The fourth chakra is the heart chakra, and is all about becoming vulnerable and receptive to love, and giving and receiving love openly and easily. The color of the heart chakra is green, its sanskrit name is Anahata, and its element is air.
As the fourth chakra, the heart chakra also serves as the mid-way point or bridge between the three lower chakras (earth) and the three higher chakras (spiritual world). The lessons that we learn through our earthly experiences are filtered through the heart and how we choose to experience and learn from them will determine how healthy our heart chakra will be.
When our heart chakra, and the three lower chakras are balanced, we experience full relationships, we are able to give and receive love and we can express our love freely and forgive. We present a loving, compassionate, joyful view to the world.
If the heart chakra is out of balance, it can manifest in different emotional and physical ways. Bitterness, jealousy, and an inability to forgive are a few of the emotional examples. Practicing forgiveness meditations and actively working on forgiving people who have hurt us is one way to work on balancing our heart chakra.
Physically, issues with the blood, heart, and circulation may manifest if we have a closed or blocked heart chakra. Additional physical signs include breast cancer, heart disease, and diseases of the lungs from holding onto past heartbreak. Fears associated with an imbalanced heart chakra include being afraid to follow your heart and loneliness. It is important to work on these issues so we can forgive those who have hurt us and develop confidence that we can find love and be safe in relationships.
Practicing forgiveness is key to opening and balancing the heart chakra. Try writing a letter to someone who has hurt you in the past. Burn the letter in a metal bowl, and bury the ashes in your garden. Forgive and really let go of the anger and hurt you feel towards the person who wronged you, as you thank them for the lessons.
Yoga poses to help open the heart chakra include back bends such as camel, upward facing dog, and cobra pose. As you practice these poses, really focus on the heart opening aspects of your practice. Think about allowing love into your heart and forgiving people you need to forgive.
Additional ways to work on your heart chakra include the following affirmations:
~ Love flows to me
~ I am open to love and compassion
~I love and accept myself fully
~I am worthy of unconditional love
When our heart chakra is aligned, we can experience more joy, love, trust and compassion in our lives, and have a loving, connected worldview.
Lea Grimaldi, writing, reiki, yoga, fitness 