SVADHISHTHANA (SACRAL) CHAKRA - Orange, creativity, passion, sexuality, desire.

"VAM" Chant - The sound vibration made in the throat & attuned with breath.

An easy way to raise your vibration is with chanting. A good place to start is with our chakra system, a metaphysical concept that is steeped in ancient knowledge. These 7 spinning vortices run parrallel from our perineum (root chakra) and continue up and along the spine to the crown (top of the head). Each chakra point corresponds energetically to our internal terrain and give an indication of our emotional, mental, spiritual and physical state if we 'tune in' and feel the sensations we can energetically decode any stuck or sticking areas that may need a 'shake up', vibration can do that!

Chakras are spinning vortices of light and energy, each chakra vortex goes through our bodies front to back.

Tuning into your chakras by chanting can release stagnant energy, allowing new energy to flow, in turn increasing our vibration.

Chanting combined with breath work and meditation on each chakra point for around 3 minutes will create energy flow. This energy flow will create a higher vibration. In this series I shall be talking about the main 7 chakras.

Chakra chanting for the sacral chakra (Svadhishthana) is "VAM", you can find many chanting videos on YouTube or Insight Timer and make this part of your practice. Just look up chakra chanting.

Chanting allows mind focus, going inwards and feeling the vibration of "VAM" in the sacral chakra which is present at the lower belly and sacrum. Sacral chakra is associated to the pranic (energy) of vyana, circulation of water & food, body areas supported by the sacral chakra are bladder kidneys & reproductive organs.

Try lifting your perineum where your root (Muladhara) chakra is located whist in a meditation posture and chanting "VAM" for the sacral chakara. The root chakra is also one of 3 energy 'locks' or bandhas, known as the mula-bandha (root lock). These 'locks' or bandahs should be slightly pulled up or in to lock energy inside whilst in meditation, yoga asanas or flows. Other bandahs are located at the navel (core) and the throat chakra. I will cover more on bandahs or 'locks' in other blogs.

The sacral chakra is Water energy and is linked to the planet Venus and astrologically linked to Cancer & Scorpio.

Breathing is another important aspect of meditaiton and energy flow in yogic terms this is called Pranayama. It is important to start off with some deep belly breathing (roughly 3 in 3 out deep full breaths). As you breathe in through your nose push out the lower belly allowing the prana (air/energy) to fill the stomach, as it fills, feel as your diaphragm expands, chest rises, the upper back and shoulders fill with prana. Now exhale through the mouth pulling the belly in, exahling deeply until all the air is gone. The out breath should be longer than the in breath, expelling all old toxic air/energy. If you need to use a count, 5 in 7 out or just know to take longer on the out breath. Once you have done severel rounds of belly breathing start your chakra meditation and attune your deep breathing to chanting.

An excellent video on pranayama (breathing/energy). The first video really shows how to breathe deeply, this is an excellent way to combine your breath with chakra chanting. This is a practice, a daily practice, notice improvements in every area of your life once you start to practice.

When deep breathing and chanting it is best to breathe in through the nose and the out breath will be the chant. This is a practice, each time you practice you will improve but learn from the journey, this is your chance to go inside and listen to your body but also to 'shake it up', you will feel the chakras spinning, clicking, tapping as you focus on each chakra point. You may also feel them all spinning at the same time as you move up the chakras! The vibration you create in the throat will reverberate and vibrate internally!

Breath work is so important for us. I cannot state that enough.

Do this practice on your sacral chakra for 3 minutes and observe what feelings or emotions come up. Sit with the emotions as they occur without entering into a dialogue, just sit without judegement. At the end of each chakra chant make a mental note of how you felt at each chakra vortex, You will improve every time you practice. You will be surprised at what emotions come up and where you may need to focus any healing. You can literally send the vibration made in the epiglottis (throat) to the all of the chakras and you will feel it! Practice daily moving upwards from root to crown chakra.

More on chakras and their deities HERE