What Are Chakras and How Do They Help You Grow?

Cultures all over the world revere the lotus flower, that gorgeous, layered beauty that is only found among the mucky, merky bergs of sordid water. 

The lotus flower needs adverse conditions to grow—city people envision roses growing on trash heap. Your energy centers, or chakras are the same, but they need your attention in order to flourish. 

Chakras are energy centers that run through your body from the top of your head to the base of your spine. They are used in numerous spiritual traditions to help heal the body and bring individuals to a higher, more focused point of consciousness. 

If you think of chakras like small wheels (in sanskrit, chakra means wheel), when they are all functioning properly at the speed in which they need to function, they work like cogs in a clock. When one of them jams, goes into orbit, or moves like rocket fuel, the clock no longer functions correctly. Maybe it gets behind, maybe it speeds up. Maybe it stops all together. The point is, your chakras must be in balance for your physical, spiritual and emotional self to also feel balanced. 

In a perfect world, your chakras would turn at a calm and consistent speed all of the time. I’ve definitely experienced moments like this, moments in time in which I feel content with everything. I’m happy with work, my relationships, myself, my emotions and the fundamentals of life. Maybe you’ve experienced that, too? Connecting to your chakras, understanding where they are (blocked, spinning listlessly, running 1,000 miles an hour), will increase the frequency of that feeling. It will also help you live your best life, get your best results and actively pursue your unique gift.

Chakras by Name, Function and Color

Starting at the base of the spine and running along the spine until we reach the top of your head, this is what each chakra represents, which energy it governs and which color it is associated with:

Root Chakra (red, fearlessness)

Located at the base of your spine, near your tailbone, the root chakra represents our basic needs, the things that ground us such as water, shelter and safety. Because of this, the root chakra is our foundation, or “the root” that anchors us to the earth. Once that foundation is stable, once our basic needs are met and we feel safe, we become more connected to others and lean into our own fearlessness. This is why when I do chakra work, I start with the base chakra and move up. You need to ground down and root before you can ascend. 

Blocked root chakra energies can negatively affect the colon, adrenal glands, kidneys and the left chamber of the heart. Spiritually, a blocked root chakra negatively impacts our self-esteem, personal integrity, sense of belonging, security and zest for life. It also prohibits us from growth. You cannot grow if you are not stable in your environment (think of a tree with a rotten root). 

Sacral Chakra (orange, sensuality and creativity)

This chakra has cleverly been nicknamed “the sex chakra” because it sits in the low belly near the sex organs. It’s one of my favorite—sexuality aside—because it also governs creativity, passion, the divine feminine, emotions and one’s sense of adventure. If you look at my core values, you’ll see why I love this one so much! 

Blocked sacral chakras can lead to anxiety, low libido, lack of creativity/inspiration, loneliness and detachment among other ailments. 

Solar Plexus Chakra (yellow, the wise and the powerful)

The solar plexus chakra (cleverly located at your solar plexus), is the center of personal power. This is where ego, authenticity, ID, willpower, masculine and purpose energies live. When the solar plexus chakra is open, you step into your wise and powerful self.  

When it’s closed or spinning widely, it can lead to stomach pain, nausea, heartburn and eating disorders. Emotionally, it can lead to insecurity, a need for control, a victim mentality and a feeling of helplessness. When balanced the solar plexus chakra leaves you confident, playful, warm, responsible, reliable and able to make decisions and meet challenges. 

Heart Chakra (green, love and connection)

The heart chakra, located in the center of the chest, is unique because it's the only chakra that bridges the physical chakras(lower half of the body) with the spiritual ones (upper half of the body). The heart chakra represents love, peace, gratitude, trust, boundaries, transformation and self-love. 

When it’s balanced, we are loving, compassionate beings. When it’s out of balance, we experience feelings of loneliness, unhappiness and insecurity. Imbalance here also leads to an inability to feel or receive love and often causes decisions to be made with the head, rather than the heart in mind. 

Throat Chakra (blue, self-expression and empowerment) 

Located at the base of the throat, this chakra is responsible for your ability to speak your individual truth. Without your throat chakra, the creativity surfacing from your sacral chakra will never see the light of day. 

When it’s out of balance, it can physically manifest as having a sore throat, mouth ulcers and thyroid issues among others. Emotionally, an imbalance in this chakra may lead to depression, anxiety, or low self-esteem.

Third Eye and Crown Chakras

The last two chakras are the third eye and the crown chakras. These chakras are located at the center of your head and at the crown of your head. These chakras allow us to commune with the divine and represent our ability to be fully connected on a spiritual level. Because these are spiritually in-depth chakras, it’s best to consult a spiritual leader to open them. While I can certainly help you build a foundation in the other chakras, these two are best left to other experts. 

Growth Through Chakras

Once you understand chakras and dial into your own, you can—by yourself—reach many conclusions that otherwise take talking to a good therapist or friend. For example, if you know the physical manifestations of an unbalanced throat chakra (chronic sore throat, mouth ulcers) and start doing daily body scans, you will start to recognize what in your life is out of balance.  

Then you can start working on mantras during meditation or prayer and/or make changes in your life that will help fix these imbalances. 

Returning to the example of a lotus, consider these energy wheels lotus flowers that need attention to open. When you stop paying attention to them, they close or open for too long. Yes, they can and will grow under any condition, but that growth needs your attention. 

By incorporating chakra recognition and work into their lives, Vixen Gathering members clear what no longer serves them in their life and invite in the things they most want.  

Interested in understanding how chakra openings and blockages are affecting you? Chat with us!