The new year is a good time to do an emotional-baggage check, to clear out what no longer serves you and make room for what will. And your chakras—the seven energy centers that run along your central channel—are a tool to help you repack. Here, yoga teacher Giselle Mari shows you how to use your chakras to resolve any negativity holding you back so you become a lighter, brighter version of you.
WHEN GISELLE MARI graduated college with a degree in clinical and counseling psychology, she thought she’d done the work to resolve issues from her childhood. “It was just me and my mom—my dad wasn’t really in my life—money was tight, and life felt unstable,” says Mari. “I was convinced I had processed how growing up in that kind of challenging environment impacted my beliefs about myself and the world.”
Then, Mari started doing chakra work and realized how deeply rooted some of those beliefs were—and how that old anger and resentment were keeping her from the ultimate goal of yoga: a feeling of oneness (versus otherness). “Working with the chakras using asana, mantra, and observation is an efficient way to eliminate old hurt and bad patterns,” she says. “When I looked at—and let go of—my inner turmoil and pain, my life shifted for the better. I don’t carry around that emotional baggage, and as a result, that old karma isn’t driving how I operate in the world.”
It’s a bold promise, and working with your chakras is no easy task, says Mari, but the results are worth the effort. Read on as Mari shows you how to look at the karmic relationships associated with each chakra so you can examine any issues that surface and start to rewrite your old stories into new ones that serve you on your yogic path.
YOUR INNER LIGHT, BRIGHT
Meet the seven chakras. By looking at how these energy centers relate to our physical and emotional selves, we can shine a light on our deep, dark subconscious, bring any unresolved issues to the surface, and take the first steps toward healing ourselves.
SAHASRARA CHAKRA
Translation: “Thousand-petaled lotus”
Location: Hovering above your head
This story is from the December 2016 edition of Yoga Journal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the December 2016 edition of Yoga Journal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Learning to Hear the Voice of Self-Care
How to discern what really matters.
Inclusive Yoga for All
A Down syndrome diagnosis set this family on a path to make yoga accessible to everyone.
For the Joy of Practice
Doing yoga without attachment to the outcome can bring unexpected gifts.
Be Kind to Your Spine
Your vertebral column is a series of complex, interconnecting parts that support your every movement. Here's how to keep it safe.
A Skeptic of Chakra Balancing
The experience helped me make peace with things that can't be explained.
Are We Having Fun Yet?
Bring play back into your practice with three styles of yoga that can get you out of your head and bring a smile to your face.
12 Ways to Use Blocks You've Probably Never Tried Before
The beauty of blocks? They not only meet you where you are in your practice, they take you beyond where you ever thought you could go.
THE SCIENCE OF AWE
THOSE MOMENTS IN LIFE THAT STOP YOU IN YOUR TRACKS IN ASTONISHMENT? RESEARCH SAYS EXPERIENCING MORE OF THEM CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
What Your Doshas Say About Your Dharma
Ayurveda can explain so much more than what's out of balance.
The Future of Yoga
Yoga has been evolving for thousands of yearsfrom a mind-and-body spiritual practice to a billion-dollar "lifestyle" practice. What's next? We asked futurists, teachers, and thinkers what to expect in the next decade and beyond.