The Chakras Explained - THIRD EYE

I don't believe any of you have been waiting with bated breath for the next installment of The Chakras Explained. But it does surprise me that I have not explained any chakras since January. Apologies. We're almost done as we hit #6 of 7.

When I teach yoga I tend to use the heart chakra more than any other. I summarize anahata as the center of love, compassion, forgiveness and acceptance. However, only recently when creating a meditation for a workshop did I create summaries for all seven. The Third Eye (or Ajna in sanskrit) is the center of our intuition, imagination, intellect and faith. It's located in the center of the forehead, but since our energy radiates 360 degrees, it's also in the back and sides of our head.

This chakra for me has always been very open. It allowed me to intuitively teach over the years and as a child I had a very vivid imagination. I guess I still do. Other ways to tell that ajna is active and healthy are empathetic connections, open mindedness, powerful dreams, mental stamina and easy meditative states.

If the 6th Energy Center is under-active, you may not be very good at thinking for yourself, and tend to rely on authority figures. You may be rigid in your thinking, relying heavily on your beliefs and not open to new ideas. You might even get easily confused, have poor memory, experience eye issues and have difficulty recognizing patterns. When the 3rd Eye is over-active, we may experience nightmares, headaches, have difficulty concentrating and even hallucinate.

Don't fret. If your Third Eye is not in balance, there are a number of things you can do to heal and cleanse ajna. Try these.

1. Eat purple foods. Grapes, blueberries, purple carrots, plums, purple cabbage and eggplant, for starters.
2. Play with lavender. Dab some essential oil on your wrists, lather on some yummy lavender lotion or steep some lavender with your favorite tea!
3. Have an herbal oil treatment (Shirodhara). Some spas offer this treatment where warm oil is poured on the center of your forehead. Trust me, it's a pretty remarkable experience.
4. Do yoga. When I teach a class that focuses on Ajna, I take time in child's pose with the forehead touching the floor. I also make sure to do our surya namaskar or sun salutations with our eyes closed. 

What's going on in your 3rd Eye? Did any of the cleansing suggestions work for you? Anything you want to share? Please add your comments and questions to the comment section below.