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Do you have an electric personality? A balanced aura of personal power that exudes self-confidence and attracts healthy, happy people into your life? Do your family and friends always know where you stand on things, because you laugh with joy and you express your anger in ways and places that can do some good? If so, you probably have a nicely rotating third chakra.
Located at the base of the sternum, this center in our chakra system resonates with integrity, self-discipline, and personal strength. It helps us overcome inertia. It functions as our "storage battery" for the strength we need to get through tough times without compromising our values.
A strongly developed third chakra allows us to free ourselves from a sheep-like submission to authority, and gives us the courage to follow our intuition without fearing for our own safety. With a well developed center of personal power, we know we are strong enough to take care of ourselves.
We damage our third chakra when we smolder with repressed anger, go along with a crowd when it violates our sense of integrity, criticize others, refuse to admit when we are wrong, and wish our lives were different without taking any action to change circumstances.
An underdeveloped chakra will show up in poor self-esteem, a tendency to lie, inertia in the face of situations that call for action, staying in unhealthy relationships, and living in fear of life in general.
Persons with overactive third chakras live their lives on a power trip, trying to control everyone and everything around them. They have no patience; manipulation and pushiness define their way of reaching their goals. Often hard-headed and grumpy, they cling to the way things "have always been done," and rarely co-operate with anyone.
Malfunctioning third chakras might manifest physically as mid-body obesity, intestinal disorders, or liver problems.
Nurturing the third chakra means, first of all, to acknowledge that we do have the quality of will; we were born onto the path of a personal pilgrimage that no one else can take for us. We need focused, directed energy to proceed. It means taking the emotional steps to grow from childhood into adulthood, not necessarily giving up our dreams, but taking the action to make them come true.
We can take steps on the emotional, physical, spiritual or mental planes to bring this power center into productive alignment.
We can pick one aspect (choose the easiest for you, whatever that might be) and begin there to develop an "electric personality." Here are some common associations with third chakra energy, with some suggestions for using them:
ELEMENT: FIRE. Burn candles frequently, use them for meditation or scenting your home. Build a bonfire. Write the names of people against whom you hold grudges on slips of paper; burn the papers in a ceremony. Focus on the power of fire to destroy and to strengthen, as in tempering steel.
COLOR: YELLOW. Wear yellow clothing. Use yellow flowers in your home, or a yellow tablecloth. Put pieces of yellow ribbon inconspicuously where they can remind you of your focus.
EXERCISE: Sit-ups, to strengthen the muscles surrounding the third chakra. Running, to get all the energy moving rapidly and your heart pumping energy. Power walk. Laugh, a lot, deep belly laughs. That helps release pent up frustration and resentment. Do something different from your usual habit.
INCENSE FOR BURNING: Carnation, cinnamon, marigold.
FOODS: Carbohydrates or hot, spicy seasonings.
GEMSTONES: Topaz, amber
Questions to ponder in a journal:
Do I like myself?
Can I admit when I am wrong?
Do I believe that others should believe and behave as I do?
Am I afraid of responsibility, or do I assume others' responsibilities?
Do my stated values and my lifestyle match up?
Resources:
Judith, Anodea. Wheels of Life. Llewellyn Press. 1990.
Myss, Carolyne. Anatomy of the Spirit. Random House. 1996.
Hover-Kramer, Dorothea, ed. Healing Touch: A Resource for Health Care Professionals. Delmar Publishers. 1996.
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