Next up in this chakra series is the second chakra, our feminine chakra – because this chakra is the source point for our feminine or yin energies, and of our related emotional, creative, sensual, and sexual energies. It’s also the root of the feminine energy body – essentially the ‘root’ chakra in women’s subtle bodies (and thus one of my all-time favorite topics!)

I want to emphasize that in this particular series I am focusing on the chakras as a map for understanding our own personal growth trajectory and spiritual journey, along with ways to support this growth through chakra meditation and ‘energy work.’ The energy work that I include in the mp3 meditations that accompany each of these articles include visualizations, breathing exercises, and affirmations designed to strengthen the connection between your intentional mind, your subconscious, and your subtle body. When you do these meditations, you are working with the mind-body-subtle body connection, and triggering your natural ability to shift, heal, and strengthen the energies that run through your being. You don’t need chakra experience to do this (although certainly your ability to work in this way improves with practice) – you just need willingness.

The energy of our sacral chakra when it is free and open is such a beautiful, sensual, creative energy. It’s our sexiness, our juiciness, and our emotional drive. It’s the heart of our ability to enjoy sense experience, whether that’s a romantic candlelit bath, a chocolate and champagne brunch, or a walk through a lush field of wildflowers. It’s also the heart of our ability to create from pure feeling, as opposed to thought. And it’s about physical, emotional, and spiritual intimacy – our ability to connect beyond a surface or conceptual level with anyone or anything in our lives.

What this all boils down to is passion. Passion often gets a bad rap in our society, and it most certainly gets a bad rap in many religious and spiritual traditions. Passion is often considered the opposite of rationality and the opposite of mindfulness – the opposite of being conscious and aware. And certainly there is a kind of passion that is imbalanced, rooted in negative emotions, and can lead us to dangerous and extreme actions.

But passion when it is an opening to Source – to the deeper spiritual vortex within us – is another kind of passion. This kind of passion isn’t about ego attachment but about being a conduit for something larger than ourselves. It is only with passion that we can create something new and wonderful in the world. The great saints, sages, and bringers of positive change in our world have all had passion. You need passion to do the same in your own life. This kind of passion is not the opposite of mindfulness but instead often the byproduct of it – a sign we have gotten out of our own way.

If you understand this kind of passion as the ultimate expression of your natural second chakra energies, then it’s easy to understand what blocks or weakness in your second chakra might look like in your life:

An Emotional Dryness or Disconnection: If our second chakra is blocked or weak, we may have trouble feeling our own emotions, and certainly with expressing them. We may have developed an emotional ‘lid’ due to fears about how our emotions will be perceived by others, or based on childhood conditioning that told us strong emotional expressions are bad or problematic. Or we may have experienced traumas that have caused us to disconnect from our emotions altogether.

A Rigidity or Problems Adapting to Change: Our second chakra is also linked with our ability to adapt to change or new situations, because it’s the heart of our emotional and mental fluidity. We may shutdown inwardly whenever we are confronted with the unexpected, or shift into ‘control’ mode, where we try and force things in to the mold we are more comfortable with.

Difficulty Enjoying Sensuality and/or Sexuality: We may have trouble truly enjoying sex as a sharing, intimate experience, even if we enjoy it physically (or we may not enjoy it physically either.) We may disconnect from sensual pleasure of all types, finding it difficult to even enjoy beauty in nature or art. There are many different forms of sensual experience, and we may not center into our physical senses enough to connect with these.

Challenges Problem Solving or Accessing Our Creativity: Creativity is not only artistic, it’s the heart of our ability to think outside the box and solve problems in a new way. We need the fluidity and intensity of our sacral chakras to open our beings to new possibilities. Really, creativity in any form is an allowing – an intimate opening to new inspiration in the universe.

The second chakra is also linked to reproductive health issues, and so may also present in this way.

The following meditation will provide you with a focused method for awakening and healing your second chakra energies. Since the element of the second chakra is water, and the color is orange, we will begin by visualizing ourselves on a beautiful beach near the water, enjoying a luminous, glowing sunset (as in the picture above!) From there we will move into the sacral lotus visualization – one of my favorites for embracing the feminine energy of the second chakra and moving it throughout our subtle body. Finally I will spur you to engage in a passionate embrace of your own being, and a passionate embrace of Source or spirit, by whatever name you choose to use for it.

Please note that a healthy second chakra is particularly essential for women, and that sexual abuse and trauma are both very damaging to our sacral chakra. If you are a sexual abuse or trauma survivor interested in exploring energy work as a healing modality, please consider my free e-book Women’s Energetics: Healing the Subtle Wounds of Sexual Abuse and Trauma.