Mantra: ‘Ham’ (Pronounced ‘Hum’)
2. Location: At the base of the neck. Under the larynx.
3. Color: Sky blue
4. Position: Perpendicular to the Earth/ Parallel to the Spine
5. Rotation: Parallel to the spine
6. Corresponding Planetary energy: Mercury
7. Corresponding Number: 5
8. Corresponding Mudra: Shankha Mudra
The Throat Chakra is related to expression, voice and ‘speaking your truth’. Throughout cultures your ‘voice’ is considered almost a synonym for your ideas, values and expression in the world. Even if you are not directly involved in speech related professions or people facing work, your writing, your ideas and your ideology are considered as part of your ‘voice’ and your message to the world and society as a whole.
Interestingly, the ‘Vishuddhi Chakra’ isn’t only related to expression and voice. It is also related to your ability to ‘speak up’, your skills, talents and ideas that you apply to interact with the world. People in tune with their ‘voice’ are fearless individuals who aren’t afraid to call a spade a spade, even if it ruffles a few feathers and attracts attention/ garners opposition. These are people who refuse to be ‘silenced’ by the status quo and are often agents of radical change.
Why?
Because truth is the most powerful vibration. A person standing firmly within their truth does note merely stand up for themselves but for all who resonate with those values but are too afraid of confrontation. A person standing firmly in their truth is a person standing firmly in their personal power and this empowers everyone around them to do the same.
Not only will these people not stand by and watch injustice being carried out, they will speak up actively if needed, to protect others.
The throat chakra is also very connected to the ‘throat’, thyroid gland, lymph nodes, cervical and vocal chords.
Therefore being stifled and unable to express your truth can have a profound impact on the muscles, bones and organs in this region as also your voice and tongue. Quite often it is observed that people who suffer from ailments related to the neck/throat region have been struggling with some aspect of authentic expression. In fact there have been many cases of people mysteriously losing their voice one fine day without a well defined medical cause.
If you observe carefully you will also notice that many individuals who feel unsure about their ability to be ‘heard’ and ‘get through’ to others struggle with throat ailments. They will often strain their throat more than others, resort to shouting and cursing even to be able to form a better connect.
Individuals who feel safe and secure within their ability to form a connection and express themselves, will speak slowly with well measured words and ask questions, express objections, wherever they feel they need to.
Children who are born with stammering issues or lisps can possibly trace back the underlying energetic cause of these maladies to the pre natal experiences of the mother. Maybe their mother felt her creative expression stifled or felt fearful of adequately expressing her truth.
You will also see this quite often in adults who struggle with thyroid problems and speech impediments or recurrent cases of tonsillitis, throat infections and laryngitis; there is always some unresolved trauma associated with being truthful and honest. They may deny it outright in the beginning because in many cases of energetic blockades being formed, the underlying causes are unconscious for the individual.
With structured meditation and/or journaling exercises however one will slowly be able to see a pattern emerge. This is the pattern that needs to be adequately addressed and understood for it to be healed.
For example an individual may have grown up in a household where even with all the love and security their parents provided for them, children were expected to ‘speak only when spoken to’. While this may have been one of the classical ideas of raising kids, every individual has a different level of creative force within them and they respond differently to environments of ‘cultivation’.
Another example would be an actor who had to keep doing roles they didn’t like just so they could keep earning. Yet another example would be a child growing up in a dysfunctional neighborhood where you could not question or raise your voice against less than ethical activities taking place under the radar.
Journaling is probably the easiest way of opening up your throat chakra. You begin by bringing your own thoughts and ideas to the fore for your conscious mind to take note of. The next step of articulation and presentation to the world without fear of rejection happens eventually.
Opening your throat chakra through ‘yoga‘ meditation and ‘tantra‘, invites more balance and ease into all areas of your life. Sure, having greater courage to express your talents, experiment with creative ideas and speak up in meetings is one of those things. However at a higher level, it invites more harmonious connections and interactions with all of life around you. Why is that? That’s because the more you stand in your authenticity the more you are able to invite authentic connections.
A person with an open throat chakra is able above all, to demand what they’re worth from the world. The clearer you are in framing your ‘demand’ to the world, the clearer you are in setting your boundaries and expressing your desires. Recognition is one of our primal needs as social beings. The throat ‘chakra’ has a huge role to play in this regard.
There is a reason therefore that this ‘chakra‘ is placed at the narrow passage that is the neck which leads up to the ‘chakras‘ of higher conscious: the third eye and crown ‘chakra‘. It is to provide the individual an outlet of expression for everything they stand for. This includes an understanding of:
- their basic requirements and primal instincts (Root Chakra),
- sensual pleasures and sexuality (Sacral chakra),
- Creative expression and ego based desires (Solar Plexus),
- ability to connect with others, open up & share love (Heart chakra)
Blockages in the throat ‘chakra‘ restrict the flow of ‘kundalini‘ energy upwards to the higher ‘chakras‘ that deal with higher consciousness and supra sensory awareness.
‘Mantras‘, chanting, prayer, toning are all activities that cleanse the throat ‘chakra‘. Truthfulness and ‘saatvic‘ speech are also two activities that cleanse and empower the throat space. Unless the individual realizes the sheer power of speech and the responsibility attached with the same, it is very difficult for them to tap into higher states of consciousness and discernment which connect them to the divine.
What is to be understood here is that authenticity and truth are to be practiced not for yourself but for the collective. Your ideas, speech and expression channel a higher power that finds physical manifestation through your words. When you choose to forego this inspiration, you are doing a disservice to yourself and also the collective.
This is not to say that silence is unimportant. It is very important in fact. ‘Silence’ is a conscious decision to not speak. The ability to consciously abstain from speech comes first with the ability to consciously tune in to expression.
The higher lesson to understand here is that thoughts, words and ideas existing in the collective imagination, exist as formless vibrations. When you speak, write or paint, practice your vocation, you are giving a form to these ideas without fear of judgement.
A powerful throat ‘chakra‘ gives you access to tap into the complete range of emotions that you can manifest physically with your ‘voice’ alone.
Your ‘voice’ has the power to inspire, encourage and motivate as much as it has the power to spark fear, intimidate and demotivate. This is why distinct ‘war cries’ have had as much importance in social groups as have prayer rituals for invoking the powers of the elements.
In Indian culture, it is said that ‘vedic‘ musicians of the highest caliber could trigger the clouds to rain just by using the power of their voice in a specific ‘raaga‘. In native American cultures you had a similar ritual of ‘rainmakers’ and ‘shamans’ who could invoke rain by utilizing specific frequencies of sound coupled with rituals.
Even today, if you search the internet for different frequencies of sound for meditation, you will find that each frequency has a specific kind of impact on you. For example 999hz is associated with Shamanic healing, 444hz with angelic protection and 528hz for DNA repair and meditative sleep, 432hz for anxiety relief etc.
How did we develop a knowledge of these frequencies? How did we come to know this frequency has that impact? In the same way that poets composed poems and musicians composed masterpieces.. by allowing their authentic expression to ‘flow’ without fear of judgement.
Don’t allow the judgement and negativity that others have consciously or unconsciously transferred to you, to make you fearful of voicing your ideas, thoughts and emotions. In its highest form even anger is as sacred and can act as a powerful catalyst for change.
Don’t allow rejection and suppression to stifle you and question your abilities. You will find the answers to most questions in your life by fearlessly asking those questions, not settling for assumed answers.
The more you release judgement towards yourself for wanting to say what you need to say in a moment, the more you allow your voice to become stronger, deeper and powerful.
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The more you allow yourself to ask for help, demand your worth, ask for forgiveness, ask for direction, companionship, communication.. the more you allow yourself to see things and people for what and who they are.
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You have within you infinite knowledge passed down from countless generations that encountered many of the same challenges you face right now. You have within you infinite potential capable of moving mountains, altering social structures, conventions and belief systems. All you have to do is believe that what you have to say, does matter.
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Chakra artwork credits: Nikitna Olga,
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