Chakra 2 of 7 · Svadhisthana
Sacral chakra
Pleasure, creativity and flow. The chakra that wants you to have fun on purpose.
- Sanskrit
- Svadhisthana
- Where
- Lower belly, about two inches below the navel
- Colour
- Orange
- Element
- Water
- Mantra
- VAM
Signs it’s a little off
- ✧ You feel creatively blocked or kind of flat
- ✧ You can't remember the last time you did something just for fun
- ✧ Your emotions feel either stuck or a little too much
- ✧ You feel disconnected from pleasure and joy
What the sacral chakra is
The sacral chakra is chakra number two, in your lower belly, a couple of inches below your navel. Its Sanskrit name, Svadhisthana, is usually translated as "one's own place", which is honestly so cute.
Its element is water, so its whole vibe is flow: creativity, pleasure, emotions, play. The traditional lotus has six petals. In the modern colour system it's orange, like a sunset you'd stop the car for.
If the root chakra is "I'm safe", the sacral chakra is "okay, now let's enjoy it".
Signs your sacral chakra is out of balance
A wobbly sacral chakra often feels like:
- being creatively stuck, or bored by things you used to love
- doing everything for productivity and nothing for fun
- emotions that feel numb, or that spill over at random moments
- feeling disconnected from your body and what feels good
Balanced, it feels like being in your flow era. Ideas come easily, you laugh more, and you let yourself enjoy things without earning them first.
A hip-circle practice for the sacral chakra
Your hips are where this chakra lives, so we're moving them. Slowly, and a little dramatically.
- Sit cross-legged on a cushion, hands on your knees. A chair works too.
- Inhale and lean your chest forward. Keep going in a circle: right, back, left, forward.
- Make the circles slow and big, like you're stirring honey. Do 10 one way, 10 the other.
- Then sit still, hands resting on your lower belly, and chant VAM on each exhale.
Hip circles, then VAM
3 minutes, with a soft chime at the end.
Practice
Two minutes of hip circles
Sit cross-legged, hands on your knees, and circle your torso slowly over your hips: ten one way, ten the other. Big, slow, like stirring honey.
Practice
One creative hour, no goal
Spend an hour making something just for fun: a doodle, a playlist, a cake, a collage. It doesn't have to be good. That's literally the point.
Sacral chakra affirmations
- I'm allowed to enjoy my life.
- My creativity flows easily.
- I feel my feelings and let them move.
Other little ways to open your sacral chakra
- Dance in your kitchen to one song. Just one. Nobody's watching.
- Take a long bath or shower and actually enjoy it instead of scrolling.
- Make something with no goal: a doodle, a playlist, a weird little cake.
- Drink water. Water is the sacral element, and it's also just good advice 🫧
FAQ
What colour is the sacral chakra?
Orange, in the modern rainbow colour system. Some older texts describe it as white, with a crescent moon for the water element.
What is the sacral chakra mantra?
VAM. It's the sacral chakra's bija (seed) mantra, chanted slowly on the exhale.
Where is the sacral chakra?
In the lower belly, roughly two inches below the navel, towards the pelvis.
What is the sacral chakra responsible for?
In the chakra system it's linked to creativity, pleasure, emotions, sensuality and flow.