Yoga Nidra for Grounding

Two student requests in one post! Your wish is my command. There was one recent request for chakra series classes. Sunday night Yang/Yin Fusion classes will focus specifically on the chakras, while the rest of the week classes will be centered around a theme that is associated with these centres. This week we concentrated on the first chakra also known as the root chakra, or Muladhara in sanskrit. To learn more about this energy centre, feel free to check out earlier posts filled with an abundance of information. In general, the root chakra is where we work to get grounded. This is what we focused on within all of my classes this week. 

Get Grounded

This week, we’re directing our focus and practice to the first chakra or Muladhara.  Muladhara means root support and is about getting grounded, and feeling secure and supported where we are.  All of my classes this week will focus on this energy center through the earth element.  Whether you are able to come see me in class this week or not, I’m including below a couple of different practices that you can do to feel more grounded and centered.  As the chakra energy centers affect us both mentally and physically, let’s focus on different ways that we can reach both.

Base Building

Another round of Chakra classes starting this week to bring in this new year.  One of the things I love about the Chakra system is how incredibly in-depth and varied it is.  No matter how many times I go through it, something new always seems to come up for me.  It has been no different this time around. 

We're starting this week with the root chakra.  The root chakra, or Muladhara in Sanskrit, is about building a strong foundation. So, it involves things like strengthening our bodies which is our foundation in this reality, examining the foundation on which we base our thoughts and habits or doing things to ensure we feel secure in our lives (a place to live, finances to support us, food to eat, etc.)  It’s an energy centre that is very much involved in the physical. 

Solid Ground

This week we're focusing on the root chakra or Muladhara (root centre).  The symbol (yantra) for the root chakra is a square.  Think about how solid and stable a square is.  Squares provide strong, secure foundations from which we can grow.  We want our foundation to be solid, secure and supportive so that we can rise higher.  For us in our physical bodies, this means feeling secure in all aspects of our life - physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, relationships, career, etc.  So when Muladhara is out of balance we may feel fearful and anxious, disconnected, unstable, weak, etc.  We don't have that feeling of stability and security in ourselves to move forward.

I AM

When doing chakra work, we often start with the root chakra.  The root chakra is very much about creating a strong foundation and having a solid base.  It is a lot easier to face our fears (which is the demon of the first chakra) when we feel supported, safe, and secure in who we are and what we are doing.

The root chakra largely focuses on our physical body and the things that contribute to our physical experience on this planet.  We can sometimes get a bit caught up in wanting to reach the higher chakras where we have the potential to have “mystical, psychic” experiences, that we glaze past the lower chakras in a rush to learn about how we can reach these heightened states of awareness.  I won’t lie when 

Feel Your Fears

“The quickest way to minimize the divine within 

is to interfere with its basic rights” 

Anodea Judith 

Each of the chakras in the chakra system has a basic right – something that we are all entitled to as human beings on this earth.  Looking at these rights and reflecting on how we feel about them gives us a good indication of what is going on with that particular chakra in our body.  The basic right for the first chakra is The Right to Be.  Do we feel that we have the right to be on this planet, to exist, to take up space, be ourselves and do what we came here to do?  To go along with this is The Right to Have.  Do we feel that we have the right to have not only the things that we need to survive, but also the things that we would like to have in order to thrive?  This is a very basic concept and something that we are all entitled to, but many of us have problems or issues in this area.  Take some time now or at some point throughout the day to really sit with these questions.  Do I feel worthy of being here?  Do I fully participate in my life, or do I tend to hold back?  Do I apologize for being who I am?  Do I feel like I need to justify my existence?  Am I comfortable with the things that I have, or do I feel like I don’t have enough?  By looking at how we feel about these rights we can recognize how healthy this energy center is.  If we feel we are not claiming these rights in our life, we most likely have a block in this chakra.  An important part of healing in this area is reclaiming these rights. 

Building A Foundation

Our journey through the chakra system begins at the Root Chakra.  The Sanskrit name for this chakra is Muladhara meaning “root support”, so it is the foundation for the entire chakra system as well as our connection to our physical body.  Each chakra has a number of different qualities and characteristics.  The root chakra is located at the base of the spine.  The color for this chakra is red (having the longest wavelength and slowest vibration), and the element for this center is earth.  So, it is in charge of the very solid, tangible aspects of our being.  It governs over the solid things in our bodies such as bones, muscles, legs and feet.  The root chakra deals with how we interact with our physical existence through things such as our body, home, finances, work, environment, etc.