How do you FEEL?

“To give vent now and then to his feelings, whether of pleasure or discontent, is a great ease to a man’s heart.” ~~Francesco Guicciardini

The Svadhisthana (Sacral) Chakra is the second Chakra, and is located in the lower abdomen, approximately 2 inches below the navel and about 2 inches deep. It is thought to be our most important emotional center. It is associated with the color orange and the element water. The associated body parts are the ovaries, adrenal glands, spleen, uterus, urinary system, prostate gland, uterus, cervix and lower bowel.

Those who are strong and balanced in this chakra radiate warmth and friendliness, and they are open to the world around them. They have energy, compassion, emotional stability, and they genuinely love life.

When this chakra is out of balance in some way, it causes people to have issues with trust, they tend to be hypersensitive, and they can be emotionally volatile. Those who are depleted in this chakra tend to be completely disconnected and cold towards others. Those who are overactive in this chakra tend to be needy and emotionally dependent on others.

No matter where you feel you are at the moment, everyone tends to get out of balance in some way with this chakra now and then. Because it IS thought to be our emotional center, it is very difficult to keep it balanced, so we will be working on how to do just that in class this week.

It is important to include the following types of moves and exercises to bring this chakra into balance:

• Hip openers: We tend to store emotional and physical tension in the hips, so it is important to open them, especially moves that take them through their entire range of motion. Remember that this chakra is associated to the element water, so try and include movements that feel very “fluid” when you can. Some yoga poses to include would be:
  • Child’s Pose (Balasana)
  • Dancer Pose (Nataranjasana)
  • Wide Legged Forward Bend (Prasarita Padottanasana)
  • Garland Pose (Malasana)
  • Cow Face Pose (Gomukhasana)
  • Bound Angle Pose (Baddha Konasana)
  • Seated Straddle Splits (Upavistha Konasana)
  • Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana)
  • Happy Baby Pose
• Lower abdominal work: Due to the fact that this chakra is located in the lower abdomen, it is important to keep this area of the body strong and toned. It helps with our ability to let go of unnecessary muscular tension throughout the body. Some yoga poses to include would be:
  • Cobra Pose (Bhujagasana)
  • Locust Pose (Shalabhasana)
  • Boat Pose (Navasana)
  • Revolved Triangle
  • Half Lord of the Fishes Pose (Ardha Matsyendasana)
• Meditate and let go: When we can learn to let go of anything that doesn’t serve us, anything we don’t need to be carrying around with us, we open ourselves up for new and better things. Meditation is a great tool in helping us bring things into perspective and realize what is helping or hurting us.

I hope to see you in class this week, but if you’re unable to make it, try doing some of things mentioned above at least a couple of times on your own. Even just a few minutes focusing on this chakra can make a world of difference in our emotional health.

Namaste,

Melanie