What are chakras? The 7 chakras explained for beginners

Okay so, what is a chakra

Chakra is a Sanskrit word that means "wheel" or "disc". In the yoga and tantric traditions of India, chakras are spinning centres of energy along the middle of the body, where the body's energy channels (the nadis) meet.

There are said to be lots of them, but the seven main ones sit in a line from the base of your spine to the top of your head. Each one is linked to a part of life: safety, pleasure, confidence, love, expression, intuition and connection.

You don't have to take it literally to get something out of it. Think of the chakras as a really pretty map for checking in with yourself ☁️

Where the chakra system comes from

The chakras come from tantric texts written in India over a thousand years ago, and they're a big part of hatha yoga and kundalini yoga. One of the best-known descriptions is a 16th-century Sanskrit text called the Sat-Chakra-Nirupana, which describes each chakra as a lotus with a certain number of petals, a shape, an element and a seed sound.

The rainbow colours you see everywhere (red at the root up to violet at the crown) are much newer. They're a Western addition from the 20th century. Super pretty, totally fine to use, but good to know the difference.

The 7 chakras in order

The bottom three are the earthy, everyday ones. The heart is the bridge. The top three are the more spiritual, head-in-the-clouds ones.

What "blocked" and "balanced" mean

When people say a chakra is blocked, they mean the part of life it rules feels stuck. A blocked throat chakra might feel like never saying what you mean. When they say overactive, they mean it's a bit too much, like a solar plexus that needs to control everything.

Balanced is the goal: each one doing its thing, nothing too loud or too quiet. It's honestly a lot like a good playlist.

If you're not sure where to start, take the chakra test. It's eight questions and it points you at one chakra to give some love to first.

How to work with your chakras

The classic tools are really simple:

• Breath. Slow breathing into the area of the chakra.
• Movement. Yoga postures that stretch or wake up that part of the body.
• Sound. Each chakra has a seed mantra, or bija, that you chant.
• Attention. Picturing the chakra's colour and location while you meditate.
• Life stuff. Doing the thing the chakra is about: resting for the root, playing for the sacral, saying no for the solar plexus.

Here's a tiny one to try right now: the bija ladder. Chant each seed sound three times, root to crown, and let your voice float higher as you go.

A gentle note

Chakra work is a spiritual and reflective practice. It's lovely for slowing down and noticing how you feel. It isn't a medical treatment, so if something is really wrong, in your body or your mind, please see a doctor too. Balance includes that.

FAQ

How many chakras are there?

Most systems talk about seven main chakras, from the root at the base of the spine to the crown at the top of the head. Some traditions describe many more, including minor chakras in the hands and feet.

What is the purpose of chakras?

In the yoga and tantric traditions, chakras are centres where energy gathers and flows. Working with them is a way to bring body, mind and spirit into balance.

What are the 7 chakras in order?

Root (Muladhara), sacral (Svadhisthana), solar plexus (Manipura), heart (Anahata), throat (Vishuddha), third eye (Ajna) and crown (Sahasrara).

Are chakras real?

Chakras aren't physical organs and science can't measure them. They're a spiritual model from the yoga traditions, and lots of people find them a meaningful way to understand themselves.