If you are interested in Eastern mysticism or energy healing, you no doubt have at least a passing familiarity with chakras. But even if that is not the case, you have probably at least heard the word by now. But you might not know what chakras are or why they should matter to you.
Discovering and aligning your chakras is nothing less than tapping into the energy centers of your body, mind, and spirit.
When you clear your chakras, you also remove blockages in your life that are holding you back from actualizing your full potential.
This beginner’s guide to chakras will explain exactly what chakras are, their associated colors and meanings, how to know if your chakras are blocked, and what you can do to open them and restore them to balance. Let’s begin.
What Are Chakras?
Chakras are a concept from eastern mysticism. Cleveland Clinic explains, “You can think of chakras as places in your body where energy — in yoga terms, prana — congregates or is concentrated.”
Picture a line running up through your spine, and a series of seven circles or wheels of energy running from the base of your spine up to the crown of your head. Indeed, “circle” is an approximate translation of the word “chakra” from Sanskrit.
Chakras and Their Meanings
Each of the seven chakras in chakra system has an associated color and meaning.
- Root chakra: color red, grounding, security, stability.
- Sacral chakra: color orange, creativity, sexuality, exploration.
- Solar plexus chakra: color yellow, confidence, self-esteem, leadership.
- Heart chakra: color green, empathy, compassion, love.
- Throat chakra: color blue, communication, self-expression.
- Third eye chakra: color indigo, intuition.
- Crown chakra:, color violet, your link to the universe.
Sometimes, Chakras Can Become Blocked or Imbalanced
While we want energy flow, sometimes, there are obstructions. Why do chakras get blocked? Reiki master Ricky Mathieson explains, “Chakras get blocked by negative energy that is … experienced as a response to traumatic life experiences, negative emotions, and emotional challenges.”
Some people like to describe things a little differently. They may say that your chakras are not so much “blocked” as “out of balance” or “out of alignment.” Don’t worry—all of these mean the same thing. They are just different ways to visualize the same issue.
Signs Your Chakra Points Are Blocked, and How to Unblock?
A good first step to unblocking your chakras is to figure out which ones are blocked in the first place. Below, we go over signs and symptoms for each, as well as specific ideas for unblocking them and moving forward with your life.
Please note that if you are feeling physical symptoms, you should always investigate physical causes as well. Sometimes it could be a blocked chakra, but other times, it might be an issue that a doctor should examine.
○ Root Chakra (Muladhara)
Do you feel stuck in a rut lately, or like there is a lot of instability in your life? Maybe you feel ungrounded from your sense of home and identity. You might be getting sick more than usual and could be experiencing problems with your lower back or colon.
These are possible signs of your root chakra (first chakra) located at the base of the spine being blocked.
How to unblock a blocked root chakra:
- Try yoga poses like Sukhasana, Balasana or Malasana.
- Try EFT tapping on your thighs.
- Do a visualization-based meditation where you imagine yourself as a tree with roots extending deep into the ground and branches soaring into the sky.
- Say affirmations like, “I have strong roots,” or “I am grounded and centered,” or “I am safe and at home.” Check out guide on Powerful Root Chakra Affirmations.
- Wear lots of red or surround yourself with objects that are red.
- Close your eyes and visualize your root chakra. Picture it getting brighter.
- Try using reiki to clear blockages and heal your root chakra.
○ Sacral Chakra (Swadhisthana)
When your sacral chakra (second chakra) is blocked, you might feel like your sex drive or sexual energy is low or like you are hitting creative blocks. You also may feel detached from other people or even from your own physical body or emotions.
How to unblock:
- Some yoga poses that can help unblock your sacral chakra include Utkata Konasana, Prasarita Padottanasana C, and Virabhadrasana II.
- Do EFT tapping right under your belly button.
- Try affirmations like “I am a channel for the universe’s creative force,” “I am a wellspring of creative energy,” or “I am a vibrant sexual being.” Check out guide on Powerful Sacral Chakra Affirmations
- Wear orange or keep orange items around you.
- Apply reiki.
- Close your eyes, picturing your sacral chakra. Imagine it intensifying in brightness.
○ Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura)
Are you having difficulty trusting yourself with low self-esteem, or do you find your confidence is unusually low lately? Sometimes, these may be signs that your solar plexus chakra (third chakra) is blocked. You might also feel digestive issues, pains in the stomach area, and gastrointestinal symptoms.
How to unblock a blocked solar plexus chakra:
- Do EFT tapping under your sternum.
- Say affirmations like, “I am capable,” or “I can inspire with my leadership,” or “I can trust myself.” Check out guide on Powerful Solar Plexus Chakra Affirmations
- Try yoga poses for your solar plexus chakra like Anjaneyasana, Purvottanasana, or Paripurna Navasana.
- Surround yourself with yellow or golden hues.
- Try using reiki to clear blockages and heal your energy.
- Visualize your solar plexus chakra brightening with the golden energy of the sun.
○ Heart Chakra (Anahata)
If you struggle with shyness, feel lonely, or have a hard time feeling compassion or unconditional love or empathy for other people, it could mean your heart chakra (fourth chakra) is blocked. Forgiving other people for their trespasses may also be difficult with this chakra out of alignment.
How to unblock a blocked heart chakra:
- EFT tapping should be performed at the center of your chest.
- Perform yoga poses such as Salamba Bhujangasana, Camatkarasana, or Ustrasana.
- Try affirmations like “I am capable of deep empathy, compassion ,and forgiveness” or “I am ready for love.” Check out guide on Powerful Heart Chakra Affirmations
- Wear green, spend time in nature surrounded by greenery, or pick other green objects to place in your environment.
- Close your eyes, and picture your heart chakra getting brighter and exuding loving energy.
○ Throat Chakra (Vishuddha)
If you have a hard time speaking up for yourself, experience social anxiety, or get nervous if you have to give a presentation, maybe your throat chakra (fifth chakra) is blocked.
You might also have a hard time expressing yourself creatively or think that your needs in relationships are unimportant and do not deserve to be heard.
Neck pain, sore throat, jaw pain, thyroid problems, and a hoarse throat are physical symptoms that some people associate with a blocked throat chakra.
How to unblock a blocked throat chakra:
- Tap on your throat.
- In terms of yoga, Matsyasana, Simhasana Pranayama, and simple neck stretches may help with your blocked throat chakra.
- Ideas for throat chakra affirmations could include, “I speak my truth to the world,” “I deserve to be heard,” or “I assertively share my needs.” Check out guide on Powerful Throat Chakra Affirmations
- Wear blue or surround yourself with blue objects.
- With your eyes closed, imagine your throat chakra getting brighter, and it’s empowering effectively.
○ Third-Eye Chakra (Ajna)
If you feel like you are out of touch with your instincts, that might mean that your third eye chakra (sixth chakra) is blocked. Another possible sign is if you cannot seem to stimulate your imagination or find creative solutions through the sixth sense.
Issues involving sleep or dreams may also be indicative of a blocked third eye chakra.
How to unblock a blocked third-eye chakra:
- Tap directly between your brows to stimulate the pineal gland.
- Some yoga poses you can try to open your third eye chakra include Balasana, Viparita Karani, and Makarasana.
- Affirmations that may help to clear a blocked third eye chakra include “I trust my instincts,” “My imagination is boundless,” or “The Universe guides me through my intuition.” Check out guide on Powerful Third Eye Chakra Affirmations
- Choose indigo objects to surround yourself with, or wear indigo clothes.
- Closing your eyes, visualize your third eye chakra. See it getting brighter with beautiful indigo light.
○ Crown Chakra (Sahasrara)
A blocked crown chakra (seventh chakra) may be linked to dissociative feelings or close-mindedness. Interestingly enough, we also kind of wrap-around full circle here because you may feel ungrounded and off-center—much as you do when your root chakra is blocked.
How to unblock a blocked crown chakra:
- Try tapping at the very top of your head or crown of the head.
- Vrksasana, Savasana, and Salamba Sirsasana are all yoga pose that may help you to clear your blocked crown chakra.
- Affirmations that might work for your crown chakra include “I have a direct line to the Universe,” or “I am aligned with my higher power,” or “The highest good guides me.” Check out guide on Powerful Crown Chakra Affirmations
- Bring more purple or violet objects into your life, or wear these hues more often.
- Visualize your crown chakra getting brighter with violet light. Picture it just on the edge of the visible spectrum, a bridge between the seen and unseen worlds.
Frequently Asked Questions about Chakras
You now have some ideas for how you can try unblocking each of your chakras. You can see that the basic methods you can use are the same for each chakra, just with variations for specific poses, affirmations, and visualizations. To wrap up, let’s answer a few frequently asked questions.
Q: How many chakras are there?
Most lists of chakras include a total of seven main chakras. But you will sometimes see lists that include an eighth and ninth chakra that float above the head, each farther away than the last.
You also will occasionally run across lists or diagrams that include even more chakras above and below the human body. Sometimes, these chakras number more than twenty.
Since there seem to be different schools of thought here, we recommend that you do your own visualization. Trust your intuition (your third eye). Do you instinctually see more chakras for yourself? If so, consider incorporating them into your meditations or visualization exercises when you clear your blockages.
Q: Are these the only methods to unblock chakras?
No, they are not. You can find other meditations, use essential oils, try visualization exercises and breathing exercises for clearing chakras. Some people also like to use sound to help them bring their chakras into alignment.
The trick is to find what works for you. There is no one-size-fits-all approach required for clearing blocks in your energy field. Experiment with different techniques and see what feels right for you.
Q: Do chakras open in a specific order?
Typically, you should start with the root chakra and work your way up to the crown chakra. Think about it like growing a plant. Without strong roots, it is hard for the rest of the plant to be healthy.
That being said, after you work your way up through your chakras, you might discover that it becomes easier to go back and clear previous blockages that still feel “stuck” in any specific chakra.
Also, sometimes the voice of intuition might tell you just to work on a particular chakra. That is totally fine to do.
Q: What do chakras really look like?
They are not on the visible spectrum, so we cannot say what they “literally” look like. But you can picture them as circles, spheres, discs, or wheels of light in their respective colors.
Q: Are unblocking chakras dangerous?
Simply clearing chakras of blockages is not dangerous, no. But if your chakras become overactive, that can be just as problematic as when they are underactive. That is why we put such an emphasis on chakra balancing.
Now, we do want to mention that if you abruptly clear a chakra that has been blocked for a long time, all of that new flow of energy in your life may sometimes lead to some dramatic or unexpected changes. Try and be ready for those shifts.
Unblock Your Chakras to Reconnect With Yourself and the Universe
When we are caught up in our day-to-day challenges, it is easy to fall out of touch with our bodies, energy fields, and higher selves.
When we do that, our chakras become blocked, and if we leave them that way, the disconnect just continues to grow.
Unblocking and aligning chakras is something anyone can do using simple techniques to gain control of your life. Whether you practice yoga, meditate, visualize, try EFT tapping, or use affirmations or color therapy, or all of these methods are free and easy. Give them a try, and bring balance and connection back into your life.
