Spirituality

Activating The Solar Plexus Chakra to Harness Inner Strength

Transformation begins from within

The Solar Plexus Chakra lets us know loud and clear when it’s struggling.

Because this integral member of the human energy system oversees matters of personal power, an imbalance can rear its ugly heads in the form of a feeling of helplessness and a need to excessively control one’s environment. Here’s what you need to know set things right!

Staying in tune with our bodies is vital to our quality of life. Many of us are only vaguely familiar with the existence of chakras, having little or no idea of how to maximize their potential within our own bodies. Each of our chakra centers is a fascinating energy hub with complexities and personalities, much like our friends and family. In the same way we would grow a relationship with a loved one, we can nurture a relationship with our individual chakras, growing, and learning along the way.

What exactly are chakras?

In Sanskrit, the word chakra translates into wheel or disk. Each of the seven spinning wheels corresponds with specific major organs and nerve bundles within the human body, spanning from the tailbone base to the head’s crown.

When one of our chakras becomes unbalanced specific symptoms will manifest within our body, emotions, and thoughts. Eventually, one imbalance will begin to affects our whole chakra ecosystem. Becoming better acquainted with each of our unique chakras can help us keep them aligned and spinning smoothly.

The Solar Plexus Chakra

The solar plexus is the third of the chakra systems and is located between the navel and the lower part of the chest. The solar plexus chakra helps us to move forward realizing personal desires and intentions for our life path. It’s most closely related to matters of personal power, inner strength, and self-esteem.

Symbolism

Symbolism is significant when learning chakras. Associated with the color yellow, the solar plexus chakra can be thought of much like a burning fire of transformative energy. To stay confident and on the truest path of personal fulfillment, it’s important to pay the solar plexus chakra close attention.

Manipura is the Sanskrit name for the solar plexus chakra, translating into “city of jewels” or “seat of gems”. Its pictorial symbol is a circle with ten petals featuring a central downward pointing triangle. The inverted triangle is representative of the transformative power of the fire element.

The solar plexus chakra plays a role in these key elements of one’s life:

• Will and personal power
• Clarity of judgments
• Self-discipline
• Independence
• Personal identity
• Taking control of one’s own life
• Making decisions
• Intellect

Symptoms of an Imbalance Within the Sacral Chakra

Physical signs of a solar plexus chakra imbalance might include one or more of the following:

• Diabetes
• Stress-related illness
• Digestive problems
• Issues with the pancreas
• overeating
• ulcers
• fatigue

On an emotional level, a blockage in this chakra can cause feelings of helplessness and lack of control. This can manifest in behaviors such as abuse of power, being manipulative, lacking clear direction, and lack of ambition or purpose. These are all serious emotional and physical imbalances that potentially have physical repercussions as well. If you are feeling any of these, in addition to beginning work on clearing the solar plexus chakra blockage, you may also want to speak with your physician.

“ Care about what other people think and you will always be thier prisoner.” — Lao Tzu

How to Find and Open Your Solar Plexus Chakra

Opening chakras has a different benefit for your bodily and emotional health. There are several methods for opening chakras. The easiest and most widely used is chakra meditation. This technique is much like regular meditation, only focusing on a specific part o the body. The solar plexus chakra is located between the navel and the lower part of the chest. To open your solar plexus chakra, follow this easy meditation technique.

1. Find a comfortable and quiet space to begin the meditation. If you enjoy incense, my recommendation would be to burn Sandalwood or Lavendar as either of these will help to tap into solar plexus energies. Sit with your shoulders back and straighten your spine. Focus on relaxing your muscles and close your eyes. Inhale deeply through your nose, pulling the air as far down into your body as you can… then gently exhale through the mouth.
2. With your eyes closed, focus your thoughts on the location of the solar plexus chakra.
3. The solar plexus chakra vibrates with a warm yellow glow. Imagine a fire growing within this area… and expanding. As your attention to this area heightens, the area will begin to feel warm and relaxed. Continue to concentrate on the area and sensation for 3–5 minutes.
4. When you feel ready, open your eyes slowly. You may want to sit for a few minutes before standing, allowing yourself to reacclimate to your surroundings.

“Remember, the entrance to the sanctuary is inside you.”

— Rumi

Affirmations are also a wonderful daily maintenance practice for the chakras. Below are a few positive affirmations, you may want to use in balancing the solar plexus chakra.

1. I love and accept myself
2. I have the freedom to make y own choices in life.
3. I am courageous, whole, and stand in my own power.
4. I am positively empowered and successful in all my ventures.

There are a variety of techniques that can be used to balance individual chakras or groups of chakras. Check out this article to learn how you can explore more options.

Using crystals along with meditation

If you are comfortable using crystals with meditation, I would highly recommend considering the use of citrine, tiger's eye, golden mookaite, pyrite, and rutilated quartz to amplify the effects. If you’re interested in learning more about using crystals with meditation, check out this article.

Solar Plexus Chakra Element

If you haven’t guessed it yet, the sacral chakra element is fire. Like the blazing golden fire, the solar plexus chakra uses the transformative energy of the flame to drive forth personal power and growth within our lives. Its healthy flow stimulates our self-esteem and solidified our understanding of individual purpose.

It’s my most sincere hope that you will feel inspired to explore this beautiful chakra whether you feel it’s in need or not. Often I practice techniques as weekly maintenance of my energetic self. Give it a try! You’ll be pleasantly surprised by how refreshing adopting such a practice can be for your mind, body, and soul.

Chakras are beautiful gateways into a deeper, richer quality of being. Acknowledging them is the beginning of a wonderful relationship between us and our higher selves. This article is the second of a seven-part series dedicated to each of the chakras.

Namaste!

My name is Jamie Golob. I’m a writer, artist, and lover of life, motivated by the creative community’s collective experiences and stories. My mission is to illuminate and preserve the beautiful complexities of what it means to be human. Join my tribe and free Living Wanderfully newsletter for fun monthly FREEBIES, and more great content like this delivered straight to your inbox each month.