Chakra is Sanskrit for wheel or disk, and the chakras represent energy centers in motion throughout the body. The seven major chakras are often correlated with major nerve plexuses along the spine.
Each chakra relates to specific qualities of nature, of our physical bodies and of our energetic bodies. A chakra can be balanced or out of balance (underactive or overactive), and this shows up in our physical and energetic states. Here is our guide, from the bottom up.
1. Muladhara: root chakra
The seat of grounding and security. It gives us our base instincts, survival skills and self-preservation.
- Element: earth. Sense: smell. Sound: LAM. Color: red
- Associated with: the adrenal glands
- Balanced: calm, secure, courageous, grounded, connected to the earth, able to manifest material stability
- Unbalanced: the desire to possess, hoard, compete and acquire; basic fears and insecurities
- Underactive: weak, lacking security
- Overactive: rigid, aggressive, greedy
- Poses to balance: standing forward fold, garland (yogi squat), head-to-knee forward bend, Warrior II
2. Svadhisthana: sacral chakra
Creative energy, sexual energy and the urge to create life.
- Element: water. Sense: taste. Sound: VAM. Color: orange
- Associated with: the reproductive organs
- Balanced: abundant creativity and love; giving and receiving joy and pleasure
- Unbalanced: jealousy, anger, codependency
- Underactive: fear of pleasure, out of touch with emotions, resistance to change
- Overactive: emotionally erratic, poor boundaries
- Poses to balance: wide-angle seated forward bend, revolved triangle, boat, chair
3. Manipura: solar plexus chakra
The center of power, expression and expansion, and the ability to break the ego’s constriction and commune with our true nature. A storehouse of prana and emotion.
- Element: fire. Sense: sight. Sound: RAM. Color: yellow
- Associated with: the digestive organs
- Balanced: courage, adventure, the ability to take risks, personal power, confidence, self-esteem
- Unbalanced: lethargy, low mood, anger
- Underactive: unexplained fears and anxieties, lack of drive
- Overactive: perfectionism, anger, arrogance, being overbearing, taking on more than you can handle
- Poses to balance: boat, firefly, Warrior I and II, seated twist
4. Anahata: heart chakra
The center of compassion and unconditional love, equilibrium, well-being and acceptance.
- Element: air. Sense: touch. Sound: YAM. Color: green
- Associated with: the thymus (immunity)
- Balanced: giving and receiving love easily, peace, emotional balance
- Unbalanced: closed, disconnected, untrusting, unwilling to give or receive love
- Underactive: suppressed emotions, coldness
- Overactive: codependent, possessive, jealous
- Poses to balance: cobra, eagle, camel, fish, cat, upward-facing dog
5. Vishuddha: throat chakra
The center of communication, growth and self-expression, and a great doorway to liberation.
- Element: ether. Sense: hearing. Sound: HAM. Color: blue
- Associated with: the thyroid and parathyroid glands
- Balanced: pure speech, masterful teaching, the ability to express oneself with accuracy and love
- Unbalanced: feeling misunderstood or blocked, anxious talking
- Underactive: trouble speaking your truth
- Overactive: talking without listening, not hearing yourself or others
- Poses to balance: plow, upward plank, bridge, child’s pose, king pigeon, supported headstand
6. Ajna: third eye chakra
The eye of wisdom and inner awareness. It governs incoming and outgoing thoughts, and connects our external reality to the divine.
- Sense: the mind. Sound: OM. Color: indigo
- Associated with: the pituitary gland
- Balanced: wisdom, a clear moral compass, the ability to see the divine in all
- Unbalanced: feeling blocked, hypercritical
- Underactive: poor memory and visualization
- Overactive: restless dreams, difficulty concentrating
- Poses to balance: downward-facing dog, child’s pose, supported shoulder stand
7. Sahasrara: crown chakra
The highest level of consciousness. Meditation here allows us to move beyond duality and merge into oneness with universal consciousness.
- Sound: silence, the internal OM. Color: violet or white
- Associated with: the pineal gland (circadian rhythms and melatonin)
- Balanced: unity with the divine, wisdom
- Unbalanced: overthinking, confusion, inability to think for oneself, low mood, lack of stamina
- Poses to balance: supported headstand, plow, lotus, seated forward bend, reclining bound angle
Want to go deeper into one center? Read our exploration of the throat chakra, Between the Head and the Heart.
