Root Chakra Archives - the Numinous

HAVE YOU FALLEN FOR THE ‘FAKE & AWAKE’ MYTH?

Posted on April 27, 2021 by The Numinous

What happens when Crown Chakra Escapism meets Root Chakra Deprivation … Sue Hunt explains how to break the Root/Crown binary on the way to Integrated Being

Her crown chakra is lit
I’ve found my teacher! (said after taking one, three-day online course with them)
With so many students, they must be legit—I’m in

“Spiritual success” is often equated with divine powers, psychic downloads, and awakenings that are all related to our upper energy centers and are thought to demonstrate a high level of spiritual prowess. The Root/Crown binary pushes many seekers to chase this sellable vision of “spiritual evolution,” and to disassociate with our Root issues in order to pursue this dream of spiritual success.

Even the phrase “We are spiritual beings living a human experience,” used as commonplace vernacular nowadays, attempts to create hierarchy within our own self-understanding. We set off chasing the spiritual carrot while devaluing our lived human experience—even while many long-standing ancient teachings actually state that this human incarnation is not meant to be bypassed or seen intellectually as “less than.”

Chasing this “Fake and Awake” way of life looks exactly as it sounds: we chase prescriptive end goals of happiness, peace, and fulfillment, while ignoring the real, moment-by-moment work that produces these states not as achievable aims, but as byproducts of dealing with the intense, transformative work of looking at our Root issues.

Packaged in phrases and concepts like “activation,” “law of attraction,” and “manifestation,” this Fake and Awake Myth implies that we can somehow leap-frog over the messy, uncomfortable work of being human to reach a static, elevated state of perfection.

We especially see this in our modern “guru” archetypes. Our vision of a “spiritually advanced” teacher often conjures an image of a being cloaked in white, covered in mala beads, and preaching about vegetarianism while countless students gather at their feet. This person is seen as “evolved,” with an open crown chakra that can “stream truth.”

Many of us approach our gurus, life coaches, and self-help experts with an insatiable hole of Root Deprivation—coming to them to uncover a missing sense of purpose or to manifest “abundance.” As a result, we often bypass these teachers’ humanity and relationship to their own “Root,” and the extreme effort and years of hardship that went into cultivating clarity within.

Whether through gurus and teachers, or programs promising quick-fix intuitive downloads, we often end up chasing an extractive version of Crown energy—seeking to get some of that authenticity for ourselves. But true Crown energy is about cultivating a pure state of receptivity, opening ourselves to be stripped of the meta-dialogue that creates obstacles so that we can dissolve and disintegrate Karma. In this model, there is “nothing” (pure consciousness) to gain and “everything” (egoic thoughts) to lose.

Trying to “get something” from these spiritual teachings and practices only reinforces our Root Deprivation and blocks our ability to connect with the pure receptivity of an integrated Crown.

Before enlightenment, chop wood carry water; after enlightenment, chop wood carry water.

This brilliant Zen saying asks us to come down from the podium and remember that spiritual growth, in its most realized form, is a never-ending process with legs out in the world. Why don’t we hear about the Buddhist master who reached enlightenment and decided to remain a farmer, and would not accept gold for his teachings?

When we dress up our spiritual seeking with a shiny pink bow, we keep asking for “more” and chasing the next “high”—instead of choosing to resiliently engage with the daily, behind-the-scenes work of our lives on a moment-by-moment basis. When we view the movements of our lives here on Earth as the teachings themselves, we no longer need to label parts of human life as “less spiritual,” and our work needs no pedestal.

We realize that spiritual development can spring from inner simplicity that discerns rather than dissociates, and we open ourselves to having our misperceptions removed, rather than trying desperately to seek enlightenment through engaging with yet more spiritual tools and teachings.

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PERSONAL INQUIRY PRACTICE: ROOT DEPRIVATION + CROWN ESCAPISM

Interrogating how the Root/Crown binary shows up for us means noticing where we are obsessed with an over-intellectualized version of spirituality that seeks enlightenment as “success.” In tandem, it means looking at how we seek to fill our Root Deprivation hole from a more superficial outside force rather than our own organic, loving, and integral attention and self-respect.

The stuff of our lives, as they are right now, is precisely where we can access stable, objective Root energy—the ground of our being. To access this stable energy, and move towards giving and receiving with greater awareness, begin by turning your attention to how the Money/Sex/Power Root Deprivation Trinity shows up for you.

Start by exploring the realms of Money/Sex/Power in your own life:

Money + Root Deprivation

Within the Root/Crown binary, money is a relatively taboo topic—viewed as either the root of all “evil,” or as a necessary resource that gives us greater freedom and power. Within non-binary worldview, by contrast, money contains a neutral charge and is often an extension of how we run prana and circulate energy. When we examine our unchecked Root Deprivation, we can envision money as simply part of a cyclical energy flow.

Free write all of your associations with money. Let it be a stream of consciousness to allow your psyche to make the big overarching connections. Reflect back upon this stream of consciousness to find a pattern, noticing your personal definitions, cages, and strings attached to money. These patterns are your projected frequency around money.

Sex + Root Deprivation

Within the Root/Crown binary, sex energy is limited to a body-specific desire and physical act. In non-binary worldview, sex energy moves beyond the physical to connect us to the initiatory spark of all creation. Root Deprivation arises when we reduce this energy to the physical act, craving sex acts to bring us “back into our bodies,” and expecting others to receive us when we haven’t first cultivated the capacity to receive ourselves.

Free write about your usage and understanding of sex energy—making it a stream of consciousness to allow your psyche to make the big overarching connections. Reflect back upon this stream of consciousness to find a pattern, noticing your personal definitions, cages, and strings attached around sex. These patterns are your projected frequency around sex.

Power + Root Deprivation

Within the Root/Crown binary, power often becomes entangled with both money and sex, and with heteropatriarchal, hierarchical societal models where we either maintain power “over” others through domination, or “under” others through martyrdom and victimhood complexes. In non-binary worldview, we maintain awareness of our underlying motivations and are able to catch ourselves when we’re tempted to seek “energetic returns” from the power positions we take. Root Deprivation arises in this realm when we find ourselves using others to bolster our own influence.

In this free-writing exercise please explore all of the places you feel Powerful and Powerless. Dig into the circumstances around each of these feelings and notice any personal patterns that emerge within the embodied feelings of Powerful and Powerless. Tap into your personal and professional life to bring these lived moments into your conscious awareness.

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ROOT/CROWN ESCAPISM CHECKLIST

Alongside our investigation of Root Deprivation, we must also work to examine escapist versions of Crown energy that prevent us from dealing with our actual Root issues, making us unavailable to a purer form of Crown receptivity. Take an inventory of the Crown Escapism Archetypes listed below, noticing which might arise in your personality aspects, and pair this section with a review of the Fake and Awake myth above.

1) The Intellectual: Over intellectualizes EVERYTHING—emotions, easy decisions, relationship dynamics—and beats interpersonal situations to death by continually “discussing” them in their own mind or with others. Strokes the ego by being the smartest and most well-spoken in a situation. Lots of lip service and very little action.

2) The Seeker: Reads every book on the market, name drops, uses big spiritual words, and likes to cite all of the study programs and teachers they follow. Quotes lots of fancy “texts” with very little embodied experience or nuanced understanding, hiding avoidance of personal messiness within the well-adorned identity of being “on the path.”

3) The Commercial Mystic: Looks the part with flowy clothes and tattoos of spiritual iconography. Art-directs picture-perfect “rituals” and uber spiritual gatherings for social media. Signs up for expensive manifestation courses, claims to be constantly “tapped in,” and frames each Root-deprived side-hustle as another “epic download.”

4) The Skeptic: Always questions, in search of hard and fast “facts” that are rooted in the finite predictability of the material world. Needs over-simplifications and straightforward definitions. Has difficulty mobilizing creative energy and trusting parts of themselves beyond logic. Ignores the emotional and spiritual layers of life, lacks the levity of playfulness, and is quite pessimistic in outlook.

You might find it quite embarrassing to identify with any of these archetypes out loud. But the more clearly we commit to seeing these tendencies within ourselves, the more we can both tend the Root Deprivation that lurks beneath and access a receptive Crown. In its most potent form, aligned Crown energy is completely action-less: we can’t “do” Crown energy. And simply noticing where we attempt this helps us get closer to this action-less, purely receptive state.

And here we are, at the threshold of breaking the Root/Crown binary and priming the internal structure for receptivity. Hold on love; your life and your imprint on others and society is about to do a dramatic about-face into a space of service from a deep well of self-fulfillment. By stopping the grasping and learning how to hold the frequency of receptivity in the realms of Money/Sex/Power, you are on the path towards becoming an Integrated Being.

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Transitory Nature: Breaking Binaries for Integrated Being by Sue Hunt is out now with Numinous Books. Get your copy HERE.

ARE BODY VIBES STICKERS THE NEW CRYSTALS?

Posted on October 27, 2017 by The Numinous

Forget your middle-school collection of holograms. Body Vibes are grown-up, Now Age magic stickers designed to change your frequency for optimal health …

Body Vibes Energy stickers The Numinous — *Body Vibes Sacred Six “Energy” stickers*

What if you could tap into the mind/body connection with just one touch?

When we first heard about the new sticker collection from Body Vibes, we could not have been more intrigued. The stickers have been designed to invite more self-love, soothe anxiety, or up your creative game. All you need to do is apply one of their super sexy stickers, emblazoned with unicorns, mermaids, third eyes, and more.

And then just let the sub-harmonic signals do the rest …

Wait … WTF?!

Uh yeah, we needed to get the full low down on how these babies work, too! So here’s what we learned when we sat down to chat with the babes behind Body Vibes …

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Science meets magic: Because you’re electric, baby
Just like all of nature, every part of our bodies exists in a state of vibration. When we’re healthy, the body broadcasts overall harmonic health. But when an unhealthy frequency sets up shop in our body, it creates a disharmony we call “disease.”

Similar to crystal healing and Reiki, Body Vibes “Sacred Six” Smart Stickers are designed to bring us back into optimal frequency, based on the basic belief that we are electrical and energetic beings, and that it’s possible to move blocked energy.

How? The stickers have been programmed by scientists with actual frequency signatures taken from organic and living botanicals in a form that our body’s own electricity can read and mimic.

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The actual science part
Bio engineers capture frequencies found in nature. These are then condensed into the same unit of frequency found in the human body, and imprinted into special Mylar material that can hold an energetic flux for two years.

Each sticker is then embedded with up to 33 distinctive vibration patterns, including one of the “Solfeggio” frequencies. With roots in the Gregorian chants of the early Middle Ages, Solfeggio frequencies come from the pure tonal notes that made up the ancient musical scale, and are said to have harmonizing effects on the body as they unite us with Divine.

Oh yeah … science + magic= energetic nutrition for your cells

Body Vibes unicorn beauty stickers The Numinous — *The Sacred Six “Beauty” Sticker*

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The back story
Body Vibes founder Leslie Kritzer was first introduced to the technology when her husband’s naturopathic doctor gave him a bio-energy disc to help manage his arthritic pain. After his pain was dramatically reduced with no apparent side effects, she immediately started to utilize them to manage her own chronic anxiety.

After a month, she became aware of the little things—less road rage, more patience, more relaxation and ease. The big “aha” moment came when she decided to quit for a few days. By day 3 of sticker-free life, she was feeling much more anxious again and able to identify her “OCD” thinking in a brand new way.

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How do I tell if they’re working for me?
Since all of our bodies are different, the technology can affect everyone differently. For example, the more energizing blends may leave you feeling immediately stimulated, while others may not notice the change until after they remove their sticker and realize how productive and energetic they felt. The same goes for the calming frequencies—the effect for most people is immediate and for others, becomes apparent after the sticker has been removed.

*Read Numinous Founder Ruby’s Body Vibes verdict at the end of the post!

sacred six smart stickers at the beach magic stickers body vibes leslie kritzer madison declercq ruby warrington the numinous material girl mystical world skin worship — *The Sacred Six At the Beach Sticker*

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The Sacred Six: Stick to how you want to feel
Leslie and her partner Madison DeClercq (who also own hip LA skincare line Skin Worship) designed the different Body Vibes stickers based on the chakra system.

Each of our chakras vibrates at a different frequency—from the lowest, deepest, slowest at the root to the highest and fastest at the crown.

So, how do you want to feel? Pick it and stick it!

Less Anxious (Root Chakra): Stick this lightening-bolt-emblazoned Anti-Anxiety hummingbird on to liberate guilt and fear, and reduce feelings of nervousness.

Empowered (Sacral Chakra): Create lasting change with the endurance and empowerment of the open-palmed Energy sticker

Loved (Solar Plexus Chakra): Transform your self-care practice and summon miracles with this gilded heart Self-Love sticker.

Connected to others (Heart Chakra): Heal conflict and harmonize relationships with a lounging mermaid At the Beach blend.

Focused (Throat Chakra): A golden pyramid and third eye imprint on the Focus sticker increase productivity, and enhances expression, creativity, and problem-solving.

Gorgeous (Third Eye): Unicorn power restores spiritual order, and reflects light, beauty, peace, and strength in the Beauty sticker.

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MY WEEK GETTING HIGH ON (BODY) VIBES by Ruby Warrington

Obviously, we had to put Body Vibes stickers to the test—and so I decided to wear a different one for each day this week. Read on for the verdict!

Ruby Warrington Body Vibes Stickers The Numinous — *Photo: Caitlin Mitchell for A Wild Dove*

MONDAY
Mondays have been coming around WAY too fast lately (anybody??) and I kind of wanna carry on the weekend vibes, so I go straight for the new Flower Power stickers—designed to promote “relaxation, coping skills, and muscle relaxation” (and emblazoned with a cannabis leaf). My afternoon is pretty chill, and that evening I find myself giggling all the way thought Mindhunter. Huh? I also have to eat an extra piece of avo toast before bed. #Munchies?!

TUESDAY
A busy day of meetings means time to up the ante with the Energy sticker. Notably, my usual afternoon dip doesn’t happen and I’m able to stay super chatty and … energized … for two back-to-back podcast interviews. That night I wake at 4.30am and can’t go back to sleep, and find myself peeling the sticker off in an attempt to stop my mind whirring with tomorrow’s to-do list.

WEDNESDAY
A bad night’s sleep is not gonna help me ace the first promo push for our New Year, Nu You retreat, followed by a 2-hour in-depth business call, another podcast interview, and cooking dinner for a friend this eve. What I need is some Focus! I slap the sticker featuring a pyramid with an evil eye right above my heart. WOW. Not only do I power through all the above, I also create a super-detailed 20-story IG promo for the retreat, and manage to fit in a yoga session before dinner. That night … I wake up, mind racing, at 3.30am! I feel like I spent the day downing espresso.

THURSDAY
Chatting with Numinous assistant editor Bess about our Body Vibes post, she tells me that the “strong coffee” effect is apparently a common way some of the stickers are described—and on the pack, “sensitive types” ARE advised to wear the stickers further away from the heart. That must be me. Feeling exhausted from two nights with no sleep, I opt for the Anti-Anxiety sticker today. Perfect for back-to-back meetings with three of my favorite women. I find myself focusing 100% on enjoying the moment with them, and barely thinking about the emails I know are stacking up in my inbox.

FRIDAY
I still didn’t sleep great last night, and woke up with a stiff neck—so it’s back to Flower Power for me (which I place on my left shoulder right where it hurts). It is Friday, after all!

THE VERDICT
Some of it could be psychosomatic, sure, but I have definitely noticed subtle shifts in my energy using the stickers this week. And that word is always key when it comes to energy work: subtle. We live in a world of such sensory overload, it can be hard to hear the gentle messages we’re receiving from our energetic body day-in-day-out, and it’s like wearing these stickers helped remind me to tune in. Plus the energy surge I felt using the Focus was undeniable! I’ll definitely be using them again …

Discover more about Body Vibes stickers and shop the collection at Shopbodyvibes.com

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***How to stick ’em
Place the stickers on the left side of your chest, close to your heart—or on the left side of your arm, back, or shoulder. For those who are more sensitive to changes in their homeostasis, place on the lower inner arm above the wrist, or on the right side

And for magic multiplied, you can also create your own “cocktail” with more than just one. The Third Eye and Solar Plexus stickers are particularly good for adding an additional positive well-being frequency to any other vibe.

*Please be advised that once the sticker is removed, it loses its adhesive property and a new one will need to be used.

HOLY F*CK: A CALL TO EMBRACE OUR HUMANITY

Posted on November 28, 2016November 4, 2018 by Alexandra Roxo

It’s time to stop using spirituality as an escape—and embrace our humanity, says Alexandra Roxo…

In times likes these—where we have somehow managed to elect a president with terrifying beliefs and judgements, where Native people are still fighting to protect the Earth while most everyone else walks around trying to protect money—I feel like it’s so obvious. As a culture and a people we need to get out of our heads and into our feet. Into our wombs, our pussies, and THE EARTH.

We’ve become so focused on “success,” making money, how we climb and grow. All masculine principles. All in the mind. Goal oriented. We barely notice when animals become endangered. We forget to talk about climate change.

It’s not our fault, it’s what we were born into: a consumerist, capitalist culture. When I ask my clients about how much time they spend focusing on their sexual energy or creative energy or with their feet on the ground, it PALES in comparison to how much time is spent in the realm of the computer. Money. Capital. Thought. Even meditation. It’s all up, up, up, into the Cloud.

But the way I see it, we need to go down, down, down! Get back into our bodies. And it turns out spirituality, just like work or booze, can become an escape from the pains and earthy work of being human.

Speaking as somebody who can be a spirituality abuser myself, I think it’s time we stop using it as such. Let me tell you a story about why.

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When I was 13 I had a bad year. 1: I got held down by a bunch of boys and sprayed with red super soaker guns in 30 degree weather while calling me names. I punched one of them and everyone hated me. 2: My bestie’s parents called us out for being gay after she told them we had innocently experimented sexually together and forbade us to be friends anymore. I was DEVASTATED.

So what did I do? I went to church to get SAVED. This was my first bout of checking out of human life by saying: “God I can’t take it down here! Beam me up!” I spoke in tongues, got saved like 100 times. And even wore Abercormbie. (No offense.) My New-Age-psychic-seeing-Angel-lovin-Enya-listening Mom got worried.

Eventually I went back to feeling like I could manage down here. I did theatre, volunteer work/built homes for homeless, wore 4-inch cork wedges to school, flirted with boys, and learned all the dance moves to “Bye Bye Bye.” But my spirituality abuser didn’t go away. I always found some new practice to dive into. Some psychic to look to for the answers.

By age 19 I found myself sitting on a spiritual pedestal feeling like I was “special” and that others “weren’t awake.” While doing an acting exercise in college my teacher called me out in front of the class: “You are using spirituality a mask. It’s keeping you from feeling things and being here. Go back to your seat and come back when you want to be real.” DAMN. I was crushed. But I took her words wisely and went home, cried for about three days, painted, wrote love letters, laughed with friends and gently got down off my spiritual high horse.

It happened again though. Only two years later, after a trauma abroad, I was ready to sign up to be a monastic in a commune in Italy where I had been meditating in caves, sitting on cold stone floors, and wearing communal Cosby sweaters. I renounced sex, alcohol, or anything “of the flesh!” Mom got worried again.

I found my way back to humanity again. But my spiritual extremist rears her head every so often. I see her spending more time reading horoscopes than DOING things that can help. Talking more to other realms than folks in Trader Joe’s. Diving into days of plant medicine ceremonies and shamanic journeys. And avoiding the harsh pains of reality. Any of this sounding familiar?

As wonderful as it it to wake at 6am and meditate every day, to read all the articles and check the horoscopes and pull a card from all the decks, I am trying to refrain. In the name of balance.

My aim is to cultivate as much of an EARTH practice as I have a SPIRITUAL one. Which means for every meditation or journey to the spirit realms, I better be doing something here here on Earth. CAUSE I WAS BORN A HUMAN. And the Earth needs me. Head out of phone. Feeling my toes in the dirt. Pussy alive with energy and life force. Does ALL LIFE originate in my brain? NAH, IT’S IN THE PUSS.

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I don’t think it’s enough to just pray and send love and light to Trump, or anyone for that matter. Pray for peace, yes. For love, yes. But I think we also need to get dirt under our nails and be humble and immerse ourselves in what’s happening out on the streets.

And so I urge you, like I urge ME, to embrace your humanity!

Get in the pub and talk to old Latino men and share food and drink with them.

Instead of reading another self-help book (like me!) go to the rally. Sign up to volunteer. Watch documentaries and educate yourself. Go to open mics and comedy clubs in areas that are new to you and mingle with people who aren’t like you.

Let’s look at how much we’re spending on “spiritual” paraphernalia, and re-balance the books! How about a pole dancing class instead? Donations to planned parenthood? Community gardening?

Let’s admit that we don’t know the answers. It’s not fair to all the other folks who have been working tirelessly for years if we pretend we know how to save the world with our ascension ideas. (I mean would you say that to an 85-year-old Native woman? Nah, probs not.)

And remember. If and when we need a strict practice to get us through a hard time, it will ALWAYS be there. You won’t lose it. Because it’s in you! “Spirit” won’t get angry and turn its back on you. I promise.

But for now the world needs YOU and your humanity. Out there. Off the mountain and in the streets.

I love you.

Moon Club co-founder Alexandra Roxo is a filmmaker and intuitive coach living in LA. Read more about her work at www.alexandraroxo.com and follow her love and sex and life woes and victories on Instagram.

CHAKRA HEALING FOR THE HOME

Posted on April 12, 2016March 11, 2019 by Jennifer Stevens

You know how important it is to keep your chakras balanced for optimal health – but have you thought about chakra healing for your home, asks Jennifer Stevens? Artwork: Paul Oparin

Whether you’ve studied Buddhism, meditation or Kundalini yoga, you’ve probably come across the concept of chakras before. But how do they relate to your home?

But before we get started, let’s first define exactly what we mean by the word “chakra.”

Chakras are energetic centers within the etheric (subtle) body. The word chakra itself originally meant “wheel” but they are thought to function more like vortexes: either open and spinning correctly, open and spinning backward, or closed entirely.

Healthy chakras are an essential part of mind, body and spirit living in alignment. A closed chakra is the result of an energetic blockage – typically an emotional or spiritual issue – and just one blocked chakra will affect the rest of your system, causing it to go into overdrive to compensate. This ultimately results in feeling lethargic, scattered or burnt-out. Leaving your chakras out of balance for too long can eventually lead to physical illness.

So how do the chakras relate to interior design?

Chakras are ultimately driven by our own energies; and since our home is an extension of our self, they are also accurately represented within our space. And just like in our bodies, it’s important for the chakras in our homes to stay happy and healthy. There’s no need to redecorate from scratch; the idea is simply to show each chakra zone the proper care and respect.

It’s always best for you to interpret the chakras in your own home in a way that works best for you. So go with your own intuition on this, but here are a few examples of home chakra healing to get you thinking…

:: Muladhara – Root Chakra – Kitchen, Toilet, Basement, Crawl Spaces::

The Root Chakra represents stability, balance and physical survival; it is also our connection to our ancestors. An under-active Root Chakra is characterized by excessive worries about money, paranoia and feeling disconnected.

The Root Chakra is about survival and sustenance; and since we literally sustain ourselves with food, the kitchen is the perfect representation of this. This chakra is also where any energy is eliminated from our body, so the toilet and basement can represent this aspect.

Take a look at your kitchen: is it neat, tidy and ready-to-use, or is it a cluttered and dirty mess? Is it bright and filled with fresh food or dark with barren shelves? Excessive clutter or general messiness indicate that it’s time to put more effort into the self-care of this chakra.

It’s also important when working with the Muladhara Chakra to be mindful of plumbing issues or leaking pipes and especially any issues that concern the toilet (such as broken handles or a constantly running toilet.). Schedule a time right now for any necessary repairs.

Stones to include here: Garnet, Jasper, Onyx or Rubies

:: Svadhisthana – Sacral Chakra – Creative Centers ::

The Sacral Chakra represents our relationship with ourselves, but this extends well beyond us since we project this onto our perception of the world around us. The big lesson here is simple: you cannot love anyone else until you love yourself. It is also the chakra of sensuality and sexuality.

Potential signs of an imbalance in the Sacral Chakra include boredom (with life or your relationship) and inhibition.

In our homes, the Sacral Chakra is represented by any center of creativity. You might have a thriving business running out of the spare bedroom, a blog run from the computer in your home office, or maybe you just really love spending your weekend afternoons creating treats for a dinner party. Choose the zone that best represents your own version of creativity and take a careful look around. If clutter or improper storage is impeding your ability to create, then get to work at finding some solutions.

If you don’t have a creative center in your home, then how is a great time to create one! What classes have you been meaning to take or interests have you been waiting to explore? How can you express this energy in your home? Your creative energy is an integral piece of your soul, so devote some time to honoring it.

Stones to include here: Carnelian, Moonstone or Hematite

:: Manipurna – Solar Plexus Chakra – Bathrooms, Laundry room, Living Room or Family Room ::

The Solar Plexus Chakra represents our personal power. It governs both self-esteem and self-discipline. An activated Solar Plexus Chakra results in being confident, reliable and responsible. Those with a Solar Plexus that is not in balance will be prone to emotional outbursts and stress (excess chakra activity) or passivity (blocked or slow).

Since this chakra represents multiple parts of our lives, it can also be represented by a number of ways in the home. Areas associated with water are highly associated with emotional energies; so your bathroom or laundry room are a great place to examine for signs of distress (think: faulty plumbing, faucets, lighting or messiness).

Another choice could be your living room – since it’s where we go when we’re entertaining friends or curling up with some vegan ice cream and Netflix.

Cast a constructive eye toward your living areas. Is there adequate seating and lighting? Can you comfortably hang out there with a few friends? If your living room is too messy for guests, it’s likely an accurate reflection of your own self-confidence and esteem.

Stones to Include Here: Topaz, Tiger’s Eye, Amber or Citrine

:: Anahata – Heart Chakra – Dining Areas, Hallways ::

The Heart Chakra represents love as well as the consciousness of Divine Love. Problems with the Heart Chakra are characterized by troubled relationships, being overly critical or being stuck in the past.

Sharing food with others (whether family or friends) is an act of Divine Love; on a fundamental level you are nurturing them and contributing towards their survival. We are naturally inclined to eat with those who we value the most, so the act of sharing food is very symbolic of this type of love.

Choose your dining room (or kitchen table) as your representation of the Heart Chakra only if you actually use it for eating (whether alone or with others). Make sure that everything is in working order and that you have enough supplies to make the overall experience comfortable.

But if you mostly eat take-out and never entertain, the dining area might not be the best choice for you. Hallways are similar to the veins in our body; the heart is the pump that creates circulation. In your home, a hallway is the way for you (and for Chi) to get from one room to the next. All but the tiniest of apartments will have some sort of hallway; if you don’t, choose a major footpath in your home (for example: from the sofa to the kitchen or the bedroom to the bathroom). So always make sure that this hallway or path is clear of clutter and obstructions.

Stones to Include: Fluorite, Malachite or Rose Quartz

:: Vishuddha – Throat Chakra – Study or Home Office ::

The Throat Chakra governs clear and concise communications. An open Throat Chakra allows you to find and express your authentic voice. If you are experiencing problems with expressing your feelings, finding your true voice or understanding what those around you are saying, then this might be a key zone for you to take a closer look at.

In the home, the Throat Chakra is best represented by your computer zone. Computers are now our main communication channel; whether you are Skyping, emailing or vlogging you are doing it through a computer (or similar device). Finding your zone is super simple if you have a desktop computer – but if you use a laptop, think about where you use it the most. On the sofa? At the kitchen table? Find the zone that is the best representation for you and make sure that it’s clean and de-cluttered.

It’s also great time to pause and look at the device itself. Are your files in order or is your desktop a mess? Are the screen and keyboard clean? Taking even a few minutes to restore order will put you on the path to a more open and balanced Throat Chakra.

Stones to include here: Aquamarine, Turquoise or Angel Aura Quartz

:: Ajna – Third Eye Chakra – Spiritual Center, Library, Home Office ::

The Third Eye Chakra is the master chakra; all other chakras must be open and balanced before this chakra can fully activate. It is the chakra of wisdom, spiritual devotion and intuition. An imbalanced Third Eye Chakra is coupled with insomnia, nightmares and indecision.

Any spiritual space in your home is an obvious choice to represent this energy center. That could mean many different things: a meditation corner, small altar or even (lucky you!) yoga practice room.

A home office or library is another excellent representation (even if it falls on the logical side of the brain). But it is where your business, bills or schedule are maintained and therefore represents knowledge and control over your life in general. Libraries literally contain knowledge, but since owning a real library is probably unlikely, a large bookshelf is another ideal choice.

But whichever space best corresponds to this chakra for you, take a look around for any hot button issues (like clutter) or ways for the functionality to be improved.

Stones to Include Here: Sapphire, Lapis, Azurite or Amethyst

:: Sahasrara – Crown Chakra – Bedroom, Front Door ::

The Crown Chakra is our link to unity, oneness and group consciousness. It’s where the finite (body/ego) and the infinite (universe/soul) meet. This is the chakra that represents spirituality and enlightenment; signs of an imbalanced Crown Chakra are depression and anxiety.

Since we are the most open to receiving messages (whether from our own soul or from a higher power) while we are sleeping, the bedroom is a natural choice for this chakra. This is one of the most intimate rooms in the home and also one that we spend a lot of time in. It’s where we retreat to not only when we are tired, but also when we are feeling sick or sad. The bedroom is home to our deepest emotional centers.

Take a look around your bedroom for any key issues. Is your bed an inviting place for you to retreat to every night? Do you typically get a full nights sleep in it? Make sure your bed is neat, comfortable and nice to look at.

The Crown Chakra can also be represented by the front door to our home. How open are you to receiving new visitors—or new knowledge?

Assess the state of your front door and entry. Again, look for any obvious problems: locks that are sticky or squeaky hinges. Maybe the door mat needs to be replaced or the door itself needs a cleaning. If your front door is blocked by clutter (or furniture), it’s time to make some changes and welcome some new energy into your home (and life).

Stones to Include Here: Amethyst (clusters are great!), Lepidolite or Clear Quartz

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Even if there’s one particular chakra that’s of particular interest to you, make sure that you take a look at every chakra as it is represented in your space. Just as in your body, one area that’s out of whack can create bigger problems for the entire system. As such, a healthy home represents a healthy human, with a fully balanced, flowing chakra system.

HELLO CHAKRUBS: YES, THAT’S A CRYSTAL DILDO

Posted on February 9, 2016November 4, 2018 by Gabriela Herstik

Forget the battery operated vibrator, and pick up a high-vibe, soul-opening crystal sex toy from Chakrubs. Founder Vanessa Cuccia shares her story with Gabriela Herstik.

Chakrubs founder Vanessa Cuccia on The Numinous — *Chakrubs founder Vanessa Cuccia*

Yes, Chakrubs are exactly what they sound like, and these high vibe crystal sex dildos are here to shake things up! Vanessa Cuccia, the #girlboss behind Chakrubs, is on a mission to promote self-love, acceptance and a whole lot of awareness with some super sensual playtime. And with a background in sex toys and holistic medicine, Cuccia is the natural choice in enlightening the world, one crystal dildo at a time. By combining the healing properties of crystals with sexual energy, and then pairing that with some sexy intention setting, Chakrubs allow you to really root into your pleasure. So whether you’re an amethyst kinda gal or you’re more into onyx, you can get your sexy on while giving yourself some extra TLC – Numinous style.

The Numinous: The crystal dildo – something we would never have thought of but…are totally into. How did you some up with this concept? Why crystals?
Vanessa Cuccia: Really, the idea was the result of a culmination of experiences and desires I had experienced since a young age. About age four when my mother had a paranormal experience that opened up many conversations about energy, God, conspiracy, and spirits in my household. My father is also a doctor of the spine, an inventor of a non-surgical medical device called Extentrac to help heal and alleviate back pain, so I also had influence in the importance of homeopathic health.

My views on sexuality also played a major role in coming up with the concept. I had held my virginity in high regard, but when I had sex for the first time, I wasn’t ready. For many years, I struggled with feeling pleasure with another person. No sex toy on the market appealed to me, and yet I had a desire to explore my sexuality and remove shame around it. Crystals seemed like a natural and therapeutic option. Once I came up with the name and started telling people my idea, it was clear that this was something that was needed in the lives of many people, and the sex toy industry as a whole. The philosophy behind it being just as important as the product itself: self-love, self-awareness, and self-acceptance.

TN: How do the different stones used in each toy impact the experience?
VC: Different stones have been used for thousands of years for their various metaphysical properties, since each stone vibrates at a different frequency. One may be best for opening the heart chakra for love, one may be best to open the throat chakra for communication and creativity. We suggest to our customers setting an intention with whichever Chakrub they choose. This way, each time they have a “session” with one, they are reminded of the growth they wish to achieve, the pain the wish to release, or the things they wish to manifest.

TN: Chakrubs merge two really beautiful energies: raw stones and sexual energy. How do they aid one another?
VC: Crystals have perfect molecular structures, providing a therapeutic vibration that we may benefit from just by being near them. Some of us are very sensitive to crystal energy. Some of us – not so much. For those who aren’t so sensitive, they may first become acquainted with this energy by first feeling their own sexual energy – since arousal is an easy signal to us that energy is flowing. This can lead to the realization that energy is all around us, and helping us flow in whatever circumstance we are in – in turn, helping us navigate all areas of our lives. The energy of a crystal dildo will simply amplify sexual energy, and sexual energy will amplify crystal energy. This works through focused attention and awareness.

TN: Also, total fans of the wordplay in “Chakrubs.” How does sacred playtime, with the aid of toys, help to balance the energy of the chakras?
VC: When we are truly rooted in our pleasure, comfortable and excited, our minds go into a state of meditation. It’s a place free of anxiety. This allows for a clean and unblocked flow of energy, and that flow can become more intense when our intention is also to allow this to happen. The combination of sexual energy, intention and the energy from the Chakrub is powerful medicine for our chakra, endocrine, and nervous system.

TN: One of the most beautiful parts of your mission is to encourage love, especially self-love and acceptance. How does using a crystal dildo facilitate more love, acceptance and awareness?
VC: The philosophy behind Chakrubs is self-love, self-awareness, and acceptance. As such, this mission is instilled in each of the products, and there to be connected with each time a person uses a Chakrub, and sexual arousal with the use of Chakrubs becomes a signal to remember and tap into the ideas of self-love, spiritual growth, and awareness.

TN: How do you think being aware and vocal about your needs, sexually and emotionally, can help spiritual growth?
VC: Spiritual growth IS self-awareness. It is understanding that everything that happens is happening as it needs to in order to facilitate growth. Removing fear and shame (or rather, not holding on to these feelings) from the part of ourselves that is meant to receive and give pleasure is a potent place to start on a spiritual path.

TN: What’s your advice for someone who is hesitant to experiment and use a sex toy? What’s the one thing you wish someone had told you?
VC: If someone is hesitant to use a sex toy, don’t use a sex toy! However, if someone is hesitant to use a sex toy but still desires to use a sex toy – figure out what’s scaring you, do your research, and explore! Work towards understanding who you are, and what you need to feel pleasure. This is really about learning to understand and speak of your flaws as points of empowerment. To honor your whole self and your desires.

Discover more at Chakrubs.com

FEET ON THE GROUND: A YOGA SEQUENCE FOR TAURUS

Posted on April 23, 2015November 4, 2018 by Ash Bonelli

The coming month is a time for rooting your dreams in reality. Get grounded with this yoga sequence for Taurus, says Ash Baker. Image: Anthony Maule and Carine Roitfeld for Harper’s Bazaar.

Ruler :: Venus
Element :: Earth
Modality :: Fixed
Anatomy :: Throat, neck, vocal cords, tonsils, thyroid, tongue and mouth

2nd sign of the Zodiac

We are now heading into the mid-spring month of the Bull. Think earthly sensuality and grounded, focused qualities. Perfect timing for meditating on what you would like your summer to look like. What can you create in your life with precision right now that will bloom into something magical in a couple of months? Taurean energy is what to embody wherever you need some stability in your life. Our practice this month will help cultivate empowerment through pressing into the earth and opening our hearts.

:: Lions Breath ::
Take a deep inhale through your nose, and as you exhale, open your mouth and stick out your tongue. Curl the tip of your tongue towards your chin. You will make a “Haaaa” sound. Give your tongue a good stretch and really push the air out of your throat. Inhale through your nose and repeat. Go through three-five rounds.

Now bring your hands to your heart and think of something you would like to offer to yourself or another person. Yoga can be seen as a moving meditation so what would you like your intention for this session to be?

:: Tabletop spinal extension ::
Come to hands and knees. Tuck your tailbone slightly and firm your abdominals. Inhale, reach the right leg out behind you and press through the heel, firing up all the muscles of the leg and giving you more support. Fully exhale.

Then with your next inhale reach the left arm out in front of you. Keep your palm facing inward. Looking down feel the length being creating in your spine as you reach in opposite directions with arm and leg. Release the arm and leg back to the floor. Repeat with the left leg and right arm. Hold for three rounds of breath. Complete two rounds on each side.

:: Low Lunge ::
From a standing position step the right leg/foot towards the back of the mat. Drop your right knee down onto the floor, tucking the toes under for more balance. Exhale and bend the front left knee. Make sure the knee is bent directly over the ankle. Tilt the pelvis slightly under and lengthen up through the spine.

Squeeze the inner thighs towards one another to get a little lift and then release slightly and let the pelvis sink down towards the floor allowing some opening in the right hip flexors. Inhale the arms up overhead and reach through the fingers. Hold for three-five rounds of breath. Repeat on the other side.

:: Triangle/Trikonasana with arm circles ::
From a standing position, turn to face the left and take a wide stance with your legs. Take your front right foot and point it forward and take the back left foot and point it to a 45-degree angle. You can have heel to heel alignment or wider depending on your hips and what makes you feel stable.

Reach your right arm out over that front leg and begin to reach as far forward as you can. Once you reach your edge, take the same hand to your shin, foot, a block or the floor. Take the left arm and gently reach it upwards. You can look up towards your hand or, for more stability, down to the floor. Add some flow by sweeping the left arm down towards your hip and back up creating a full circle. Take a few circles and repeat this pose on the other side.

:: Grounding Meditation ::
This meditation can be done anywhere you have the ability to place your feet on the ground or any other supported surface. I kid you not, some of my best meditations have been on a public city bus, feet planted on the floor and eyes lightly closed. So just find a space you can sit or even stand for a few minutes and begin to simply feel your breath move around your body, flowing in and out of your nostrils.

Now begin to focus on the feeling of your feet against the ground. Take time to connect with that support. Feel how strong it is and apply those qualities to the areas in your life that need more stability. Stay there breathing, feeling those focused, strong, and stable qualities within yourself. Know that you are always supported. Divinity is designed that way.

Monthly Mantra: I am supported, secure and strong in all my actions.

@NUMINOUS_BOOKS