Root Chakra: Education and Healing Guide (Advice Included)

The first chakra in the human body is called the chakra of belonging and often defined as the "root of existence". This chakra is necessary for channeling the flow of energy within the body into other chakras because it builds the foundation for all the other chakras.🌳

Just like roots connect plants to earth, the root chakra is our connection to Mother Earth. Root chakra thrives on food, shelter, clothing, sex, survival, money, instinct, safety, and security.

The first chakra can also wreak havoc in the body when overactive or underactive. In order to balance this chakra, it’s important to know about the location of the root chakra, its symbol, color, element, ruling planet, basic healing powers, affirmations, and other characteristics. The following topics will help you learn it in detail.

Let’s set sail!

• What is the root chakra meaning?
• What are the characteristics of root chakra?
• Signs of overactive, underactive, and balanced root chakra
• Comparison of root chakra with other primary chakras
• 7 methods that help with root chakra healing.
• How to heal your root chakra with the help of crystals?

Basics: What is the root chakra?

Plants and trees are bound to the earth by their root and the same is true for us too. While roots of plants and trees are visible, ours are invisible to the naked eye.

Root is defined as the first of chakras in Hinduism and Buddhism. You’ll find many scriptures from both these religions talking about how this chakra is the origin of the human mind. The first chakra develops after you’re one and until you’re seven.

In both the belief systems, root chakra originates from the Sanskrit word called mooladhara (मूलधारा) where "moola" means the root and "dhara" means "current or flux". You might also come across other names for this chakra such as the Bhoomi chakra (Earth chakra), Chaturdala, Mula chakra, and Brahma Padma.

It can derail owing to negativity, be it physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual. For example, a dysfunctional family life exacerbates the mooladhara chakra and a harmonious family does the opposite.⚖️

Root chakra meaning is support.

Understand the characteristics of the root chakra

The first major chakra in the human body, root chakra is often represented by "Airavata" or the "elephant with the seven trunks" in Hinduism.

Airavata carries the energy of brahma, the creator. Each trunk of Airavata is the paradigm of ‘saptadhatus’ (seven tissues) or the seven levels of consciousness (unconscious, subconscious, dream conscious, waking conscious, astral conscious, supreme conscious, and cosmic conscious).

To understand the traits of root chakra, let’s assess it in detail.

Where is the root chakra located?

Root is the first and the lowest chakra in the human body. But without it, the higher chakras will suffer. It’s located at the base of your spine. When you sit down, this is where your body touches the ground.

The physical effects of the root chakra can be felt around your intestines, reproductive system, and immune system. Basically, energy flows through the mūlādhāra chakra and into the higher chakras.

What’s the symbol of the root chakra?

Apart from the seven-trunk elephant, mooladhara chakra is represented by the square shape. It’s meant to represent traits like sturdiness, invincibility, safety, and durability.

You’ll notice this chakra is drawn as a red lotus with four petals in many pictures. That’s because it stands for the four parts of your psyche such as Manas (mind), buddhi (knowledge), chitta (Consciousness), and Ahamkara (ego).

What’s the root chakra color?

The first chakra is represented by the color of blood—red. It stands for purity of the matter and it’s often used as a part of everything auspicious like birth, festivals, and marriage. A red color cloth is often draped on things to protect them from evil energies according to Hinduism. This exciting color represents focus, energy, purification, action, courage, security, etcetera.

What’s the element associated with the root chakra?

Root chakra awakens the energy of the earth. As we talked earlier, it’s our tether to the earth.🌎 That’s why you’ll feel safe and sound when your earth chakra is open or balanced. Based on the element associated, the mantra (seed word) of the mūlādhāra chakra is "Lam". It’s the affirmation you should use to channel this chakra.

What’s the planet ruling the first chakra?

Root chakra is ruled by the planet Mars. It’s the planet that invokes aggression to ambition, passion and security. When you open the root chakra, you tap into the Roman God of War called Mars. It gives you motivation and when out-of-whack, it can transpire as insecurity, shame, anger, guilt and other signs of overactive or underactive root chakra.

Signs of a balanced root chakra  

The first sign of an open root chakra is the onset of heat evenly in different parts of the body.

Here’s a brief list of the other signs for your reference:

• Optimism: You feel confident about the things you do and aspire to do.
• Self-reliance: You feel brave enough to take and complete responsibilities on your own.
• Bright red aura: Your aura is bright, opaque, and has the color red.
• Satisfaction: You feel satiated in everything you do.
• Carefree: You don’t feel burdened or stressed anymore.
• Trust: You find it easy to trust the right people.
• Energetic: You are full of energy and positivity.
• Fitness: You attain normal body weight.
• Hopeful: You start to see hope in the future and want to live.
• Grounded: You feel safe and secure wherever you are.
• Luck: You might find luck and prosperity when your root chakra balances.

Root chakra imbalances: Overactive and underactive root chakra

Do you know what exactly happens when your root chakra becomes dysfunctional? As it’s the foundation of all the other chakras, your body suffers the problems of root chakra in a systematic manner.

Apart from a disruption to the flow of life force energy, what are the other things that happen when the first chakra is off rail? Why does root chakra go out of balance?

Let’s find out!

Explain what causes root chakra imbalances

A familiar truth is that roots of plants inevitably wilts and dies when it receives sunlight, water, fertilizers, pesticides in insufficiently or in excess. Just like that, your own root chakra may be affected by the fluctuation of negativity and positivity in our life.

As it’s based on your peace of mind, any negativity that affects you can also influence your first chakra. It could be an emotional problem. You might be going through a terrible heartbreak or maybe feeling an undue emotional and physical distance with loved ones that may even lead to breakup or divorce. Alternatively, it could be a cause of your dysfunctional family atmosphere too.

That’s not all!

Your Mūlādhāra chakra may be influenced when survival tools like safety, security, and food suffer due to financial issues and unemployment. Your own past experiences such as traumatic events, physical problems, history of abuse, and abandonment issues could be a factor as well.📝

Signs of overactive root chakra

What would happen if you pour water at high pressure and volume through a small pipe? Just as it can cause problems in plumbing, an overactive root chakra also affects the body adversely.

Take a look at the symptoms of the overactive mooladhara chakra below:

• Obsession: A result of the addiction to money, food, or sex.
• Workaholism: You are crazy about work that you undervalue all other goals in your life.
• Anxiety: From fear to dizziness, and impatience, you might feel apprehensive about everything in your life.
• Pain: One of the physical signs of an overactive first chakra is the sharp pain, often experienced in your leg and feet.
• Greed: If you’re jealous or envious about things you don’t have constantly, your root chakra is to blame.
• Anger: Frustration and sudden bursts of anger is a sign too.
• Hoarding: Amassing things you don’t need isn’t good for the first chakra.
• Medical problems: Issues of the immune system, constipation and inflammation related to root chakra hyperactivity.
• Adrenaline rush: If you’re always trembling with excitement, feeling overwhelmed, and restless, you know which chakra to look into.
• Suspicious: If you work up your mind with baseless stories due to lack of trust, your first chakra is overactive.

Signs of underactive root chakra

It’s not just "too-much" chakra that creates a problem. Too-little energy to circulate in the root chakra is referred to as the state of this chakra being blocked. It can also affect you awfully.

Here’s what you’ll notice when the root chakra is underactive:

• Lonely: You’ll feel alone and untethered.
• Trustless: You find it hard to invest realistically in any relationship due to your trust issues.
• Lazy: You might feel disinterested in everyday chores.
• Sluggish: Lethargy and fatigue are your chronic companions.
• Passive: You never invest fully in anything.
• Codependency: You are happy with your imbalance as it feeds you negativity.  
• Anti-social: You often feel disconnected from people, society, and nature.
• Weight gain: You have been gaining weight for no reason.
• Pessimism: You find no hope that anything will ever work out.
• Deficiencies: You are constantly suffering from nutrient and hormone problems.
• Anemia: You are weak and have no strength to think or act all the time.
• Low libido: Your sexual drive is almost nonexistent.
• Insecurity: You always feel you aren’t enough.

Root chakra vs. Other six primary chakras

As the root chakra is the foundation where other chakras charge from, the chakra system fails without a balanced mooladhara chakra.

🧘🏻When your root is strong, your physical, sexual, emotional, mental, and spiritual consciousness will awaken. Otherwise, you’ll feel sick everywhere. When the root is severed, everything suffers.

Mūlādhāra is the bedrock where the life force energy in your body sleeps until you open it up. It’s called the "support" chakra because it builds the foundation for other chakras.

Root chakra healing: 7 effective methods explained

Now that you know how the first chakra works and what it can do, it’s time to learn how to open your root chakra. The following will teach you seven sacred techniques to balance your first chakra with recommendations on when to use each method.

Aromatherapy

Several Hindu scriptures attribute the sense of smell to root chakra. That’s why aromatherapy is an excellent way to open it up. Use scents of patchouli, sandalwood, cloves, vetiver, ginger, black pepper, and sage to open this chakra. It’s best for those who don’t feel choked by the smell of incense, aroma diffusers, and smoke.

Grounding

When your tether with Mother Earth is broken, mūlādhāra chakra goes over the edge. You can balance it by taking a dip in the ocean or a river🏊🏻‍♀️, relaxing on the beach, enjoying the setting sun, and hearing classical music or ambient sounds. My favorite grounding ritual is walking on the grass laden with dewdrops at the break of dawn. It rejuvenates me and connects me to Mother Nature.

Yoga

You can also awaken the first chakra using postures, gestures, and breathwork. If you’re familiar with yoga, try any of the three poses—Warrior, Triangle, or Eagle. It will help you release the fear and activate the flow of energy. This will pair well with your workout regimen if you’re a fitness freak too.

Here’s a video about "Grounding Into Gratitude" that might help you get started.

Meditation

Sitting on the ground is equivalent to sitting in the lap of Mother Earth. That’s why when you try to do mindful meditation with visualization and mantra-chanting, it’s possible to open the root chakra. You can use the knowledge about root chakra color for visualization techniques too. For those who are spiritual deep down, meditation helps to open up the first chakra.

Foods

If you’re a foodie, balance the root chakra by including vegetables like sweet potatoes, radish, beetroot, beans, soy, egss, and root vegetables like yucca and yam in your diet. Herbal beverages also help to balance the root chakra. You can also try herbs like rosemary, thyme, basil, myrrh, and ylang-ylang in your salads and smoothies.

Grounding Grid

Setting up root chakra crystals on a geometric patterned-sheet (preferably the root chakra symbol) is a good way to create a space for grounding your heart and soul within your house. Activate it using a wand and the grid will do the rest.

Crystals

If you don’t have a lot of time to invest into learning all about root chakra, a root chakra crystal will help you out. All you need to do is keep it close to you at all times. Moreover, if you wear mūlādhāra chakra crystals when you’re practicing any of the above techniques, it can enhance the flow of energy within your body.📝

How to heal root chakra with all types of crystals?

We just brushed on crystals in the earlier section and now we will teach you all about the secrets of healing your root chakra using healing crystals that are made for root chakra.

Crystals for root chakra healing

Take a look at the seven top mūlādhāra crystals to help you open this point of energy.

Red Jasper

A bright-red stone with grey flecks from hematite inclusions on the surface, red jasper is a powerful stone that enhances your root chakra. It grounds you and brings feelings of courage, self-reliance, calmness, and libido besides healing your thyroid, stomach, and joints. You can get a cut red jasper for anywhere from $2 to $5 per carat according to Gem Society nowadays.

Water is the best way to cleanse crystals. Moreover, this is a stone you can clean physically and charge spiritually with water as it doesn’t contain any toxic elements. It’s semi-hard too because red jasper scores 7 on the Mohs scale of hardness.

Smoky Quartz

From yellow-brown to orange, transparent, and black, there are many inclusions often seen on smoky quartz. With a hardness rate of 7 on the Mohs scale, smoky quartz is excellent for alleviating depression and anxiety. It can eliminate fears, nightmares, indecisiveness and stress, especially if it’s a result of agonizing events.

The price of this healing crystal can range from $8 to $65 per carat. Smokey quartz is also safe in water so you can clean and cleanse it with running water. Another way to charge it is by keeping the stone on your root chakra point.

Carnelian

Also called "cornelian", this is a mooladhara chakra stone that’s easy to familiarize with. With its orange-red color and a glassy texture, carnelian may also be seen in red and brown hues. It’s a soft stone ranking 6 to 7 on Mohs. When used correctly, it can improve motivation, positivity, trust, prosperity, and luck.

It’s best to clean this root chakra stone with clear quartz as it has a tendency to generate low silicosis when soaked in water for long hours. However, you can touch it with water for a few minutes. Charge it using your affirmations for root chakra healing. Price per carat for this gemstone ranges from $3 to hundreds based on its rarity.

Bloodstone

Seen in dark-green hues with flecks of red and brown, it was popular as "heliotrope" in Europe through ancient times. Ranging in hardness from 6.5 to 7, this is a stone that can turn the water toxic when doused with water for a long time. Hence, it's recommended to dip and dry or cleanse it by smudging instead of running water. Strengthening the immune system, protecting the wearer, and boosting creativity are some of its boons.

You can charge the first chakra using bloodstone by keeping it in your pant pocket throughout the day. In the retail market, it can cost anywhere from $2 to $10,000, depending on the rarity.

Hematite

From metallic to earthy, the luster of hematite is varied. You’ll also find this stone in many shades such as brown to silver, gray, and red. It’s a soft stone with 5 on Mohs and has a tendency to corrode in the water when immersed for prolonged hours. The best way to cleanse this stone is by using reiki or crystals. You can charge it by wearing hematite as an anklet, rubbing it on your root chakra, or meditating with this stone kept in your lap.

Hematite can cost anywhere from $2.99 to $15 per carat. It’s best for treating an overactive root chakra as it boosts confidence, reliance, survivability, strength, and willpower.📈

Garnet

While it’s mostly seen in the red color, garnet often exhibits colors like orange, green, yellow, purple, blue, brown, and black. Red garnet invokes the root chakra especially when you practice meditation or mantra-chanting whole wearing or holding it. This is a great stone for enhancing your passion, courage, confidence, energy, sex drive, and hope.

Costs of garnet can range from $2 to $1,700,000 per carat based on how rare it is. As garnet contains aluminum, it turns the water toxic when kept in it for long. Hence, you can dip and dry the stone quickly or avoid cleansing with tap and saltwater entirely. Use crystal wands to clean and charge this stone to empower your root chakra.

Black Tourmaline

One of the crystals that can absorb negativity and cleanse itself is black tourmaline. Jewelry made of black tourmalines such as rings and long chains is excellent for reducing stress, restlessness, anxiety, and obsessive behaviors. This healing crystal is also good for promoting good immunity.😊

A durable stone with Mohs hardness of up to 7.5, best not to soak black tourmaline stone in water for a long time as its toxic substances will be released. You can instead cleanse it using a selenite wand. It can cost you between $3 and $6 per carat, unless you have a rare piece.

Different types of crystals and how to use them for root chakra healing

Based on the shape, size, aesthetics, price and properties of crystals, you can use them in different ways.

Here are the different forms of root chakra crystals used for chakra healing:

• Raw stones: Uncut and unpolished root chakra stones like raw black tourmaline, garnet, and smoky quartz are often used in their raw form to cultivate pristine and untouched energy.🌞
• Cut crystals: Garnet, red jasper are often cut into facets and find their way in crystal jewelry. These crystals can be worn on your body to open the first chakra and keep it charged throughout the day.
• Tumbled stones: Polished stones are used for feng shui, palm stone, reiki, mantra-chanting, grounding grid, etcetera today. It makes you feel grounded and positive.
• Wands: Many root chakra crystal wands are available today such as those made of black tourmaline, red jasper, hematite, bloodstone, smoky quartz, and carnelian. You can point it at your root chakra to open it.
• Clusters: These are several crystals amalgamated into one and some of the root chakra crystals like smoky quartz, hematite, and black tourmaline are excellent for feng shui, and grounding crystal grids.
• Crystal mirror: Scrying mirrors made of black tourmaline is a good way to look into your past, present, and future using divination to find out what’s hurting your root chakra.
• Crystal pyramid: This is a crystal with a pointy-end supposed to manifest your wishes by sending messages into the core of the universe. Try using a black tourmaline, red jasper, smoky quartz, carnelian, garnet, hematite, and bloodstone pyramid to open your root chakra while chanting the seed word (Lam).
• Crystal ball: Another prop for divination, black tourmaline balls are excellent for scrying so that you know what to do for your root chakra.
• Pendulums: You can also use a crystal pendulum made of several root chakra crystals or one to ask the universe about your root chakra doubts.
• Eggs: For feng shui, grounding grid, and yoni massage, eggs made of mooladhara chakra crystals carnelian, red jasper, bloodstone, and smoky quartz are ideal.
• Geode: Use a carnelian geode lined with sparkling carnelians inside to cleanse your crystals and set intentions for opening the root chakra.
• Jewelry: From anklets to rings, bangles, bracelets and long opera necklaces made with root chakra crystals, there are many ways to keep your root chakra charged by wearing the right crystals throughout the day.

Tap into your root chakra

Root chakra is the root of our existence and our connection with Mother Earth. Located at the tailbone end, this is the first chakra that’s represented by the four-petal lotus with ruling planet Mars and element Earth. It’s the chakra of courage, protection, and strength.

Balance of root chakra is crucial for feeling grounded, peaceful, satisfied, and confident. When your root chakra is off-kilter, you’ll feel angry, sick, jealous, anxious, lethargic, overexcited, restless and a bunch of more physical and emotional feelings that aren’t positive.

When you open the Mūlādhāra chakra, your "kundalini" energy that lays dormant at the end of the spine awakens. It flows into the other chakra points to empower your chakra system in total and hence root chakra balance is inevitable for balancing your other chakras.

You can use aromatherapy, crystal grids, meditation, yoga, foods, grounding, and crystals to open your root chakra. Amongst these, crystals are one of the best ways to heal your mūlādhāra chakra because it’s the fruit of mother earth itself.🥰

You can also use root chakra stones such as red jasper, smoky quartz, bloodstone, carnelian, hematite, garnet, and black tourmaline in various shapes or forms like cut, tumbled, wand, crystals, pendulum and jewelry to unlock root chakra healing powers.