Sacral Chakra

Around a month back we started a new series on the influence of plants on the various chakras in our body. We had written on The Root Chakra or the Muladhara and the respective plants that help balance this chakra. This week we look into the finer details of The Sacral Chakra or the Svadhisthana.

Svadhisthana, the centre of whatever constitutes the individual’s personality, is situated in the spine in the region above the genitals (in the lower abdomen). It carries on its six vermilion petals the six Sanskrit letters ba, bha, ma, ya, ra, la. In the pericarp, the water element is represented by a half-moon with the seed mantra Vam.

This Chakra is associated with the acts of giving and receiving, and is tied into the more physical feelings of love, passion and sexuality. It holds the basic needs for sexuality, creativity, intuition, and self-worth. This chakra is also about friendliness and emotions. It governs the sense of self-worth, confidence in one’s own creativity, and the ability to relate to others in an open and friendly way. Proper balance in this chakra means the ability to flow with emotions freely and to feel and reach out to others sexually or not. If this chakra is blocked a person may feel emotionally explosive, manipulative, obsessed with thoughts of sex or may lack energy. Physical problems may include kidney weakness, stiff lower back, constipation, and muscle spasms.

Characteristics of well balanced Sacral chakra: graceful movement, ability to experience pleasure, ability to change, being creative, enthusiasm for life, nurturing self and others

Characteristics of imbalance in the Sacral chakra: poor social skills, lack of passion and excitement- mood swings, depressive nature, Urinary problems, Lower back pains, pain in legs, Swelling in hands, legs

Area of Body Governed: sexual organs, stomach, upper intestines, liver, gallbladder, kidney, pancreas, adrenal glands, spleen, middle spine

The plants associated with this chakra are:
Spices: cinnamon, vanilla, carob, sweet paprika, sesame seeds, caraway seeds.

Details on how to grow a few of them are listed below:

Sesame:
It is an annual plant growing 50 – 100 cm tall, with opposite leaves 4 – 14 cm long; they are broad at the base of the plant, narrowing to just 1 cm broad on the flowering stem. The flowers are yellow, tubular, 3 to 5 cm long, with a four-lobed mouth. The flowers may vary in colour with some being white, some blue or purple.

Sesame seeds are small. Typically, the sesame seeds are about 3 – 4 millimeters long by 2 millimeters wide and 1 millimeter thick. The seeds are ovate, slightly flattened and somewhat thinner at the eye of the seed (hilum) than at the opposite end.

Sesame is very drought-tolerant, in part due to its extensive root system. Sesame grows nicely from direct seedlings or transplants. If you plant your sesame outdoors, space rows 27 to 40 inches apart. Soil must be perfectly loosened. Any crusting and the seed won’t be able to push through it. Although this herb can tolerate dry conditions, it requires adequate moisture for germination and early growth. It also does not like strong winds. So fence your garden, plot or do a tree-surround.

Did you know that Sesame seed is considered to be the oldest oilseed crop known to man, domesticated well over 5000 years ago; and India is one of the largest producers and exporters of sesame seeds?

Caraway:
Caraway or karavi in Sanskrit is a biennial plant that has finely divided, feathery leaves with thread-like divisions, growing on 20–30 cm stems. Caraway flowers on 2-foot stems in its second year, producing umbrella-like clusters of white and pink flowers. Seeds ripen about a month after flowering just before the plant dies. Caraway seeds are crescent-shaped, around 2 mm long, with five pale ridges.

Directly sow seeds into your garden and cover lightly with soil. Space seedlings 12inches apart in rows. Pick the caraway seed heads when they have ripened completely. Do not wait for the seeds to begin to fall though. Caraway plants prefer full sun and a well drained soil. They will do well in average soils and tolerate dry soil conditions. The plant prefers warm, sunny locations and well-drained soil rich in organic matter.

Vanilla:
This spice was introduced to India as early as 1835. They form long thin stems with a length of more than 35 m, with alternate leaves spread along their length. The short, oblong, dark green leaves of Vanilla are thick and leathery, even fleshy in some species. But there are also a significant number of species that have their leaves reduced to scales or have become nearly or totally leafless and appear to use their green climbing stems for photosynthesis. Long and strong aerial roots grow from each node.

Blooming occurs only when the flowers are fully grown. Each flower opens up in the morning and closes late in the afternoon on the same day, never to re-open. If pollination has not occurred meanwhile, it will be shed. The flowers are self-fertile but need pollinators to perform this task.

The fruit is termed “vanilla bean”. Rather, the vanilla fruit is technically an elongate, fleshy and later dehiscent capsule 10–20 cm long. It ripens gradually for 8 to 9 months after flowering, eventually turning black in color and giving off a strong aroma. Each pod contains thousands of minute seeds, and both the pods and seeds within are used to create vanilla flavoring. The vanilla bean plant will grow to about 25 feet in length before blooming.

The plant is usually established by planting shoot cuttings. If possible cuttings with 18 to 24 internodes should be used as they come to flower earlier than shorter cuttings. However, cuttings with less than five to six internodes and shorter than 60 cm in length should be avoided. Vanilla being a climbing vine requires support for growing and it flourishes in partial shade.

Carob:
The carob is a legume, evergreen and beautiful shade tree that bears green colour flowers and large violet brown colour fruiting bodies called bean pods or carob pods. The tree takes 20 years to reach its full height, which is 50ft high and 50ft wide, with a tap root of 125 ft.

For good growth, the carob tree prefers sites that have good exposure to sunlight.  The carob tree tolerates air that is salt laden and moist. Being quite resistant to drought they can grow well even in arid climates.

The tree takes up to 8 years to produce a crop of pods, 15 years to produce a commercial size crop, but by 20 years can produce up to a tonne in one season. It will continue to produce for up to 200 years and only the female trees in the wild produce pods.

Carob flowers in summer with male and female flowers on different trees (dioecious). Planting at least five trees will usually guarantee at least one of each sex, for pod production.

Carob has enjoyed increased popularity in recent years as a low-fat, low-calorie, and low-caffeine alternative to chocolate.

Other kinds of food that help balance the Sacral Chakra are:
Sweet fruits: Melons, Mangoes, Strawberries, Passion fruit, Oranges, Coconut, etc.
Honey Nuts: Almonds, Walnuts, etc.

Author: Vaibhav Dugar
Me, I am a Green Warrior and yes you are either with me or against me! On paper I’m a telecommunication engineer but professionally, a farmer. Work takes me setting many-a-farms, tilling many-a-lands and playing with soil which I thoroughly enjoy. I love playing football (avidly), going cycling, watching Formula 1 and writing!

If you need company to watch Formula 1, pit stop at Vaibhav.Dugar [at] EkTitli.org

This article has been co-authored by Sheetal Vaidya. She is a life skills coach, Reiki Grandmaster – who heals through Chakras & Vedic mantras.

To receive updates in your inbox, click here

Contribute:
If you wish to have your work published at Ek Titli, please click here for more details.