The 4 Root Chakra Levels

UPDATED: NOV 30 2023 Digging up knowledge about the root chakra can be overwhelming. There are hundreds of blogs, thousands of pins on Pinterest, and don't get me started about Instagram. A lot of them talk about "the mystical symbolism" behind the chakra like the best essential oils or which crystals and/or stones to use, the right foods to eat, what are the correct affirmations to say, or what yoga poses to do. While only some talk about what an unbalanced vs balanced root chakra looks and feels like and how meditation/self-reflection is the key to healing. Even then it's not quite clear what exactly we are healing. So as I was unearthing all of this information, I thought of this question:

What are we trying to understand about ourselves when we are 'balancing' our root chakra?

I noticed that certain topics repeated while researching which helped me come up with four different levels that target physical, emotional, mental, + spiritual goals of the root chakra.

1 Survival

THE PHYSICAL GOAL

This is the first level you should consider focusing on because it is all about your basic needs.

What are 'basic needs' you ask? They are the essentials for just living:

• Water + Food - Do I have enough to eat?

• Shelter - Do I have a place to live?

• Health - Am I physically healthy?

Once you feel like you are healthy in your body + space you are able to focus on what's next.

2 SELF-IMAGE

THE EMOTIONAL GOAL

Now that the basic needs are met, it is time to focus on how you feel about your physical space in the environment. The emotions to focus on are:

• Body Positive - Am I confident in my body? Am I brave enough to show it to the world?

• Sensuality - Am I aware of my senses and being present?

• Courage - Am I letting go of fears that I have?

Having balanced answers to these questions + feeling solid in who you are, you are ready to move on to the third level.

3 Stability

THE MENTAL GOAL

Stability is about building structure - mentally and physically. The following are important to think about if you feel like you have a cluttered and disorganized mind.

• Structure - Do I have a stable and healthy daily routine I follow?

• Work - Am I 'work happy'? Is it secure? Does work give me financial independence?

• Mindfulness - Am I present? Do I focus too much on what I did/happened in the past?

When you think you are stable in your day-to-day habits and work routine, you can finally reflect on the final level of the root chakra journey.

4 Security

THE SPIRITUAL GOAL

Now it is time to pull everything that you have learned about yourself from the first three levels and reflect on these themes:

• Safety - Do I feel safe in my life as a whole?

• Support - Do I have people in my life that I trust and back me up?

• Boundaries - Am I creating healthy boundaries in my personal and work relationships?

Do you feel like you have all four levels under control? If that is a resounding yes, then you are finally grounded in your life. You know can focus on bigger and better things!

Using these levels for meditation + self-reflection can help you better understand if the root chakra is balanced. Now, these are just general overarching questions. Each question should be tackled one at a time and in detail (with personal follow up questions) to see if you are under or overcompensating in each level. Oh! REMEMBER: Once you reflect on those ideas you need to actively change the things in your life that are causing the imbalance! (more on how to later)

Above is an infographic that can help you remember the best order to confront each goal. I would like to think about it as if you are playing a video game. You can't reach the next level until you pass the first, but you can always go back to the level below if you want to explore more!

Happy Meditating!

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Photo Credit

Lucien Kolly

Matthias Tillen

Tamara Bellis

Emma Matthews

Tim Marshall

Books I Read While Researching

The Ultimate Guide to Chakras by Athena Perrakis PhD

Chakra for Beginners by Michael Williams

Little Book of Chakras by Patricia Mercier

Chakras made Easy by Anodea Judith

Chakra Balance by April Pfender

NOTE: I am not a practising healer or specialist in this field - I am learning as I research more into these topics. If you have any more information please feel free to share in the comments below. :)