Anahata: Healing the Heart Chakra

Want to learn more about Anahata, also known as your heart chakra? Discover how to heal, balance, and restore harmony to the energy center of love and compassion. Plus, don’t miss the heart-centered affirmations and journal prompts dedicated to aligning you with your pure, loving energy within. And be sure to check out the links to learn more about chakras below!

Also, be sure to scroll to the bottom of this page for some awesome freebies! You’ll receive 40 free printable affirmations and 30 journal prompts to open and heal the heart chakra. Don’t miss these powerful healing tools!

Introduction to Anahata: The Heart Chakra

Chances are, even if you know nothing about chakras, you at least have some understanding of the heart chakra and its primary emotions and attributes.

Your heart chakra, or Anahata, is the energy center for love, compassion, peace, and connection. The love you cultivate within your heart chakra is deep, pure, and unconditional. And this love extends throughout your whole self and beyond.

This love means having unconditional love for yourself, no matter where you are in life, and having deep compassion for your imperfections and mistakes. This love means knowing you are worthy of love, kindness, and understanding no matter what.

And this love also extends far beyond yourself. When your heart chakra is balanced, you feel a deep sense of connection with others. In fact, this connection may feel so deep, you know that you’re not truly separate from anyone else.

Instead, you know and feel that you are connected to all.

Why Balancing the Heart Chakra is Important

The primary emotions associated with the heart chakra – love and compassion – may not be super surprising. In fact, what may be the most surprising discovery about the heart chakra is that its primary color is green, not pink or red.

But when you think about it, the color green is kind of perfect for this energy center.

Green is the color of harmony and balance. It symbolizes nature and life. It is the color of renewal and growth. Of perfect harmony and perfect health.

And that’s what love is, too. Love is harmony. Love is renewal. Love is our foundation. Love is life.

So you can see why keeping the heart chakra in balance is important.

When the energy in our heart center flows freely in and out, we are in alignment with our highest, truest, most authentic selves. We know that love is more than just a feeling; it is our very essence. We are kinder, more compassionate, more understanding, and more forgiving. We love ourselves enough to know our inherent worthiness, and we love others enough to know that we are connected to all.

Love is not weakness. Love is not sacrifice. Love is not an afterthought.

Love is strength. Love is your foundation. Love is your superpower.

Heart Chakra Attributes

• Sanskrit Name: Anahata (“Unstruck”)
• Location: Heart/Center of chest
• Color: Green
• Body Parts: Heart, Lungs, Shoulders, Arms, Ribs, Breasts, Diaphragm
• Symbol: Twelve-petaled lotus with two intersecting triangles in the center
• Element: Air
• Mantra: YAM
• Gemstones: Rose Quartz, Jade, Green Calcite, Emerald, Rhodonite, Pink Opal
• Essential Oils: Lavender, Rose, Jasmine, Geranium, Goldenrod, Cypress

Signs of a Balanced Heart Chakra

As you might be able to guess, love is at the center of a balanced heart chakra. When this energy center is balanced, our thoughts and actions are aligned with the highest frequency of pure and unconditional love.

When the energy in your heart chakra is flowing freely, you feel loved, loving, and lovable. Your heart is open, and you feel a strong sense of connection to others. As mentioned in the intro, you may even feel like there is no separateness; you are one with all.

Here are some of the signs of a balanced heart chakra:

• Loving
• Lovable
• Peaceful
• Compassionate
• Connected to others
• Generous
• Kind
• Empathetic
• Trustful
• Openhearted
• Serene
• Understanding
• Acceptance for self and others
• Unconditional love for self and others

Signs of an Imbalanced Heart Chakra

Imbalances in the chakras mean they can become either overactive or underactive. While a balanced heart chakra means you feel connected to others and enjoy the presence of others, an overactive heart chakra means you may become a little too attached to the presence of others, sometimes becoming clingy and dependent on one or more people. On the other end, if your heart chakra is underactive, you may excessively self-isolate and feel fearful of intimacy.

Here is a list of signs that your heart chakra may be imbalanced:

• Depressed
• Lonely
• Feeling unloved/unlovable
• Self-isolates (excessively)
• Fearful of intimacy
• Possessive
• Jealous
• Defensive
• Judgmental
• Spiteful
• Selfish
• Co-dependent
• Clingy
• Smothering

Physical Signs of an Imbalanced Heart Chakra

In addition to experiencing emotional, physical, and spiritual ailments due to energy imbalances, you may also experience physical symptoms. With an imbalanced heart chakra, many of the physical symptoms you may experience correlate to the chest, areas around your chest, and your blood and circulatory system.

Here’s a list of the physical ailments you may experience with an imbalanced heart chakra:

• Heart Disorders
• High/Low Blood Pressure
• Circulatory Problems
• Asthma
• Chest Pain
• Muscle Tension

Heart Chakra Affirmations

Affirmations are positive, present-tense statements that uplift, encourage, boost your self-belief, and support your total wellbeing. I love using affirmations not only to help with balancing and healing my chakras but as part of a complete self-care routine.

When using affirmations to balance and heal your chakra, really focus on the feelings of love, belonging, acceptance, peace, and compassion. Go beyond just reciting the words and allow yourself to really feel the positive feelings that your affirmations bring.

Here’s a list of beautiful, empowering affirmations for your heart chakra:

• I am loved, loving, and lovable.
• I choose to be kind to myself and love myself unconditionally.
• I am aligned with the highest frequency of love.
• I fully love and embrace who I am, even as I continue to grow.
• My heart is open, loving, and pure.
• I give and receive love effortlessly and unconditionally.
• I am worthy of unconditional love.
• I am a beacon of love and compassion.
• I am able to live in love.
• I lead with love.
• I love and accept myself for exactly the person I am right now.
• Love and compassion are my superpowers, and they will carry me as far as I want to go.
• Every day, I love myself a little more.
• I am love.

For more powerful heart chakra affirmations, check out my post, 40 Heart Chakra Affirmations for Unconditional Love. And be sure to scroll to the bottom of this page to get your free printable affirmations and journal prompts!

Heart Chakra Journal Prompts

Like affirmations, journaling is another powerful practice that supports your total wellbeing. I like to journal for thirty minutes first thing after I wake up to set a positive tone for the day (with a freshly brewed, hot cup of coffee, of course). However, I know a lot of other people like to journal in the evening to help them leave work behind and unwind for the night. There is no right or wrong place or time; the key is to find a time that works for you.

The journal prompts below are designed to help you get in touch with your heart chakra. I’m not a big fan of rules when it comes to creativity and self-care activities, so if you find yourself straying from the prompts at all, that’s okay! Your writing may take you to unexpected places, like a distant memory or a vision of the future. For the purposes of balancing your heart chakra, just remember to stay heart-centered and hold the intention of healing, activating, or even just getting to know your heart chakra a little better.

• Visualize your highest and most authentic self with a balanced and open heart chakra. Write about a day as your most loving and compassionate self. How do you feel when you wake up in the morning? How do you treat people? How do you treat yourself? Imagine how you would react to obstacles and roadblocks. Discuss your core values and purpose, and write about how grateful you feel to be aligned with these values.

• Without judgment, reflect upon these questions: Are there any situations in my life where I excessively self-isolate and withdraw from others? Or do I depend on and need others to feel content? What can I do to help myself in these situations? How can I find a harmonious balance between feeling peaceful and content when I’m alone and when I’m with others?

• What does it mean to me to be compassionate? How can I show myself more compassion? How can I show compassion to others? Why is it important to me to be a compassionate being?

• Look within and reflect upon these questions: How can I be kinder to myself? How can I show myself more love? When my inner bully comes out, what can I do to show myself more kindness and love? How can I be more compassionate with myself when I make a mistake? What self-care practices can I do in my everyday life to show myself unconditional love?

For more heart chakra journal prompts, check out my post, 30 Journal Prompts to Open and Heal the Heart Chakra. And be sure to scroll to the bottom of this page to get your free printable affirmations and journal prompts!

Activating and Healing the Heart Chakra (Anahata)

Color Therapy

Immerse yourself in the color green. Eat green foods, such as broccoli, spinach, green apples, and kiwi. Drink some tasty matcha. Write heart-centered affirmations on green post-it notes and stick them up around you. Wear green. Write with a green pen. Paint with the color green. Hang or sit some green objects around your workspace.

Walk in Nature

The color of the heart chakra is green, and its element is air. Combine these attributes by taking a long, cleansing walk in nature, breathing in the fresh air. If you live near a forest or a beautiful, green meadow, this is ideal, but just taking a walk and getting some fresh air can do wonders for healing your heart chakra. You might also go to the beach on a breezy day and let the cool wind dance across your skin.

Drive with the Windows Down

This may not heal your heart chakra on its own, but if you’re out driving and it’s a nice day out, lower your windows and embrace the feeling of the air blowing across your skin.

Journaling

You can use the journal prompts above or simply write about what’s going on in your heart. How does your heart feel? How can you open yourself up to more love in your life? What past wounds still need to be healed? I also love incorporating affirmations into my journaling. When working with the heart chakra, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with simply writing an empowering, soul-healing list of heart-centered affirmations in your journal. (In fact, this is 100% right.)

Yoga

Yoga is a beautiful way to restore harmony and balance among your energy centers. To heal the heart chakra, focus on heart-opening positions.

Here are a few positions that help with healing the heart chakra:

• Camel Pose
• Wheel Pose
• Handstand
• Fish Pose
• Extended Puppy Pose
• Bridge Pose
• Cow Face Pose

For more, check out this video from Yoga With Adriene: Heart Chakra Yoga for Beginners.

Meditation

Visualize a beautiful green light at your heart center. See that light growing brighter as you inhale and bigger as you exhale. You can also visualize a green rosebud at the center of your chest. As you inhale and exhale, the buds slowly unfolds and bloom.

And if you prefer guided meditations, or just want to give it a try, here are some free guided meditations for the heart chakra on the Insight Timer app:

• Heart Chakra Activation by Niajae Wallace
• Anahata – Help to Balance the Heart Chakra by Scott Hutchison-McDade
• Heart Chakra – Heal, Open, & Align by Naomi Goodlet
• Heart Chakra Opening by Ola Radka

Anahata Affirmations

You can use the affirmations above or come up with your own heart-centered affirmations. When you use affirmations for your heart chakra, focus on feelings and beliefs that are rooted in love, compassion, understanding, peace, kindness, and connection – both for yourself and others. You can choose to recite your affirmations in your head or out loud, or you can write them down in a journal or a notebook. No matter what method you choose, open yourself up to feelings of love. Know that you are worthy and deserving of being loved, and know that it is safe for you to show love. You might even place your hands out in front of you, palms to the sky, and gently repeat, “I allow love. I accept love. I receive love.”

Anahata Gemstones

Crystals support and promote balance and harmony within your energy centers. When working with your heart chakra, crystals help with healing past hurts, restoring your belief in love, and opening your heart again to love and trust.

One of my favorite methods of using crystals is through meditation. You can hold the crystal while meditating, or when balancing the heart chakra, you can lay down and set the crystal on your heart center. I also love wearing crystals as jewelry. Wearing an emerald necklace near your heart is a beautiful way to support balance and healing.

Here are a few gemstones associated with the heart chakra:

• Rose Quartz
• Jade
• Green Calcite
• Emerald
• Rhodonite
• Pink Opal

To learn more about cleansing, programming, and using crystals, check out my blog post about crystals here!

Anahata Essential Oils

Using essential oils is a really wonderful practice for balancing the chakras for so many reasons: they smell good, there are so many ways to use them, and you can incorporate essential oils with most of the other practices on this list. For instance, you can use any of the essential oils below in your diffuser while journaling or as you’re meditating. Just make sure to set aside some dedicated time for yourself, and set the intention to heal, balance, and restore harmony to your energy centers.

Below are just some of the essential oils you could use to balance the heart chakra. Also, be sure to check out what each individual brand offers, as some have lines specifically for the chakras!

• Lavender
• Rose
• Jasmine
• Geranium
• Goldenrod
• Cypress
• Bergamot

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And there you have it: a detailed guide to all things Anahata, or the heart chakra. If you want to learn more about the chakras, be sure to check out the other posts in the Chakras series, linked at the top of this page.

And for more chakra resources, positive affirmations, self-love tools, and more, be sure to follow me on Pinterest and Instagram!

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