my life, spirituality, travels and more
Chakra 101 (Chakras for Dummies) and an infographic
CHAKRA 101 (CHAKRAS FOR DUMMIES) AND AN INFOGRAPHIC
Everything is Energy ✨ The thoughts you think, the words you speak, the actions you take, the food you eat...
Your physical body is just one layer, but beneath this 3D dimensional domain, lies a subtle body and a complex system of energetic centers, lines and sheaths.
I have always been curious about the unseen and into the energetic realm of things, which is why I am so passionate about the Chakra System. Energy does not lie and vibes speak louder than words. Think about it...Ever felt certain vibes of someone? Yup, that’s when you pick up their ”vibe”, I’m sure you’ve had moments you’ve for example felt someones bad mood, even if they didn’t express it in words.
Many are still clueless about what chakras are, how they function and what they govern. So, I decided to make an infographic (take it with a grain of salt and humor) and wrote this simple guide for you to get a basic idea and understanding.
Perhaps you’ve heard the term chakra but are still quite unfamiliar with the concept of it or don’t know what it does, how it functions, where it is (or where they are). Let’s dive in:
Let’s start with the actual word ‘chakra’. Chakra literally means wheel or circle and is a word from the Sanskrit language. What that refers to is the wheel like movement of the chakra.
So what is a chakra? A chakra is an energy center, a vortex and the focal point of subtle energy in your energetic body. Like i mentioned in the beginning: Everything is energy. How that energy presents itself in this physical realm, is what we call matter. But when we look at the body from an energetic perspective, there are certain ways the energy flows and certain places where that energy gathers and these are your Chakras.
You have seven primary chakras in your body. Each Chakra is connected to certain aspects of your life and certain areas or glands and organs of your body. Each Chakra is associated with a specific color, an element, a tone, a frequency and so forth. Below is a list of the seven primary Chakras and their elements, color and functions.
1. The Root Chakra (Muladhara)
Muladhara (“root support”) is located at the base of your spine. It is often depicted as a red four-petaled lotus, and it governs what are considered the four primal urges: food, sleep, sex, and self-preservation, but also money. It is the foundation of your being. Its energetic function is to help us maintain a sense of groundedness and inner stability.
Element: Earth
Color: Red
Affirmation: “I am here.”
Tone: LAM
2. The Sacral Chakra (Svadhisthana)
Svadhisthana (“her own abode”) is located at the pelvis by your reproductive organs. It is often depicted as an orange lotus with six petals, and it’s associated with creativity, sensuality, pleasure, fluidity, adaptability, emotions, sexual energy, and the unconscious. The second chakra’s energetic function is to help us regulate our emotions and desires, so as not to be driven by them.
Element: Water
Color: Orange
Affirmation: “I am a creative.”
Tone: VAM
3. The Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura)
Manipura (“city of jewels”) is located at the navel center. It is commonly depicted as a downward or upward-facing yellow triangle. This energy center is your personal power, your ego and it’s function is to navigate our lives with strength and determination.
Element: Fire
Color: Yellow
Affirmation: “I am strong”
Tone: RAM
4. The Heart Chakra (Anahata)
Anahata (“unstruck”) is located at the heart center. Anahata is typically depicted as a green six-pointed star surrounded by 12 lotus petals. On a spiritual level, it’s said to be the home of the higher “unstruck” or indestructible self. Anahata governs our joy, love (not just romantic love, more importantly self-love), compassion and openness. Energetically, anahata helps us tap into unconditional love.
Element: Air
Color: Green
Affirmation: “I am loving”
Tone: YAM
5. The Throat Chakra (Vishuddha)
Vishuddha (“to purify”) is located in your throat. It is often depicted as a blue downward-facing triangle inside a lotus with 16 purple petals. This energy center is associated with speaking one’s truth. Its energetic function is to help us find authentic self-expression and honesty.
Element: Ether or space
Color: Blue
Affirmation: “I am honest.”
Tone: HAM
6. The Third-Eye Chakra (Ajna)
Ajna (“command center”) is located between the eyebrows and is.represented by a transparent lotus with two white petals. It is your wisdom center and the seat of the mind, your conscious and unconscious awareness. It is not associated with any element, as this chakra is considered beyond the physical elements. This is the center for intuition, vision, imagination, inner knowing, and self-assurance. The energetic function of ajna chakra is to help us learn to know ourselves on a spiritual level.
No element
Color: Purple
Affirmation: “I am seeing.”
Tone: OM
7. The Crown Chakra (Sahasrara)
Sahasrara (“thousand-petaled lotus”) is located just above the crown of the head. This is the doorway into pure consciousness, it is often depicted as a thousand-petaled lotus with a pinkish aura, and in a similar way to the third eye chakra, nor is this chakra associated with a physical element. This chakra serves as a way of connecting to divine energy and is associated with our highest self. Sahasrara helps us function in a more enlightened way, cultivate self-mastery, and find a sense of connection with all.
No element
Color: White
Affirmation “I am connected”
Tone: MMM
Now that you have a basic idea of these energy centers, it’s key to understand that this energy is constantly changing. Energy flows in and out of these centers all the time and your chakras can either be balanced, unbalanced, over active, under active or even blocked (oh nooo!!). Luckily there are various methods to unblock, align and balance your chakras and these include nutrition, yoga, healing, rest, various activities, crystals, colors and so forth. This all depends on which of the chakras it is that is not in harmony. So how do you know if a chakra is inactive or blocked you might ask? Well, usually after getting an understanding of the chakras you might already have an idea in your mind. Perhaps you’ve gone through heart ache lately (maybe there’s a blocakge in your heart chakra) or did you just lose your job (first chakra) or maybe you never speak your truth and always hold your opinions to yourself, even if you should speak up (throat). But if you’re still completely clueless, there are ways to test your chakras and one method is using a pendulum or a dowser. The dowser is simply placed above your chakra and if the pendulum is spinning in a circular way, the chakra is in harmony, if it’s not moving at all or if it’s going back and forth, there’s a blockage or it’s under active, if it’s making a crazy big circle, yup you guessed it: it’s over active. Below a list of feelings that might be present if a chakra is overactive or under active.
Root Chakra
Overactive
Fearful, nervous, insecure, not feeling grounded; materialistic or greedy, resisting change
Underactive
Lacking a sense of being at home or safe anywhere, codependent, unable to get into one’s body, fearful of abandonment
Sacral Chakra
Overactive
Overemotional, very quick to attach and invest in others, attracted to drama, moody, lacking personal boundaries
Underactive
Stiff, unemotional, closed off to others, lacking self-esteem or self-worth, possibly in an abusive relationship
Solar Plexus Chakra
Overactive
Dominating, aggressive, angry, perfectionistic or overly critical of oneself or others
Underactive
Passive, indecisive, shy, lacking self-control
Heart Chakra
Overactive
Loving in a clingy, suffocating way; lacking a sense of self in a relationship; willing to say yes to everything; no sense of boundaries, letting everyone in
Underactive
Cold, distant, lonely, unable or unwilling to open up to others, grudgeful
Throat Chakra
Overactive
Overly talkative, unable to listen, highly critical, verbally abusive, condescending
Underactive
Introverted, shy, having difficulty speaking the truth, unable to express needs
Third Eye Chakra
Overactive
Out of touch with reality, lacking good judgment, unable to focus, prone to hallucinations
Underactive
Rigid in thinking, closed off to new ideas, too reliant on authority, disconnected or distrustful of inner voice, anxious, clinging to the past and fearful of the future
Crown Chakra
Overactive
Addicted to spirituality, lack of bodily needs, having difficulty controlling emotions
Underactive
Not very open to spirituality, unable to set or maintain goals, lacking direction
So, no that you have a basic idea about the chakras you can learn to work with these subtle energies and become more aware of your energetic body. If you want to study more, I highly recommend picking up the book “The Anatomy of The Spirit” by Caroline Myss.
You feeling aligned AF yet? ;)
Con amor,
Evita
Yoga privates in Sayulita | Blog post by SayulitaLife
[This is a guest post by Stacey Elkins for SayulitaLife]
A Relaxing Treat in Sayulita: A Private Yoga Class with Eva Estlander Yoga
Photos: Camilla Fuchs Photography
Savasana love.
It was early Thursday evening and it had been another busy day, leaving me feeling exhausted and drained. As I took my place on the yoga mat at Don Pedro’s Brisa Mar Palapain Sayulita, I could feel the day’s stress already start to melt away. A gentle, cool breeze, the scent of incense, and the sound of waves hitting the shore further enhanced my relaxation as I prepared for my first private yin yoga class with Eva Estlander Yoga, in which she is in high demand.
Eva explained that yin yoga is about relaxing the body, not activating the muscles. It’s about working with the body’s connective tissue, which is a thick, white layer of tissue that holds the parts of the body together. It’s about finding your edge, how deep you can go in a pose (most focusing on the hips, glutes, and inner thighs), without feeling any pain or tingling. It’s about using your breath to move deeper into each pose, which is held between two and eight minutes. Relaxation in yin yoga is the ultimate goal, offering a nice balance from the active lifestyle in which most of live.
For the first pose, Eva had me lie on my back, a yoga bolster placed under my knees, my arms spread out on each side. Her soft, gentle voice acted as a meditative guide as she had me visualize a bright orange wheel of light filling my body and spinning as I inhaled, tension leaving my body as I exhaled. She explained that the body has seven main chakras (energy centers), and that two of them are the main focus in yin yoga: The root chakra at the base of the spine (represents feeling supported and grounded) and the sacral chakra just beneath the naval (represents creativity and sexuality).
Throughout my private class with Eva Estlander Yoga, I felt extremely relaxed as Eva guided me through the poses, which included pigeon, cow, half moon, and more. Eva was very attentive, offering gentle adjustments as needed, which further enhanced the experience. For the straddle pose, she encouraged me do three levels of stretching, which was made possible by utilizing a yoga bolster, yoga block, and a blanket. Each pose offered a nice stretch as I found stillness and enjoyed the solitude of the practice.
During the final pose, savasana, Eva incorporated two natural oils, which are made for the elements of the chakras in which we focused during the class. The scent of orange, as well as a nutmeg mix filled the air, as the sound of a singing bowl and hand drums created beautiful, inviting tones. Eva gently pushed on my shoulders and arms and massaged my temples and between my eyes as I lay on the mat completely relaxed and feeling rejuvenated. The sun had set, the night was silent, and I couldn’t have felt better.
My very first blog post
Welcome to mi mundo!
Hi, and nice to virtually meet you, somehow you stumbled here and I am happy you did. This is my very first blog post and I am glad you're here reading it. My first entry will be about my decision to blog: the choice to put myself out there.
Ever since I moved to Mexico (almost 5 years ago now), I've been told to start blogging and writing about my quite unusual life (well at least for a Finnish Swedish chick) living in the tropics in a small beach town in Mexico. It took me 5 years to get here, and let me tell you something, it's been a bumpy road.
I used to be very shy and introverted. My mom used to always tell me to lift my chin up as kid because I used to walk looking down at my feet. Side note: Finnish people in general are very introverted, some would even argue that they're anti social. So, deciding to blog and share about the things I do was a big decision for me, yet here I am typing. I've come to learn that putting yourself out there and courageously shining your light is your birthright. Why should I (or you) hide? Or why should I try to dim my light? Criticism and opinions are hard to avoid unless you live a life doing absolutely nada, so why not go for it. Heck! I might even inspire someone. So that's that, a big step for me and I am still quite unsure where it will take me, but for now, I welcome you to come back here if any of the following subjects interest you, since this is what I'll mainly blog about:
Yoga, surfing, health, beach life, wellness, meditation, empowerment, fashion, food (especially about tacos), tips on Sayulita (where to go, what to do), traveling, friends and so on.
That's it for now. Stay tuned. More to come.
Best,
Eva
Jessica L. Moody captured this moment yesterday.
Yup. Going for it.