is associated with love and giving/receiving.

The chakra before the Heart, the Solar Chakra, focused on personal creativity. The Solar Chakra is thought of as the Chakra of power where creativity and compassion are born and nourished. And now with the Heart Chakra with it’s element is air–like a breeze picking up a seedling– works to disperse creativity and positive self-esteem throughout your life.

Your heart chakra may be out of balance if you cannot trust yourself or others, if you feel unloved or unworthy of love. If you are getting caught up in your feelings, or what others may think of you, it’s a sign that your heart chakra may need some attention. Additionally, jealousy and resistance to change arise when the heart chakra is out of balance. Physical signs that the heart chakra needs healing include wheezing, breathing trouble, ulcers, and chest infections.

Crystals used to heal the Heart Chakra include but are not limited to: Green Aventurine, Rose Quartz, and Rhodonite. Many green and pink stones will align with the Heart Chakra.

Green Aventurine helps your heart let go of old ways and habits allowing for growth and change. Aventurine is also ideal for fending social disputes and instead opens the heart to other’s perspectives and friendly communication. Placed on the heart chakra, Green Aventurine will align the heart to these ideas, or this stone can be worn or kept on the person to invite these things into your life.

Rose Quartz, like all quartz crystals, is an ideal purifier and will clear out any negativity, jealousy and anger from the heart and replace it with love and compassion.

Rhodonite helps open the heart to be more giving and respectful to mankind. This crystal will also defeat anxiety and bring grounding love into your life.

3. The Solar Chakra

Manipura–also known as the Solar, Yellow, or Power Chakra–is located just above the bellybutton, at the base of the chest. It is directly linked to the Solar Plexus (wow…that’s weird) as well as the digestive system. This Chakra is often associated with the element of fire, the sun, the musical note “E”, and the sacred sound “Ram”.
While beginning our journey of learning the chakras from the Root to the Sacral and now here at the Solar Chakra, there has been a steady advancement in a distinct direction. Have you noticed it yet?
While all the chakras are associated with part of the physical body–like the Solar Chakra is to the Solar Plexus and digestive system–we do, in fact, see a shift in mental focus as we move through the list of chakras. Root Chakra topics relate to survival and are rooted (pun-intended) in human survival. The Sacral Chakra moves it’s focus to personal creativity and self-actualizing topics linked heavily to survival situations in life. And now, with the Solar Plexus, we learn that this is the Chakra of personal power and control. We move away from the necessary comforts of surviving, and towards improving the self. Moving towards self-improvement, personal faith, and one could suppose…Enlightenment.

If at this point you are slightly confused you should go read this blog: Intro to the Chakras.
Then follow it by reading about the Root Chakra, then the Sacral.
This may help. I promise the blogs are short so it’s not a huge commitment, I know you can do it 🙂 Or you can simply continue reading. You do you Boo.

So. Let’s talk about the Solar Chakra.
This Chakra is all about you. Well, I guess they all are really, but at the same time, they all aren’t. They’re about you in your environment, and body and mind and surroundings. Ugh, okay, move on Evelyn.

Warmth in your personality. Healthy self-esteem. Freedom to interpret the world without fear of consequences. A perception of yourself and who you are, and how you can contribute to this world. Making the conscious choice to contribute to this world. Being able to find the right path to make your contribution, to make a difference, to be a proactive leader and drive forward with good ambitions. All of these things are associated with the Solar Chakra. When the Chakra is healthy and aligned, these topics focused on improving your personal self, ideas, and intentions, will come to fruition. However, when the Solar Chakra is out of balance, you may feel you do not have control over your life, or you are being over-controlling and over-authoritative. You may not be able to turn your ideas into actions. Additionally, if this Chakra is imbalanced you could be having trouble with your digestive system, and may be more prone to getting sick.

To keep this chakra in balance, you can use the following crystals to help energy flow smoothly through the wheel of power. Of course there are not the only crystals you can use but I am giving you a short list to start. Thank you to Judy Hall’s Encyclopedia of Crystals for much of the crystal information that follows.

1. Citrine. I love Citrine! It is an orange, yellow, and clear stone that is very cleansing. In fact, if you leave citrine in a bowl with other crystals, it will charge and cleanse your other crystals for you! Citrine is said to carry the energy of the sun and promotes creativity and joy in anyone who beholds it. It also is said to open the mind to constructive criticism and improves self-confidence, self-expression, digestion, and protects the environment. It is said to cleanse and re-energize all chakras but I think it’s perfect for the Solar Chakra because of it’s link to the energy of the sun.

2. Desert Rose. This beautiful crystal can be found often in gift shops throughout the southwestern U.S. because Native American lore says they were carved by Native American warriors returning from the spirit world and were scattered on the land to keep spirit homes sacred. While this stone is beautiful and linked to Southwestern culture, it is also said to strengthen affirmations of purpose, keeping one driven towards their goals. It also heightens one’s ability to interpret and express thought-whether it’s their own or someone else’s–and confronting issues to settle grievances.

3. Snow Quartz/Milk Quartz/Quartzite goes by many names but supports those who are learning important life lessons. This stone enhances cooperation and helps you filter thoughts before speaking. With this stone in your possession, keeping the Solar Chakra balanced, you can definitely become a more powerful and driven individual, as all the skills Snow Quartz assists with are noted skills of some of the most successful individuals in the world today.

And there you have it!
Come back tomorrow for more information on the next Chakra: The Heart Chakra.

The Sacred Space

Before initiating this daily meditation practice, I wanted to set up a sacred space. This space will only be used for my meditation and spiritual activities. Meditation does not have to be linked to any sort of religion but I’ve been wanting to set up an altar for myself in my new home since we moved in and found this opportunity perfect to finally do that. According to Madonna Gauding’s book “The Meditation Bible” having a “sacred space” for meditation marks a space where you will grow as an individual. A place where you will learn to focus, find peace, and explore a world outside of what you ordinarily see. You will always walk into this space knowing consciously and subconsciously that it is time for growth, empowerment, and answers to life’s questions.

So I created a thrifty altar! And you know what the best part is? There is no right or wrong way of creating that space and/or altar. So, I went into the guest bedroom/office/storage space….(we’re working on this room a bit)… and straightened it up a bit. It’s important that the space you are in is tidy so that you don’t feel distracted by anything out of place. Next, I literally took the empty box that our new vacuum came in, covered it with a thin blanket, and then topped it off with a pretty handkerchief. Then I took items that meant something special to me to help me achieve my meditation goals and placed them on top of this fancy-fied vacuum cleaner box. I chose items to represent the elements. I have a couple of shells to represent Water, a feather to represent Air, and an incense burner for burning incense. I also have a blue candle to represent Fire, with blue as the chosen color since it is said to aid meditation. And finally, I have a bowl to represent Earth which is filled with 2 inches of dirt, then an inch of salt, and topped with a variety of crystals which will come in handy later on in my practice. After transforming a box that I meant to recycle weeks ago into a fabulous little altar, I placed an exercise mat on the floor in front of it and voila! Sacred space created! Oh I also placed a small fan right next to the altar in case it ever gets warm. It’s good to be practical, am I right?

I’m sure my altar with alter (see what I did there?) as I change my goals for meditation, but this set up felt right for starting. Eventually I may write a quote a day that is meant to inspire me, and place it on the altar. I may also add some photos of important role models in my life to help me maintain focus on improving myself as an individual, or a business person, or a family member…it all depends on the goals for the day. Someone else may have a statue of Jesus, or Buddha, or Mother Mary, as I said before, there is no right or wrong way. There is only your way.

Time to begin!