Earth Day occurs on April 22 to remind us to care for this fantastic, beautiful place so that it will be around for generations after us. Did you know that connecting to the Earth can be very beneficial to your wellbeing? Take this Earth Day to not only care for the environment but to also tend to your root chakra. The root chakra connects us with our Earth element and helps us feel grounded. This year, celebrate Earth Day by caring for your roots with meditation and grounding practices.
What is Your Root Chakra?
There are focal points in your physical body called Chakras. Energy flows through your chakras and maintains wellbeing in your physical body and in your mental and spiritual states. There are seven main chakras stretching from the base of your spinal cord to the top of your head. The base chakra is the root chakra, and it anchors the other six chakras.
The root chakra comes from a Sanskrit word that means “the root of all things.” This is located at the base of your spine. It is the epicenter of your basic needs. When it is balanced, you’ll feel grounded, stable, safe, and committed. While this chakra governs your basic needs of food, water, and shelter, it’s also the seat of your desire to thrive. The balance of it determines if you’ll be striving for health, wealth, and relationships. By ensuring your essential needs are met, you’ll be able to grow and allow your other chakras to be the main focus.
An Out-of-Balance Root Chakra
There may be an imbalance of your root chakra due to everyday stressors, fears, troubles in relationships, challenging projects at work, and traumatic events. This imbalance can create feelings of insecurity, disconnect, and powerlessness, leading you to avoid conflicts and becoming stagnant or flighty within your relationships, jobs, and other commitments. A blocked root chakra leads to outbursts of anger and negative thoughts about yourself.
The good news is that you can do a few things to realign it. Physical activity is excellent at rebalancing the root chakra, so consider doing a yoga flow. You can also practice breath work to restore alignment because the breath connects the physical body with the mind. Grounding exercises, such as visualization and meditation, can also have a powerful impact on your chakras. We’ve outlined a meditation you can practice on Earth Day that will restore your root chakra alignment and ground you in the moment.
How to Have a Successful Meditation
Since the root chakra is the base of all our chakras, we need to spend a little time nurturing it. With meditation, you can explore and open your root chakra. The following steps can help you have a successful root chakra meditation on Earth Day.
Step 1: Seek a comfortable place.
Once you find a space that is calming, quiet, and free of distractions, sit on the floor with your legs crossed and your spine straight. Feel the Earth beneath you and how it supports you during your meditation.
Step 2: Play gentle music.
Peaceful instrumental music can help ground you. It can relax and heal your mind. Find root chakra meditation music on YouTube.
Step 3: Fold your hands into the prayer position.
Rest your thumbs against your heart chakra (in the middle of your chest). Any time thoughts swirl through your mind, acknowledge them, then let them go and focus on the space between your palms as you continue to breathe in and out.
Step 4: Visualize the chakras.
Start at your root chakra, then work your way up to your crown chakra, picturing each one individually in your mind. Imagine the energy flowing through your body, and as you do, you’ll begin to feel more secure. If you’re especially visual, you can picture each color of the seven chakras.
Step 5: Repeat affirmations.
A powerful tool, these affirmations can realign the chakras. To care for the root chakra, you can use one of these:
- I have everything I need.
- I am grounded.
- I am safe.
- I am at home in my body.
Other Ways to Connect with the Earth Element
What better way to celebrate Earth Day than getting back to our roots and connecting with the Earth? In addition to the meditation practice we covered above, you can also do a few other things to honor Earth Day, including:
Spending Time Outside:
Breathe in the earthy air, letting it fill your lungs and creating energy that courses through your chakras. Simply sit outside on a blanket or chair. Alternatively, go for a walk on the beach, practice yoga outside, or clean up your local park.
Gardening:
There’s nothing quite like getting dirt under your nails and planting seeds of new life into the Earth. Rejuvenate your spirit and feel grounded by gardening in your backyard.
Eating Earthy Foods:
Load your plate up with foods that grow in the soil, such as potatoes, chickpeas, carrots, corn, and squash.
Celebrating Earth Day with Root Chakra Practices
Recognize Earth Day this year by tending to your root chakra. As you’re a few months into the year already, you may be overwhelmed with everything you have going on, and your chakras may be out of alignment. Follow a root chakra meditation and connect with your earth element to become grounded. These practices can help you thrive in your mental, physical, and spiritual health. You can also care for your root chakra by attending yoga classes. Join the Health Yoga Life community every day of the week in a yoga flow.