Chakras for Beginners: The Third Eye Chakra
The penultimate post in this guide to the chakras! The famous ‘third-eye’! Chakra means ‘wheel’ and in yogic philosophy a chakra is a point in the body where energy comes together on its journey through the body (from bottom to top); a meeting point, if you like. We cannot see them, or feel them with our hands, but each is responsible for a different part of our mind, body or soul. Yogis believe that all of your chakras must be unblocked/aligned/opened in order for you to reach the state of 'Samadhi' or 'transcendental bliss' through meditation. If you have a blocked chakra you will never be able to leave the physical world (i.e. your body) through meditation.
In practical terms, think of the chakras like Maslow's hierarchy of needs; you cannot feel completely satisfied, happy or healthy if your chakras are not aligned/fulfilled.
THE THIRD EYE CHAKRA
The sixth chakra is the third-eye chakra, located between the eyebrows/in the centre of the forehead. This chakra is related to your ability to perceive the truth; your wisdom, creativity, inspiration and both figuratively and literally, your sight.
People who struggle with their vision for the future, or feelings of clarity may have a blockage in this chakra, as well as those who have a sense of being stuck, uninspired or unable to see the bigger picture.
This chakra is also strongly related to your connection with the spirituality of life; your ability to see or accept the existence of a higher power, or force in play. Those with a strong third eye chakra may have visions which come true, or are able to perceive another person’s true thoughts or feelings.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?
An unbalanced or blocked third eye chakra may also cause various physical symptoms, including, but not limited to:
- Migraines
- Sinusitis
- Seizures
- Poor vision
- Sciatica
- Poor memory
- Insomnia
- Hallucinations
The third-eye chakra is particularly important for the practice of meditation; some people find concentrating on this area during meditation can help to find clarity in the mind, or see it as the window to ‘universal truth/knowledge’. If you struggle with meditation it may be to do with your third eye chakra being out of balance.
An overactive third eye chakra may cause the might to go into overdrive, or in some cases cause hallucinations or wild fantasies. If you tend to find yourself daydreaming a lot, it may be that you have an over-active third eye chakra.
Conversely, a blockage may be indicated by the inability to concentrate, or remember information or make you indecisive, procrastinate, or become fearful of the unknown.
Yogis believe that certain asanas (postures) can help to release tension and blockages in the chakras, just as they do in the muscles. For the third eye chakra, this means working on postures which bring the head lower than the heart (inversions) as well as the following postures:
- Eagle
- Dolphin
- Child’s pose
- Forward-folds
- Forearm stand
- Downward-facing dog
By sending blood, breath and focus into the point between the eyebrows we can clear a path for clarity of thought.
SO WHAT ABOUT OFF THE MAT?
According to the science of Ayurveda eating purple foods can help (purple is the colour of the chakra) as well as meditating on the colour purple or with the focus on the point between the eyebrows.
Work on honing your intuition and allowing your creativity to flow. If you have an overactive third eye, focus on grounding, becoming more in touch with reality.
Your third-eye chakra is also closely related to your pineal gland, which produces melatonin, helping us to sleep properly and helps maintain circadian rhythm and regulate reproductive hormones. You can activate this gland by getting lots of sunlight, and avoid synthetic calcium and synthetic fluoride which are often found in tap water, toothpastes, fortified cereals and vitamin supplements.
The penultimate post in this guide to the chakras! The famous ‘third-eye’! Chakra means ‘wheel’ and in yogic philosophy a chakra is a point in the body where energy comes together on its journey through the body (from bottom to top); a meeting point, if you like. We cannot see them, or feel them with our hands, but each is responsible for a different part of our mind, body or soul. Yogis believe that all of your chakras must be unblocked/aligned/opened in order for you to reach the state of 'Samadhi' or 'transcendental bliss' through meditation. If you have a blocked chakra you will never be able to leave the physical world (i.e. your body) through meditation.