Here’s Your Crash Course on the Chakra Symbols

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Muladhara is the Root Chakra at the base of your spine, and it’s all about grounding. The square in this symbol represents rigidity, stability, and has a foundational energy. It provides a stable structure for the chakra system to rest on. The upside-down triangle is the alchemical symbol for earth, which also reminds us of the grounded energy of Muladhara. The four petals in this symbol represent the four mind-states that originate in this chakra: mind, intellect, consciousness, and ego.

Svadhishthana is your Sacral Chakra your center of creativity. The circles in connection with the lotus flower petals represent the cyclical nature of birth, death, and rebirth. The tangential circles also create a crescent moon shape, which is a nice reminder of the connection between creativity and the phases of the moon.

Manipura is your Solar Plexus Chakra, and directly affects your confidence. The ten petals of this symbol connect it to the ten Pranas in your body, or, for simplicity, types of air energy manipulation. You have five Pranas and five Upa Pranas. 

The upside-down triangle in this symbol represents the energy of the lower three chakras being concentrated and energetically spreading up to the higher chakras. Think of it as an upside-down funnel of earth energy.

Anahata is your Heart Chakra, and fuels your compassion towards yourself and others.  It is also a unique chakra because it’s the connection between your three base chakras and your three higher chakras. This is represented by the two triangles in the center of the symbol – the upward and downward, male and female energies mingling to create that six-point star shape.  The six-point star in combination with the 12 petals in this symbol represents your 72,000 energy channels, or nadis (6,000 x 12 = 72,000). This is also representative of how Anahata is the central chakra that connects the whole system.

Vishuddha is your Throat Chakra, and houses your ability to communicate and speak up for what you believe in. Similar to Manipura, the triangle in this symbol represents energy moving upward. In this instance, though, the energy is the gathering of knowledge toward enlightenment. The 16 petals of this symbol are often associated with 16 vowels of the Sanskrit language. The pronunciation of these vowels is light and breathy, so the petals represent the airy quality of communication.

Ajna is your Third Eye Chakra, your seat of intuition. You see a continuation of the upside-down triangle in this symbol as this is the last chakra before your Crown Chakra, which is your connection to divinity and true enlightenment. 

This triangle represents the knowledge and lessons of the lower six chakras being gathered and expanded into your divine consciousness.

Sahasrara is your Crown Chakra , or your divine connection. This symbol is simply the divine circle and the lotus flower, which is a reminder of our connection to Brahma, the Hindu god of creation. This symbol represents our divine unity with other beings and with the universe. The lotus flower represents prosperity and eternity, among many other things.