Healer Omar Botha

Vishuddha

The Throat Chakra is the center of hearing, speaking, and inner truth. The energy of the Throat Chakra is one of language, rather than emotions. Its color is blue, and the Throat Chakra is our link to expression and truth. It serves as the energetic bridge between soul and mind. Therefore, it is so important to work with this energy to find a balance between these, as too much intellect/ego causes harm, while too much soul sets us up for victimization and air-headedness. The Throat Chakra is your center for kind, thoughtful and precise communication; it is the place that allows us to open to others. The ability to approach life with honesty and truth flows from this chakra. It governs vocal clarity in speech, writing, and self-expression.

Work with Vishuddha energy of the Throat Chakra if you:

• Struggle with speaking up for what you believe is right
• Struggle with self-expression
• Feel you talk too much, or dominate conversation
• Feel you have nothing worthwhile to contribute to discussion
• Are constantly stressed out
• Would like to communicate better
• Have poor listening skills
• Fear public speaking
• Suffer from chronic sore throats, speech impediments, thyroid issues or jaw problems
• Find yourself in constant conflict with your words, or lack thereof
• Communication involves listening as well as speaking; it includes being heard and hearing.

Balanced Vishuddha manifests as:

• Your ability to express yourself honestly and openly
• Your ability and willingness to be creative and truthful with yourself and others
• An ability to be assertive and open to hearing the needs and boundaries of others
• Being emotionally balanced or expressive
• Being drawn to artistic inspiration and expression

Unbalanced Vishuddha manifests as:

• Dishonesty
• Deceit
• Shyness
• Addictions
• Writer’s block
• Blocked feelings, or inappropriate and impulsive reactions to strong emotions.

What does Vishuddha Govern?

Vishuddha strongly relates to inner balance. This chakra is a powerful link between our intellect and emotions. It governs the ability of heart and mind to communicate freely, which brings stability. The Throat Chakra also governs our ability to express our needs and our truths. It allows our creative ideas born in mind to flow downward into the Anahata and Manipura, where they take root and are brought to life by the fire of the Solar Plexus (Manipura). The element of Vishuddha is Ether, its sense hearing, its organs the throat and mouth, its activity is speaking, and its planet, Venus. It directs all things communicative, and because of this it also governs the throat, mouth, and vocals. Imbalances may manifest as speech impediments, eating disorders, addictions, chronic sore throats, deafness, hearing problems, teeth problems or thyroid imbalances. It governs the thyroid, esophagus, trachea, cervical spine, tonsils, ears and auditory system. It gives us the energy to hear and speak.

Throat Chakra Meditation

To begin a Throat Chakra meditation practice, start simple:

• Sit down cross-legged.
• Start mindful breath work to become still and present. If you use stones, blue kyanite, blue sapphire, angelite, amazonite and chrysocolla are some of my favorites.
• Begin to focus and visualize your breath traveling to your throat as you picture the color blue.
• Take at least five deep, cleansing breaths that you send to your throat. Breathe in slowly to 5, hold for 5, breathe out slowly for 5. Visualize the breath flowing in and expanding. Release everything which no longer serves you as you exhale. Let the breath create space within your Throat Chakra.
• Practice humming. Close your eyes, plug your ears with your thumbs and seal your mouth and lips tightly. Tighten the back of the throat. Inhale strongly through the nose, making a snoring sound. Hold the breath, focusing on the space it is creating in your throat—this connects you to the element of this chakra, Ether, or space. When ready, exhale with a forceful high-pitched hum that vibrates your face and throat. Repeat five times.
• Use affirmations as you breathe in and out. “I speak my truth; my word is my bond.” “I am safe to communicate my needs and feelings.” “I am here to listen and understand, as I seek to be heard and understood.”
• Flow through yoga asanas geared toward this chakra—throat openers. Sarvangasana (Shoulderstand), Neck stretches (Forward to back, side to side), Simhasana (The Lion, or Lion’s Breath). Practice Pranayama breathing. Chanting, singing, dancing, and humming are powerful for clearing Vishuddha.

Don’t rush through, but rather practice the asanas to build your feelings of stability and strength in them. It’s all about finding the best version of the pose for you, at any given moment. Holding and breathing into the asanas is where the magic and the healing occurs. Many of our problems occur because, like a wheel, one spoke out of alignment results in a flat tire. Our chakras are very much like this. We need them all online to be the best version of ourselves. That’s when we find harmony within our mind, body, and soul.