Vishuddha ~ Pause and Purification
Vishuddha means purification. As this, our fifth chakra, is the portal into the realm of the upper chakras - the land of Spirit, purification is a step of preparation. Our throat chakra is a space between the worlds of physical and energetic, an opening in which our vibrational essence is prepared to be ready to be received by Spirit. In this way Vishuddha can be understood as a space of pause … akin to the vestibule just inside the church doorway, reached prior to entering into the sanctuary. A place of quiet hush, a place to center oneself, ground, breathe, and release, clearing the debris from the mind and emotions, preparing oneself to receive, as well as to give … we enter the sanctuary and give ourselves over and offer ourselves up … to take in what we may / what we’re prepared to receive, and to give thanks, to lift up our praises and to bow in submission … consecrating ourselves once again to the mission Spirit has for us, committing once again to put our will aside and surrender to the will of Spirit.
Using this familiar metaphor we see that the fifth chakra is symbolic of the vestibule, the sixth chakra - the sanctuary, and the seventh chakra - Spiritual Connection.
How do we purify our energetic essence to prepare for meeting with the Divine? We pay attention to our vibration - it’s all about resonance. When we are expressing something that is not our truth, we will be out of resonance, or drop into a lower frequency.
What this means at the most mundane level is that by paying attention to what feels more or less comfortable for us, and choosing comfort or resonance, we will continually move closer to speaking our truth. We can’t move into greater harmony when speaking an untruth simply to please another. This also means that in those moments when we need to speak, yet resist out of fear, we listen to the energy caught in our throat. And rather than listening to our fears stemming from our thoughts, we listen to our subtle energy creating that discomfort in the throat area, and we speak up, returning to resonance with our inner essence. And conversely, we stop dominating others with our words, tone, volume, etc. This becomes effortless to do as we shift to focusing on comfort or resonance vs discomfort or distortion in our energy field. An essential shift in this practice is a shift from letting our attention be guided by the thinking mind to one of being guided by the subtler cues of our energy body.
The more we practice paying attention to our inner cues (not just the outer world around us, and how it’s responding to us), the better we get at refining this process of noticing our vibration and resonance. As a beginner, we often notice physical symptoms in our body. The more we practice paying attention inward, being mindful, allowing our breath to anchor us inward, we increase our sensitivity to cues that are more and more subtle … ideally noticing slight fluctuations in our frequency - beginning to pick up shifts of getting out of resonance at the thought level, the emotional level, and eventually the subtle energy level as we learn to pay attention to subtle sensations.
A daily meditation practice helps a great deal with this process of purification, as do mindfulness practices. Mantra is the ultimate focusing practice for the Throat Chakra - our chakra of expression through the vibration of sound. Each chakra has its own mantra sound, known as seed sounds. Working with these sounds is a great practice of of purification at the subtle energy level! The mantra sounds are as follows - root to crown: Lam pronounced Luhm, Vam (Vuhm), Ram (Ruhm), Yam (Yuhm), Ham (Huhm), Om, Silence. Play with them, creating your own mantra meditation, or do your own research - there is much to be discovered about this ancient energetic practice.
Vishuddha is the pause where energy gathers before stepping into the sanctuary, and before going out into the world as well. As we hone and harmonize the energy of Vishuddha in our subtle energy system, we are purifying our self, which means we are purifying our entire subtle energy system! Vishuddha is also the gateway in which we express our inner world to the outer world! Our highest authentic expressions are creative not because we took an art class or a music class, but because they are authentic expressions of our very essence!
As we move into harmony with our essence, our life becomes a manifestation of this essence being expressed into the world. Therefore, as you move into resonance with your subtle energy system, and continually purify, by moving out of discomfort and into greater comfort with your innermost being, you naturally and effortlessly begin to manifest your Soul’s desires for your life.
We wish you great blessings on your inner journey of sacred healing, so that your outer journey more and more is a reflection of your truest and highest essence!
Lynn and Cheryl