Do you utilise the wisdom contained in your imagination and intuition?

The Third Eye Chakra is part of a series of blogs about the seven major chakras. If you’ve not yet explored the others in the series, you may wish to start with the Root Chakra, followed by the posts on the Sacral, Solar Plexus, Heart and Throat Chakras.

The Third Eye Chakra

The third eye chakra, known as Ajna, is the second of seven major chakras, located just above the bridge of your nose on the brow. Hence the Third Eye Chakra is also known as the Brow Chakra. The colour associated with this chakra is Indigo, a deep purplish-blue. In balance, we can access our intuition, use our imagination to support our goals and perceive information beyond the ordinary world of existence. In balance, we have access to inner knowing, clarity of thought, wisdom and insights that help us navigate life.

Ajna originally meant “to perceive” and later “to command” in the Sanskrit name for this chakra. This reflects the binary nature of this chakra. The ability to receive images of perception but also the ability to command our reality through our imagination. There is plenty of evidence to show that we feed what we focus on. So, the more our mind focuses on what we want, the more likely it is we will do what is needed for that to become our reality. In fact, many sports people will visualise their success repeatedly before the event occurs.

The hype!

There are no quick, easy ways to open and balance your Third Eye Chakra. So yes, if you take entheogens, you’ll have a temporary experience, possibly quite an extreme one. The problem is that they are short-lived and set us up to feel more of a failure when we can’t repeat those experiences without using drugs.

What can cause your Third Eye Chakra to be imbalanced?

Whereas imbalances in the lower chakras often relate to early childhood issues, the Third Eye chakra it tends to be modern life that causes an imbalance. Having said that, if you were raised in an environment that frowned on intuition and creativity or ridiculed such things, you might have difficulty opening to your imagination and intuition later in life.

Stress and overwhelm can be common disrupters to the third eye chakra. In addition, poor lifestyle choices such as addictions, regular consumption of alcohol, excessive busyness, and never taking time out for quiet reflection and rest. This 24/7 switched-on and available lifestyle we currently find ourselves subjected to does not support a balanced third eye chakra.

On top of that, we are experiencing global disasters on a rapidly growing scale. All of this promotes overwhelm and the temptation to find peace (all be it a false sense of peace) from sources such as alcohol, comforting eating, comfort purchasing etc., all of which dull our intuition and clarity of mind.

A Lack of Equilibrium

Anyone unable to experience balance in a particular area of their life may have an imbalance in the third eye chakra. Perhaps you cannot sit still, just be, and find meditation difficult. If you fixate on logic over imagination or intuition, or maybe you are too away with the fairies, again, this may indicate an imbalance in the third eye. Those who have trouble sleeping have nightmares or sleep too much. Someone who can’t stop worrying or overthinking may also have an imbalance here. Trusting in your own wisdom and decision-making is a sign of balance in the third eye. However, if you constantly seek answers from others rather than trust yourself, you may have an imbalance in the third eye.

Although it can at times seem challenging to make changes to our lifestyle habits, diet, and mindset. It is all possible, and the advice I always give is to start small, one step at a time. Don’t try to do everything in one hit. Instead, take the most minor, simplest thing to change and start there. With more severe issues such as addiction, please get professional support.

Physical Symptoms Associated with The Third Eye Chakra

When the Third Eye chakra is imbalanced, it may present itself physically within the brain, eyes, pineal gland, and pituitary gland. As a result, it can manifest as headaches, dizziness, poor vision, seizures, and lack of concentration.

This also includes brain problems such as difficulty processing information, memory issues, and anxiety. Hearing problems can also relate to this chakra because of how we use it to perceive information. Insomnia and learning disabilities can also indicate an imbalance.

The Pineal Gland

The pineal gland is associated with the third eye chakra. The gland is a tiny cone-shaped gland that sits near the base of the centre of the head. It is responsible for translating light variations to hormonal messages relayed to the body through the autonomic nervous system. More than 100 body functions are influenced by exposure to light. For example, melatonin is a hormone triggered by exposure of the eyes to light, even in small amounts and is linked to our circadian rhythms, our internal clock. It is associated with our ability to sleep well and dream well and how well we function during the day. It is also believed to improve our immune system, reduce stress, and slow ageing.

Signs of imbalance in the Third Eye Chakra

• Lack of Concentration
• Fearful of the Unknown
• Lack of Intuition
• Unable to Self-Reflect
• Unable to See Past Illusions
• Disconnected From the Universe
• Judgemental
• Overly Analytical
• Anxiety
• Mental Fog
• Mentally Overwhelmed
• Excessive Daydreaming
• Lack of Clarity in Thoughts

How can we bring our Third Eye Chakra into balance

Manage stress

Energy healing techniques such as Reiki, Shiatsu, Tai Chi, and Yoga can support you in balancing your third eye chakra and managing stress.

Reiki Training

During your Reiki training, you’ll learn effective meditation and mindfulness techniques and how to balance your whole energy system, including your chakras.

Meditation

Meditation is ideal for balancing your third eye chakra. It gives us the chance to quiet the mind and spend some time being instead of constantly being in a state of doing.

The Drum

Indigenous Shamans use the drum to enter states of consciousness that allow them to perceive beyond the ordinary world. Drumming also effectively balances the left and right brain hemispheres, including balancing the third eye chakra. In fact, specific beats can help to balance all of the chakras.

Getting out in nature.

The third eye element is light, and exposure to sunlight provides us with a lot of health benefits, including supporting our Third Eye.

Use your imagination.

Imagination, particularly visual imagination, is a muscle we can develop with practice. For example, one helpful exercise for developing the Third Eye is to look at the outlines of mandalas and imagine them being filled with the seven rainbow colours, one colour at a time.

Reflect on the insights and wisdom you do perceive.

We have little insights all the time; the more we pay attention to them, the more we notice them. Journaling is a valuable tool for recording our insights and intuitions. You may also like to write down your nightly dreams as often there are insights within them.

Nutrition

There aren’t specific foods you should eat to enhance your third eye chakra. However, there are things to avoid, such as alcohol, caffeine, and any foods you are intolerant to. A healthy, varied diet of clean, organic whole foods, plus plenty of water, is ideal.

Crystals for the Third Eye Chakra

The blueish, purple indigo crystals generally support the function of the third eye chakra.

Amethyst is probably the most known crystal and can help open up the Third Eye Chakra. Some of my personal favourites include Purple Fluorite, Iolite, Charoite, Moonstone, Labradorite, Lapis Lazuli and Azurite.

To view my Third Eye Chakra Jewellery, click here.

Next month I’ll be discussing the Crown Chakra. If you are not already subscribed, sign up now; at the end of the Chakra series, I’ll provide a free Chakra Balancing MP3 to Subscribers. You’ll also get a £20 discount on my therapy services or workshops.