What is the Third Eye Chakra?
- 6th Chakra
- Sanskrit Name: Ajna
- Location: Between the eyebrows
- Color: Indigo/Purple
- Element: “Supreme element” – all elements combined in their purest forms
- Spiritual Attributes: Spiritual enlightenment, precognition, perception, foresight, clarity, insight, intuition, imagination, emotional balance, self-awareness.
In the system of 7 chakras, the Third Eye Chakra is the 6th. This chakra is also known as “Ajna” in Sanskrit, which means “command” and “perceiving”. Also known as the “brow chakra”, the Third Eye Chakra is located at the brow, right between the eyebrows. It is associated with the color purple or indigo (bluish purple) and with all of the elements combined in their purest forms, making a “supreme element“.
The Center of Transcending Duality
The Third Eye Chakra is the center where we transcend duality. Meaning we recognize that the entire world and energies of the universe are part of us. We are one in the same, not separate entities. Opening the Third Eye allows you to recognize that you are the creator of your world and the universe, just as the universe has created you. You are connected to all of the energies that are, ever were, and ever will be.
This transcending of duality brings spiritual enlightenment. It opens the mind to childlike imagination, keen perception, insight, as well as clarity of mind and intentions. Once open, the Third Eye Chakra allows you to tap into your precognitive abilities and gain more trust in your intuition.
What is it like to have an open, functioning Third Eye Chakra?
- You are aware of your connection to the universe and all of the energies that comprise it.
- You recognize your connection to all living beings.
- Your ability to healthily daydream and tap into your childlike imagination becomes stronger.
- Acquiring wisdom and insight into the spiritual realm becomes a priority.
- Intuition is strong and clear, allowing you to feel and know without a doubt what is good for you and what is not.
- Precognition becomes easy for you, allowing you to subtly perceive future events.
- You are more open to your own psychic abilities including clairvoyance and clairaudience.
- Perceiving the subtleness of separate dimensions and your connection to them becomes easier.
- Meditation is less of a struggle with clearing your mind, allowing you to release your worries and thoughts and focus on nothing.
- You are less fixated on your self-limiting beliefs.
- You have an established vision for yourself and your life.
- It is easy for you to envision what you desire.
- You have a clear understanding that the energies of the universe will allow all of your desires to be met as soon as you allow yourself to align with them.
- Once your desires are clear, you have the ability to align your emotions and intentions with those desires and allow them to easily manifest.
Two Types of Disruptions
There are two types of disruptions to the adequate flow of energy to the Third Eye Chakra: Deficient and Excessive.
Deficient Energy Flow – a low flow of energy, blocked, introspective, passive.
Associated with:
- Confusion
- Excessive daydreaming or “zoning out”
- Inability to ground your energies
- Unable to connect to the subtle energies of the universe
- Feeling hopeless, not knowing what you want in life
Excessive Energy Flow – too much energy flow, agitated, irritable, overreactive, aggressive, too much focus on outside influences.
Associated with:
- Narrow-mindedness
- Arrogance
- Cynicism
- Unbeliever of the Universal Energies that comprise us
- Out of touch with intuition
- Judgmental attitude towards spirituality
Common Reasons the Third Eye Chakra Becomes Unbalanced
Starting as early as childhood, there can be many reasons why one’s Third Eye Chakra can become closed off. Discovering the root of the blockages is the first step towards healing yourself.
- If you were constantly told to “get your head out of the clouds”. Or quit daydreaming.
- You were not allowed to express your imaginative and creative thoughts.
- Your personal insights and perspectives on life were undervalued.
- If you may have been brought up in a spiritually closed-minded house and made to feel silly or inadequate for expressing spiritual beliefs.
- Or if you were raised in a strict religious household with a linear idea of spiritual beliefs – being told that you could only “communicate with God” through a priest.
- You were taught to never question the values and beliefs that you were conditioned to by the adults in your life.
- Being forced to “do as you’re told” and “don’t as questions”
- Or maybe you had spiritual encounters or experiences that somewhat scared and traumatized you, rendering you closed off to those same experiences out of self-preservation.
- Were or are medicated with mind-numbing medications.
Symptoms of a Closed Third Eye Chakra
- You rarely listen to your intuition, or rarely even feel intuitive.
- Have the tendency to allow emotions to rule over logic.
- Over-think everything.
- You tend to dwell on things with the inability to let them go.
- Replay images of past wrongings over and over on repeat in your mind.
- Have a poor memory.
- Inability to think abstract thoughts.
- Tend to be stuck in the clouds, constantly daydreaming in fantasy land instead of facing reality and the here and now.
- Have a mental block against reality. You believe the stories that you make up in your mind instead of the truth.
- Consistently foggy-brained.
- Inability to see deeper truth and connections.
- Unable to quiet your mind for even one minute during meditation.
- Sitting alone in the quiet with your thoughts is unnerving.
- Focus too intently on the details, but can’t quite grasp the big picture.
- You focus too much on finding external pleasures that make you happy.
- Have a hard time with accepting where you are in life and constantly fret over the things that you feel are missing.
- You might have a hard time deeply connecting with others, only allowing for superficial interactions.
- You have a hard time being open-minded.
- Have the tendency to be arrogant and opinionated
- OR have a difficult time expressing yourself and your opinions, keeping quiet and to yourself.
- Have difficulty making decisions.
- Frequent headaches or migraines.
- Suffer from vision problems and sinus issues.
- Or you may suffer from a mental illness of sorts.
Methods for Opening and Unlocking the Power of the Third Eye Chakra
1. Get to the Root of it.
Really take the time to look at the list of common causes above. Moreover, think of any other situations in life that may have caused your Third Eye Chakra to become blocked. To move past blockages, you must first uncover the original cause.
2. Visualization Exercise
Get comfortable and raise your vibrations
Find yourself a comfortable place to sit or lie down. Take a few long, deep breaths and try to clear your mind of the day’s worries. Feel yourself rising to a higher vibration, connecting you to the Universe and your Higher Self.
Close your eyes and imagine with your mind’s eye white, healing light pouring over your from the Universe like sunlight beaming down on the forest floor through the treetops. Starting from the top of your head, allow this light to permeate every cell of your body.
Be conscious of any sensations
Feel the warmth. Feel the vibrations buzzing through you to the core. (It’s ok if you don’t feel anything at all at first)
Clear blockages with healing purple light
Turn your attention to the throat region. Now imagine the light turning a beautiful shade of deep purple. This purple light is permeating the entirety of your head, intensely focusing on the brow region.
What do you feel? Can you feel any blockages? Do the muscles in your forehead feel tense in any way? Do you have pain or tension in your jaw muscles or sinuses? Are you having a hard time relaxing and feel as though you are furrowing your brow?
Release physical tensions
Imagine your rib cage separating from your center, your sides expanding with every breath. Feel your abdomen release and drop to the floor. Notice the separation between your upper abdomen and lower abdomen. Imagine your stomach elongating, creating space in the vertebrae of your spine.
Once you feel a release in these areas, focus your attention to your brow once again. Unfurrow your brow muscles and release the scalp. Imagine the muscles in your neck are releasing one by one, giving you a sense of your throat sinking towards your spine. Relax your tongue. Release the tension in your jaw. Allow the jaw to drop and your mouth to relax open.
Breathwork
Fill the newly opened spaces with air from each long inhale. Start sending the air first towards the back of the throat and neck and then down, filling your entire belly while you imagine the breath filling you up like a balloon. When the stomach and ribs can expand no more, hold that breath there for a few seconds.
Slowly release the breath. Feel the stomach return to the earth as you slowly exhale until your lungs are completely empty.
Continue to repeat this breathing technique while you imagine that the healing purple light is blasting each blockage in your mind’s eye into a million tiny pieces. See these pieces swirl around your Third Eye Chakra, then dissolve into the purple light. Feel your throat, neck, and face become lighter as you release your burdens into the light.
Send it back to the universe
Now, send the healing light back up into the universe like a beam of light shooting out of your Third Eye into the sky. Surrender it. Be free of all that was holding you back.
To conclude your practice, fill your entire body with the white, cleansing light again, and sit with any new sensations that you may feel.
It is absolutely ok if this exercise doesn’t fully heal your Third Eye Chakra the first few times. Remember, it took a lifetime to build-up your blockages, so you can’t expect them to disappear instantaneously. Keep practicing.
3. Third Eye Chakra Affirmations
Repeating affirmations daily can help you to overcome blockages in the Ajna by rewiring the way your brain thinks. Just by repeating these affirmations, you can open yourself to the flow of creative, intuitive, and transcendent energy. Try picking a few that resonate with you and repeat them to yourself throughout the day.
- I am an intuitive Being.
- I trust my intuition as it guides me through life.
- Spiritual enlightenment flows to me and through me.
- My Higher Self speaks to me and I hear the messages clearly.
- I believe in the Universal Energies that surround me and are part of me.
- The universe and I are one and the same.
- I am one with the Universe.
- I am open to guidance from the spiritual realm.
- My ability to focus on reality is becoming clearer.
- I am the creator of my world and my reality.
- I can daydream about the life that I want to create.
- My possibilities are unlimited.
- I know my true path and am connected to my purpose.
4. Meditation and Chanting
Practicing meditation has amazing health benefits, including:
- calming the nerves
- lowering blood pressure
- strengthening the immune system
- reducing pain and inflammation
- reducing stress and anxiety
- improving sleep
- and so much more.
Find a meditation practice that you feel you can stick to and see how you can benefit in a short period of time.
While meditating, if you find it hard to fully clear your mind it is helpful to chant (either out loud or in your mind). Chanting some of the affirmations listed above in #3 will work wonders.
Additionally, consider repeating the sound “OHM” as it can help to open the Third Eye Chakra. Check out the chanting meditation video included below.
5. Candle Gazing
Candle gazing is another form of meditation that is very beneficial for opening the Anja. To practice this, simply light a candle and place it a few feet in front of you. Relax your body into a sitting position suitable for meditation and softly focus your eyes on the flame.
Clear your mind and focus solely on this flame for a few solid minutes. Then close your eyes. You will still see the flame dancing in your minds eye. Sit with this image for as long as you can.
6. Practice Yoga for Opening the Third Eye Chakra
Yoga is an amazing way to center the mind and bring focus to the areas that need opening for a better flow of energy. I have enjoyed practicing videos by Brett Larkin on YouTube. Check out her sequence below that specifically targets the Third Eye Chakra:
7. Aromatherapy
Third eye chakra essential oils can balance and open the sixth chakra for clarity of thought, clear seeing, and spiritual insight.
While you are doing the above visualization, meditation, and physical exercises, you can switch on your essential oil diffuser and add one or a blend of the following essential oils to target the Ajna:
- Bay Laurel
- Carrot Seed
- Chamomile
- Clary Sage (avoid if pregnant)
- Cypress
- Elemi
- Frankincense
- Juniper
- Marjoram
- Melissa
- Neroli
- Palo Santo
- Patchouli
- Rose
- Rosemary
- Sandalwood
- Vetiver
Before using any essential oils, it is always best to check for any contraindications with any existing conditions that you may have, pregnancy, allergies, or interactions with medications.
8. Herbal Teas | Supplements
The best way to consume medicinal herbs is usually by making herbal teas.
Follow the link above to learn the best way to brew your tea using one or a blend of the following herbs that benefit the Third Eye Chakra:
- eyebright
- jasmine
- star anise
- mugwort
- spearmint
- Gotu kola
- Ginko Biloba
- Lavender
- Valerian
If you have a hard time coming around to herbal teas, you can always try these herbs in capsule form.
Before consuming any herbs, it is always best to check for any contraindications with any existing conditions that you may have, pregnancy, allergies, or interactions with medications.
9. Healing Foods
As the color for the Third Eye Chakra is indigo or purple, foods of these colors can be very helpful. Try adding more grapes, eggplant, purple kale, blueberries, purple sweet potatoes, purple carrots, turnips, purple cabbage, figs, and blackberries to your daily diet. Also, consider adding more food that are rich in omega 3 such as salmon, walnuts, and avocados, as they give the brain a much-needed boost.
10. Crystal Healing for the Third Eye Chakra
As the Third Eye Chakra is associated with the colors Indigo or purple, using healing crystals in these colors will help to balance the misaligned energies. Try meditating with or carrying the following crystals to receive their beneficial energy to heal your Ajna:
- Amethyst
- Azurite
- Blue Kyanite
- Charoite
- Labradorite / purple labradorite
- Lapis Lazuli
- Lepidolite
- Purple Scapolite
- Sodalite
- Sugilite
- Tanzanite
Don’t be daunted by complex crystal placements. Just using one crystal at a time will help you achieve amazing benefits.
11. Surround Yourself with Purple and Indigo
Adding more hues of purple and indigo to your surroundings can help you to focus on opening your Third Eye Chakra. Lie in a field of lavender or purple aster. Buy yourself some lovely purple flowers and spread them in vases throughout the house. Add some splashes of purple or indigo to your home decor and wardrobe. Anything you can do to add more of these colors to your surroundings will be beneficial.
12. Explore new perspectives and viewpoints on various subjects.
One of the issues with having a closed Third Eye Chakra is that one tends to have a limited view or perception of the world. Try expanding your mind through books, documentaries, Ted Talks, online articles, etc. Expand your social circle and get to know others that aren’t quite like you, and possibly have broader spiritual beliefs. It is interesting to learn new perspectives and open your mind to different ideas.
13. Try Practicing “Scrying”
The ancient art of scrying can simply be described as peering into a shiny, smooth object (such as a crystal ball or bowl of water) to uncover truths about oneself and the world around them. This can be a very beneficial exercise to practice for opening the Third Eye and allowing yourself to become comfortable with the spiritual realm. Read more about scrying here.
14. Allow Yourself to Daydream
While too much daydreaming can be unhealthy, it is very important to set aside time to allow yourself to delve into your imagination. This is where you create your world and bring your manifestations alive. Through daydreaming, you can envision exactly how you want your life to be.
Imagine the world that you want to live in. See yourself already there, enjoying everything your heart desires. Feel the joyousness that this creates and allow yourself to be immersed in the feeling of satisfaction.
It is through this daydreaming that we manifest our desires. We toss aside our worries from focus and only allow ourselves to think of all of the wonderments that our mind can create.