Chakra colours: what each of the 7 colours means
The seven chakra colours in order, from red to violet, what each colour means, where the rainbow system comes from, and how to use colour in your practice.
3 min read · Updated 2026-10-23
The chakra colours in order
Okay so this is the one everyone wants, and it's honestly so pretty. The seven chakras run up the body in rainbow order, warm colours at the bottom, cool ones at the top:
| Chakra | Colour | What the colour is about |
|---|---|---|
| Root | Red | Grounding, safety, survival, the body |
| Sacral | Orange | Creativity, pleasure, emotions |
| Solar plexus | Yellow | Confidence, willpower, energy |
| Heart | Green (and pink) | Love, kindness, connection |
| Throat | Blue | Expression, honesty, voice |
| Third eye | Indigo | Intuition, imagination, clarity |
| Crown | Violet (or white) | Awareness, spirituality, connection |
A cute way to remember it: it's literally a rainbow standing up. ROYGBIV, root to crown 🌈
Where the rainbow chakra colours come from
Plot twist: the rainbow system is modern. Older Sanskrit texts, like the 16th-century Sat-Chakra-Nirupana, give each chakra a lotus with its own colour, and they don't line up with the rainbow at all. The root lotus is crimson, the throat lotus is a smoky purple, and the third eye lotus is white.
The rainbow version took off in the West in the 1970s and is now the one most people use. Neither is "wrong". The rainbow is just a newer, really memorable map. We use it here because it's lovely and easy, and we'll always tell you where the old version is different.
What each chakra colour means
Red: the root chakra
Red is warm, heavy, physical. It's the colour of feeling safe in your body and grounded in your life. Wearing red or eating red foods is a classic little root ritual.
Orange: the sacral chakra
Orange is playful and flowing, like a sunset or a juicy citrus. It's about pleasure, creativity and letting your emotions move.
Yellow: the solar plexus chakra
Yellow is sunshine. Confidence, motivation and the courage to do the thing. It's giving main character energy.
Green: the heart chakra
Green is growth and love, with soft pink as its side colour. It's about kindness, forgiveness and letting people in.
Blue: the throat chakra
Sky blue is clear and open. It's about saying what you mean and being heard.
Indigo: the third eye chakra
Indigo is that deep blue-purple right after sunset. It's about intuition, insight and seeing clearly.
Violet or white: the crown chakra
Violet, or pure white light, is about connection to something bigger and the kind of peace that's hard to put into words.
How to use chakra colours
- In meditation. Picture a soft ball of the chakra's colour glowing at its spot in your body. Breathe into it.
- In what you wear. Pick a colour for the vibe you want today. Yellow for a big meeting, blue for a hard conversation.
- In your space. A green plant on your desk, a violet candle by your bed.
- In the full rainbow. Picture each colour in turn, root to crown, one breath each. It takes under a minute ✨
Practice
Climb the bija ladder
Chant each chakra's seed sound three times, root to crown: LAM, VAM, RAM, YAM, HAM, OM, then sit in silence for a minute. Let your voice get higher as you go up.
FAQ
What are the 7 chakra colours in order?
Red (root), orange (sacral), yellow (solar plexus), green (heart), blue (throat), indigo (third eye) and violet or white (crown).
What colour is the heart chakra?
Green, with pink as its second colour in the modern system.
Why is the crown chakra sometimes white?
Violet is the rainbow colour, but the crown is also described as pure white light, the colour that holds all the others.
Are the chakra colours traditional?
The rainbow colours are a modern Western system. Traditional Sanskrit texts give each chakra different colours, shapes and elements.
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The 7-Day Chakra Challenge
One chakra a day, root to crown, about ten minutes each. A little breath, a little movement, one mantra, one journal prompt. Free, obviously.
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