Anahata: The Fourth Chakra

There are seven chakras, which are aligned up the center of the body. The first chakra is at the base of the spine and the last one is at the top of the head. The fourth chakra is located at the heart, or near the center of the chest, which is why it is known as the heart chakra. Because of this, Anahata does have to do with your relationships with other people, yourself, and of course, love. The Sanskrit name of this chakra is Anahata, which in english means "unstruck", "unhurt", or "unbeaten". The ruling planet of Anahata is Venus.

This is a picture of where each chakra is located. As you can see, the green one is Anahata. Each chakra is associated with it's own color, element, sound, organ, and sense. Green is the color that represents Anahata. A secondary color could be pink. The element for this chakra is air. Air spreads everywhere, much like how when you're in love, the emotion spreads throughout all of you. The sound is yam, the organ is the chest, and the sense is touch. Anahata is basically all about love and finding peace and harmony with yourself and the rest of the world. Through this heart chakra we learn to love ourselves and others. It is the center of compassion.

Anahata Yoga. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013. <http://anahatayoga.org/>. 

Anahata's Yantra Symbol

A yantra is a geometric symbol or design that is usually used as an aid to meditation. The image above is Anahata's symbol. Yantra symbols in yoga are lotus flowers. Each chakra has a different symbol with a varying number of petals. Anahata's symbol has 12 petals around a circle. Inside the circle are two triangles intersecting to make a six-pointed star. One triangle is pointing upwards and the other is facing downwards. When the energy of this chakra flows up, our feelings are expressed as love and pure devotion. But when it flows down, that is when we are filled with jealousy and sadness. These triangles also form a shatkona, which is a symbol used to represent the union of the masculine and feminine form. 

Each petal usually has a different syllable on it. The syllables in sanskrit are kam, kham, gam, gham, ngam, cham, chham, jam, jham, nyam, tam, and tham. In english they are lust, fraud, indecision, repentance, hope, anxiety, longing, imaprtiality, arrogance, incompetence, discrimination, and defiance.


"Hindu Chakras: Anahata." Lands of Wisdom. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://landsofwisdom.com/?p=1627>. 
"Anahata Chakra - Heart Centre." Yoga in Daily Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 
     2013. <http://www.yogaindailylife.org/esystem/yoga/en/180400/chakras/ 
     anahata-chakra/>. 
"Anahata, (Anahatha) 4th Chakra, Unbeaten or Heart Chakra." Yoga Bound. N.p., 
     n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. <http://www.yogabound.com/ 
     anahata-anahatha-4th-chakra-unbeaten-or-heart-chakra/>. 

Disorders of an Unbalanced or Blocked Anahata Chakra

When this chakra is unbalanced or blocked, it can cause both psychological and physical problems. The psychological problems include jealousy, despair, grief, the inability to show compassion for others and ourselves, sorrow, and fear of commitment. Some physical problems are heart disease, other cardiovascular problems, shoulder and arm problems, depression, and high blood pressure. There could also be problems because of a chakra that is too open or overactive. These could make you be very possessive, dependent, and clingy.

"Anahata Chakra (Heart)." Yoga Journal. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/898?page=5>. 

Attributes of a Balanced or Open Chakra

When this chakra is open or balanced, we are free of selfishness and able to identify with the whole world, including animals, nature, and other people. A person with this chakra open is usually very considerate of other people's feelings and is therefore sociable and easy to get along with. They are trustworthy and have a sense of being complete or whole. They're able to give and receive love and are full of hope and inspiration.

"Anahata, (Anahatha) 4th Chakra, Unbeaten or Heart Chakra." Yoga Bound. N.p., 
     n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. <http://www.yogabound.com/ 
     anahata-anahatha-4th-chakra-unbeaten-or-heart-chakra/>. 
"Anahata Vibes." Art Flakes. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.artflakes.com/en/products/anahata-vibes>. 

Yoga Postures For Balancing Anahata

Anahata is associated with the chest, so these yoga postures are great chest openers. Doing poses that involve backbends help to develop the trust and surrender needed to release and let go and open this chakra fully. Also, backbends enable the heart to be positioned higher than the head. It's also good to do some postures that involve shoulder stretches, like Garudassana, which is Eagle Pose.

You can also do things like Marjaryasana, which is Cat Pose. This posture helps with the lower back. Here is a video that shows how to do Cat Pose.

Another posture that is helpful with opening the heart chakra is Ustrasana, or Camel Pose. This stretches the whole front side of the body. 

There is also a style of yoga called Anahata Yoga. It aims to open the heart through breathing exercises.  The practice of this yoga is usually very calm and light. First you start with some meditation and breathing while sitting down, asanas that open and stretch the spine, standing postures, seated postures, and then some more meditation. 

"Another Side of Eagle Pose (Garudasana)." Yoga Pose Weekly. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 
     Apr. 2013. <http://www.yogaposeweekly.com/eagle-pose/ 
     another-side-of-eagle-pose-garudasana/>. 

"How to Do Camel Pose in Yoga." iSport. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://yoga.isport.com/yoga-guides/how-to-do-camel-pose-in-yoga>. 

"Anahata Yoga." ABC of Yoga. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/info/anahata-yoga.asp>. 

"Anahata Yoga Officially Launches at YogaPlus - Hong Kong." Pressbox. N.p., n.d. 
     Web. 13 Apr. 2013. <http://www.pressbox.co.uk/cgi-bin/links/ 
     page.cgi?g=detailed%2F177820.html;d=1>. 

Foods That Fuel Anahata

Food is also an awesome way to activate chakras. Food is actually sometimes the reason why our chakras are unbalanced. We could be eating too much or eating the wrong types of foods. Anahata is associated with the color green, so foods that help activate and balance this chakra are green leafy vegetables and fruits. These include foods like spinach, broccoli, cabbage, leeks, artichokes, brussel sprouts, green onions, kale, cauliflower, green apples, kiwis, squashes, beans, pears, avocados, and cucumbers. It also helps to drink green tea.


"Food for Chakras." LiveStrong. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.livestrong.com/article/541318-food-for-chakras/>. 
"Feeding the Chakras." Bliss. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.bliss.com/feeding_the_chakras/>. 
"Chakra Foods." Love and Heal. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://loveandheal.blogspot.com/2012/03/chakra-foods.html>. 
"Green Superfoods." Food Matters. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://foodmatters.tv/Health_Resources/Green_Superfoods>. 

Gemstones and Crystals for Healing

Gemstones and crystals can be used for healing and clearing. They're a great way to unblock your chakras. Each chakra has different gemstones based on their colors. The colors that go with Anahata are green and pink. These gemstones include Aventurine, Emerald, Jade, Peridot, Rose Quartz, and Malachite. One way to use these gemstones to help is by holding it while meditating. The first pictures is Rose Quartz and the second one shows Emeralds.

"Rose Quartz." Crystals. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.crystals11.com/quartz-crystals/rose-quartz>. 
"Chakra Crystals and Gemstones." GemSelect. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.gemselect.net/index.php/en/chakra-gemstones-crystal-healing>. 
"Healing Chakras with Gemstones." HubPages. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://kalinin1158.hubpages.com/hub/ 
     How-To-Unblock-or-Balance-Your-Energy-With-Gemstones>. 

Essential Oils That Help Balance Anahata

There are different scents and essential oils that help to balance the chakras. Essential oils for the heart chakra are Angelica, Marjoram, Hyssop, Lavender, Neroli, Rose, Chamomile, Jasmine, Rosemary, Frankincense, and Sandalwood. Below is a picture of lavender.

"Anahata." One World Healing. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.oneworldhealing.net/chakra-healing/anahata/>. 
"Cooking with Lavender - History of Lavender." What's Cooking America. N.p., 
     n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. <http://whatscookingamerica.net/ 
     Lavender.htm>. 

Deities Associated with Anahata

The deity of Anahata is Ishana Rudra Shiva. He has blue skin and sits with a drum in his left hand and a trident in the right hand. The snakes around his body are the passions that he has tamed.

The goddess of this chakra is Kakini Shakti. She has four arms and holds a sword, shield, skull, and trident. She is sitting on a pink lotus and has rose-colored skin.

"Anahata Chakra." Tantra Kundalini. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2013. 
     <http://www.tantra-kundalini.com/anahata.htm>.