Know Your Chakras: Three

(Find out more about Chakras One and Two.)

Chakra Three: Manipura (Lustrous Gem)

Element: Fire

Function and Purpose: Power, will, assertiveness, transformation

Obstacle: Shame

Balanced Inner States: Healthy, balanced self-esteem and ego, warmth, confidence, sense of humor, balanced and comfortable with own personal power

Imbalanced Inner States: Aggressive, controlling, power hungry, arrogant, stubborn, competitive

Location: Solar Plexus

Color: Yellow

In my second article we looked at our sacral chakra, Svadhisthana, which deals with the healthy expression of our emotions and sexuality. Once balanced, we are free to move to the third, Manipura, or solar plexus chakra, which is located from the navel to the solar plexus. It is primarily concerned with will, personal power and transformation. In the root chakra we gain a foundation and stability which allows us to move to the sacral chakra, giving us the opportunity to change and unite with another emotionally and sexually. Once this is accomplished, we move into the solar chakra (3rd), where we are able to use our ability to change from a strong foundation, and use our will and personal power to turn change into transformation.

Our solar chakra is located just above the adrenal glands, which is what creates the “butterflies” that we associate with nervousness when taking on something new and facing the unknown. When the solar is out of balance, this energy remains in the realm of nervousness, and our transformative energies become dissipated, unfocused and without direction; much like a boat without a rudder trying to maneuver in an ocean of storms. However, when in balance, we realize that this nervousness is really excitement, which feeds our fire-consciousness in a much more expansive and extremely focused manner, giving us the momentum and confidence we need to face that which is in front of us. This helps develop personal power.

When we talk about power, what do we think of? We usually think of a person (usually a male) with more money than God, driving a top of the line sports car, in a high position of authority with subservient underlings awaiting his every beck and call, and the ability to make anyone’s life miserable with just one phone call. This, however, is not the kind of power we’re talking about here (nor is it true power). True power comes from within, and is not dependent on outside forces or validation for its survival.

Personal power comes from a healthy understanding and use of our own personal will. Will is thought in action, manifest. It is through our will that we transform our lives and make the changes necessary to accomplish all of our goals and dreams. Yet there is another type of will which must be discussed, and that is “universal will.” This is the will of the spirit or, as I call it, true source: that which is the creator of all things, dancing within us, connecting us with all that is. When the solar chakra is out of balance, one of the things that usually happens is that we force our will onto our environment and other people in the pursuit of our goals. When in this state, we often don’t see the constant walls and myriad of obstacles that hinder us from attaining that which we want. This is where universal will comes in. When running on pure personal will, we cannot see that all of the walls and obstacles are signs that we are on the wrong path or going in the wrong direction. When we awaken to this, we can listen and follow the will of the universe and the best path it has laid out for us. This is a delicate balance between volition with cognition and flowing with the stream of universal consciousness.

Our personal power and will is manifested by developing a foundation of healthy self-esteem (which comes as a result of balancing the solar chakra), which is seeing oneself clearly through the lens of reality and embracing and celebrating who we are; our positive qualities as well as negative. It is through facing challenges and trying new things that we develop self-esteem, as well as self-confidence. When our solar chakra is balanced, our self-esteem works in the positive, which manifests itself as being assertive, confident, proactive, and disciplined. When out of balance, shame, the obstacle of the third chakra, manifests itself either consciously or unconsciously, and we collapse into ourselves, into a place of either arrogance and ego or victimization. This must be overcome in order to move through our third chakra.

In short, by balancing our third chakra, we are able to nurture, embrace and utilize our personal power in a healthy, dynamic way, creating a powerful will to action.