Ambi Kavanagh - Chakras & Self-Care: Activate the Healing Power of Chakras with Everyday Rituals

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

To my teacher, Noelle Rose, for all her wisdom, love, and healing. Jamie for helping me get on the right path and keeping me aligned. My brother for keeping my feet on the ground and making me laugh. Mum for your love and keeping me on my toes. Dad for being my protector and guide always. Andrea for taking care of me, my son, and my husband during this writing process. Sal, my best friend for thirty plus years, and all the Deysels, Phillips, and Cheeses for being my framily. Tanya and Kyle for your unconditional friendship and company, and for carrying the weight of so much of what I do. And Jon for being my soul brother and conscious co-creator.

And last but not least, my husband, Kevin, for being my biggest cheerleader and being so endlessly supportive and patient, and our angel baby boy, Asher, for being the proof that aligning your chakras results in miracles! I am so lucky to love and be loved by you all and to laugh with you all!

To Meg, Debbie, and the entire team at Penguin Random House for all your support and guidance during this writing process and your magical editing skills.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

AMBI KAVANAGH is a Reiki master, astrologer, sound healer, life coach, and host of the podcast Alchemy with Ambi. With a unique focus on using astrological cycles and the seasons as a form of coaching, she considers herself a modern-day alchemist (or cosmic change agent) who serves as a catalyst for positive change in peoples lives. Ambi went through her own journey of healing and aligning her chakras and saw her path transform both professionally and personally from being a lawyer who lives in London to her life now in America. Ambi lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Kevin, and son, Asher.

WWW.ALCHEMYWITHAMBI.COM

Instagram: @ALCHEMYAMBI

APPENDIX

MY DAILY WELLNESS RITUAL

RESOURCES

SOULSTROLOGY

soulstrology.com

For an easy, practical understanding of astrology with monthly guides and customized rituals for each new and full moon, major astrological event, and season.

THE ALCHEMY STORE

thealchemystore.com

For Reiki-charged chakra candles with custom sound bath meditations, Reiki-charged essential oils, and flower essence aura sprays to use in rituals and meditation.

ONE

CHAKRA FOUNDATION

THE FLOW OF ENERGY THROUGH A SYSTEM ACTS TO ORGANIZE THAT SYSTEM.

Harold Morowitz

In this chapter, I will introduce you to the history of the chakras and help you build your foundation of knowledge. You will learn about the seven major chakras, the many key concepts and terms associated with chakra energy healing, and the tools that you can harness to begin your journey. There will also be a practical exercise to help you connect to and evaluate your chakras, so you can begin understanding how to restore any energetic imbalances.

WHAT IS A CHAKRA?

As mentioned in the introduction, chakra is a Sanskrit word meaning spinning wheel. Sanskrit is the ancient Vedic language used in India, and the term chakra was first described in Vedic scriptures thousands of years ago. In ancient texts called the Vedas, the chakras were described as being connected by nadis (Sanskrit for rivers), which allowed prana (Sanskrit for life force) to flow through our bodies.

Many ancient spiritual texts use metaphors and symbolism as part of their teachings. The Vedas used land as a metaphor for the physical body, with the seven main chakras as different parts of the land, and the nadis as the rivers that connected and flowed between them. In order for the land to flourish, each of the seven parts needed to be watered by the rivers that flowed freely and fully without hindrance.

Using this symbolism, the scriptures taught that in order for us to experience optimum life force, to have the best physical and emotional health, and to flourish, all the chakras needed to be open and spinning, thus allowing energy to flow freely throughout the body. If any of the chakras were not performing optimally, energetic imbalance or blockage could ensue, leading to physical, emotional, spiritual, and life issues.

While the first references to chakras were found in Hindu scriptures, the teachings of Buddhists, Tibetans, Mayans, and Kabbalists, among others, acknowledge the chakras and refer to a similar system in their teachings. As humanity has evolved, we have explored wellness outside the realms of traditional medicine and, in many cases, looked to our ancestors for age-old solutions to modern-day problems. Practices such as yoga, which also originated in India, have become popular, and slowly but surely, the teachings of the chakra system of self-care have come to the forefront as age-old tools for holistic healing.

IS CHAKRA ENERGY REAL?

Many people may be skeptical of energy healing and perhaps think of it as being woo-woo or quackery. Maybe you are even a little unconvinced of its merits right now. However, energy healing has become more widely practiced outside of alternative healing and has been integrated into modern medicine. For example, doctors use forms of energy healing such as vibrational sound energy or infrared lasers for treatment, and some hospitals offer Reiki, an energy healing practice. These treatments are even covered by many medical health insurance policies as alternative treatments similar to acupuncture, which provides healing using fine needles placed at specific points along the body to bring energy into alignment. As you can see, energy healing is becoming increasingly more mainstream.

Energy is a word that gets thrown around a lot in the self-help world. It is the subject of many motivational quotes and some humorous memes, so it may seem a bit of a vague and meaningless term, but this is far from the truth. In short, energy is formally defined by science as both matter, which has the potential to cause changes, and the capacity of a physical system to do work. Science explains that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only changed. Science also dictates that everything, including the chair you are sitting on, and indeed your body, is made of energy.

Each of our bodies is also surrounded by a field of constantly changing energy. For our bodies to be capable of work and for certain aspects (e.g., body parts or areas of life) to work, our energy will need to operate in a particular manner. For the purposes of engaging our chakra system, when we talk about energy, we mean the pranalife forcethat flows through our bodies and allows us to function.

THE SEVEN MAJOR CHAKRAS

The chakra system is a network of channels consisting of different energy wheels. While there are over a hundred different chakras, seven of these are the main chakras that form the foundation of our energy bodies. These start from the base of the spine, and travel through to the crown of the head. Each of these seven chakras relates to specific organs within the body, as well as various emotional, psychological, and spiritual states.

As you can see on , the root chakra is at the base of the spine and farther up is the sacral chakra, which is found around two inches below the belly button. Then there is the solar plexus chakra in the abdomen. At the chest is the heart chakra. Moving up, in the neck is the throat chakra. Between the eyebrows is the third eye, or brow chakra. And finally, at the top of the head, we have the suitably named crown chakra.