Chapter
7

Root Chakra (Muladhara): Sleeping Power

They say every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. For you and your story, your first chakra, or Root chakra, is your personal beginning. This is the place where you commence as an individual, and this chakra begins to form while you are still in the womb, not long before birth. Here lies your sense of security, belonging, well-being, physical health, and prosperity. This is where you become grounded, and everything that happens in your body, your mind, and your spirit finds its source here.

Although the higher chakras are more spiritual, we would argue that in many ways, the Root chakra is the most important of all the chakras because without a strong, healthy Root chakra, it is difficult to maximize your potential in any area of your life. It is nearly impossible to achieve spiritual enlightenment without the steady, stable energy of your first chakra. A tree can’t thrive, live, or even stay upright without roots, and that’s exactly what your first chakra is for you: your roots. Without a strong and open first chakra, the first storm to come along would uproot and topple you.

Root Chakra 101

Whether you notice it, work with it, or ignore it, your first chakra is always right there at the base of your spine, spinning its energy and trying to keep you grounded. Sometimes, this chakra might grow larger with excessive energy, and sometimes it might grow smaller or even close down for a while. However, it is consistently the root of your energy body—the sleeping spot for your Kundalini energy—and the measure of your sense of security, physical sensations, and place in the world.

The first chakra, also called the Root chakra or Earth chakra, is called Muladhara in traditional Sanskrit, which means root or base support. It is associated with the Earth element because it represents the actual, physical connection to Earth and physical incarnation in a body. Its symbolic color is red, and the traditional lotus symbol depicting this chakra has four petals. The sound associated with this chakra is the seed sound LANG (rhymes with “song”). Chanting this sound helps to activate the first chakra.

This chakra is located at the base of your spine in the area of your perineum. It is associated with several physical structures in the body: the coccygeal nerve plexus, the adrenal glands, the sacrum, and the organs that govern the elimination of waste from the body, particularly the anus.

Your Root chakra governs several very important aspects of your life, so let’s look at them one at a time.

Security, Safety, and Survival

We all come into this world in a vulnerable state and totally dependent on others for survival. This is where our quest for security begins—a quest that will last a lifetime and originates in the Root chakra. Some people simply feel safe in the world and feel as though they belong, no matter what happens to them. Others always seem to have a gnawing sense of impending doom and might even want to escape from life.

These feelings are reflected in the state of your Root chakra, revealing how secure you feel in your life and even in your body. Are you safe? Do you have the basic requirements for survival, such as food and shelter? You probably do, and you might know this rationally, but you might not always trust or believe that you do. This is a first chakra issue.

First chakra security issues often stem from childhood experiences. If you didn’t feel protected or were mistreated as a child, you probably have first chakra issues now. Birth trauma or a lack of good bonding with a mother figure in the early months of your life can wreak serious damage to a first chakra. If your parents didn’t feel safe or secure while you were growing up, you might have inherited that internal sense of unease. On the other hand, if you felt safe and sheltered as a child and all your needs were met—from food and shelter to love and attention—you are more likely to have a strong and open first chakra as an adult.

Grounded for Life

Betsy encounters many clients in her practice with grounding issues, so this is something she often focuses on in treatment. Being grounded means feeling connected to the Earth, comfortable in your body, and present in your physical surroundings—all signs of a healthy Root chakra. People who are grounded recognize that they live in bodies and that they have to take care of those bodies, as well as their homes, their cars, their bank accounts, and all the other aspects of life in the physical world. Being grounded gives you a firm foundation on which to build a life. The most spiritual person in the world won’t get very far without also being grounded. The reality is that we might be spiritual beings, but we exist in human bodies and we need to care for them.

One of Betsy’s clients, a young woman with an amazing talent for writing, was full of creative ideas but couldn’t ever seem to manifest them. She lived in her own creative world in her head, but she had difficulty managing finances, remembering to eat, or putting her brilliant ideas onto paper. During therapy, Betsy asked her client to take off her shoes, put her feet on the ground, and describe how the floor felt against the soles of her feet. With her bare feet on the floor, the client admitted that she couldn’t feel the floor at all. This was a sure sign that her first chakra needed work!

People who aren’t grounded tend to be flighty, anxious, detached, and have little sense of their own bodies or how best to function in the physical world. Some of the most effective first chakra healing exercises have to do with grounding. We talk about those later in this chapter.

Family Matters

An important part of each person’s sense of belonging in the world is directly related to family and also to what author and medical intuitive Caroline Myss refers to as “tribe.” Medical intuitives are people with the ability to use their own intuition to determine specific physical, emotional, or psychological illnesses or imbalances in other people. Sometimes, medical intuitives “see” a specific problem, such as a cancerous tumor in a particular place or the settling of a pernicious infection in the lungs. Sometimes, intuitives simply get a sense of what the problem is or even feel the same pain, such as arthritis or migraine, in their own bodies.

Your family is your tribe (like it or not), but you might have other tribes as well, such as your friends, the people you work with, your fellow students, your social media followers, or other groups who share common interests or life experiences with you. Your country can be your tribe, generating feelings of patriotism and civic duty. Your ethnic group, your gender, your neighborhood, or that tight-knit group of friends you’ve known since high school are all examples of different tribes you might claim as your own. When your tribe changes because of a move, a divorce, or a new job, you might encounter a period of first chakra upheaval until you settle into a new tribe and can establish new roots.

Your feelings about your place in your own family and your own tribe are reflected in your Root chakra and can include feelings like and loyalty. Do you know that feeling you get when someone insults one of your family members or friends? That feeling of anger that says, “Nobody better say anything against my mother, father, brother, sister, colleague, friend, partner, mentor, husband, wife, child, dog, cat, town, ethnic group, religion, or country?”

That instinctual reaction and that connection through loyalty comes from the first chakra.

Boundaries

The first chakra not only reflects your feelings of belonging in a group, but it also sets boundaries that separate you from the other members of the group. You know where you end and others begin. First chakra problems are often related to boundary issues, which occur when people are too open with others at their own expense or are so closed off from people that they never develop genuine and close relationships.

Prosperity Starts Here

How you handle your finances, pay your bills, and save for the future are all aspects tied to your first chakra. People with strong first chakras tend to have a good grasp of what money represents (security and the ability to meet basic needs), and they handle their finances in an organized and rational way. People with constant financial worries and irresponsible financial behavior often have blocked first chakras, whereas people who hoard money or are obsessed with material gain tend to have overloaded first chakras.

Getting control of your financial life isn’t quite as easy as opening your first chakra. Keep making the same mistakes, and your first chakra will keep closing again. Instead, think about the ideas you have—perhaps inherited from your parents or related to impressions from childhood—that make you feel like you can’t control your money or that having enough money is somehow a bad thing. Examine these ideas and what you think about money versus what you actually know to be true about money. Have your ideas about money been negatively affecting your financial life? Consider whether those ideas might be misconceptions.

Your Body and Your Health

The first chakra represents the physical aspect of you—your body. That means the condition of your body, your body image, your physical health, and your weight are directly tied to your Root chakra. When you are healthy and fit, you are in a better position to feel safe and secure and to meet your own basic needs. When you are ill or unfit, you might feel less secure and less able to master your own survival needs.

Root Chakra Correspondences

You’ve already learned that each of your chakras corresponds to a particular color and sound and that each chakra also corresponds to a part of your body, a part of your mind, and a part of your emotional life. We’ll go into more detail throughout this chapter about the many ways your first chakra speaks to you, but the following chart will lay it all out for you in a nutshell.

First Chakra	Correspondence
Sanskrit name	Muladhara (Root or base support)
Element	Earth
Color	Red
Seed sound	LANG
Location	At the base of the spine
Associated cultural phrases	“You have your two feet on the ground.” “I’m putting my foot down.” “Stand your ground!” “Take a stand.” “I can’t stand that.” “What do you stand for?” “I understand.”
Associated anatomy	Sacrum, coccygeal nerve plexus, adrenal glands, feet, legs, hips, bones, large intestine, anus, and skin
Associated psychological and life issues	Security, safety, survival, being grounded, family and tribe (patriotism, loyalty), financial issues, health, body image, and weight
Physical issues related to a blocked first chakra	Constantly getting sick, insomnia, endless dieting, anorexia nervosa, constipation, any disorders of the large intestine or problems related to the bowels, pain in the feet or legs, hip pain, any disorders of the bones, skin problems such as lesions or breakouts
Psychological issues related to a blocked first chakra	Fear, insecurity, flightiness, anxiety, inability to focus, disorganization, poor self-discipline, poor boundaries, poor sense of self, financial problems, separation or dissociation from the body
Physical issues related to an overloaded first chakra	Obesity, overeating, addictions, sleeping too much, fatigue, low energy, inability to move gracefully, plodding movements, and heavy feet
Psychological issues related to an overloaded first chakra	Greed, materialism, obsession with money, inability to be generous, hoarding, workaholism, obsession with routines and security, fear of change, and overly strict boundaries/refusal to be open to others
First chakra therapy	Eating protein and root vegetables Sleeping enough but not too much Massage Physical exercise Going barefoot Being outdoors Lying on the ground Yoga poses that emphasize a firm base

Awakening the Root Chakra

Before you open any of your other chakras, you must open this one, the place where your Kundalini energy lies sleeping. Awakening the Root chakra is easy to do. Vibration, movement, touch, exercise—anything physical awakens this grounded, centering chakra. Healing the first chakra will increase vitality and general energy, and it will help you feel more secure as well as less anxious.

To awaken your Root chakra, try this exercise:

1. Sit on the floor, legs crossed, seat firmly planted on the floor. Feel your pelvic bones and imagine roots anchoring those bones to the earth.
2. Take several long, slow, and deep breaths as you visualize your deep red spinning first chakra that is open and healthy at the base of your spine.
3. Imagine your chakra radiating a wide red beam of light from the base of your spine down into the floor, down into the Earth, and all the way to the center of the planet.
4. Imagine slowly dropping an anchor from the center of your first chakra into the center of the planet and anchoring your body there.
5. Take a deep breath, and in a low resonating tone, say the word: LANG, holding the “A” sound (pronounced “ah”; the word rhymes with “song”). Imagine the planet’s energy beaming back up into your first chakra in a mutual exchange of energy that ignites your first chakra, so that it glows gently as it spins.
6. As you imagine your first chakra heating up, continue to connect to the Earth’s center, and let yourself relax into a feeling of safety and security.

Aligning the Root Chakra

Crooked roots grow a crooked tree, so try this exercise to make sure your Root chakra is properly aligned:

1. Stand in bare feet with your feet about hip-width apart. Feel the soles of your feet against the ground, and imagine them rooting you firmly to the ground as if they are magnetized.
2. Imagine your first chakra at the base of your spine, and try to feel it spinning. Imagine a ray of light emanating downward from your first chakra through the floor. Imagine the same ray of light radiating upward, straight through the crown of your head, and pulling all your other chakras in line with this central column of light.
3. Lift your arms straight up overhead and imagine the red light pulsing upward and downward, reaching to the center of the Earth and all the way to the sky. Your chakra should now be aligned. Let it ground and support you.

Blocks in the Root Chakra

As we mentioned earlier, Betsy encounters many clients with underactive or blocked first chakras. You might be able to spot this type of person on the street. They are the ones with darting eyes, uneven movements, and who appear detached from this world. They are so in their heads that they might walk across a street, oblivious to the honking car racing toward them.

Childhood trauma or abuse is a common cause of first chakra blockage. Being neglected or lacking a strong bond with a parental figure early in life can also block a first chakra. If you didn’t feel safe as you were growing up, it is difficult to feel safe as an adult without some help. However, even if you weren’t abused as a child, you might feel insecure in your first chakra, especially if you’ve had some financial, housing, health, or family problems.

Any one of these events can trigger the beginning of a series of events that can cascade into an energy imbalance that is reflected in a first chakra that closes up defensively. When your first chakra stops the flow of energy right at the root of your body, you can experience a whole host of physical and psychological issues.

Blocked Root Chakra Health Issues

In particular, first chakra physical problems can be tied to the feet, legs, hips, and bones—the skeleton that supports you. Arthritis, osteoporosis, diabetic nerve pain in the feet, and even some therapeutic drugs, such as aromatase inhibitors for cancer, give rise to bone pain and complications. Conditions that involve tightness are usually associated with the first chakra and include lower back problems, constipation, and difficulty having an orgasm. People who get sick all the time and generally have low energy often have first chakra blocks. Also, people with eating disorders, excessive weight loss, and anxiety often have first chakra blocks. Insomnia is generally caused by stress and tension, and those who suffer from it are prone to lying in bed caught in their heads, thinking of everything that happened that day and everything that needs to be completed tomorrow. If an insomniac can work on becoming grounded into their first chakra while lying in bed, sweet sleep often follows.

Sometimes, your first chakra will close temporarily in an unsecure situation, such as when you are traveling. This is why so many people experience constipation when they leave home. Their first chakras close tightly as if to say, “Nothing’s coming out of this end. We’re all sealed up and safe, thanks.” In these cases, be sure you are still taking care of your basic needs and spend some extra time getting exercise. Even if you aren’t home, you can still focus on being in your body with both feet on the ground.

To alleviate temporary first chakra blocks while traveling, take a few minutes to meditate on how your body feels. Are you holding tension in your shoulders? Furrowing your brow? Is your neck stiff from a long plane ride? Have you spent all day on your feet? Lie on the floor for a few minutes and concentrate on relaxing anxious muscles and focusing on the feel of the Earth’s depths beneath you. No matter where you are, you are always connected to our planet Earth.

Blocked Root Chakra Psychological Issues

Psychologically, people with a blocked first chakra might be anxious, “wound tight,” or might even feel a desire to detach completely from life. Detaching might mean avoiding friends, missing deadlines, or losing track of possessions; or it can be even more serious such that people feel like they literally float away and leave their bodies. This type of detachment is often called dissociation, which is a disruption in a person’s memory, identity, or perception of that person’s environment. Dissociation usually warrants treatment by a mental health professional.

Food addictions, alcoholism, and even workaholism are all complicated problems that involve multiple chakras; however, the first chakra is always a part of the equation. Addictions enable people to detach from a part of their lives that is difficult or uncomfortable. Many people with an addiction admit that drinking, eating, or drugs help numb and disconnect them from who they truly are.

Other issues related to first chakra blocks can include problems meeting your own basic needs, getting along with family members, and paying bills. It is very important for people with blocked first chakras to pay attention to basic self-care, such as personal hygiene, decluttering the house, paying the bills, and taking care of the work of daily life in the world. People with first chakra blocks have a hard time doing these things and might need to ask for help from a grounded friend to get organized. Getting into regular routines can make a big difference.

Healing a Blocked Root Chakra

To heal and strengthen a blocked Root chakra, Betsy always encourages her clients to feel the floor. Take off your shoes and touch your feet to the ground. You can do this outside (weather permitting), but even bare feet on the floor of your home can be very grounding. Pay attention to how your feet feel against the floor. Walk on different surfaces and tune in to the varying sensations. Stand still and imagine roots growing down from your feet. Squat down if you feel steadier that way, and imagine heavy weights in your feet or magnets holding you to the surface of the Earth.

Physical activity of any kind is also great for unblocking the first chakra. Anything that gets you out of your head and back into your body will help strengthen your foundation:

• Eating, especially protein and root vegetables like potatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, onions, and radishes; red foods like meat, beets, grapes, strawberries, and cherries also support a healthy first chakra.
• Sleeping more—reading print books and magazines is encouraged. (However, don’t use screens in bed; reserve the bed for rest and sleep, not browsing social media and reading the news.)
• Getting a massage.
• Taking a long, hot bath; washing your hair; washing your feet.
• Being outdoors in nature; connecting with the ground by walking in a forest; being barefoot on the beach; collecting pieces of nature to bring inside such as shells, leaves, and flowers.
• Exercising, including dancing, yoga, lifting weights, or just walking—anything that forces you to focus on being present in your own body.
• Consciously keeping both feet on the floor, preferably barefooted. (If it’s cold, put on some socks.) Press both feet into the floor to strengthen your connection with the ground. Imagine you are trying to part the floorboards with your feet to nestle as a seed would in the rich nurturing soil, or imagine the floor is made of sand and you are digging in before the gentle wave washes the shoreline.
• Using mantras to help train your mind and allow you to become more grounded into your first chakra. Mantras work best when repeated out loud prior to falling asleep and when first awakening. Examples of first chakra mantras:

• My feet are firmly rooted to the Earth.
• My body is well cared for and appreciated.
• The energy of the Universe nurtures me.
• I feel at home in my body.
• My life is abundant.
• I am safe, strong, and alive.

An easy way to tune up your first chakra is to pay attention to your physical environment. What do you detect through your five senses? Stay quiet for a few minutes and note what you see, hear, smell, taste, and feel in your actual immediate surroundings—the right here, right now.

Overload in the Root Chakra

While first chakra blocks might be more common than first chakra overloads, the first chakra can certainly be prone to excess. First chakra overloads can be caused by too much routine, too little flexibility, too little change, boundaries that are too stiff, or a life void of spontaneity.

For some people, this pattern started in childhood. Maybe your upbringing was so rigid and rule-oriented that you aren’t sure how to live any other way. Or maybe you had so few rules growing up that you overreacted by imposing extremely rigid rules and boundaries for yourself in your daily life, and you are afraid to be too lax because that doesn’t feel safe.

Overloaded Root Chakra Health Issues

The most common physical sign of an overloaded first chakra is obesity. Eating strengthens the first chakra, but some people go overboard and eat too much to feel heavier, more substantial, and thus more secure. For these people, losing weight isn’t just a health issue; it feels like a threat to their own safety. They want to feel heavy and take up a lot of space, as a confirmation of their existence and place in the world. If you are very overweight, you might think you want to lose weight because, well … doesn’t everyone? However, if you have an overloaded first chakra, you might not want to admit that being overweight really does feel safer to you.

Not all overloaded first chakra people are overweight, however. Some hyperfocus on their bodies to such an extent that they completely ignore other aspects of life, such as cultivating relationships or spirituality. These people tend to approach exercise and other physical pursuits in an extremely regimented fashion and can’t go a day without exercising. They tend to have highly developed muscles and may be very physically healthy but are not balanced in other aspects of their lives.

Other more typical overloaded first chakra physical issues can include stiff ankles, knees, and hip joints; excessive fatigue; sluggishness; a heavy plodding gait; foot pain such as plantar fasciitis; and the feeling that you just can’t get moving.

If you are overweight, don’t blame your first chakra. It reflects the imbalance that exists in your own energy field. To help repair your overloaded chakra, try moving more. Moving gets stagnant, pooled energy circulating through your body, which can make you feel better and set you on the right course for rebalancing your first chakra to be strong and healthy. Any movement is good movement, whether you are walking around your living room, walking in your neighborhood with your child, or going out in nature for day hikes. Use an app on your smart phone to track your steps and watch the numbers go up the more you engage the world and move about it.

Overloaded Root Chakra Psychological Issues

Overloaded first chakras often result in people who hoard. They may overeat and become overweight, which is a form of hoarding food, but they may also hoard possessions and money, focusing so intensely on accumulating material wealth that they don’t know how to give to others.

Overloaded first chakra people also tend to have a rigid sense of rules and boundaries, rarely allowing themselves to be vulnerable to other people or to act spontaneously. This extreme control keeps them feeling safe but prevents them from experiencing genuine and open relationships, which leads to loneliness and discontent.

A lack of spiritual beliefs or a sense of disconnection from anything “otherworldly” is often a hallmark of people with overloaded first chakras. They tend to be so concrete in their thinking that they have a hard time connecting with an energy force larger than their own, such as a Higher Power.

Healing an Overloaded Root Chakra

Healing an overloaded Root chakra means draining some of that excessive physical energy to make room for other kinds of energy, such as emotional and spiritual energy. Some of these strategies are the same as those needed to heal a blocked chakra, but the most important is to move the physical body because particularly earthbound people tend to have a hard time with movement and flexibility. Try these activities:

• Exercises that increase heart rate, such as walking, running, or dancing.
• Jumping up and down, paying attention to the feel of your feet hitting the Earth and how that balances with the feel of freedom from the Earth when you grab some air.
• Flowing styles of yoga such as vinyasa—a Sanskrit word commonly used to describe a style of Hatha yoga that links sequences of poses together in a flowing motion, rather than holding poses for long periods. Yoga’s Sun Salutations are a form of vinyasa.
• Stretching exercises, to increase range of motion in muscles and joints.
• Massage, including foot massage, which can get energy moving and flowing out.
• Eating lighter, airier foods such as leafy greens and fruits.

Yoga Poses to Balance the Root Chakra

The best yoga poses for balancing both blocked and overloaded Root chakras are those poses that help encurage your connection with the Earth in addition to your flexibility above it. These poses encourage you not only to be rooted, but also to grow up and out from those roots into your full flowering.

Mountain Pose (Tadasana)

Mountain pose is one of the simplest and most effective Root chakra balancing poses. Just as the first chakra is the foundation of the body’s energy system, Tadasana, or Mountain pose, is the foundation of all the other yoga standing poses, no matter how advanced. Here’s how to do it:

1. Stand in bare feet with your feet hip-width apart. Inhale and feel your muscles soften as you open your mind and heart to grace.
2. Place your feet parallel. Imagine a line running from the center of your ankle to your second toe, on each foot, and make sure these two lines are parallel. Lift and spread your toes, and experience muscular energy in your legs. Feel all four corners of your feet touching the ground: the top outside corner, the outside heel, the top inside corner (the ball of your foot), and the inside heel. Evenly press all parts of your feet into the surface of the floor.
3. Inhale and move your upper inner thighs back and apart while scooping your tailbone down and forward while drawing your lower belly in and up toward your navel.
4. Imagine the crown of your head rising straight up to the sky and your spine lengthening as the muscular energy in your legs powers down into the Earth.
5. Breathe slowly and evenly as you imagine your feet sinking deeply into the Earth and becoming part of the ground as you stand as firm and strong as a mountain.

Tree Pose (Vrksasana)

Tree pose is meant to represent a tree with roots deep in the soil and branches outstretched in air, bringing perfect balance to the body and mind. Of course, to balance in this pose, you need a solid and open first chakra. You might need to do this pose while holding on to the wall or a chair at first, but if you work on it regularly, you will probably be able to balance on one foot in the full pose without assistance. Practice hones the first chakra as well as the pose itself.

1. Stand in Tadasana (described above). Take a deep breath and allow your mind and body to relax.
2. Shift your weight to your left foot and imagine your left foot sprouting roots that grow deep down into the floor below you. Concentrate on feeling all four corners of your foot against the floor. If your foot turns in, try lifting up the arch of your foot for a more stable foundation.
3. Breathe in and lift your right foot off the floor. Take hold of it with your right hand. If you have trouble standing on one foot (a common problem for people with blocked first chakras), you can hold on to a wall or a chair with your other hand to support yourself.

4. Put the sole of your right foot against the inside of your upper left thigh. If you can’t quite reach your thigh, rest the sole of your foot against the inside of your left calf muscle. Don’t rest your foot on your knee, which can put pressure on this sensitive joint. Note: this is easier if your legs and feet are bare. Fabric can make your leg too slippery. This pose is also easier if you angle your heel slightly forward, which might give your foot a better grip. If you can’t keep your foot against your leg without help, you can hold your foot in place with your right hand.
5. To counteract the push of your right foot against your left leg, subtly shift your left hip toward the midline of your body so you are standing with hips level. Firmly push your right foot into your upper left thigh, as your upper left thigh also pushes firmly into your right foot to provide stability.
6. Put your hands, palms together, in front of your heart. Breathe. If you can, slowly raise your hands up, separate your palms, and balance with both arms raised straight up overhead like the branches of a tree.
7. Lower slowly as you exhale. Repeat on the other side.

Corpse Pose (Savasana)

Savasana, meant to imitate the utter stillness of a corpse, is traditional for rejuvenating the body after a rigorous yoga pose or practice, but you can practice it any time you need to get back in touch with the Earth. This pose is excellent for grounding the first chakra because so much of your body literally touches the ground.

1. Lie on your back on the floor or on a yoga mat. If it’s more comfortable, you can place a folded blanket under your head and/or cover yourself with a blanket.
2. Stretch both legs out as far as you can and then relax your legs completely.
3. Draw your shoulder blades onto your back, almost as if they are cradling your heart. Lift your chest as your heart center shines out in gratitude for this opportunity to rest deeply. Rotate your arms so your palms face the ceiling.
4. Adjust your head so it feels centered and comfortable.
5. While breathing slowly and in a relaxed, unforced way, close your eyes and concentrate on relaxing every part of your body, letting it melt down into the ground. Imagine the Earth is holding you, supporting you, and keeping you safe. Let your brow, temples, jaw, and even your scalp relax. Your eyelids feel heavy. Relax the muscles in your chest, stomach, arms, pelvis, and legs. Feel your entire back body sink into the yoga mat, making deep contact with the Earth.
6. Imagine your first chakra glowing a deep red, slowly turning, and expanding as you let the Earth’s energy support you and flow into you. Hold the position for as long as you are comfortable, preferably for at least five minutes.

Partner Savasana

Enlist a partner or friend to help you experience even deeper levels of relaxation in Savasana. In this pose, a partner helps you move your thighs back to give you a deep sense of being grounded to the Earth. When we are stressed, we unconsciously move our thighs forward. If our thighs can move into the back plane of the body, the entire body relaxes more deeply.

1. Set up in Savasana (as described previously).
2. Your partner stands above you with their feet straddling either side of your legs. With fingers spread and arms straight, your partner places their hands on your upper thighs and begins to push your legs down more toward the mat. Your partner can put substantial weight and pressure on your upper thighs to help them move into the back plane.
3. If you want more grounding, you can have your partner “surf” on your upper thighs. The person in Savasana draws their arms into a 90-degree angle, with triceps pushing into the mat and palms facing up toward the ceiling. The partner places one foot on your upper thigh, close to where the leg meets the pelvis. The partner then places their hands on your hands, and steps the other foot up onto the other upper inner thigh. By continuing to hold your hands, the partner can balance or “surf” on your thighs. The additional weight of the partner on your upper thighs grounds them down, and you might experience a deep wave of relaxation. Hold the pose as long as you like or as long as your partner can balance.
4. To get out of Partner Savasana, your partner continues holding your hands and gently jumps both feet back to the floor at the same time.

Regular maintenance of your first chakra is incredibly important, not only for balance but also to maintain your health and to keep you focused on the task of being in your body and taking care of life’s work. You’ll have plenty of time to focus on your other chakras and reap the benefits of balancing those, but until your Root chakra is open, nothing else will work as well as possible. First chakra work is essential to the job of being human, so spend as much time working on this Root chakra as necessary. When Kundalini energy can flow cleanly and easily through your first chakra, you are on your way to the next stage of personal development.

Astrology for the Awakened Root Chakra

Now, we’re going to look more closely at the astrological correspondences for the first, or Root chakra. In Chapter 4, you learned:

• The planetary rulers of the Root chakra are Saturn 0 and Uranus -.
• The signs for the Root chakra are Capricorn } and Aquarius Q.

Planetary Ruler	Sign(s) Ruled
Saturn 0	Capricorn }, co-ruler of Aquarius Q
Uranus -	Aquarius Q

If you are working with the energy of your Root chakra, you will want to discover what kind of energy Saturn 0 and Uranus - hold and empower. While yoga can help open, heal, and energize the chakras in your body, astrology can help you understand their meaning and learn how to use the chakras with purpose to benefit your life’s journey.

You can study the energy of the Root chakra’s astrological planetary rulers and their zodiac signs so you’ll recognize their influence in your life. Once you do that, you can use the knowledge to heal your Root chakra energy. If you want to do a bit more with chakras and astrology, you can explore the chakras in your birth chart. Plus, you can even look at the effect the transiting planetary energy in astrological cycles has on your chakras.

The Chakras and Your Astrological Birth Chart

Astrology, the ancient practice of reading the Heavens, has gotten a big boost from modern technology. Computers use powerful algorithms to calculate astrological birth charts, bringing astrology’s heavenly map of the signs, planets, and houses into your hands in a matter of seconds. An astrological birth chart actually is a map of the Universe at the precise time and place of your birth.

Your birth chart is your astrological signature, unique to you and of the Universe. It reveals the essential nature of your character and your path through life. But remember, astrology only reveals potentials. You and you alone make freewill choices, even as you grapple with your karmic challenges. Your chart simply is a tool—a wonderful tool—to help you find your way. Find out more about astrological birth chart basics and how to read the chakras in a birth chart in Appendix A (where we’ll look at the chakras in Michelle Obama’s birth chart).

How Saturn 0 Awakens the Root Chakra

Saturn 0 is one of astrology’s social planets. Saturn 0 is the natural ruler of Capricorn } and the tenth house of ethics, reputation, career and social responsibility. Saturn 0 is the natural co-ruler of Aquarius Q (its energy is weaker than the ruler’s) and the eleventh house of goals and groups, as well as friends and community. As a social planet, Saturn 0 governs how you engage (or not) with others in your community, in society, and in the world.

Saturn 0 is the Universe’s celestial taskmaster. Saturn is the planner and the regulator of checks and balances. It is the planet of responsibility, achievement, self-discipline, and self-respect. Saturn can stand in for authority figures in your life. This planet makes sure you are always prepared, ever vigilant—ready to meet and conquer all obstacles in your path. Saturn is not a very forgiving planet; it knows your weaknesses and limitations. But it also knows your tenacity and personal strength, your will to meet life’s challenges and take on the tasks of your life’s work.

Saturn 0 relates to the groundedness, the Earth-centered stability of the Root chakra. Located near the base of the spine, the Root chakra holds coiled Kundalini energy, and Saturn is its gatekeeper. At the fulcrum of the body, where the perineum holds and releases tension and fear, Saturn acts as a stabilizing force to channel safety and security into the spinning Root chakra. Saturn’s ambitions will help you figure out what you stand for, show you how to build a solid plan for the future, and awaken your Root chakra—beginning the rise of your prana life force that will make it all happen.

How Uranus - Awakens the Root Chakra

Uranus - is one of astrology’s transpersonal planets. Uranus - is the natural ruler of Aquarius Q and the eleventh house of goals and groups, friends and community. As a transpersonal, or outer planet, Uranus - (with its longer orbit) governs astrological cycles influencing whole generations of people.

Uranus - is the planet of sudden or unexpected change; of original, almost radical ideas; and of authenticity. Uranus - holds a “sixth sense” spark of ingenuity that seems to arise out of thin air. The Root chakra feels the influence of Saturn 0 because it is the weaker co-ruler (with Uranus -) of Aquarius Q. This means that responsible, ambitious Saturn 0 gives support to the idea-maker, world-changer Uranus - in awakening Root chakra energy. Uranus - can provide the catalyst that gets the Kundalini serpent to rouse from sleep and begin to pay attention.

How Capricorn } Awakens the Root Chakra

Capricorn } with its yin, Earth element energy is ruled by planetary taskmaster Saturn 0. Needless to say, Capricorns are down-to-earth personalities, which suits Root chakra energy just fine. Practical and efficient, able to balance nurturing with responsible effort, Capricorns are sure-footed, patient, and resourceful. The Root chakra harnesses Capricorn reliability to lay a firm foundation to survive and thrive. With Capricorn’s influence, awakened Kundalini serpent’s power in the Root chakra remains channeled responsibly for the best personal good, keeping you on track and in control.

How Aquarius Q Awakens the Root Chakra

Aquarius Q is ruled by Uranus -, with Saturn 0 as its co-ruler. As the weaker planetary ruler of Aquarius Q, Saturn’s 0 influence is brought to supplement and give structure to Aquarius’s lightning bolts of intuition. Aquarians are progressive, open-minded visionaries that bring innovative and revolutionary ideas that affect generations. In awakening the Root chakra, the Aquarian jolt of electricity is given substance by the tenaciously sure-footed Capricorn } and its Saturn ruler.

Root Chakra Rising

The radical ideas of Aquarius Q/Uranus - provide the spark to ignite the sleeping Kundalini energy coiled at the base of the first chakra. That spark risks flaming out of control without the grounded stability of Capricorn }/Saturn 0 to implement a strategy and find a way forward. To give the Root chakra its proper balance, the energy of both zodiac signs must be present.

As you do healing work with your Root chakra, be aware of the risk for an imbalance and examine the ways in which your big ideas may be ungrounded, or that you might seem to find yourself forever stuck in old patterns and systems. Once you’ve hit upon the right plan of action to liberate you, the Root chakra will activate. Filled with purpose and securely grounded, your Root chakra spins, providing a safe, solid Earth base for the life force to rise up to meet your passion in the second, or Sacral chakra.