My name is Erika Anderson.
This pranayama meditation focuses on the throat,
Or vishuddha chakra.
The word vishuddha means purity in Sanskrit,
And the characteristics of this chakra are associated with our voice and our communication,
In particular,
Our ability to communicate our truth.
When this chakra is in balance,
We are able to tune in and listen to the guidance of our higher self,
And to hear our inner truth.
We find it easy to communicate with others and to be honest with ourselves.
We may increasingly live these truths in our daily lives.
When out of balance,
All this communication breaks down,
And we may feel unheard.
We may be unable to listen to both ourselves and to others.
Deficiencies might manifest physically as stiffness in our necks,
Tension in our shoulders,
Or the grinding of our teeth.
All this tension comes from what's being held energetically.
During this meditation,
We'll disrupt our own energy of this chakra by performing the ujjayi pranayama and chanting the bija mantra,
HAM.
Ujjayi breath is sometimes referred to as Darth Vader breath because of the sound we produce when we perform it.
This sound comes from a gentle tension that we'll create in our throats on the exhale.
You can practice this by taking one of your hands and bringing it towards your mouth so that your palm is facing your mouth.
Begin by inhaling through your nostrils,
And then on the exhale,
Breathe out through an open mouth into your palm,
As though you're using your breath to steam up a mirror or moisten your glasses to clean them.
Now do this again,
Inhaling through your nostrils,
And this time,
As you breathe out,
We'll start with an open mouth and make that steamy breath.
Before you've finished exhaling,
Close your lips.
The element of the throat chakra is ether,
Which essentially is nothingness,
But in that nothingness is everything,
And we can experience that quality today in our stillness.
During the visualizations in the meditation,
We can connect to the color associated with the throat chakra,
Which is blue,
And again,
The Bija mantra is ham.
There's a hand posture,
Or mudra,
You can use while we chant.
It's called the throat chakra mudra,
And it's said to bring balance in the functioning of the thyroid glands and the parathyroid glands,
Which are located in the throat chakra area.
To perform the mudra,
Interlock your fingers so that they lay inside your palms and press the tips of your thumbs together.
As you chant the Bija mantra,
You can rest your hands close to your navel while they are in the form of this mudra.
Let's begin.
Go ahead and settle into your seat.
Allow your eyes to close,
Or you can leave them slightly open with your gaze lower.
Let your feet make deliberate contact with the floor,
And let your hands rest gently on your thighs.
Take a few minutes to scan your body,
And as you do so,
Acknowledge every aspect of your physical self with gratitude and appreciation.
You might start with your feet,
And then move your attention up past your ankles and along your legs,
Through your hips,
Moving up your torso to your chest and your back.
Notice your shoulders,
And let your attention wander down your arms.
Notice your throat and your neck.
And your whole head,
Including your face.
Just checking in,
And anywhere you meet any resistance,
Or any time any part of your body somehow calling out to you for extra love,
Feed it that love by way of your attention.
Move that attention to your breathing now.
There's no need to intentionally change or to try for anything in particular.
Just breathe naturally.
Allow the rhythm of your own breath and the comfort you find in that rhythm to draw you into a deeper state of calm.
It's in this stillness that the otherwise subtle movements of your body might become more noticeable.
The cool air passing through your nostrils as you breathe in.
The slightly warmer air that passes through your nostrils as you breathe out.
The gentle rise of your chest,
Followed by the subtle fall.
The expansion of your belly and its quiet contraction.
Surrender to the tranquility of this peacefulness within you.
Now let's encourage an even deeper state of relaxation by pretending to yawn a few times.
Let's try it now.
And inhale through your nostrils.
And as you exhale,
Open your mouth and yawn.
And again,
Inhale.
And on the exhale,
Yawn.
Now do it one more time on your own.
Now let that go.
And sit.
And just let the energy settle.
Now bring your attention to the area of your throat and your neck.
You might notice the contrast between the bony ridges of your cervical spine in your neck and the soft tissues of your throat.
See if you can tune into this area.
See if you can feel the wheel of the throat chakra as it spins like a spinning top,
Moving the energy,
And as it does so,
Emitting a glowing,
Beautiful,
Blue light.
And each inhale and each exhale,
Feed the spinning and feed the light.
And as you hold on to that visual connection to the sensation of the pulsing,
Glowing,
Blue light,
Say to yourself,
I listen to my own inner knowing.
I listen to my own inner knowing.
I let my voice be heard.
I let my voice be heard.
I trust my conviction and act on my truth.
I trust my conviction and act on my truth.
I do no harm with my words.
I do no harm with my words.
I speak with authenticity,
Grace,
And courage.
I speak with authenticity,
Grace,
And courage.
Let the imagery around the throat chakra and the messaging go and linger for a moment in the stillness.
Prepare now for the ujjayi pranayama by gently making any adjustments to your posture that will assist you in taking full and comfortable breaths.
Remember that ujjayi is performed by inhaling and exhaling through the nose.
Constrict the throat just enough so that the out-breath is audible and the vibration can be felt.
Let's begin with a few cycles together and inhale and on the exhale,
Make that steam breath while keeping your lips closed and inhale and exhale.
One more time together and inhale and exhale.
Continue this on your own at your own pace for three minutes and I'll keep track of the time.
Let the vibration disrupt whatever normal patterns exist and liberate the energies of the throat chakra.
Now you can let go of the pranayama and as you sit in stillness,
Simply observe any activity in your body,
Your mind,
Or your emotions.
Let's chant now 11 rounds of the bija mantra.
Hum.
If you like,
You can add the throat chakra mudra by interlacing your fingers and letting them rest in your palms.
Touch your thumbs together slightly and let your hands rest in that position near your tummy.
And we'll inhale together and on the exhale,
You can chant out loud or silently.
Hum.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
And inhale and on the exhale.
And inhale and on the exhale.
Ah.
Let go of the mantra and sit in silence for five minutes and I'll keep track of the time.
Slowly reacquaint yourself with the sensation of being in your environment.
Take your time.
You might begin to wake your body up by slowly bringing in small movements,
Perhaps circling your wrists and ankles.
You might adjust your arms and your legs.
Simply allow for any movement that your body is asking you for.
As you continue to transition back,
You might start to tune in to the sounds in your environment.
You might notice your connection to the surface beneath you and whenever you're ready,
You can slowly open your eyes.
