Hey. We wanna have a heart-to-heart with you about the Heart Chakra. It might just be the most-loved — yet also least understood — of all the chakras.
Intrigued? Good, because it’ll do your heart good to learn more! But first, a little background on why we’re talkin’ chakras…
Big Heart Tea Co. + Chakras = What’s the Connection?
We’re proud to announce a brand-new product: Big Heart Tea Co.’s Chakra Tea Boxed Set. This is a product near and dear to our hearts, and it’s been a long time coming!
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You may not know this, but Big Heart Tea Co. actually came about just as founder Lisa was coming out of ashram life.
Tea became one of the key manifestations of her goal to integrate the hatha / kundalini into her life.
💡 Here’s a fun fact: Big Heart Tea Co.’s original line of 7 teas was organized and inspired by the chakra system. Cup of Love is the brew we aligned to the heart chakra. Made with organic rose and organic tulsi, this nurturing rose tea tastes like loving-kindness, with a floral fragrance and flavor that will soothe and revive your senses. (We’ll talk about our suggested chakra ritual involving Cup of Love a little later.)
Don’t Know Much About the Chakras?
Not familiar with the chakra system? Don’t worry — That’s what this series of blog posts will explore by unpacking each chakra, one by one. We’ve also put together this nifty little primer on the chakras for you:
Check out our Chakra Basics post here
But here’s the nutshell version: Chakras are a series of energy systems throughout your body. Moving beyond just your body, this system can be used as an organizational tool to help you live a more integrated and connected life with yourself, others, and your surroundings.
Think of the chakra system as a ladder. It walks you through the basic feelings and senses that we have as humans. You can apply this to any creative process or any process in life. It is a model to connect within our human experience.
Circling back to tea, Big Heart Tea Co.’s chakra inspiration isn’t just about delivering yummy stuff in appealing packaging (though yes, that mattered too) — the herbs and message behind each tea are aligned with bringing a specific chakra into balance.
In this series of blog posts, we’ll dig deep into each of the chakras, including exploring its meaning and how to keep yours in balance with suggested practices, mantras, and yes — the perfect tea.
The Heart Chakra
The heart chakra, also known as anahata, is the fourth energy center. As you might guess, it’s associated with the emotional and physical heart. But while it’s most famous as the chakra of love, the heart chakra is more than just sappy love songs (though yes, it can be that too). It plays a pivotal role in your sense of overall well-being and in building meaningful relationships — both with yourself, other people, and the world around you.
In this post, we’ll go through all the important stuff: What is the heart chakra? How does it work? How can you keep the heart chakra balanced? And more. That’s a lot, so let’s get moving!
At-a-Glance: Heart Chakra Basics + Associations
Here’s what you need to know about the heart chakra.
What it is: The heart chakra rests in the center of the chakra system, and acts as a gateway between the lower and chakras, balancing the earthly body with the spiritual body. It’s connected with emotions (including love) and relationships.
Sanskrit Name for the root chakra: Anahata, which means “Unhurt, unstruck, and unbeaten.”
Where it is: The Heart Chakra is located in the center of your chest, in close proximity to the physical heart.
Associations:
- The heart chakra is associated with the element of air.
- The heart chakra is associated with the colors green and pink.
- The heart chakra is associated with the sound yam (rhymes with “mom”)
- It’s also associated with the yogic path of Bhakti yoga, a heart-centered practice.
Best tea for the root chakra: Big Heart Tea Co.’s Cup of Love — a kind and loving brew that’s made with just two simple ingredients (organic rose and organic tulsi) that nurture the heart and soul.
But these are just the basics. Let’s go into more detail below.
What is the Heart Chakra All About?
Your first guess is probably that the heart chakra’s about love. Yes, it’s about that, but it’s also seen as a gateway or bridge between the lower and upper chakras, meaning it straddles two worlds: It’s the resting point between your physical and astral body. Your heart chakra has its feet on the ground but its head in the sky. It’s associated with the element of air and is responsible for safekeeping and regulating prana, the life force energy inside of you.
Also worth noting: the heart chakra includes more than just the physical heart. It’s also associated with the lungs and thymus gland, a gland located between the sternum and lungs that helps create white blood cells and plays a powerful role in your all-important immune system.
The Importance of Keeping the Heart Chakra Balanced
A balanced heart chakra feels pretty good. Here’s how life might look with a balanced heart chakra:
- You feel unconditional love and respect for yourself and others.
- Your relationships are free of unhealthy attachments
- You are able to stay calm even when your external conditions are volatile
- You are able to forge deep and meaningful connections with others
- You trust others and are able to be vulnerable
- You feel comfortable and at ease with yourself.
On the flip side, if the heart chakra is out of balance, you might feel:
- Like you can’t fully connect with others
- Detached from yourself
- Fear of rejection
- Need to control
- A need to hide your vulnerability / act tough
- Over or under-dependent in relationships
- Constant loss and longing feelings, like there is a hole inside of you that needs to be filled
- Physical ailments such as poor circulation, aching in the heart, angina, or asthma
Don’t worry — most people feel some sort of an imbalance at some time or another. Happily, if your sacral chakra is feeling out of whack, there are some tried-and-true ways to bring it back into a happy place.
How to Balance Your Heart Chakra
Here are some basic practices that can help get you back in balance:
- Assume an attitude of gratitude. Make a list of things or people you’re thankful for. Better yet, let people know how thankful you are for them!
- Try yoga poses that open the heart (think: stretching open the chest muscles)
- Give loving-kindness meditation a whirl
Want a more specific prescription? Here’s a little ritual we devised to soothe the heart chakra:
Heart Chakra Ritual
Step 1: Show yourself some love — brew up some Cup of Love tea. Better yet, share some with a friend or loved one. For example, BHT founder Lisa brews it up with milk and honey and shares a cup with her daughter every night!
Step 2: Do heart-opening yoga poses: Backbends, even gentle or supported ones, open the vulnerable heart area and chest muscles, which tend to be tight due to an unsavory combo of bad posture and fear of opening up. Have you ever noticed that when you don’t feel safe, you tend to shield your physical heart from the world? So-called “heart opening” poses can gently coax your heart center open and let your heart breathe in air.
Need to bring on the heart chakra catharsis fast? Try Camel pose, a yoga asana where you kneel on the ground and arch your heart toward the sky, maybe reaching for your feet behind you, maybe not. (A version of this pose can also be done seated, with your back arched over the back of a chair that comes to mid-back height.) This potent pose can help you clear your heart energy. But take note: This pose is potent. It can release suppressed emotions, which can bring on a “healing crisis” (aka, you feel a little worse before you feel better).
Step 3: Love yourself with these mantras:
- I am loved
- I am open to giving and receiving love
- I forgive myself
Why We Coordinated Cup of Love to the Heart Chakra
Cup of Love is made with just two ingredients —organic rose, and organic tulsi. Simple, but powerful and heart-nourishing. Here’s what you need to know about each:
Rose: One of the best things about rose is that it has the power to give you a (literal) rosy glow. It’s rich in vitamins A and E, which can help hydrate the skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines. Plus, rose has been proven to soothe anxiety, which can help you be more present in life — and with others. In short, rose can make you look and feel better!
Tulsi: We’ve waxed poetic about the many benefits of Tulsi before, notably in this post. But to recap, tulsi, aka “holy basil,” is a powerful herb that is accessible, gentle, and full of medicinal benefits that will leave you peaceful and at ease. It’s rich in antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties, which makes it a healing powerhouse regardless of your ailment — it can help with colds and illness and overall improved immunity, but it can also help reduce stress levels and improve digestion.
When you put together these two deeply healing ingredients, you get a truly nourishing brew that tastes even better when you share it with someone you love.
Feel the love: Grab some Cup of Love right now!
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Important note from BHT founder Lisa Govro:
In offering our Chakra set, I feel it is important to acknowledging my own cultural background. As a white, cis-gendered woman of European descent teaching about the chakra system and tea, I must recognize that my cultural background might influence how I approach and present this knowledge. Please see this blog post for more information.