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The Crown Chakra teaches us about detachment, unity, and transcendence. When your Seventh Chakra is balanced, you are aware of the giant tapestry that you exist within. While small and impermanent, your body and mind create the integral thread that unites you to this giant work of art.

The Sanskrit name for the Crown Chakra is Sahasrara, which can be translated as “the thousand-petaled lotus.” This chakra is located at the crown of your head. It can be observed in newborn infants as the “soft spot” on top of their head (anterior fontanelle). The energy collected here is associated your intellect, your beliefs, and your attachments.

When the Crown Chakra is balanced, you “feel” and “know” that you are one with everything that is. There is no question of being distinct and separate from other beings, the environment, or from the energy that made you. (Whether you call that energy Source, God, Divine, the Universe, or otherwise doesn’t matter.)
 

When the Crown Chakra is balanced, you “feel” and “know” that you are one with everything that is.

 
When the Sahasrara Chakra is balanced, there is no fear of losing what “is yours.” Given this wisdom, a deep and peaceful bliss can spontaneously arise.

If your Crown Chakra is imbalanced, you may suffer from feeling disconnected to the bigger picture. You may be excessively attached to having certain outcomes, roles, and relationships in your life.

Sahasrara imbalance can manifest as being “stuck in your head” and disassociated from your body and present experience. You may find yourself feeling overly-intellectual, cynical, apathetic, or close-minded.

When you activate Crown Chakra healing, you operate from an awareness that “all is one” and you detach from the belief that happiness only exists when everything goes “your way.”
 
 

Here Are 5 Yoga Practices for Crown Chakra Healing:

These practices include three yoga postures (asana), serving others (seva), and intentional silence (mauna) performed in nature to bring balance to the Crown Chakra.
 

 
 

1. Headstand (Sirsasana)

This posture is so important to learn well. It is considered an ideal posture for stimulating the energy in the Crown Chakra. Due to risk of neck injury, it’s important to work your way up to this pose. You can try these tips in addition to finding a good teacher.

Image: Angelique Raptakis

When engaged correctly in the posture, the strength of your core muscles will create a feeling of buoyancy and steadiness. Try to maintain this posture for the amount of time you can manage while maintaining smooth and regular breathing.

A traditional recommendation is five full breaths and then you can increase over time as the posture grows more familiar and sustainable.
 

2. Rabbit Pose (Sasangasana)

Not really into Headstand? Rabbit Pose is a wonderful way to connect with the Sahasrara Chakra and does not require practicing a full inversion.

Photo: The Journey Junkie

From kneeling, bow forward and bring the crown of your head toward the floor. (It does not have to touch the floor.) Cup your heels with your hands by reaching back with your arms.

Contract your abdomen strongly to lift your low and mid-back as well as your hips away from the earth. Keep your head low. Roll your shoulders away from your spine. If your head is touching the ground, let it be a light touch rather than firm pressure down into the ground.

Become aware of how the sides of your body and the back of your body expand with your breath when your belly is held so close to your thighs. After several breaths, lower your hips toward your heels, release your grip on the heels, and roll up through your spine to a seated position.
 

3. Corpse Pose (Savasana)

There’s nothing like Corpse Pose to teach detachment – the ability to fully let go of your desires, expectations, efforts, and judgements.

Image: Angelique Raptakis

While the pose looks incredibly simple, a great yoga master (B.K.S. Iyengar) considered it one of the most difficult poses. He wrote: “It is much harder to keep the mind still than the body. Therefore, this apparently easy posture is one of the most difficult to master.”

You can increase the benefits to the Crown Chakra while in this pose by visualizing white light entering from the crown of your head and descending the length of your spine as you inhale. As you exhale, visualize the light rising back up the length of your spine to the crown of your head.
 

4. Intentional Silence (Mauna)

When done outdoors in a natural setting, this powerful practice connects you with your environment and can deliver your mind to the present moment. You do not have to be alone to practice intentional silence, however, it may be harder to maintain in company if you are new to the practice.

The practice of intentional silence begins with intentionally choosing not to speak. Over time this practice impacts how you listen as well as how you express your thoughts through conscious speech.

You might start practicing in stages. Initially, just go on a short walk without your phone or MP3-player and then build up to spending a day or more in silence.
 

 
 

5. Selfless Service (Seva)

When you serve others, your actions resonate with the unifying principle of the Crown Chakra.

Selfless service can be performed in small acts (such as holding the door for someone or picking up a random piece of litter in your neighborhood). Seva can also be performed through more dramatic and recurring gestures (such as anonymously donating funds to a cause you care about or making meals for a friend who has a long-term illness).

The key to seva is the word “selfless” which describes non-recognition and non-reward for your actions. You do not expect to receive compensation, recognition, or even appreciation from what you offer. Instead you offer freely, without strings attached.

 
 

Activate Crown Chakra Healing and Connect With All That Is Through Your Sahasrara Chakra

You have everything you need inside of you – that is the ultimate teaching of yoga.

The Sahasrara Chakra is associated with the quality of space. You are not separate from the space that you sit in, nor from the neighbors you live near, nor from the source that you come from.

Bring balance to the unifying energy found in your Crown Chakra to deepen your connection to all that is. This is the power of Crown Chakra healing.

Want to learn more about the Sahasrara Chakra? Read: Crown Chakra: Here’s Everything You Need to Know About Your Seventh Chakra

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