Named Anahata in Sanskrit it is also known as the heart or fourth chakra. This chakra is our gooey center where the bridge of compassion links the upper three cosmic chakras and the lower three earth chakras. It is our sense of connection to the community, our loved ones, our lives, nature, a higher power, or even our inner child.
How Do Chakras Become Blocked?
Chakras can be understood as energy centers that are gathered around the midline of the body and work their way up the spine. They gather around major organs and can be visualized as small vortexes of energy within the body that also radiate their energy outwards about one foot.
The chakras encompass the emotional, physical, and spiritual layers that correlate to that specific chakra’s purpose. Each chakra holds a different aspect of our psyche as well as has different elements and physical organs associated with it.
The chakra system works similar to a river segmented into seven sections. If one section becomes clogged it will affect the water flow within the other sections of the river. Each chakra can become blocked by suppressed emotions, fears, and holding onto what we need to let go of for our evolution.
Louise Hays, an author of many books such as Heal Your Body A-Z and You Can Heal Your Life, wrote these on the concept that our thoughts and emotions are what creates disease within the body. She goes to explain how negative emotions manifest within the body and work as a mirror to reflect back to us what is going on within our inner world.
The chakra system similarly works as a mirror into our emotions and beliefs around what the energy that chakra represents. We can look into imbalances and pain within the mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual bodies and trace it back through the chakra system to the chakra it correlates with and find ways to heal it.
Symptoms Of A Blocked Heart Chakra
When the fourth chakra is imbalanced it will manifest physically as symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pains, coughing up mucous, asthma, or shoulder pain. The heart chakra rules, of course, the heart, as well as the circulatory system, lungs, shoulders and upper back, blood, immune system, and thymus gland
It can also show up as circulation problems, heart disease, and someone commonly getting colds. In severe instances breast cancer, serious heart problems, or pneumonia.
Emotionally blockages within the Anahata chakra include struggling to forgive others, feeling unwanted, jealousy and possessiveness, criticism, and pessimism. When we are resistant to sharing on an emotional level with others or strongly fear rejection this is a sign to care for your heart chakra.
When we are afraid to follow our truth, have lingering pain from past relationships, or are grieving this is a time to nourish the heart chakra. Feeling lonely, resentful, overly people-pleasing, or are craving recognition again this is our heart chakra letting us know where we need to direct our attention to.
To learn more about how to heal the heart chakra click here.
What Are The Gifts Of An Open Heart Chakra?
When the heart chakra is open there is an abundance mindset that naturally follows this, meaning, the more love the merrier. Someone with an open heart chakra knows forgiveness is a beautiful gift and is able to free themselves and others from the cycles of anger.
A balanced fourth chakra will present the gifts of compassion, feelings of joy, self-love, appreciating the divine nature of life, and appreciating the uniqueness found in each individual.
Knowing that you matter, you are worthy of love, and feeling this way about every living being is a gift of a truly open heart chakra. Harmony comes easily as well as connecting to others.
How Can We Balance The Heart Chakra?
To balance the heart chakra there are many practices you can use to do so, but even simpler is finding ways to live in alignment with your heart. This includes cutting out draining habits such as gossiping, self-criticizing (try these 3 steps to end self-criticism), and people who your heart closes around.
Taking the time to journal what you are grateful for, qualities you love about yourself, process grief and heartbreak, as well as positive affirmations, will nourish the Anahata energy center. Allowing your inner child to play will open up your heart chakra and get you back in touch with your innocence.
Remember loving people does not mean needing to do so at the cost of your emotions or quality of your mental state. Learn how to deal with negative people in this article.
