The bridge between the lower three chakras and the higher three chakras is the heart chakra. The center which balances you, the connection from the inner world to the outer world, the pure you. The balance of the heart chakra is the gateway to balancing all six other chakras.
In Ayurveda, it is believed our bodies are aligned with seven energies that connect to our nervous systems. They connect the mind, body, and consciousness. Each energy, or chakra, houses different experiences and information that is unique to the individual. The seven Chakras consist of: the Root Chakra, Sacral Chakra, Solar Plexus Chakra, Heart Chakra, Throat Chakra, Third Eye Chakra, and the Crown Chakra. The balance point of all these energies is the heart chakra.
Where is the Heart Chakra?
The heart chakra is located in the center of your chest. It is housed in your heart, lungs, circulatory and lymphatic systems. It is associated with the element of air. Prana, life force energy, ether, or air fuels the heart chakra energy as it is found in the lungs and heart as well. This chakra is responsible for compassion, connection, love, and acceptance. However, love in the heart chakra is beyond intimacy or sexual energy. Love energy is what charges the three lower chakras as well as the higher three. If you feel love energy and your mind is working with any of the other chakras, you will end up with the qualities of those chakras. For example, If you are filled with love and thinking through your third chakra of your solar plexus, you will feel ambitious.
Jnanamaya: Sheath of Knowledge
The chakras are associated with an electromagnetic field called a Kosha. The kosha associated with the heart chakra is Jnanamaya meaning “made of wisdom and knowledge.” This field extends outward two feet from your body and is commonly associated with vijanamaya, which is the kosha of the throat. If the window of the heart chakra is open, you can pass through to any of the higher chakras. If the window is closed, you will not ascend into the higher three energies, preventing you from ascending into your higher self. The important theme of this is that without love, you cannot authentically do what is true and right. If there is no existence of love, you are not able to speak your truth.
Balance and Imbalance
Imbalances of the heart manifest emotionally in most cases. In other chakra energies, you may experience physical ailments, however the heart chakra holds mostly emotional imbalance for an individual. The inability to let go of the past and not forgive is the main way this manifests. It could also include fears of rejection, vulnerability, connecting with others, but mostly a fear of connecting with themselves. Since this is the balance point of all the chakras, the priority of aligning this chakra is crucial. The heart chakra is pure love. “When the heart chakra is open, you listen to the music of life and dance with inner music…When the heart chakra is open, you can read other people’s minds, because the heart chakra is a bridge between the inner world and the outer world…the pure “me” is located here” Vasant Lad, M.A.Sc., Textbook of Ayurveda. The energy from the solar plexus, root, and sacral energies flow into the heart. If the hearth chakra is open, this energy continues to flow into the throat chakra giving you the ability to communicate and express yourself, to speak your truth.
Some ways to balance and open the heart chakra are:
- Practice gratitude
- Practice forgiveness; yourself and others
- Focus on the loving something instead of criticizing
- Wear green as this is the color of the heart chakra
- Aromatherapy, specifically rose and jasmine
- Practice yoga, specifically chest opening poses like camel pose or crescent moon pose
- Meditation
If you have a desire to meditate with the intention of opening your heart chakra, incorporate the mantra “yum” meaning “I love.” As you meditate, visualize the window of the heart chakra. Is the window open or closed? Open the window and see the light that shines through. Repeat “yum” as you remain in the light of the open window. Is the light warm? Do you see anything within that light? How do you feel being engulfed in that light? Allow your heart to continue to open and remain in this throughout your day. Practicing this heart opening visualization can bring about a healthier perspective of the world around you. You will find that the very things you were critical about are the very things you are grateful for.
References:
Textbook of Ayurveda, Vasant Lad M.A.Sc.
4.30.2021