Soothe Yourself Part 2 The Sacral Chakra

This is pranayama meditation focuses on creating balance in the sacral chakra.

When this chakra is open, we may experience feelings of pleasure, happiness, and contentment. Creativity, 'trusting our gut,' and overall emotional well-being are activiated.

When restricted, feelings of shame, especially regarding sexuality and creativity may be strong. We may also feel a lack of inspiration, motivation, and our addictions, self-obsessions and low feelings of self worth may take over.

Transcript

This will be a pranayama meditation with a focus on the sacral chakra.

The sacral chakra forms when we're between the ages of 8 and 14,

And just beginning to develop a sense of ourselves.

And as I recall,

It's at this time that sexuality and independence reared their heads.

When the sacral chakra is in balance,

We can easily experience feelings of pleasure,

Happiness,

Contentment,

Empathy,

And compassion.

Our creativity,

Our sensitivity,

Our gut instincts,

And our emotional well-being are all active and reliable in a positive and helpful way.

We also hold our weaknesses and what we perceive to be our mistakes in the sacral chakra.

When it's out of balance,

We may experience feelings of shame,

Oftentimes around our sexuality and our creativity.

We might lack inspiration or motivation,

And our addictions,

Whether they be to a substance,

Screen,

Or way of thinking,

And our obsessions and our low feelings of self-worth might take over.

These are all signals of an imbalance.

In addition,

Women may also suffer from hormonal imbalances,

Which might affect their menstrual cycles,

If they're still menstruating,

And their reproductive organs as well.

The Bija mantra for the sacral chakra is Vam,

And the element is water.

And some of the links with water are representative of the energies of the sacral chakra.

Both energy and water can be gentle,

Soft,

And yielding.

They can be cleansing,

And they can nurture and provide sustenance.

Energy and water both also have immense power and can be hard to contain.

They'll go through,

Around,

Over,

Or under any obstacle in their way before they'll stop.

So today let's find ways to soothe ourselves,

And soothe symptoms of an unbalanced sacral chakra,

Not through thought,

But through our intentional attention to breathing,

And the subsequent calming and relaxation we can experience through pranayama.

Let's begin.

Today's meditation can be done seated in a chair,

Or if you want to try something different,

You might sit on the ground with your legs extended into a V shape.

Feel free to have a bend at the knee if a straight-legged position isn't comfortable or accessible,

And you can also prop yourself against a wall,

Or use a cushion or anything to help support your posture.

During the meditation,

Your eyes can be closed,

Or you can have them capped with your gaze lowered.

And if you feel like you need to open your eyes during the meditation,

Feel free to do so,

And then when you're ready,

Close or cap them again,

And return to the meditation.

And spend the next few moments just settling in.

Leave all of your senses open,

And welcome all aspects of your experience.

Notice the sounds around you.

Some may be near to you,

And some may be coming from farther away.

Some of the sounds may be pleasant,

And others may feel unwelcome.

Accept everything as part of your physical and mental experience,

And know that the source of these sounds is in the same environment as you are.

And that's what it means for them to be a part of your experience.

You may also notice smells in your environment,

Or a lingering taste in your mouth.

You may notice the sensations of your body.

Perhaps you're aware of the points where your body is in contact with the surface beneath you,

Where your back or your bottom is in contact with your seat.

Without feeling the need to change anything,

Just notice where your feet are.

Are they flat on the floor?

Are they crossed at the ankle?

And again,

Without change anything now,

Notice where your hands are.

Have you placed them intentionally,

Or have they just gone to a natural position for you?

Are your palms up,

Or are your palms down?

Just notice.

And whatever you notice,

Accept.

Don't wish for it to be anything else.

It simply is.

And now mindfully take some time to notice where your hands are.

And where your feet are.

And now mindfully take a slightly fuller breath in.

And mindfully,

Slowly,

Let it out.

And again,

Take a full breath in.

And let it out.

Continue to take a few cycles of deep breaths at your own pace.

Let your inhalation and exhalation draw you into a deeper state of calm,

And release any tension or stress you might be holding onto.

Breath by breath.

Moment by moment.

Let your body and your mind unwind.

And turn your attention to your root chakra at the base of your spine.

And once you have the location in mind,

Start to visualize the bright red light of the energy that spins there.

The spinning creates a tension that anchors you to the earth.

And with each breath,

Imagine this energy moving up your spine,

And arriving at your lower abdomen,

Just below the navel.

This is the area of the sacral chakra.

And here you can picture a luminous orange light swirling in this spot.

And feel the warmth the spinning of this orange light creates spread through your entire abdomen.

As you keep breathing deeply,

Envision the orange light growing more and more vivid,

And expanding more and more with each breath.

And now holding an awareness of the sacral chakra and the spinning orange light,

Let's introduce a mantra.

We'll inhale,

And on the exhale you can silently repeat to yourself,

Or you can speak it aloud,

I am creative,

Passionate,

And emotionally balanced.

And inhale,

And on the exhale,

I am creative,

Passionate,

And emotionally balanced.

Continue to repeat this mantra with the breath a few times on your own.

And each time maintain a focus on the sensation of the vibrant orange light as it spins and strengthens.

If you encounter any resistance or discomfort,

Acknowledge it without judgment.

Continue to breathe,

And let the energy flow.

And as the visualization of the orange light in the sacral chakra becomes more balanced,

Start to see it now merging with the red light from your root chakra.

This potent combination of energies flows through your body,

Sparking your creativity,

Your passion,

And your emotional intelligence.

Let the imagery go.

Now I invite you to place one hand on your stomach,

And the other hand on the middle of your upper chest.

Slowly breathe in through your nose,

Drawing your breath in toward your stomach.

You might notice your stomach rise and gently push upward against your hand,

While for now your chest remains still.

Slowly exhale by gently tightening your abdominal muscles,

And slowly exhale by gently tightening your abdominal muscles and letting your stomach move downward again with your chest remaining still.

And repeat this a few times on your own.

On your next inhalation,

Go a little deeper,

So that once you feel the rise in your abdomen,

You continue to inhale until you feel a gentle rise in your chest.

And as you slowly exhale,

Release the breath from your chest first,

And then empty your stomach.

Continue this a few times on your own.

We'll add another layer to the breath now,

With the Iddha Nadi.

A left nostril breathing practice that helps balance the parasympathetic nervous system and signals your body to further relax and rest.

To perform Iddha Nadi,

Simply close your right nostril with the first two fingers of your right hand,

And inhale and exhale through the left nostril only.

Continue to breathe deeply,

Engaging the diaphragm and allowing for the rise and fall of your stomach and chest as we continue Iddha Nadi for three minutes,

And I'll keep track of the time.

Now you can let go of the regulated breathing,

And let your hands return to a comfortable position.

Let that experience settle,

And observe any activity in your body,

Your emotions,

Or your mind.

Before we go into the silent portion of our meditation,

Let's nurture the sacral chakra with 11 rounds of the Bija mantra,

Vam.

We'll inhale together,

And on the exhale,

Chant Vam.

And if you feel self-conscious about chanting,

It might help to put your attention on the feeling,

On the vibration of the chant,

Rather than the sound you make.

And you always have the option to chant silently.

Let's begin.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Vam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Vam.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And inhale.

On the exhale,

Lam.

And let go of the mantra now,

And we'll sit in silence for five minutes.

And I'll keep track of the time.

Keeping your eyes closed,

Start to take some deeper breaths now as you begin to transition out of your practice.

And slowly reacquaint yourself with the sensation of being in your environment.

Notice any space your physical body is taking up.

Notice yourself sitting on your chair or sitting on the floor.

Begin to invigorate your body by slowly moving your muscles,

Perhaps starting with your hands and your feet,

A gentle rotation,

Flexing and relaxing.

You may want to adjust your arms and your legs by stretching your limbs.

Simply allow for any movement to be allowed to be allowed to be allowed to be allowed to be.

And then,

As you begin to move your arms and your legs,

You may want to start to move your feet.

You may want to start to move your arms and your legs by stretching your limbs.

Simply allow for any movement your body is asking you for.

Notice the feeling of the surface beneath you.

And the sounds around you.

And when you're ready,

You can slowly open your eyes.