The root chakra, known as "Muladhara" in Sanskrit, is located at the base of the spine (which is the polite and correct way of saying it, as seen from the back) and between your legs (more commonly addressed in a Reiki Healing session from the front). It's one of the most important chakras because it governs your survival and basic needs.
The Role of the Root Chakra in Physical and Emotional Well-being
From a physical viewpoint, this chakra controls the legs, feet, and spine. But it's also responsible for the “roots” of your entire body, including your blood, bones, and central nervous system. In short, it's crucial for you and for your well being..
Emotionally, this chakra is linked to your security, your home, family, and your very roots. The function of the root chakra is primarily to help you feel safe, secure, and connected to your environment. And when your security is in question, the root chakra reacts, often in ways that we can really feel.
Illnesses Linked to the Root Chakra
Think about all the possible diseases related to blood, bones, and the nervous system and your mind boggles! I could list a whole catalogue of diseases related to all those, but you already know most of them.
It is worth me mentioning back pain, foot and leg pain, and immune system problems. But I also need to mention the scary C word. Yes, from a Reiki point of view, Cancer originates in the root chakra. It doesn't matter where in the body the Cancer appears, that is actually a secondary factor.
What Happens When the Root Chakra Is Blocked?
According to a study I read inThe Guardian several years ago, around 64% of women who developed breast cancer had experienced a relationship breakup or a major house move within the two years prior to the development of their disease.
Looking at research, the figures on people who already have a history of cancer in their families varies, but it seems to be around 12%.
Well, there’s a bit of a difference between those two percentages. Could it really be that a house move or a rift in a relationship could bring on the onset of cancer? I mean surely…
But from a Reiki point of view this seems entirely logical. Because the root chakra likes stability. The root chakra hums away, all nicely balanced, when we have a good home, a stable job, a happy family and have reconciled ourselves to our past traumas. Those things can also help clear past blockages within the same chakra. But when we have disruption to our stability, the root chakra starts getting unhappy
Emotional Stressors of the Root Chakra
Let's have a look at the kind of emotional stressors that can impact on the root chakra.
House moving, as we all know, is often quite traumatic. Especially if this forced upon us. However, ANY disruption to the root chakra can feel damaging and stressful to us, including a row with the boyfriend, your child going off the rails or taking drugs, the death of a beloved person or a much loved pet, or indeed a break up of some kind. The"Break Up" could be leaving a school, or a partner, or a family member leaving the nest. It could be the loss of a business.
If you look at this list, the key word here is SEPERATION. It is a situation where we are beebling along happily one day, and then all of a sudden one day, things just end. In short, many of us find major change hard to manage, and suffer from it in more ways than we might imagine. We form habits, become accustomed, and feel "at home." We suppose things wont change. So when they do, we are often not prepared for it. Or at least our root chakra isn't.
In fact, any feelings of insecurity are not going to make this chakra happy. Feelings of instability regarding any kind of material security can also rock this chakra’s boat, including financial insecurity, uncertain transitions in our lives, fears attached to forthcoming change, and so forth.
Emotional signs that something is up with this chakra can be when you feel disconnected from your true purpose, are struggling in your current environment, feel like you are in transition between two worlds, or are just going through life living it and experiencing little pleasure. If you keep lookng back at the past with regret or regularly have wistful memories, this is a sign that something is wrong in the here and now.
How Do You Protect Your Root Chakra?
The root chakra likes to feel intact, whole, protected in the cocoon of stability. As soon as psychologically or emotionally you feel like you are losing a part of the stable you, the root chakra starts reacting and the end result is that it can often feel like we are in mourning. This is also a key area where fatigue can set in.
Separation is often a kind of trauma in itself. Some people deal with it well. Some people don’t but concentrate on healing their wounds and rising from the ashes. But others can’t. The ones who can’t are often very sweet, kind, sensitive people, sometimes under quite a tough exterior and often feel misunderstood.
Even more complex than that, is the fact that whatever the ending was that caused the trauma, may not be enough for the root chakra to go overboard in its own right. But if the trauma echoes something that was experienced as a child, even though the incidents themselves may be different, the end result can affect the root chakra and trigger a huge negative impact on it. Like all the bricks tumbling down at the same time.
Imbalances Linked to the Root Chakra
The root chakra is also linked to the adrenal glands, which produce stress hormones like adrenaline, affecting your body's fight-or-flight response. Because the root chakra is tied to feelings of safety, security, and belonging, it is deeply affected by early life experiences and one's relationship with family, society, and cultural norms.
Imbalances can manifest as fear, anxiety, or insecurity, often rooted in childhood experiences or familial patterns. When the root chakra is balanced, you may feel grounded, resilient, and at ease in your body. However, if it's blocked, it can lead to feelings of instability, disconnection, and chronic stress. And if that happens, it is almost certain there will be some physical ailments or disease that will occur too, unless you recognise this relatively early on.
How Can You Balance Your Root Chakra?
Well of course the short cut is to have one or several seances of Chakra balance, unblocking, healing and realignment with me 😊.
However there are also things you can do to help yourself.
The root chakra is connected to Nature and the Earth, so reconnecting with nature can help heal this important chakra. I would say, “Go hug a tree!” But you don’t have to go that far.
Walking in nature, particularly among deep rooted trees will have your root chakra singing.
Gardening and working the earth can also be very beneficial. Have you noticed that when you get into your garden to do some pretty horrible task you really didn’t want to do, you end up feeling completely satisfied and rewarded? That is your root chakra resonating with the earth and with your work on it. Likewise, Ecological work or anything where you connect to the earth and nature can help it.
Music and Meditation for Root Chakra Healing
The root chakra is linked to drums and basic big booming rhythm. Think tribal, think ancestral and think thumping hard beats. So, listening to music with lots of drums and bass vibrations can reward this chakra no end. Music that makes you dance. Dancing freely is great for your root chakra. If you like electronic music, I like these two classics from Headroom and Safri Duo respectively. Or try listening to Adam and the Ants' "Kings of the Wild Frontier." If you can stand it.
If you’re after something softer amd more spiritual, the musical note C and the sound LAM (pronounced “LUM”) nourish this chakra beautifully. I recommend this LAM video Although, you do need to listen to it 108 times for maximum effect!
Breathwork also helps oxygenate the body and balance the root chakra. Try breathing exercises where the in-breath and out-breath are of equal length.
Feeding the Root Chakra
The root chakra is fed by protein. So all your beans, pulses and lentilly things, as well as meat for the meat eaters and fish for the pescatarians are root chakra soul food. The colour of this chakra is red, so eating beets, tomatoes and other red veg are also chakra nourishment.
Having just mentioned the colour red, anything rich and red will be appreciated and resonate with this chakra, whether you look at deep vibrant reds, or go for a bright red T-shirt. Wear it with pride.
Healing Trauma in the Root Chakra
This chakra is closely tied to your deeper emotional experiences, including inherited beliefs or patterns from your family. It can influence how you relate to your family, religion, and community, impacting your sense of identity and belonging, now and in your past, which can sometimes be conflictual with each other.
To truly heal the Root Chakra examine your trauma. What separations or losses have you experienced in your life that are still affecting you today? If you mill over your past, you will realise that you got over some traumatic events, possibly such as changing schools or moving house, where eventually, you were just as happy in your new school/home as in the old one.
However, maybe you never got over the loss of a certain person or pet. Maybe you experienced a separation that still causes you pain, sadness or bitterness. These factors are worth examining as they may still cause issues within your root chakra in later life, particularly if you undergo traumas that cause a repeat of similar feelings and bring echos of the past to this chakra.
If you identify such trauma, take the steps that you need to heal it. Setting intention to do so is a good start. And doing what you can to commit time and energy towards healing both your trauma and this chakra, will not only make you feel emotionally stronger, but will also help to keep you well for many years to come.
Happy to help you on your journey.
Comments