“Love is the outer expression of inner peace.” –Alaric Hutchinson
Weekly Focus: Anahata Chakra (the Heart Chakra)
Anahata Chakra is the fourth chakra and translates as “unhurt,” “unstruck” or “unbeaten.”
A chakra is a focal point of energy within the body, of which there are seven. These energetic centers hold and connect us to different qualities, emotions, skills and states of mind. The fourth chakra, Anahata, specifically deals with matters of the heart. Here we find connection to our emotions, our relationships with others and ourself, and it is the connection point between the lower more grounding chakras, and the higher more spiritual chakras.
Anahata Chakra is a vessel for unconditional love, compassion and joy. An open heart chakra allows us to see the abundance and beauty of the world around us, and allows us to be engaged and fully connected in all aspects of life. When we feel aligned and open with our heart chakra, we feel open to the world around us — all experiences, even those that are challenging, flow through us. This chakra allows us to feel abundant in love for ourselves, our community and the natural world — expressing that which cannot be expressed simply in words. Abundance in love starts with the Self, and then pours out into love and connection within our relationships and the world surrounding us.
Here are [3] practices to embrace more loving abundance in your life and to connect with Anahata:
- Remind yourself all of the reasons that you love yourself. Set a timer for 3 min. With a pen and paper in hand, write down all the ways that you love yourself, every reason you can consider. Just put pen to paper and get writing! From there, pick three of these thoughts that stand out to you, and write them on a post-it or piece of paper. Tape these somewhere that you will see them every day — your mirror, your car, your cabinets. Remind yourself every day that you are loved.
- Set aside intentional time with someone special to you. Think of someone in your life that you deeply value and love unconditionally. Set aside time with this person to really connect. Commit yourself to no phones, no screens, find an activity where you can allow yourself to be present for that individual. Make it about them, and not about you.
- Spend loving awareness in nature. Go for a hike and try to appreciate your surroundings more deeply. Look at the plants — does anything stand out to you? Touch the plants, smell them, use your senses. If you are able, take a picture of any plant that really struck you, and look up the plant later. Can you discover its name, its qualities? Get to know the plant and commit yourself to remembering its name. The next time you see one in nature, say hello!
Invite more abundance into your everyday life. It is likely already there inside of you — you may just require a little more space to let its line shine through brightly. By slowing down and taking in less, we declutter the mind and allow our inner radiance to become illuminated.
Passive Pose of the Week: [Ardha] Mandukasana ([half] frog pose)
Practice offering love and gratitude for your body in this juicy hip stretch. As you do, check-in and take the version of the pose that shares love for your body.
- Starting from tabletop, walk both knees as far from each other (left + right) as you are able to.
- Lower your belly to the ground.
- If the ground feels very far away, introduce a pillow, bolster, or folded blanket beneath the belly and chest to bring the ground closer to you.
This pose is pretty dramatic — you may not enjoy this variation. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable — that’s ok! Let’s change it up to something that may work better for you — try half frog pose! Try laying down on your belly and supporting the head with your arms. Slide your right knee forward in line with your hip, creating an approximate 90 degree bend in the knee. It may feel nice to pad the knee with a blanket here. Now just allow yourself to breathe and relax for 2- 3 minutes before switching sides.
Active Pose of the Week: Dhanurasana (bow pose)
Open the heart chakra as you stretch the chest and belly in this abundant back bend.
- Start on your belly.
- Kick your feet to your butt and reach your hands back to grab hold of the inner or outer edges of your feet.
- Pull on the feet gentle with your hands, and at the same time, press your feet away from your hands.
- Allow this tug and pull to help your chest and head to rise up from the floor, creating a backbend shape.
- The more you lift up with the feet and the legs, the higher the degree of back bend. Only lift as high as is comfortable for you.
This is a pose that also has a great “half” variation! For half bow pose, start on your belly and begin by only kicking one foot towards the butt. As you draw the heel of the foot towards the butt, reach the corresponding hand back and grab hold on the inner or outer edges of the feet. Same actions apply here, tug on the foot with the hang, and push the foot into the hand, helping you lift the chest from the floor. The opposite hand can push into the floor in front of you to help balance and stabilize.
Join us in class this week to to connect with Anahata Chakra! See the full schedule HERE.
