This week we’re inspired by the opening verses of the Yoga Sutras, and also by a yoga retreat I attended last weekend at Song of the Morning Ranch.
We’ll talk about what meditation is and how it helps us, and also about chakras and the experiences we perceive as energy flows. We’ll explore meditations involving pranayama breathwork, mantras, and concentration.
As an introduction to the chakras, we’ll go through a meditation focusing on each one, using the bija mantras:
| Name/Location | Mantra | Element | Qualities |
| Sahasrara (crown) | (silence) | (consciousness) | |
| Ajna (3rd eye) | Om | (mind) | |
| Visshuda (throat) | Ham | space | |
| Anahata (heart) | Yam | air | |
| Manipura (navel) | Ram | fire | |
| Svadhistana (back toward spine, just above pubic bone) | Vam | water | |
| Muladara (perineum) | Lam | earth |
https://www.swamij.com/chakra-meditation.htm
To aid in focus toward our chakras, we’ll use background sounds, frequencies, mantras that resonate with each chakra. Jonathan Goldman’s album ‘Chakra Chants’ is a wonderful combination of these:
Song of the Week: Aigiri Nandini, by Gaiea Sanskrit (Youtube). I just heard this again a few days ago, after first being introduced to it during Swami Sankaranananda’s retreat this summer. It’s a Sanskrit devotional chant sung to a warrior goddess, composed perhaps by Shankara. I can’t stop dancing.