When you work on the chakras that are closed or weak, you'll be directly influencing that particular area of your life, for example your career, finances, sex life, self-esteem and so on.

Are your finances in trouble? Are you feeling insecure? Do you need to perform better at work and get that raise or promotion? Strengthen your Root or 1st Chakra.

Do you want to spice up your sex life or feel more passionate and creative? Unblock your Sacral or 2nd Chakra.

Want to feel more self-confident and powerful in achieving your goals? Strengthen your Solar Plexus or 3rd Chakra.

Want to feel more love, be able to forgive past grievances, and connect better with your spouse, kids, friends and co-workers? Work on your 4th or Heart Chakra.

Afraid of public speaking? Want to be able to express your truth and be understood. Balance your 5th or Throat Chakra.

Want more inspiration on which path you should take in life? Want to increase your intuition and psychic abilities? Open your 6th or Third Eye Chakra.

Want to feel at one with all there is? More peace, harmony and connection to spirit? Work on your 7th or Crown Chakra.

Scan my previous posts for details on working on each chakra or listen to my Chakra Meditations to balance all 7 chakras and see your life take off!
Namaste!
Becca Chopra, author of The Chakra Diaries
www.thechakras.org

"The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't being said."

When your partner or spouse yells at you, or expresses anger for no apparent reason, do you internalize it and feel you're somehow at fault?

Someone I counsel was recently having this problem and I asked her, "Have you asked what is going on with him, rather than wondering if his anger is really about you?"

Often, the people in our lives respond in ways that simply baffle us.  In such situations, we may think, "He's so unreasonable." "He must have had a bad day at work." Or we have a tendency to tell a story about what we think was behind the other person's action. We spend a tremendous amount of energy wondering what the other person was thinking, blaming him, and feeling, sad, hurt, angry, and resentful. I have seen people in pain for years because they never took a moment to ask for clarity.

I suggest a new process from a method called Non Violent Communications. Engage your curiosity by asking what is going on with the other person. For example, "You know, when you expressed your anger just now, I felt baffled. I'd like to know what exactly what is going on." Notice that this statement doesn't place blame on either party. It simply expresses your confusion and your desire for more information. Usually, the minute we ask for more information, we get it. It's simple, really. We can either wonder about what's going on with the other person, create our own stories about it, or inform ourselves by asking.

As we balance our chakras, especially our heart and throat chakras, we can come from a place of non-judgment and truly communicate our feelings without anger and arguing, which is such a waste of our energy.

Do you have frequent sore throats, much trouble with swimmer’s ear, chronic sinusitis or asthma? Has your inner-Helen Reddy been caged and silenced, that is, are you speaking and no one is hearing you? If so, your Throat Chakra may be blocked. Balancing it could improve your ability to fluidly and creatively express your thoughts in voice and song. You may even be able to communicate telepathically by refining your skills to a high degree.

So, now that we know what the benefits of a balanced Throat Chakra are, how do we get to this elusive state of power beyond words; this place of calm where the majestic and amazingly powerful, yet largely silent elephant lives in harmony with the showy and threatening Queen of the Jungle?

Let’s begin as Mary Poppins might say, with A-B-C, airway, breathing and circulation. As I mentioned in yesterday’s thread, humans can live about 56 days without food or 12 days without water but only a mere 3 minutes without air. So, let’s practice breathing as deeply as we can, all the time, not just during yoga or meditation, but when we are at our work desk, on the train, waiting in traffic, feeding the chickens, riding our horse and even making love, either alone or with a partner. We can begin to harness our prana, to bring that rose of life back to our cheeks and peace to our hearts and minds by singing, chanting HAM or playing an instrument. The “melody” or rhythm of our expression is not important, only that we are creating a vibration that ripples through our gorgeous bodies and flows outward into the universe, ferrying our physical and emotional tensions with it.

If there are feelings of hurt or anger that are lurking in your mind that you just can’t seem to get rid of, write these feelings down on paper without editing or censure. Do not re-read or “polish” what you have written. Instead, burn the paper in your fireplace or over a candle to help cleanse your emotional debris. Repeat the process as many times as is needed to bring you to a sense of contentment and peace. Forgive yourself for your negative emotions – they are not your true being. Watch them come and go and rise above them.

Practice the Camel Pose or Ustrasana to open up the front of your body and to promote good blood supply to your neck, the seat of the Throat Chakra.
Namaste! Becca

Once we have balanced our heart chakra, we can express our love and compassion with the help of a balanced throat chakra.  Here's a short meditation from The Chakra Diaries...
The healing green light of the heart chakra moves up the spine to the throat, where it becomes a beautiful sky blue. Breathe in the blue light, then fill your lungs and let your throat open wide and sing whatever tone or note feels right. You know what to say and what not to say, how to communicate well. Feel yourself singing out clear energy, loving notes, healing vibrations for yourself and the entire universe. Make yourself heard and listen well to the love that returns to you.
Namaste! Becca Chopra