Working with the Solar Plexus Chakra - Part 2

Solar Plexus Amulets

Key – “I will"

Colour: YELLOW/GOLD

Location: Solar Plexus (just below opening of the rib cage)

In the last post I went over the signs and symptoms of overactive, underactive and balanced solar plexus chakra energy. In this post I’m going to be looking at the stones, activities, and daily affirmations that will help you energise your solar plexus and bring it into balance. You can also find a ritual and mediation in the base chakra post that can be adapted to suit this chakra here.

The stones in the Solar Plexus Chakra amulets and their lessons:

Tiger's Eye - for mental clarity, logical thinking, instinctive awareness, courage and mental strength.

Pyrite - Courage, new ideas, creativity, confidence, clear intellectual or artistic thinking.

Himalaya Gold Azeztulite - connecting with divine Will, creative will power, self-confidence.

Citrine - cleansing, positivity, creativity, study and intellect.

Orange Calcite - Creativity, confidence and innovation.

Yellow Jasper - Allows for intospection and is calming for solar plexus energy

Gold Rutilated Quartz - directed will power and intention. Mental clarity and focus.

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Activities for working with the Solar Plexus Chakra:

- Meditation - honing your mental activity to be focused and clear in simple meditations of mindfulness can be very beneficial. Journeying meditations are not so good - they are better for the third eye chakra. Try breathing meditations, watch the thoughts and body sensations. Just be with your mind without needing to control it or judge it.

- Planning and organising a project. Write lists, make timelines and action plans. Think it all out - all the who, how, why, what, when and where necessary to get your goals achieved. 

- Keep a journal where you consider your daily activities and reflect on them. Also keep a diary, notebook or app on your phone where you keep "to do" lists, whether these are "to do"s for the next day, the next year or for your life.

- Have good conversations

- Be creative with your thinking. Think up new ideas and innovations. Keep notes of your ideas.

- Study, read and write.

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Daily affirmations:

I have a clear and focused mind

I am a creative thinker with new ideas

I am a good conversationalist

I am confident and courageous 

I have self-control

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A ritual for blessing and receiving the amulet, as well as a meditation for energising the solar plexus chakra can be adapted from the ones posted in the second blog post about the base chakra. Just replace "solar plexus chakra" for "base chakra" and yellow for red etc. When connecting with the amulet, see how this piece feels for you and how you relate to the solar plexus chakra energy. Set an intention for what you would like it to bring into your life right now. You can make this adaptation for any of the following chakras also.
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You can purchase my chakra amulets at www.forestspiritjewelry.com

Working with the Solar Plexus Chakra - Part 1

Let’s move on to the solar plexus chakra. If you haven’t read the Base or sacral chakra entries, you might part 1 and part 2, and the sacral chakra articles here: part 1 and part 2.

like to work with these first. You can find the base chakra articles here:  

Working through the chakras, at the base, we found balance in nurturing our bodies, accepting ourselves, and finding safety and security in our lives. In the sacral chakra we worked on movement, action creativity and expanding out towards others, while maintaining healthy boundaries.

In the solar plexus we come to the area of intellect, logic, mental functioning, creativity, courage, confidence and will power. It is the final chakra of the lower three which relate to manifestation and working with the physical realms directly. The mind is the place where ideas form which we can then put into action with the energy of the sacral and base chakras. It is with the solar plexus that we work on clearing the mind of mental chatter, creatively forming new ideas, organising and planning, and having the courage and force of will to move into action. It is our control center and the seat of our sense of personal power, intelligence, confidence and mental strength.

The solar plexus chakra is our ability to think, plan, focus and empower. It is to “WILL”.

Overactive

If the solar plexus is overactive this can manifest as what we might call "egotism" or being a "control freak". When the will is very strong, the intellect is sharp with many ideas (sometimes too many) and the confidence is high, we get a very strong personality. Of course there is nothing wrong with these in themselves, it is when they are experienced to excess that they can create problems, possibly in the form of hurting others or not taking their needs into account; not trusting others' abilities or thinking we are "better" than others. This way of thinking can be damaging to relationships and cause power struggles, arguments and fractions. There is an overflowing of the need to control and a lack of trust in others. An excess of mental activity can also create a "monkey mind" where we are jumping around between too many ideas at once.

Underactive

If the solar plexus is underactive we feel lacking in self-confidence, will power and mental clarity. Our minds feel foggy and unsure, we feel uncreative with no new ideas and find planning and organising difficult. This then exacerbates our lack of confidence, courage and will power. We can feel very weak and small, introverted and embarrassed when this is the case. This can stop us moving into relationship with others out of fear, worry or doubt, and have us feeling stagnant and lacking the power to change. A lack of self confidence can also create dependency on others to make decisions as they are often seen as more capable than the self.

Balanced

When the solar plexus is balanced we have all the positive elements relating to the chakra, but not in excess. We feel confident and courageous, creative and clear headed. We have lots of ideas and enjoy mental activity. We are not afraid to speak our mind or present ideas to others, but we do so in a balanced and non-egotistical way, allowing others to contribute, and being able to trust in their abilities too. Here our control is centered within ourselves. We have strong self-control and will power but do not want to control others. We have self-confidence and are not dependent on others to make decisions for us. We are connected not only to our own will but also to divine Will, or the will of the universe.

Questions to ask:

Do I feel confident in my own abilities?

Am I able to put my trust in others? If yes, is it too easily?

Am I feeling creative with lots of new ideas?

Does my mind feel confused and fuzzy, or overactive and full of too many ideas at once?

What do I need to plan and organise right now?
How can I mentally work on projects I want to bring into manifestation?

In the first base chakra blog there was an exercise for a meditation to assess the energy of your chakras. You might like to do this meditation again to check in with your progress. Hopefully now your base and sacral chakra energy has improved and now you can pay attention to the solar plexus chakra to see if your intuitions about where you are at match the messages your subconscious mind will bring you through meditative imagery. Often our subconscious can surprise us and give us added insight into our chakra energy.

As I'm going through this process with you, I've also been sharing a little of what I have been doing to work with the chakras. I hope that my personal experience will resonate with you and help you to feel your own way through the energy. As I've said before, working through the chakras is something we can do again and again through our lives in order to refine the energy and constantly be in touch with where we need to adjust ourselves. It's a very positive and healing journey.

My progress so far.... For the base chakra I worked on letting go of my addictions. I've now quite successfully weaned myself off of sugar, caffeine, alcohol and cigarettes. Though I have had a couple of times when I have had a piece of cake at a birthday party or the odd glass of wine when I was on holiday. I found being on holiday was a real challenge, but now I'm back home I'm back to the healthy living again. For the sacral chakra I took up yoga in a big way and am continuing to practice it everyday, sometimes twice a day and the improvements have been really great all round. I feel so energised!

For the solar plexus chakra I have decided to work on my meditation and mindfulness, and also to take time to write in my journal every night to order my thoughts, get out new ideas and make plans. I've been reading some very interesting books and articles about meditation and have realised that even though I've been doing it for years, I still have a lot of refining to do! I'm going to be doing more breathing meditation, but also practicing an awareness of my mental activity - watching and listening to my mind in daily life to recognise my reactions to things and see if I am being controlling or self-defeating. Like many people, I tend to swing from one to another. It's something I really noticed while doing yoga. If I do a pose well I fill myself with over confidence and pride, and then when a pose is hard I feel like I am a failure. It's crazy, but just noticing that I do this at all is a huge step. It is very healing to just notice the state of our minds, without berating ourselves, just watch how we react and then we understand ourselves better.

Working with the solar plexus has been quite a journey for me. I realised a couple of years ago that I was often being a bit of a control freak. I am a terrible backseat driver and found it really hard to trust people when they were driving, and this kind of attitude made it really hard for me to let go and put my trust in others. I went on a vision quest this year and my main issue there was this feeling of wanting to control everything. I came to the realisation in the quest that the only thing I can really ever control is myself. I can choose to have self-control. There is nothing wrong with self-control! We can also control other things, such as when we are in leadership roles or have been asked to do something, but we need to have that authority. Taking control where we don't have the authority is where we can create damage. So that was a big lesson for me! I have always been overactive in the solar plexus and it is my strongest chakra. I've also found it good to push that energy into the heart chakra, but I'll talk about that in the Heart chakra blog :-)

In the next blog post I am going to get more into some other ideas about how you can work with your solar plexus chakra. In the meantime, you might like to have a look at the Pinterest board I have made for the solar plexus chakra which has a lot of ideas.

Working with the Sacral Chakra - Part 2

Key – “I do”

Sacral Chakra Amulets

Colour: ORANGE

Location: Just below the navel

In the last post I went over the signs and symptoms of overactive, underactive and balanced sacral chakra energy. In this post I’m going to be looking at the stones used to work with the sacral chakra, some activities to try out while working with it, and also some daily affirmations to get your sacral chakra shining bright. You can also find a ritual and mediation in the base chakra post that can be adapted to suit this chakra here.

The stones in the Sacral Chakra amulets and their lessons:

Crackle Fire Agate – energising, brings motivation, action, passion, determination and physical power and strength.

Red Jasper – increases the sensual experience particularly of movement and touch, brings a joy of life, energy and enthusiasm.

Red Agate – enlivening, energising and bringing activity and productivity.

Carnelian – courage, confidence, vitality, sexuality

Peach Moonstone – calms sacral chakra energy, negotiates boundaries, nurturing for self and others.

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Activities that will get your sacral chakra shining include:

-          Using your body – dance, yoga, martial arts, running, surfing, etc etc. Any active movement you can think of!

-          Getting out and about

-          Spending time with friends. Do something fun together.

-          Using your senses – enjoy touching. Try touching different textures to see how your body reacts. Some ideas are nice fabrics, sand on your toes, grass, leaves on a tree or different kinds of bark, hold hands with a  loved one, or really feel a hug. Be present with the actions of your body

-          Stop procrastinating and take action

-          Respect your own boundaries and those of others. Learn to respectfully say “no” when necessary.

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Daily affirmations:

I am a sensuous being

I allow my body to move freely with joy

I am active and purposeful

I feel alive in my body

I am full of life

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A ritual for blessing and receiving the amulet, as well as a meditation for energising the sacral chakra can be adapted from the ones posted in the second blog post about the base chakra. Just replace sacral chakra for base chakra and orange for red etc. When connecting with the amulet, see how this piece feels for you and how you relate to the sacral chakra energy. Set an intention for what you would like it to bring into your life right now. You can make this adaptation for any of the following chakras also.
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You can purchase my chakra amulets at www.forestspiritjewelry.com

Working with the Sacral Chakra - Part 1

Let’s move on to the sacral chakra. If you haven’t read the Base chakra entries, you might like to work with these first. You can find them here:  part 1 and part 2.

Working through the chakras, at the base, we found balance in nurturing our bodies, accepting ourselves, and finding safety and security in our lives. In the sacral chakra we begin working on movement, and starting to bring our energy outwards to others. The energy of the sacral chakra is about creative action, movement and joyful vitality. This is the center of reproduction, but also other kinds of creativity. We feel the urge to create in many ways, and our hands and feet are important in this energy too. It is also a center of nurturing, caring for others, such as parenthood or other caring activities in relationships. It is our sensuousness and relates to physical pleasures and sensations. Sacral chakra activities include dancing, yoga, friendship and relationships, loving cozy sex (in contrast to more lusty sex which is a base chakra action), touch and taste, taking baths (like being in the womb) or swimming in natural places, looking after children and/or caring for others, as well as any other activity in the physical world. It is also about our vitality, enthusiasm and joy for life.

The sacral chakra is our ability to move, act, feel, create and sense. It is to “DO”.

Overactive

If the sacral chakra is overactive it often means we have not set up our boundaries for the expansion of our energy into activities or towards other people. Resulting often from an inability to kindly say “no”, we may take on too much, spread ourselves too thin, and end up simultaneously buzzing with nervous energy and worn out. Insomnia or restlessness can often be related to an overactive sacral chakra, as can issues with the reproductive organs, which react to the imbalance in the area. Another manifestation of an overactive sacral chakra is a tendency to over-nurturing others, giving attention where it might not be needed or wanted. Boundaries for both yourself and others are important to recognise when calming an overactive sacral chakra.

Underactive

If the sacral chakra is underactive it often manifests as a lack of energy, vitality, or motivation to get up and moving. Lethargy, procrastination, shyness or inhibition can stop us from wanting to get out and move, take action, make friends or show affection and nurturing to others. A tendency towards oversleeping, watching a lot of TV or going through an anti-social phase are common. Feeling embarrassed about what people will think of you when you take action (eg. being shy to dance in front of others, or do a yoga class or go to the gym if you’re not feeling in shape) is also a common issue.

Balanced

A person with a  balanced sacral chakra is full of motivation, energy and vibrance. They are creative and lively and seem to glow with that exuberance. They seem to be very busy and active, but also have a calm nature about them and are able to give their energy to others in nurturing kindness in a way which does not deplete their own energy, but adds to it. Every action in their life is like a part of a dance, flowing freely and joyfully.

Questions to ask:

How do I feel about my activities in life right now?

Do I have too much or not enough activity?

Am I currently feeling lethargic, shy or unmotivated?

Am I feeling creatively motivated generally?

What activities do I do right now that express my dance of life?

- Is there any negativity in this chakra I need to let go of?

- Is this chakra in need of more energy?

In the last blog there was an exercise for a meditation to assess the energy of your chakras. You might like to do this meditation again to check in with your progress. Hopefully now your base chakra energy has improved and now you can pay attention to the sacral chakra to see if your intuitions about where you are at match the messages your subconscious mind will bring you through meditative imagery. Often our subconscious can surprise us and give us added insight into our chakra energy.

So, last time I let you know a little about my own personal journey on the chakras, so I will continue! In making the amulets I can’t help but connect with their energy, and I have a full set of chakra amulets that I regularly work with myself, as this is a process you can visit again and again to get a deeper understanding of yourself, and for personal development through life.

My sacral chakra journey has seen me head out to a dance meditation night, where we worked on dancing in a “real” way, without inhibitions about how we looked, or expectations of what others might think of us. We danced out our emotions, we cried, we let go, we re-empowered ourselves and energised our bodies, we danced with ecstasy and joy and felt the unity of life in a that beautiful heightened state that can be reached through dancing for a couple of hours. We finished with deep breathing and meditation, a blessing of water and a shared prayer. I recommend this kind of experience to anyone, and there are many such events in most major cities.

I have also upped my yoga game a bit. Last month, with the base chakra I started doing a short yoga session each morning, but I decided I wanted something a bit more dedicated. I have set a goal of doing yoga teacher training in the next year sometime, (I’m not physically fit enough for it just yet), and have started going to yoga and pilates classes a few more times a week.

I’m still going with the diet from last month, which I have to say has me feeling really great with a lot more energy to move. It has made me realise the sense in working through the chakras one at a time as they build on one another in many different ways.

In the next blog post I am going to get more into some other ideas about how you can work with your sacral chakra. It will cover rituals, meditations, affirmations and other activities. In the meantime, you might like to have a look at the Pinterest board I have made for the sacral chakra which has a lot of ideas.

Working with the Base Chakra - Part 2

Key – “I am”

Colour: RED

Location: Base of Spine

The base chakra is located at the base of the spine in the lowest part of the torso; the place where you sit and the center of your body's weight. The colour of the chakra is a deep red and stones which are red, black or brown generally correspond with it. Many of these stones deal with cleansing and releasing. When we cleanse our chakras, generally, negative energy is drawn down towards the base chakra and the legs and feet, where it is released back into the earth to be neutralised. Our connection with the earth through it is also important as this is what enables us to “ground” energy – letting it go from our bodies and be transferred to the earth to be transmuted into positive energy again.

The base chakra is also concerned with the basic physical necessities of life. It is the most energetically physical of the chakras, meaning that it is the area through which we are concerned with the material world. Its balance rests on the degree to which we are happy with our material existence. It therefore relates to survival and the basic needs of the body for shelter, food and company; as well as our desires for material things.

Below are some activities to help you to work with the base chakra, especially if you have purchased one of the Base Chakra Amulets. There is a rundown of how over- or under-active base chakra energy can affect us, and how to know when it has come into balance. There is also a ritual for blessing and receiving your Base Chakra Amulet, a meditation on the base chakra, and some affirmations you can work with to help bring your base chakra into balance.

Is my base chakra overactive, underactive or balanced?

Overactive

If the base chakra is more overactive than the other chakras it can pull the awareness out of the spiritual and make it difficult to be concerned with anything but our material, physical reality. In doing so there is a tendency towards greed and materialism, and an overwhelming urge to acquire belongings or to fulfil physical desires in order to feel happy. It can also cause tendencies to overeating, addictions to things like chocolate, coffee, sugar or even alcohol, drugs or sex. The feeling is of an overwhelming urge to gather things towards oneself in order to feel safe and satisfied, particularly out of feelings of fear, worry or anxiousness about having “enough”.

Underactive

An underactive base chakra can lead to a lack of connection with the material world, a lack of “presence” and can also cause imbalance in other chakras as a result of not being able to properly clear and ground their energy through the healthy function of the base chakra. A lack of connection with the physical world manifests in the body through things like clumsiness and a lack of control over physical movement, loss of appetite, not feeling “at home”,  as well as losing or breaking things often. It can also be a tendency of those who often find themselves in states of poverty because of an inability to hold onto or maintain physical belongings for one reason or another. An inability to let go of negative energy can feel overwhelming, leaving the other chakras imbalanced and causing all kinds of tension.

Balanced

When the base chakra is balanced there is a feeling of being able to let go of bad energy easily from other chakras. It also means that we feel very happy in our material existence – we feel comforted by our home, our food, our belongings, our bodies. Though we may bring new things into our lives we do so without anxiousness or craving. Though we may lose or break things, we feel safe and secure enough to be able to take it in our stride and not let it worry us. We are fully present in the moment of now and have a deep feeling of connectedness with the Earth. We are good to our bodies in every way, making sure we have all we need in health, comfort and safety.

The stones in the amulets

and their lessons:

Black Tourmaline – grounding negativity, protection, safety

Hematite – grounding negativity, grounding emotions, presence

Black Obsidian – awareness of negative and self destructive behaviours. Increases ability and will to change these also. Self-understanding

Garnet – physical health and vitality, strength, grounding

Mahogany obsidian – self-acceptance, body acceptance, physical awareness. Move beyond limitations. Positivity.

Snowflake obsidian – self-acceptance, presence, physical awareness, positivity towards life.

Picture Jasper – grounding, Earth energies and connection, self-awareness.

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Ritual for blessing and receiving the amulet:

This is a ritual to bless your amulet and set the intention of it for the next month. You can adapt the ritual as you like, especially if you are familiar to ritual working. You might like to bring your spiritual beliefs into the ritual or open and close the ceremony in a way that is meaningful to you, such as casting a circle. It is really up to you how simple or complex you make it. If you’re not familiar with ritual however, I would suggest you follow along with the ritual here and see how it feels.

You will need:

-          Candle

-          Stone

-          Small bowl of water

-          Incense

-          Incense holder

-          Lighter or matches

-          Black or dark red cloth

-          Your base chakra amulet

You can switch some of these for other items if necessary. The candle, stone, water and incense represent the four elements – fire, earth, water and air. You could represent these in different ways. For example the incense could be replaced by a feather, or the water by a shell. The stone could be swapped for a bowl of earth or salt. Nothing is quite as good as an actual flame for fire though.

The ritual:

Whether indoors, or in a special natural place or a garden, find a space where you will be able to set up a small table, and somewhere comfortable for you to sit. Be sure that you will have privacy if you feel uncomfortable about others seeing you in ritual. You might like to wear a special outfit for the ritual. Clothing in a black, dark brown or dark red colour would be appropriate. It can also be a nice thing to take a bath or shower before the ritual so that you feel fresh and relaxed.

Turn off your phone and any other devices. Place the small table in front of where you would like to sit and set out the items for the ritual on it in a way that you find appealing with the cloth covering the table first of all. You can add any other items such as crystals, symbols or images, flowers or other plants etc. as you feel it is appropriate. This is your special altar to the base chakra so it should represent what you feel this chakra means to you.

Sit quietly as you set up the space and as you light the candle and the incense, take a moment to feel the energy of the space you are in. Feel the presence of other beings nearby, of sounds in the distance, maybe the sound or touch of the wind, or the feeling of the sun on your skin. Close your eyes and also be aware of your inner being, taking note of the area of the base chakra and how it feels right now. Think about what the base chakra means to you and feel it in your body. Take a few deep breaths and look over the items on your altar seeing how they represent the balance of the elements and the symbols of what the base chakra means to you. Take your amulet in your  hands and hold it in front of you so you can see it. Now bless the amulet by each of the elements:

Hold it to the stone, or place it upon it and say “I bless this amulet with the energies of Earth.”

Take a moment to feel the energy of Earth within the amulet. This is the most important element for the base chakra. Then continue with the other elements, after each taking a moment to feel the energy.

Pass the amulet through the smoke of the incense and say “I bless this amulet with the energies of Air”

Pass the amulet through the heat rising from the candle flame. (Do not hold it too close as it may damage the amulet). Say “I bless this amulet with the energies of Fire”

Dip your finger into the water and touch your finger to the bare stone of the amulet. Say “I bless this amulet with the energies of Water”

Now take the amulet and hold it in your lap. Feel the energy of the stones speak to you and interact with your base chakra. Take a few deep breaths and acknowledge that this is your amulet and project the intention that it will help you to balance your base chakra. Say to yourself, whether aloud or with the voice of your mind:

“Ground me. Release negativity. I accept all that I am”

You might like to repeat this a few times until you feel it has been heard by your subconscious mind. This can mean saying it over and over until the sounds end up sounding like nonsense. You can just say it a few times if you prefer though. It’s up to you.

You can now put on the amulet and feel the energy of it and how it affects your base chakra as you wear it. You might like now to do the base chakra meditation as a part of the ritual, or you can do that at another time and leave the ritual here.

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Meditation on the Base Chakra

Sit in a comfortable position either on the floor, on a pillow if you prefer, or in a chain with your feet on the floor. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths, becoming aware of your inner being. Feel the alignment of your spinal cord, and bring it into equilibrium: not strained in one way or another, not leaning to one side or the other; you should feel even front and back and side to side. You can help this also by the old trick of imagining a string being pulled from the top of your head all the way through your spine to your tailbone. Lifting you and finding your weight point on the sit bones. You should feel alert though comfortable. Try to avoid slouching or reclined positions as these can cause sleepiness or back troubles.

As you align your body’s position, continue to breathe in and out. As you breath in, imagine a white ball of light above you that comes into your body by the top of your head. With each breath in, become filled with the white light. With each breath out, feel more relaxed, letting go of any tension, stress or negative energy. Feel the light come down to your base chakra area, where it enlivens the red colour, making it brighter and stronger if weak; healthier and more balanced otherwise. Notice if there are any dark spots or weak patches in the center and let the light move into them, healing them with every inhalation. With each exhalation, let the dark spots fall away into the earth to be neutralised.

Do this exercise for about 5 to 10 minutes. A good way to time it is to put on some meditation music for the right amount of time. I like searching You Tube so I have new music all the time, but there are also many beautiful tracks that you can find for this. Low tones, huming, soft drumming and nature sounds are excellent for the base chakra’s energy.

When you have finished your exercise, thank the white light for its healing energy. Thank the Earth for grounding your negative energy. Begin moving by wiggling your fingers and toes, then open your eyes.

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Daily affirmations:

I am grounded and present

I am feeling healthier with more vitality every day

I accept and love my body and all of myself

I am who I am

I am here and I experience now

Working with the Base Chakra - Part 1

After recently making a series of Kundalini amulets with serpent designs, I have found myself moved to create some more amulets that relate to each one of the chakras. So here's what I'm going to do. Over the next few months I am going to work through each of the chakras, sharing ideas and resources about each of them with you, as well as creating a series of amulets that relate to that energy.

So we will start with the base chakra, so let's talk a bit about it to get us started :-)
For the base chakra, the focus is on the physical realm. It's about the basic necessities of life: food, shelter, health, comfort, self-acceptance and the healthy fulfillment of base desires such as sex drive (though not love, just the urges of the body), the desire to organise or clean, and to acquire material items. Areas it addresses are the release of addictive behaviours and grasping or craving tendencies; to recognise the importance of our physical health and wellbeing, as well as our stability financially and our sense of having a place to call home. It also relates to our relationship with the Earth in a very hands on kind of way. Our comfortability in nature, and our connection to our wild primal self in that.

It is our rootedness and the base of our being. It is our ability to survive. It is "TO BE".

Chakras can be either underactive or overactive. In the case of the Base Chakra, if it is underactive, there is a lack of stability, sense of having a home, or a weak or undernourished body, lack of libido etc. It can also come in the form of too much emphasis on other areas of life (such as mental, emotional or spiritual) that causes this area to be neglected, such as laziness, procrastination etc. There is also often a tendency to want to "hibernate" or be hermit-like, hiding away from the world.

If it is overactive there can be grasping tendencies that can be addictive. This can be associated with unhealthy yearnings for certain foods, wealth, sex, exercise, material goods or a tendency to hoard things. There may be more focus on the physical material world as opposed to other areas. There may also be tendencies to take the physical world for granted, seeing it as a means to an end or a resource to be milked. In extreme cases of overactive base chakras people have little care for anything or anyone but their own greed and sense of self-worth through the acquisition of material goods.

Working with crystals is one of the simplest ways to work with the chakras. Simply choose a period of time you will wear the amulet for (eg. a week, a month etc) with the intention of noting changes and insights you have in that time about your base chakra. Just wear the necklace everyday and keep a journal to write down anything you notice about your nature in this area of your life. Some questions you could ask yourself might include:

- Do I feel grounded, stable and rooted in this time of my life?
- Am I yearning for anything, and is that yearning healthy or unhealthy?
- Am I feeling physically healthy right now? Is there anything I need to change to make myself more healthy?
- Is there any negativity in this chakra I need to let go of?
- Is this chakra in need of more energy?

You can use this mediation (click on the link) to help you to clear your chakras and to get a subtle understanding of how they are functioning for you right now. Working with crystals can help this meditation to work well for the chakra you are focusing on.

To get some more inspiration, please also have a look at my Pinterest board of images and ideas about the Base Chakra here.

I can't help but take these journeys with you! As I make the amulets, which I have begun already, I feel myself moving into the process of working on this chakra as I connect with the intention. I also have my own series of the chakra amulets that I have been working with for over a year now. It's a process I enjoy going through again and again to get a deeper understanding of myself.  I'd like to share my personal experience with you too.

For me, it's brought up my need to focus on very physical aspects of my life, particularly, my eating habits, organising my daily routine, keeping on top of the housework and letting go of my addictions to caffeine and sugar. I tend to be a very mental, emotional and spiritual person, so for me, the base chakra is underactive. I tend to get carried away with creating things or thinking about things or talking to people, and end up neglecting basic things like making sure I do the laundry or the vacuuming, eating badly, staying up late, and then managing my tiredness with caffeine. I'm sure this will be a familiar tale to many mums out there!

So what I'm starting is a healthy eating routine, using Aryurvedic dietry suggestions, cutting out refined sugar, cakes, biscuits etc, and also, to my horror, my daily flat white. I'm going to go to bed at 10pm and get up at 6:30am to do my yoga. I'm allocating time everyday to do "general cleaning" in the house. And I'm also giving up my rather limited consumption of alcohol and cigarettes too.

It sounds like the standard New Year's Resolution list right? The one I write every year and never manage to achieve. The difference here is that all the other standards on that list are missing. There is focus here, based on the chakra I am working with, that creates a centeredness that should (fingers crossed) help me acheieve this, if only for the period of time I work with this chakra - at the very least I will learn something about myself.

I would love to hear your experiences of working on the base chakra, so if you'd like to leave a comment below that would be awesome. Let's take this journey together :-)

Elemental Cleansing and Intent-Setting Ritual

In this article I’m going to be talking about a ritual for energetic cleansing of amulets and other jewelry with

spiritual intention. This is a lovely thing to do with any amulet as a blessing that can set the intent at the first wearing or charge up the energy of the piece to make it more powerful. It is also a great thing to do to clear crystals of negative energy, particularly those which have cleansing aspects, but do not cleanse themselves, like hematite.

I would recommend doing this ritual before wearing your amulet for the first time, as it makes the experience feel really special and meaningful. A simple ritual is something your subconscious mind will remember each time you put the amulet on, helping its power to work through the subtle intention you have set there, along with enhancing the energy of the crystals themselves.

Ritual helps you to align your conscious intention with the sub-conscious mind that works with symbols, images, smells, actions and metaphor. The sub-conscious mind doesn’t “think”, but it does dream... It communicates through feelings and non-verbal expression like images and symbols. So, when we enact a ritual we are speaking to our subconscious and letting it know what our intentions are. This is important as along with the energy of the crystals themselves, much of the power of amulets comes from our sub-conscious mind’s relationship with them. It is our subconscious mind which is our gateway to spirit. It communicates with the energies of stones and brings them into our awareness, so cleansing becomes both an action of cleansing the stone, but also a ritual of introducing the subconscious awareness to the power of the amulet, whether for the first time, or to reaffirm the intention later on.

Cleansing has significant purposes for our own state of mind too. When we cleanse the crystal or stone, we are also cleansing ourselves. We will negativity to leave the crystal, and in doing so, will any negative influence it may have brought to us. We become less burdened by the feelings and emotions or experience we have deemed “negative” and felt it to have absorbed, and allow these to leave us as well as the stone through this process.

The Elemental Cleansing and Intent-Setting Ritual uses the idea that the world is made up of four basic elements: Earth, Air, Fire and Water. Each of these has the power to cleanse – Earth in a compost-like transformation of energy that is grounding and neutralising; Air like opening a window to a fresh breeze; Fire like the burning away of that which is no longer necessary; and Water like the washing of hands or bathing. Each has an energy of cleansing. These elements can be symbolised in ritual or on an altar in a few ways, but here are some examples:

Earth: a stone, a dish of sand, a piece of wood, a bowl of salt

Air: a feather, incense, an oil burner

Fire: a candle, a small bonfire (if outdoors and it’s safe)

Water: a bowl of water, a sea shell

Use what feels right, but in this ritual I will be describing how to use the following: a stone, incense, a candle and a bowl of water.

Elemental Cleansing Ritual

Set up a space where you will perform your ritual. It can be as simple or elaborate as you like. If you are already familiar with rituals or have group rituals, this could be incorporated as a small part of the bigger ritual. If you haven’t done much ritual before, just do what you feel comfortable with, don’t worry about it, and know that you can always do more next time.

An altar for a Nature Spirit Amulet

Set up: I recommend finding a nice place in nature to do this, but you can also do it in a quiet place at home. Try to make sure you won’t be disturbed. Turn off the mobile and spend some time away from electronic devices before you begin. You might like to set up a small altar, but placing the items for each of the elements in front of you on the floor will do fine too, making sure the candle and incense will be safe (you may need holders for these depending on the types). You might like to lay out a blanket or small cloth to put your items on. Also place the amulet on the altar.

You can add other decorations that are meaningful to the particular amulet you have. For example, you might have a Goddess energy amulet – do you have a statue, a picture, or a tarot card that represents this energy? You can add that to your altar too. You might like to collect some seashells, greenery or flowers to represent the Ocean or Earth Mother. Whatever feels right to you.

Grounding: Once you have everything set up and you are comfortable, sit down in your space and close your eyes. Spend a few moments breathing deeply and letting your own energy relax. Close your eyes and just notice the energy within your body. Notice any imbalances of energy, particularly those which will be helped by your amulet. Consider the purpose of the amulet and what you hope it will bring to your life. Sit with this meditation for about 3-5 minutes. Just enough time to come into the intention of your ritual. You can of course take longer if you wish.

Now take a lighter or a match and light the candle and the incense. Take the incense and fan its smoke with your hand. This smoke is itself cleansing and purifying. Cleanse the altar with the smoke by wafting it over it. Then cleanse yourself by letting it blow around you. Breathe it in and enjoy the fragrance. Feel your energy being cleansed and when you are ready say “I am cleansed and ready for this ritual”. (Speaking it out loud helps the logical word-based parts of your mind understand what you’re up to as well). Place the incense back on the altar in its holder.

Now take the amulet in your hands and place it on the stone. Say “I cleanse and bless this amulet with the element of Earth”. Envision any negative energy being pulled away by gravity to be neutralised in the earth.

Pass the amulet through the incense smoke (being careful not to touch the hot bit!) and say “I cleanse and bless this amulet with the element of Air”. Envision any negative energy being blown away.

Pass the amulet through the warm air rising above the candle flame (not too close though) and say “I cleanse and bless this amulet with the element of Fire”. Envision any negative energy being burned away just by being within the flame’s influence.

Place your finger tip in the water and then place it on the stone of the amulet. It need only touch a little. Be careful not to let water on any clay parts. You might prefer to just hold the amulet over the water if it’s hard to get to the stone. Say “I cleanse and bless this amulet with the element of Water”. Envision any negative energy being washed away.

Now hold the amulet in your open palms and raise them a little in front of you and say “This amulet is cleansed and blessed. This amulet named “xxxxxxx” is empowered.”

Hold the amulet to your heart.

Hold the amulet to your heart and think about its meaning to you. Feel it and see it in your mind’s eye. Feel its energy as cleared and charged with power. You might envision this as a light or warmth that you can feel. Now consider, whether the amulet is being worn for the first time or not, what would you like this amulet to bring to you now and how will you be changed as a result? See your life in your mind’s eye with these changes. You might like to create an affirmation for your amulet that you can say each time you put it on. Eg. “I honour the Goddess with in me” etc.

Now put on the amulet and feel its energy merge with your own. Feel the difference and know that you can create positive change in your life. Place your hands over the necklace and say the affirmation again. Sit with this energy and meditate on it as long as you would like. One minute or twenty or an hour… it’s up to you. A nice amount of time might be until the incense has finished if using stick incense.

When you are finished contemplate the altar again and thank the elements for their help in the ritual today. Then snuff the incense if necessary and blow out or snuff the candle. You ritual is finished.

There are ways that this ritual can be expanded, and if you are interested, keep an eye on my blog via the www.forestspiritjewelry.com website for more. I hope you enjoy the ritual and it enhances the experience of the jewelry for you. If you enjoy the ritual I’d love to hear your comments about it below.

Love and blessings

Julie xx