In honor of Mother's Day (I associate a mother's love quite a bit with food), here's an excerpt from The Chakra Energy Diet on the Heart Chakra.
DO YOU FEEL ENOUGH LOVE IN YOUR LIFE?
You feel love when you give love. And you need an open, balanced Heart Chakra to be the compassionate, loving person that is the real you.
If you agree with more than 3 or 4 of the following statements, you may want to look at ways to heal your Heart Chakra…
HEART CHAKRA ISSUES
The Fourth Chakra: Located at the center of your chest, the Heart Chakra is associated with the heart and lungs. If your Heart Chakra is blocked or imbalanced, you may experience physical issues with these organs, such as hypertension or respiratory ailments, or feel pain in the upper back and shoulders. You may feel emotional insensitivity, sorrow, depression, and resentment, and develop a dependency on smoking cigarettes or marijuana.
When the Heart Chakra is balanced, you are able to feel love, openly giving and receiving it. You are able to be compassionate without taking on other people’s feelings. You can let go of sadness, release old resentments, forgive yourselves and others, and move forward with emotional empowerment.
The Heart Chakra is the bridge between the lower three chakras – the Root Chakra which relates to our safety and security; the Sacral Chakra, which relates to our creativity and sexuality; the Solar Plexus Chakra, which is the base of our personal power and identity; and the upper three chakras – the Throat Chakra, which is associated with speaking our truth; the Third Eye Chakra, which opens us to our higher knowing and intuition; and the Crown Chakra, our connection to spirit.
Heart Chakra Healing Foods
While the first three chakras are fed by protein, fats and carbohydrates, the Heart Chakra is balanced through phytochemicals or macronutrients, especially those in green vegetables. The rising energy imparted by leafy greens, for instance, feeds our expansion, growth and opening in all directions, like the feeling of love and a willingness to give of ourselves.
Foods, especially that share colors with the chakras, carry vibrations that can activate or balance your chakras. So, nourish your Heart Chakra with the many GREEN vegetables – from kale, spinach, chard, collard, dandelion and mustard greens, to lettuce and sprouts of all kinds, and nourishing and health-protective cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, brussels sprouts and cauliflower. There’s also bok choy, cabbage, arugula, green peas and peppers, leeks and green onions, watercress, zucchini, and celery.
Take a stroll through your local Farmer’s Market and appreciate the abundance of green veggies and choose your favorites, then open up and try some new ones. Ask how to best prepare them to savor their delicious flavors.
Also, include green fruit in your diet, from green apples, pears, grapes and kiwi, to that best salad ingredient of all – avocados.
Taste the Healing Power of Kale: An easy recipe for the Heart Chakra is Sauteed Kale. First, I slice and sautee an onion and some garlic, add chopped kale and cook until tender. Top with seasonings of your choice – my family and friends love it tossed with vinaigrette dressing.
You can pick up Kale Chips as a snack almost everywhere, a great replacement for less healthy chips. I've even made my potato chip-loving friends fans of kale by making these Kale Chips… Simply remove the ribs from a bunch of organic kale and cut the leaves into 1 1/2-inch pieces, wash and dry them, then toss with olive oil and salt. Bake at 275 degrees until crisp, about 20 minutes. They keep well in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.
Heart Chakra Healing Activities
Use this general affirmation or blessing while cooking and before eating for the Heart Chakra:
“May this food bless and nourish my body and make me more loving and compassionate.”
You can strengthen the healing effect of your food by adding in some green veggies at each meal, for instance, adding some leafy greens to your morning juice or smoothie, or green peppers in your omelet, having a large salad at lunch, and steaming broccoli or zucchini for your side dish at dinner. Make your meal with love and gratitude, for the people who grew your food, to the people you will share it with.
We often overeat to fill a feeling of emptiness or lack of love. If sharing food is one of the major ways your mother has expressed her love to you, or you to your family, think of other ways to feed the longing of your own heart, rather than with food. Instead, pamper yourself with a massage or social activity, or reach out to others through volunteer work.
Exercising with others is recommended for the Heart Chakra. Join in a team sport, an aerobics or spin class at the gym, take a walk with a friend or partner, play catch with your children, and be sure to take a yoga class.
Heart Chakra Yoga Poses
I like to open up Heart Chakra energy in the chest by doing the Circle of Joy sequence; and also with the Cobra Pose.
The Heart Chakra will also be energized by the Fish Pose, the head-to-knee Forward Bend and the Head of Cow pose.
Heart Chakra Visualization
In your mind’s eye, see a person who may have hurt you and caused your heart to be blocked to the flow of love and compassion. Imagine sending them blessings as you throw them a ball in a game of catch. See if they throw it back. If not, surround the game of catch or relationship with a green glow, sending that person love and forgiveness, and through magical thinking, have them throw the ball back and forth with you. And then catch yourself smiling.
It’s not hard to let go and forgive someone…wrap that person who has caused you pain in bright green light, cleansing and healing the situation. Release yourself and them from any negative connections, only keeping the good. Let go of anger to have space for love to grow. Now, with love and compassion, envelop yourself and your whole life experience in healing green light.
The Chakra Energy Diet is available on Amazon Kindle for download to any device - a perfect Mother's Day gift for the women in your life. Here's to balance, health, and always, love.
Namaste!
Becca Chopra, author of Chakra Secrets, The Chakra Diaries, Balance Your Chakras, Balance Your Life and The Chakra Energy Diet
DO YOU FEEL ENOUGH LOVE IN YOUR LIFE?
You feel love when you give love. And you need an open, balanced Heart Chakra to be the compassionate, loving person that is the real you.
If you agree with more than 3 or 4 of the following statements, you may want to look at ways to heal your Heart Chakra…
HEART CHAKRA ISSUES
- I’m tired from putting others ahead of myself.
- I find it hard to forgive or let go of hurt feelings.
- I’m very empathic – feeling other’s feelings.
- My heart has been broken in the past.
- I have heart and/or lung problems.
- I feel numb and a loss of passion.
- Connecting with friends or family helps relieve my stress.
- I don’t get enough hugs, kisses or massages.
- I often get heartburn after eating.
- I don’t really like vegetables.
- Relationship problems cause me to overeat.
The Fourth Chakra: Located at the center of your chest, the Heart Chakra is associated with the heart and lungs. If your Heart Chakra is blocked or imbalanced, you may experience physical issues with these organs, such as hypertension or respiratory ailments, or feel pain in the upper back and shoulders. You may feel emotional insensitivity, sorrow, depression, and resentment, and develop a dependency on smoking cigarettes or marijuana.
When the Heart Chakra is balanced, you are able to feel love, openly giving and receiving it. You are able to be compassionate without taking on other people’s feelings. You can let go of sadness, release old resentments, forgive yourselves and others, and move forward with emotional empowerment.
The Heart Chakra is the bridge between the lower three chakras – the Root Chakra which relates to our safety and security; the Sacral Chakra, which relates to our creativity and sexuality; the Solar Plexus Chakra, which is the base of our personal power and identity; and the upper three chakras – the Throat Chakra, which is associated with speaking our truth; the Third Eye Chakra, which opens us to our higher knowing and intuition; and the Crown Chakra, our connection to spirit.
Heart Chakra Healing Foods
While the first three chakras are fed by protein, fats and carbohydrates, the Heart Chakra is balanced through phytochemicals or macronutrients, especially those in green vegetables. The rising energy imparted by leafy greens, for instance, feeds our expansion, growth and opening in all directions, like the feeling of love and a willingness to give of ourselves.
Foods, especially that share colors with the chakras, carry vibrations that can activate or balance your chakras. So, nourish your Heart Chakra with the many GREEN vegetables – from kale, spinach, chard, collard, dandelion and mustard greens, to lettuce and sprouts of all kinds, and nourishing and health-protective cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, brussels sprouts and cauliflower. There’s also bok choy, cabbage, arugula, green peas and peppers, leeks and green onions, watercress, zucchini, and celery.
Take a stroll through your local Farmer’s Market and appreciate the abundance of green veggies and choose your favorites, then open up and try some new ones. Ask how to best prepare them to savor their delicious flavors.
Also, include green fruit in your diet, from green apples, pears, grapes and kiwi, to that best salad ingredient of all – avocados.
Taste the Healing Power of Kale: An easy recipe for the Heart Chakra is Sauteed Kale. First, I slice and sautee an onion and some garlic, add chopped kale and cook until tender. Top with seasonings of your choice – my family and friends love it tossed with vinaigrette dressing.
You can pick up Kale Chips as a snack almost everywhere, a great replacement for less healthy chips. I've even made my potato chip-loving friends fans of kale by making these Kale Chips… Simply remove the ribs from a bunch of organic kale and cut the leaves into 1 1/2-inch pieces, wash and dry them, then toss with olive oil and salt. Bake at 275 degrees until crisp, about 20 minutes. They keep well in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.
Heart Chakra Healing Activities
Use this general affirmation or blessing while cooking and before eating for the Heart Chakra:
“May this food bless and nourish my body and make me more loving and compassionate.”
You can strengthen the healing effect of your food by adding in some green veggies at each meal, for instance, adding some leafy greens to your morning juice or smoothie, or green peppers in your omelet, having a large salad at lunch, and steaming broccoli or zucchini for your side dish at dinner. Make your meal with love and gratitude, for the people who grew your food, to the people you will share it with.
We often overeat to fill a feeling of emptiness or lack of love. If sharing food is one of the major ways your mother has expressed her love to you, or you to your family, think of other ways to feed the longing of your own heart, rather than with food. Instead, pamper yourself with a massage or social activity, or reach out to others through volunteer work.
Exercising with others is recommended for the Heart Chakra. Join in a team sport, an aerobics or spin class at the gym, take a walk with a friend or partner, play catch with your children, and be sure to take a yoga class.
Heart Chakra Yoga Poses
I like to open up Heart Chakra energy in the chest by doing the Circle of Joy sequence; and also with the Cobra Pose.
The Heart Chakra will also be energized by the Fish Pose, the head-to-knee Forward Bend and the Head of Cow pose.
Heart Chakra Visualization
In your mind’s eye, see a person who may have hurt you and caused your heart to be blocked to the flow of love and compassion. Imagine sending them blessings as you throw them a ball in a game of catch. See if they throw it back. If not, surround the game of catch or relationship with a green glow, sending that person love and forgiveness, and through magical thinking, have them throw the ball back and forth with you. And then catch yourself smiling.
It’s not hard to let go and forgive someone…wrap that person who has caused you pain in bright green light, cleansing and healing the situation. Release yourself and them from any negative connections, only keeping the good. Let go of anger to have space for love to grow. Now, with love and compassion, envelop yourself and your whole life experience in healing green light.
The Chakra Energy Diet is available on Amazon Kindle for download to any device - a perfect Mother's Day gift for the women in your life. Here's to balance, health, and always, love.
Namaste!
Becca Chopra, author of Chakra Secrets, The Chakra Diaries, Balance Your Chakras, Balance Your Life and The Chakra Energy Diet
