Remembering Your Roots

"To be rooted is perhaps the most important and least recognized need of the human soul."  -Simone Weil

Our bodies are made up of energy. When any part of that energetic make up is disrupted, that disruption is manifested in various ways, including the way in which we live our lives and respond to our life's circumstances.  Addressing the chakras are but one way to return the free flow of energy back into our subtle body. The chakras are energy centers within the body. There are seven all together, each one corresponding to a specific position in the body and governing certain aspects of how we live our lives.  The chakras begin at the base of the spine, at the pelvic floor, and move up the spine ending with the crown of the head. 

It makes sense, of course, to begin at the beginning, with the base or earth chakra, the Muladhara chakra. The Muladhara chakra represents, as its nick name implies, the earth. Our Mother Earth, from which we came and to where we will eventually return. Usually, when I teach a yoga class, I begin in Child's pose, close to the earth, signifying our roots and our beginnings.  Muladhara represents our origins, our heritage. It is here where the seeds are planted that grow into the person we become. Because it is our roots, the Muladhara chakra relates to our stability, our balance, our feeling of grounded-ness and security. It affects how we deal with our relationships, friends, and family. 

When the Muladhara chakra is balanced and the energy is flowing freely through it, we have a sense of centeredness and stability. We recognize our lives as having a solid foundation and we find ourselves more content and at peace with what we have. Attachment to material belongings and expectations for how we think our lives should be going fade away. Grounded-ness brings us peace. 

Just as a tree needs strong roots to weather a storm, so too do we need a solid foundation to withstand any storms that come into our own lives.