Chakra Three: Solar Plexus + Fire

Chakra Three: Solar Plexus + Fire

“Stop acting so small. You are the Universe in ecstatic motion. Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.” Rumi

Welcome Back Ya’ll!

That Sacral Chakra series brought out way more feelings than I imagined! Bodinuity was lit 🙂 There was a diverse list of prompts and activities to follow in that post.  I would love to hear from you, which action inspired you the most on your journey? When did your energy start to build? For me it was that hot bath leading into a dance session. I felt all my energy gel together, expanded and full, confidently making decisions well into today. I’m optimistic that you felt happy, your actions made you smile, and that is why you are here again today.

Welcome back to your space, where you have a mat, water, and a journal. Maybe you have changed the scarf over the lamp to Yellow.

As we give allowance to and space for the principle of change, I will continue to present these Chakra journeys in slightly different ways. Not the same way works for everybody, and sometimes you need to see something in a different perspective to actually want to do it.

The material presented is summarized and quoted from the book Wheels of Life by Anodea Judith, PhD. All other sources are noted. These posts will be written as both blog and journal; I have taken this journey to create it. My aim is simply to share information I have found useful. Any mistakes are my own.

The part of that series which did not flow for me yesterday, is where I want to start today. While I got a lot out of the Yoga postures, I could not get down with the meditation at the end of her class! All that empty space made me anxious. Meditation with no guide is a level I have not arrived at. So to start us off today I have a meditation from Alan Watts, a highly respected philosopher and interpreter of Eastern wisdom, speaking to that “space”.

Alan Watts died in 1973 so all we have is these grainy, slightly echoey recordings of his lectures which I find so soothing to listen to. Help yourself to that rabbit hole if he appeals to you too!

Today will be the last time I list all the steps to the Sushumna Breathing Activation (but we will still begin our practices with it). I know your body is getting the picture now. It’s day 3, so you are on your way to making tuning into your currents a habit!

Align the chakras along sushumna. Read through the steps first and then stand to practice

1. Stand with feet shoulder width apart, stretch hands high over head, reaching with your whole body while feet are flat on the ground. Stretching out, wiggle through the space that may have been compacted, encourages the chakras to align
2. Return to a normal standing position, palms facing forward (mountain pose), trying to maintain the elongated new height. Perhaps half and inch you gained back! Remember gravity is constantly weighing on us. Tuck your pelvis so your central axis feels stacked and a clear column is running through your core body
3. Breathe slowly, deeply, in through your nose to balloon your belly with air, and fill the chest next. Out through your mouth. 3 deep breaths here
4. Imagine the vastness of the sky above you (even as you are indoors), experience the space above you. Drink in this vastness through your head, pulling it down into you like a human sized straw. Cascade this airy, clean and bright space into your face, ears, whole head, down your throat, over your shoulders, continue all the way down. 
5. It may help you to visualize this vastness as a light, a color, a stream of wind, or a column of bubbles
6. Take a few times to breathe in, getting a little further down your body each time. Till you are able to breathe through your feet releasing the breath into the floor. Earth. Grounding. We are experiencing the Manifesting Current.
7. When this feels comfortable, you are able to imagine the energy flowing from the sky to the earth, and begin working with the upward current! The Liberating Current.
8. Breathe in the earth’s energy from your feet, into your genitals, into your abdomen, chest, heart, throat, face, spilling up into the sky above.
9. When this feels comfortable, practice running both currents at the same time!
10. Play with these two currents. Is one of them harder to control or feel, is there a particular block of tension anywhere? Thank yourself for this practice, and take a sip of water.

Beautiful. Now let’s get curious.

“Manipura” Sanskrit for “Lustrous Gem”

Associated Words: Fire, Power, Autonomy, Will, Energy, Metabolism, Technology, Transformation, Self-Esteem

The Table below is a non-exhaustive list of physical and mental, we will call them “charms”, which you can work with for each Chakra. “Work with” would be to feel (location on body), visual imagination, do (activate body part), eat, smell, watch, listen, etc. – Well that just means, using all your senses! How very Tantra of us 😉

Manipura	Lustrous Gem
Location	Navel to base of sternum
Element	Fire
Outer Force	Plasma
Function	Will, Power, Assertiveness
Inner State	Laughter, Joy, Anger
Glands and Body Parts	Pancreas, Adrenals, Digestive System, Muscles
Malfunction	Ulcers, Diabetes, Hypoglycemia, Digestive disorders
Color	Yellow
Seed Sound	Ram
Planets	Mars, Sun
Food	Starches (Whole Grain Bread, Rice, Potatoes, Beans)
Verb	I Can
Herbs	Sandalwood, Saffron, Musk, Cinnamon, Ginger
Minerals	Amber, Topaz, Yellow Citrine
Animals	Ram
Sense	Sight
Chief Operating Force	Combustion
Demon	Shame

• The third Chakra arises from the combination of matter and movement. Two components that form energy. Matter and movement create friction will cause combustion…Fire! That enthusiasm you felt for who you are at chakra one and two, is ignited into power and activity at chakra three. 
  • At our Solar Plexus, the transformation of energy from passive (earth and water are subject to gravity) to active (fire moves upward) ignites power and will in our behavior. Your hands and your mind are the most sacred tools you have. Activate them towards your interests/passions/things you do with an ounce of ease, and see what you are capable of! A fire doesn’t ask questions, it seeks, it tries, it tries. 
    • Fire raises us to a new dimension of warmth and light
    • The fire you build at this chakra is what will propel you on your journey higher in the chakras. 

• To transform our creative energy, to liberate who we are at our core, we must liberate the self from fixed patterns and create new behavior
  • To do this we will remind ourself why we are great. What you discovered in the First two chakras.
  • Later, we will bolster our ability to be nourished by what is around us (people, places, things)
    • This includes how we treat ourselves, how we present ourselves in our environment, and integrating will with what we can do.
  • Our personal “will” steers us from the path of least resistance (which is what water takes) to help us break patterns that don’t work anymore (addictive habits, trying to please everyone, being overly resistant or cautious)
    • “Will combines holding and moving (1st and 2nd chakra) in a way that directs action and shapes our world (3rd chakra)” A. Judith
    • You own your faculties. Energies birthed a “you-sized (body) space” to fill out the earth’s atmosphere with new thoughts, forming new connections, creating new purpose.

It is worth saying here that if at anytime in this series you need to refresh yourself on your beliefs, your values, strengths, passions, abilities, likes, and traits, pop back into your “root” and have a conversation with your past selves about what you did those years, and what resonated with you. We don’t have perfect recollection, and we don’t even use our whole brain daily. Write them in your journal whenever you add a new one. By Chakra 7, watch how your list will reveal clues.

In order to continue building our energy up, that lovely pure energy you have raised from foundation, to the path of movement- embracing change, we need to bolster our self confidence. Confidence does NOT come from the goals and visions you may be manifesting, it comes from who you are in your body, right now. A realistic sense of self is the basis for self-esteem because it bolsters the security that you have combustible attributes that can light up given the right stoking. Realism is not to hold you back, only to get clear on what you have to stoke your fire. 

• Root Chakra showed us our physical identity
• Sacral Chakra showed us our emotional identity and aliveness
• Solar Plexus Chakra gives us the power to hone our skills. Through self-discipline of trial and error we can gain a realistic sense of our abilities and how strong is our will

Journal Prompts:

List the things you did to completion this week. (If you started washing the dishes and didn’t quit halfway through- include that)

If someone asked you to describe yourself, how would you?

• The hardest part is getting started, but once the fire is lit, it only takes small amount of energy to get it going again

Much of Chakra work is giving ourselves time to take care of ourselves. Get clear on what you like, so when you put energy there, it will cycle and give you energy back. When we show ourselves love, and realize what we offer the world, those acts decrease our need to go out looking for affirmation….we can just continue on with a lit fire source!

• Mass, movement, and energy are inseparable forces in the the physical world
  • This trinity of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd chakras form the fundamental principles of life. How we do it from there is….choice
    • The dance between cause and effect (also yin and yang) awakens in us the energy for activity – deciding on choices.
      • Without energy from below, there is no power
        • Power only happens by directed energy
        • The descending current of consciousness (manifesting current), guides the energy into purpose (tangible)
          • Manifesting (downward) current brings form
          • Liberating (rising) current brings energy
          • When the currents combine, you have power
  • In the 3rd Chakra, the Solar Plexus, we must allow the integration of bodily energy with conscious intelligence…in this self fulfilling act, you become your own agent of transformation. The power is in you to use, for your expression (likely you express in many ways because you like lots of things) of your purpose (could your purpose be mixed in with what you like?)

Okay let’s back off the introspection for a sec. Keep it in close! I want to ask if there is anything you have noticed in the past 6 months that has bothered you about your life. Not counting the Coronavirus. Write the first thought in your journal.

As we move higher towards our spirit, sometimes we need to break attachments that weigh us down. This next exercise should simulate breaking unnecessary, unhelpful, or toxic attachments.

Solar Plexus Exercise:

Let’s stimulate some fire with “The Woodchopper” movement. Stand up and wiggle out your body, clear some bubbles. Lengthen, take a deep breath as you raise your arms high. When you have held your breath at the top, release your breath, arms, and body SWINGING down, between your legs with a big “AHH” sound, the associated tone of Solar Plexus. Repeat this 10 times.

Journal Prompt:  Energy that is directed toward something that is not manifesting is energy that is “hung” up, or otherwise useless. Is there someone or something you have been giving attention to which is not flowing after reasonable effort? 

 Being aware of who you are and how you work best gives you power to raise your authenticity and be powerful in the world.

Journal Prompts:

Two ways I squander my energy are:

Two steps I can take towards my goals are:

Now we will do two postures to resonate what we have just written down. Play this music as you do the poses.

1. Making the Sun: As you push your arms down, imagine pushing out those things that squander your energy. Rise and Repeat until you are satisfied.

2. Belly Opening (Reverse Plank)(2 options): As you lift, send through your body the energy of confidence to instill your will on these steps to your goals. Repeat and hold until satisfied.

The next aspect we want to include in our journey is discussing fuel for our fire.

• Fire uses combustion (rapid chemical combination of a substance with oxygen) to turn matter(wood) into energy(heat and light)
• In our bodies, this is done as a process called Metabolism. Feed yourself with foods that turn into steady energy (not pure sugars or caffeine) and the elements around you (people, places, things).
  • Being conscious about what you take in will keep stoking your fire.
  • We can block our own power by not breathing fully: the body needs oxygen to metabolize nutrients and turn them into energy.

• We can also block our power by withdrawing from life and being overly controlled by the forces around us.
  • Eventually, without metabolizing things that stoke your fire, you become depleted, the natural enthusiasm shrinks, and you have to find other stimulants to create that for you (drugs, caffeine, sweets)
    • This oftentimes will land you in a place of self-criticism, fear, and avoidance of change… a vicious cycle
    • Being in touch with the passions that our first two chakras reveal, gives us a constant source of fuel
      • Simple things like taking a walk, petting an animal, goofing around, putting on makeup, taking a photo, swimming, etc, small events that bring joy from the absolute core of our self is all the fuel we need. Listen to what you love, and do that. 
• One last thing on the note of air accompanying our inner fuel:
  • “If we are not loving with ourselves, giving ourselves room to breathe, to make mistakes, then we have no air for the fire to burn” A. Judith

It can be hard to boil down perhaps what is “most” important to you, so I’m calling upon the all knowing powers of a QUIZ! Haha. But I do really think this is a good one, no fluff or fortune telling. 10 well thought out questions that address your core energy. Be honest with yourself about which answer is the real you. When we show up and see truly what fuels our happiness, that fuel will keep giving our whole life.

https://core.tonyrobbins.com/driving-force-6/

After revealing your Driving Force, consider the following prompt: Find 3 Hobbies you love:

• One to make you money
• One to keep you in shape
• One to be creative

Take time to Brainstorm what stokes the feelings of warm light inside you. These 3 things can change over the course of your life, but by shaping your life around them, you will have many sources of joy, they will fuel your will, encourage your discipline, boost your confidence, and you will have fun doing them!

“Your purpose is born out of your orientation to the world. Born from what you love, loathe, and what your talents apply to.” Anodea Judith

To get a bit more serious now. As we develop our third chakra, we are confronted with redefining our outlook on power. Oof, am I right? Power is a word people feel very Yin/Yang about…either it is very positive or very negative for them. I for one, was in need of reading and feeling this new perspective. Again, these ideas are based on the work of Anodea Judith, summarized in my own language unless quoted.

• From youth, we grow up submissive under power of cooperation and conformity
  • There are many people with power “over” you: parents, school, bosses, military, government. And some of this is certainly necessary to an extent. But we must find our inner will to live as an individual. By living our truth, we have access to exercising our “potential”: activating connections in our bodies which makes each of us so powerful and kinetic.
  • Conformity leads to less exclusion, but can dampen that spark to be creative
• To pass through this chakra, we want to find the “power to” 
  • Power, becoming an action within, rather than a noun we are dominated over
  • The power to enhance, integrate, and strengthen due to our directed energy
• In the Chakra System, power comes from unity – combining and integrating what we learn at each level. Power doesn’t come from the separateness. Power is not from the highest chakra’s “domination” over the other chakras. They are powerful because of each other.
  • Consider Boss’s, Coaches, and Leaders you have admired, versus the one’s who left a bad taste in your mouth. Were they using “power over” or empowering everyone’s “power within”
  • The strength of a group lies in the ability to combine diversity to make something new, the whole of the group is the power, just like the chakras
  • As a unique, never before seen, limited edition human, YOU are the combination of diverse genes (parts on parts on parts) which form something new. I’ve been trying to tell you, these chakras really weave the hell outta some “fabric”!
    • In combining, organizing, and aligning inner forces, each member lights up as a powerful being
    • Autonomous individuals power themselves to continue innovating and bringing momentum to the group
      • Simply being told what to do only weakens a person’s connection with the job in the long haul. No desire for the greater good of that job. With no way to exert conscious connection to a place you spend so much time, it is easy to give up on your innate abilities and the desire to activate those energies, for the benefit of all.
      • Losing inner will can also leave you powerless against those looming addictive/destructive forces
    • Changing your inner dialogue from “I should/have to do this” to “I choose/want to do this” can be encouraging to keep you on track with your inner desires. You choose to do yoga because you like how it makes your joints feel. You choose to go water the plants because you don’t want them to die which would waste that energy you spent.
    • Watch how you talk to yourself. Don’t let your own mind be the pessimist in the room.
    • Being in a minimum wage job is still an opportunity to exercise your strengths. The point is to find which jobs suit your abilities best. If your fire gets lit by challenging yourself to see how quickly and efficiently you can cook food, then Fast Food Restaurants would suit you more than the Grocery Deli. If you pride yourself in providing solutions, a Call Center Help Desk would suit you more than a job you need multiple people to sign off on a solution.

Find your spark and go at it proud, and loud.

“In a submissive paradigm, the power is placed outside ourselves. If we look for power outside, we look to others for direction, and find ourselves at their mercy, setting ourselves up for possible victimization. With an absence of power within, we may constantly seek stimulation, excitement, and activity, afraid to slow down, to feel the emptiness inside. We engage in activity as a way of getting acknowledged by others, a way of being seen, a way of having our own ego strengthened. We may seek power for the sake of ego, rather than for the ability to better serve the larger whole. Power without purpose is mere whim, sometimes even dangerous.” Anodea Judith

• To me this reveals something about the current power of social media. We get consumed by the need to consume it, or post as a way to harness some power, which often leaves us in rejection, as social media algorithms are skewed 
  • On social media is the person the one that has the power, or is it the media?

• Examine your reasoning of the choices you make. By making the choices conscious, you empower yourself that YOU are making the decision
  • Is it to look good, be liked, avoid responsibility, keep the peace, call out others? And either way you make it, it was your decision, which upon that examination, is your true will.
    • Excessive 3rd Chakra: Trying to get out from under the lust of ego is also something we may struggle with at this chakra
    • Underdeveloped 3rd Chakra: Avoiding responsibility by giving powers over to a psychic, guru, teacher, or therapist. While getting help is advisable as a springboard and eye opening, no one can make decisions for you.

Movement! Stand up. Let’s not forget about our vessel. A little massage to take a quick break from reading and keep our Solar Plexus open and vibing. Place your fingertips on the base of your sternum (breastbone), and rub in a circle, moving the skin side to side, up and down, sliding away from the bone. Now move your hands outward as you continue this circular massage all along the edge of your ribcage. Continue back as far as you can go behind your body. After, take a deep breath to feel the new room of released fascia. Expansion. Next, take your hands flat on your upper stomach, just under your ribs, and slide down firmly to your pubis. All along your sides and back. Now rub up, from pubis to ribs. Then, just kind of softly grab your middle section and “jujje it around”. Circling, rocking, shaking, do what feels good! Simply touch your bod and smile because everything is doing it’s best. Self-Massage, woo hoo!

We cannot control what will happen to us, so we must have the inner power, then the will to carry on: in control of our actions for what follows. To overcome we must create momentum.

• Create momentum which is intelligent and strategic
  • This is absolutely a time in your life where a life coach or a talk therapist would be the ideal resource to help get you started. They can listen to your history, figure out your strengths, and recommend tools and protocols to build your energy
  • Building strategy and a cohesive plan can allow us to work smarter rather than harder. Efficiency, not force.

“Without agreement between will and desire, we lose our passion and momentum, and thereby dissipate the power needed to carry out our will.” Anodea Judith

• Announce to yourself which desires are long-term, to keep your will with you. These are those long term goals that don’t happen overnight.
• Almost there you guys! We now bring up the discipline aspect of power and will.
  • “Disciple” – the willingness to be a student of something
  • “Here we are faced with the odd paradox of surrendering our will to the structure or form that brings about fulfillment of that will. In this act of discipline, there is a certain transcendence of feelings, in that we may not “feel like” doing our meditation on a particular day, or we may not “feel like” going to work. Yet, those feelings become irrelevant when our will is fixed to a larger purpose {weight loss, money, job, family, passions, purpose}. In this way, the third chakra is both fueled by, and yet transcends, the feeling orientation of the second chakra.” Anodea Judith
    • You now should see you have the power to make your own choices based on your true will, which will lead you to self-discipline to respect that will/desire. Discipline leads to the practice and experimentation of choices towards our will, and in that time spent, you gain self-confidence. Repetition of pattern is a godsend for confidence.

The next video is super relevant to our Journey. Not only does it weave in fables from other periods and places, but it breaks down why self-discipline is so challenging, and how to make your life more cohesive with this awareness.

Ways to Strengthen your Autonomy (the right to self-govern):

• Recognize that you matter
• Pursue autonomy in all areas throughout time and space
• Being willing and able to make a change
• Seek out opportunities
• Advancing and developing your skill sets

Developing the 3rd Chakra

• Make sure energy travels in a complete circuit – what you put out has a way of coming back
• When you are overwhelmed by strained effort, stop. Ask yourself what is missing that would make it move smoothly
• Avoid invalidation – “New ideas meet their greatest opposition from those who misunderstand them.” Albert Einstein
• Choose to challenge yourself – sluggish: move, hyperactive: be still, resistant to change: get uncomfortable
• Give attention to where it is needed, also accept attention from others
• Focus your energy by grounding. Energy directed = power
• Release Anger
• Don’t take things too seriously – remember to laugh

Alright ya’ll,

That is my spiel today with guidance by the epic works of Dr. Anodea Judith. To conclude, I’m going to leave you with two videos. The first is for a little laughter and perhaps inspiration to release frustration of the powerless parts of our lives. The second is a strong yet soothing, cathartic Solar Plexus Yoga flow. In the middle she leads into a great meditative state by repeating Sun Salutations. Don’t overwhelm yourself today, but for the future, here are some podcasts that may be encouraging to listen to. If you like any of them, send a comment so myself and others will know!

I hope your consciousness came out to play today. Remember that in whatever state you are in, you are worthy and stronger than you realize. 

Conclusions of Solar Plexus Chakra: Transform your energy into skill development to achieve autonomy. Taking care of ourselves includes breaking attachments and challenging ourselves, to raise our power.

With Health and Happiness we go,

Kaitlin

4/17/2020

Resources:

Wheel of Life, Anodea Judith

https://medium.com/studies-in-well-being/what-you-can-do-to-strengthen-your-autonomy-c05db71886d3