As the title suggests, this chakra defines, assimilates and
controls water element of the body. The percentage share of
water element in the body is approximately 75, as is the case
with mother earth. Element water is the most prudent and
influential one, defining emotions, their reactions and also how
and what would be the possibilities of your movements in the
society, family and other facets of life. This chakra should not
be understood as a place where this element is hosted or as a
kind of reservoir, but instead, this chakra has the confluence
points which define/regulate this element. Additionally, this
element has the ability to respond to other poignant energies,
which may be embodied or disembodied or visible or
invisible—as what influences you, may not necessarily be
visible to the eye. For example, the air which defines the
temperature is not visible. Likewise, there are so many
energies which are not visible to the naked eye but are still
poignant). The Sanskrit name for this chakra is swadisthana
chakra स्वाधिष्ठानचक्र where your being is established. “Swa”
means self and “disthana” means established.

मेरुबहयाप्रदेसेससीमिहिरसिरेसव्यदकसेनिसन्नेमध्येनाड़ीसुसुमनातृतीया-
गुनामयीकंदरायाचिराशटाधतूरा-समेरा-पुस्पाग्रथीता-
तमावापुहकंदमध्याचिराशटावज्राख्यामेधरदेस:चिराशिपरिगत: मध्यमेस:

ज्वलनती:

​

 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog
The aforementioned verse in Sanskrit, for the sake of
understanding the ethos of what is being said and referred,
would broadly translate to:
In the space outside the Meru, placed on the left and the
right, are the two Siras, Sasi and Mihira. The nadi sushmna,
whose substance is the threefold Gunas, is in the middle. She
is a form of moon, sun, and fire. Her body, a string of
blooming Dhatura flowers, extends to the middle of the Kanda
to the head, and the Vajra inside her extends, shining from the
Medhra to the head.

The techniques enshrined in the Vedas are targeted
towards not only strengthening one particular element but
rather how to balance all the elements in the body to have
presumptuous gains. That being the ethos, the metal associated
with this chakra is gold, which is hot in nature and is said to
stimulate heat/fire within the body. Wearing gold when the
water element is imbalanced depends on what is desired by an
individual; in the sense of aspirations an individual would like
to pursue in life. However, if one is aspiring to excel in the
spiritual world, then inexorably, gold is not the metal that one
should be wearing. However, if one is having issues with the
growth path in career, wearing of gold would be conducive.
Talking further about the confluence points, this chakra is
host to two types of energies, namely, the energy coming from
the root chakra which is kind of already established and
defined and the other energies coalescent with this point
emanating from other parts of the body. As a result, this
chakra is perceived more prudent as the energy released by
this chakra post assimilation, would be having its effect on the
other chakras as well in addition to affecting the root chakra.
Significantly, this defines as to what would be the nature of
further transmissions from the root chakra.

The pronouncements from this chakra define the taste
worthiness on your tongue. Simply putting, if you feel
tasteless, recourse to unblocking the sacral chakra would be
the best way to overcome it. Mostly, this tasteless virtue

Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
develops, post-intensive medication and of lately, as to what is
being observed in the case of people getting inflicted with
Covid-19. Since the taste generally, and of life, is governed by
this chakra, one can assume that the intimate relationships and
desires are also governed by this chakra. So, if you are feeling
hapless about the fervour in life, you need to approach this
chakra and cure it to have the sense of rejoicing.
This chakra controls and regulates apaan vayu आपानवायू
which is responsible for the excretory functions (like sweat,
urine etc.) and in ladies, it has an additional role in creating a
safe passage for the foetus during the delivery. Prithvi mudra
is a mudra for this chakra, which is formed by joining the tips
of the thumb and the ring finger. This chakra, as mentioned
above, controls the emotions apart from associating with the
warmth in that emotion. Intensity of love and prejudice is also
defined by this chakra.

This chakra has six inlets/outlets, creating 6 major and 38
minor notes of sound during the receiving, assimilation and
transfer of energy, and is mild red in colour. The six petals
represent the following modes of consciousness, also known
as vrittis : affection , pitilessness , feeling of all-destructiveness,
delusion , disdain , and suspicion .
Swadisthana is often associated with pleasure, sense of
oneself, relationships, sensuality and procreation. Its element
is water and the colour is orange. It is blocked by guilt.
Swadisthana is associated with the unconscious and emotion s.
It is closely related to the mooldhara . Mooldhara is where the
different samskaras (potential karmas ) lie dormant, and
swadisthana is where these samskaras find expression.
Swadisthana encompasses the unconscious desires,
especially the sexual desire . It is often conveyed that raising
the kundalini shakti (energy of consciousness) above
Swadisthana is difficult. Many Hindu saints have had to face
sexual temptations associated with this chakra.
One who meditates on swadisthana is believed to have
acquired the following siddhis , viz. freedom from enemies, the

 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog
status of a lord among the yogis , eloquence and clarity (the
flow of words resonating like nectar in a well-reasoned
discourse), awareness of astral entities and the ability to taste
anything desired for oneself or others. Lord Vishnu is the
presiding devta देवता, since he is worshipped as the god who
takes care of life and the life belongings and this chakra, plays
a similar role in life. The beej mantras associated with Lord
Vishnu are the ones which are recited for the stimulation and
activation of this chakra which makes a person punctual and
adhering to the timings. Coming late and not sticking to the
time schedules is also an indication of dysfunctional sacral
chakra.
In addition to the taste and fervour, this chakra is also
significantly responsible for the sensory aspects of the body.
The way one perceives and conceives a situation and the
corresponding reaction to those situations is more or less
defined and governed by this sacral chakra. We can
comfortably deduce that a defined behaviour and action
pertaining to this chakra is quite crucial for a successful and
impactful societal life. In addition, if one desires to make it
large in life, especially in the field of creativity, or for that
matter, even to have the ability to express oneself, one
shouldn’t be ignoring this chakra at all. It won’t be wrong to
mention or conclude that this chakra encompasses the
possibilities to either make or break. If functional at an
optimum level, the person would have all the desired virtues of
life, would be appreciated and would garner accolades.
However, if this chakra exhibits dysfunctionality, it can result
in irritation and negative thinking in a
person—schadenfreude/epicaricacy being the dominant
emotion.
Pertinently, this chakra is helpful in designing and drawing
a framework of life that one desires. Therefore, it is important
that this ever-important foundational chakra is not neglected.
Many illnesses that can originate from this energy center are
manifest simply due to the fear of losing control of our

Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
relationships with others and even our binding to physical
engagements like business deals or projects we are closely
attached to.

A person’s desires, needs, longings, and urges arise from
this chakra. In other words, this chakra facilitates what you
experience through your senses—pleasurable or
uncomfortable—things that you want and the things for which
you aren’t appreciative about. The chakras function as a sort of
limbic system, although working in tandem, yet their motions
may not be corresponding to the next in order, but rather can
be opposite in direction. This limbic system processes all the
experiences and consequently results in secretion of joy or
sorrow. This chakra contributes emotions to the limbic system.
In psychological terms, sacral chakra guides a person towards
sense of satisfaction. Spiritually, it instigates the urge of
connecting with the energies in higher dimensions, in addition
to providing a sense of solace and harmony within, thereby
resulting in emotional stability. The ability to sense deeper and
hidden emotions is the key to realisation and activation of
sacral chakra. As it is, these unexpressed emotions are kind of
responsible for it to be blocked in the first place (these
emotions could be owed to your own understanding about the
situations in life or the cynical remarks aired by others).
Challenges arise when we experience the inability to
create physical expressions of our life outside the familial
authority of the first chakra. In such a scenario, we are
bringing baggage from the mooldhara into our sacral chakra.
Imbalances in sacral chakra can manifest in low confidence,
lack of motivation, inability to create intimate connection with
others, lack of interest in self-expression or artistic abilities,
infertility, urinary problems, difficulties in giving birth,
producing orgasms and low libido.

Prevalence of a certain tendency has been observed
regards the stretching of system beyond its existing limits,
guided by the emotion of “no pain no gain”. This principle
may be true and relevant otherwise but not in yog. A blend of

6 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog
sense and sensations is necessary and one should always avoid
any sort of pain whilst undertaking any of the yog postures.
May it be physical or related to breathing there should never
be a sentiment of stretching beyond one’s comfortable limits.
The sensation of awareness and consciousness should always
prevail. However, if there is a pain in the body, the awareness
has been compromised and hence the results so attained from
the exercises too have been compromised.
A few of the common health problems which are fallout of
an imbalanced sacral chakra include:
• Chronic lower back pain
• Arthritis
• Genital or sexual problems
• Hip issues

Swadisthana is located at two finger-widths above the
mooldhara chakra मूलाधार or the root chakra which is located
in the coccyx (tailbone). Its corresponding kshetram or “place”
is in the front of the body, barely below the belly button. It is
connected with the sense of taste (the tongue) and
reproduction (the genitals). It is often associated with the testes
and the ovaries . They produce hormones viz. testosterone or
estrogen , which influence the sexual behaviour. They are
stored in areas where genetic information lies dormant, much
like the way the samskaras समस्कार lie dormant within the
swadisthana.
The endeavour of undertaking the exercises should first be
understood before putting them into practice. The ethos of all
the exercises/yog for this chakra is to align the grounded
energy (mooldhara) with sushumna nadi सुषुम्नानाड़ी, which is
the only polarity you have to connect body with the cosmic.
Post realising and knowing as to what you are about to
engage into, let me tell you the processes by which you would
be able stimulate the sacral chakra. As mentioned in the
previous chapter, there are several paths that you may choose,
to achieve your goal of activating the sacral chakra. These are:

7 Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
1. Breathing स्वाँस
2. Physical Yog योग
3. Hand Formulations बंध
4. Focus-based Exercises ध्यानक्रिया
5. Mantras Recitation मंत्रउच्चारण
6. Naad Kriya धुनीयोग 
7. Yantra Sadhna यंत्रसाधना
8. Tantra Sadhna तंत्रसाधना
Now, I shall walk you along all of these processes for
stimulating and hence activating the sacral chakra.
Breathing स्वाँस
Breath, which is the essence of living, is equally prudent
in its attribute so far as kundalini yog is concerned and holds
true even for the sacral chakra. For the stimulation of this
chakra, following are the steps which you must adopt:
(a) Sense the inhaling of your breath.
(b) Follow your breath till the lungs (do not forget to observe
the back of lungs too).
(c) Feel the change and effects, transpiring because of the
breath.
(d) Follow the breath back to your nostrils till the time it is
thrown out of the system.
You need to be observant at all times as any wavering
during the process would deprive you of the developments.
Importantly, at any point of time, you should not try altering
the normal pace of breathing.
Physical Yog योग
Before you embark upon the physical exercises, yog,
kindly adhere to the following so that you are in harmony with
yourself and the results obtained post the exercises should
extend a comforting feeling instead of causing anxiety.

 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog

1. Place yourself in sidh aasan सिद्धआसन (you may start by
sitting with a rigid back so that the spine is erect, and both
your feet are touching the ground).
2. Now with your pelvis, try and push yourself downwards and
simultaneously, with your shoulders and chest, try to lift
yourself (don’t get up, just exert the force).
3. While maintaining the position as mentioned in point 2, try
and hold your breath and while releasing it, exhale it from
your mouth, enacting it as a “vomiting” action. Now, repeat
the breathing process at least five times in the above described
manner to ease yourself from any thoughts or stress in order to
comprehend with yourself and motions in the body.
(Refer to Illustration 4.1: Sidh Aasan सिद्धआसन at Page No. 90)
Supt Badhakon Aasan सुप्तबधकोणआसन
This aasan is helpful in improving the productive health,
both in men and women, in addition to providing relief from
stiff hip as it helps in lubricating the pelvis and the hip area.
This aasana can be performed by the starters by following
the below two steps:
1. Lie down comfortably on your back with a stretched out
position to the front.
1. Now bend your knees while lying on your back in such a
manner so as to form the shape of a flower vas. Further,
stretch your arms out with palms facing upwards but
keeping them below the shoulder level.
Now, try to touch the knees of the bent legs with each
other while maintaining the bent position. Try to inhale when
touching the knees together and exhale while bringing back
the legs on to the ground. At no point, you should experience
any sort of stress, may it be during the stretching or while
contracting and touching of the knees or while breathing. The
objective is to remain calm and relaxed during the entire
course of exercise and avoid stress. It is not necessary or
mandatory that you should be able to complete the entire
exercise from the very onset. Slowly, as you gain strength and

Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
energy, you would be able to complete the exercise by its very
own ethics.

Anand Baal Aasan आनंदबालआसन
This aasana is more or less inspired from a child, who
rejoices the sense of being alive and while enjoying this
jubilation, tends to feel the physical organs by touching them.
This aasan is beneficial in lessening pain during the
menstruation cycle, especially in the teen age and is also
helpful in augmenting hunger. In this aasan, the stretching and
contraction is targeted towards touching the heels of the feet
with palms when the arms are stretched out. There is no
alteration of breath and no feel of sagacity in the physical
body.

For performing this aasan, lie on your back and bend your
knees, with your legs raised from the ground. Now grope your
legs with your arms from the inner side of the legs and try and
hold/touch the heels of your feet. Hold onto this position while
breathing normally. Hereafter, try and pull your legs towards
your shoulders while maintaining a “no stress” sentiment and
any heaviness in your breath. Maintain this position for a
while before releasing your legs and lying down on your back
in a relaxed position. Repeat this exercise for at least five to
seven times before moving onto the next one.

During the course, initially you may experience some
rigidity in legs and thighs but it should not be a matter of
concern as one would be able to overcome it with regular
practice schedules. However, I do repeat, under no
circumstances, you should stretch yourself to the levels
whereby pain or stress is felt. Supposedly, that would prove
detrimental in familiarizing yourself with the awareness of the
body and the sense of enjoyment of the aasana.
 

 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog
Jathraparivart Aasan ज्ठरापरिवर्तआसन
In this aasan, lie down on your back with arms stretched out
at shoulder height. Now while lying, bend your knee and pull up
the leg towards your chest. While the leg is airborne, try to place
yourself on the ground on the opposite side with the bent knee.
While maintaining this position, tilt your head in the opposite side
from the side of the bent knee. Hold your body in this stretched
position while ensuring that the comfort level is not compromised
with any related stress. Repeat this exercise for the other leg too
whilst ascertaining all the other prescribed details, including the
head to tilt in the opposite direction from the bent knee.
This aasana is advantageous in relieving strain and stress
in the spine and pelvis area, and is also helpful in improving
digestion and hunger enhancement.

Badhakon Aasan बधकोणआसन
This aasan is performed while maintaining a sitting
posture. Sit on the floor with an erect back and bend your
knees by joining your feet together. While placed in this
position, compress your knees further with your feet joined to
each other towards the groin area (the extent of the
compression should be comfortable and at no instance should
you injure your inner thighs). Hold onto this position till the
time you don’t get breathless or feel heaviness while
breathing. Maintain the posture before returning to the position
of front legs fully stretched. Relax for a while before repeating
the exercise. For the starters, it would be advisable to monitor
their stretching ability. Feel the contentment of your stretching
limits till the time you are able to bring your feet near the
groin area and your knees are able to touch the ground.
This aasana is beneficial in rectifying discomforts in the hips
and pelvis area while stimulating the groin area. Improvement in
digestion is another added benefit.
 

 Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
Upavistha Konaasan उपविष्ठाकोणआसन
In this aasan, you have to stretch your legs sideways while
being placed in a sitting position. Hereafter, bend forward to
touch the ground with your chest. While touching the ground
with your chest, try and grip the thumb of your feet. Hold onto
this position for a while without any undue stress in the back,
pelvis, groin and inner thigh areas. Now, release the grip and
return to your sitting posture with legs stretched sideways.
Relax for a while before repeating the exercise. Additionally,
do exercise caution not to stress yourself; for completing the
posture at the very onset, would involve rigorous training
before it can be achieved.
This aasana helps in removing blockages in the groin area
while providing flexibility to the hips. It would also strengthen
your back to facilitate a correct posture.

Agnisthamb Aasan अग्निस्तम्भआसन 
In this aasan, you need to sit down on the floor with an erect
back. Hereafter, place your left shin over your right thigh. There
could be issues with people having stiff back or hips. However,
over a period of time, they would be able to inculcate the
flexibility to perform this aasana. When you have managed to put
your shin on the thigh, try reaching out to the floor with hands
and touch the same. Now, aiming at touching the ground with
your chest, use your hands to repulse this movement. To mention
again, do not strain yourself beyond the comfortable limits.
Maintain this posture as long as there is no stress in the body and
no heaviness in the breath is evident. At an advanced level, you
can attempt to hold onto your breath by inhaling more and
holding the breath for a longer period of time. While sustaining
this posture, try to hold yourself without any breath, meaning no
inhaling for a brief period of time after exhaling.
This aasan has been assumed helpful in easing stiffness in
the hips and the pelvis area in addition to providing

 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog
stimulation to the naadi नाड़ी, which is instrumental in
facilitating energy towards the sacral chakra from the root
chakra. This aasan shall also provide strength to your back to
enable long duration meditation.

Uttan Aasan उत्तासआसन
This aasan would hold its validity for the first four
chakras, as mentioned and illustrated in the previous chapter
on root chakra. For this chakra, there is a variation in the way
one is supposed to perform this aasan. The holding period and
stretching would be more in comparison to what you would
undergo in the case of muldhara chakra.

Adho Mukha Aasan आधमुख़ासआसन
As is the case with uttan aasan उत्तासआसन, even this aasan
would be repeated for stimulation and activation of this
chakra, with a variation in the placement of legs. For this
chakra, the legs have to be spread wider in comparison to their
stance in the root chakra. Moreover, you are expected to hold
your breath during the entire period of this posture with the
remaining procedures continuing to be the same.

Anjaney Aasan आंजनेयआसन 
In this aasan, the stretching of the back would be done
with assistance from chest, shoulders and arms. While
standing in an erect position, move your right leg forward and
bend it while keeping the left leg stretched in the same
position. With a bent right leg and a stretched left leg, try to
stretch your straight arms towards the back and hold your

 Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…
breath while maintaining the position. At no point, you should
outstretch yourself beyond the comfortable limits or feel
breathless. Now, release the position and return to the standing
one. Relax for a while and repeat the exercise by interchanging
the posture of legs—left leg would now be in the bent position
and the right leg would be in the stretched position. The
backward movement and stretching of the arms would remain
the same as would be holding of the breath for that period.
This aasana is beneficial in clearing the nerve blockings,
in addition to easing stiffness in the shoulders, and providing
relief and strength to the cervical.

Uttanpristh Aasan उत्तानपृष्ठआसन
For performing this aasan, lie down on your chest with
legs fully stretched out. Now, pull back your arms and bend
your elbows, with legs in a stretched position. While resting
the upper torso on your bent elbows and legs being stretched
out, bend your right leg and try bringing it close to your chest.
Hold onto this position while maintaining breathing at a
normal pace. You can now return back to the resting position
with your chest touching the ground. Repeat the above process
by engaging the other leg, trying to touch the chest.

Ekpaskot Aasan एकपसकोत 
In this aasan, lie down on your back with arms
comfortably resting by the side of your body. Now, bend both
your legs and touch base of both the feet, forming a kind of
triangle. Hold this position for a while before releasing it.
Repeat the exercise for almost ten to twelve times. This aasan
is rewarding in controlling and regulating water element in the
body. This aasan may also be chosen in case of hyper anxiety
following due consultation with the doctor.

14 A Comprehensive Guide to Kundalini and Chakra Yog

Hand Formulations
Surya mudra सूर्यामुद्रा is formed by joining the tips of
thumb and the ring finger. This can be performed while sitting
in sidh aasan सिद्धआसन or in padmaaasan पद्माआसन. Inhale
almost double the air than your normal capacity and hold the
breath in your belly by protruding it outwards.
Maintain this position as long as you can and then gently
exhale, taking thrice the time of what was employed while
inhaling. Would strongly recommend seeking medical opinion
about your physical health, before initiating this exercise.
(Refer to Illustration 4.13: Hand Formulations [Surya Mudra) at Page No. 96)
Mantra Recitation
The mantra for this chakra is to be recited while exhaling
VNVNVNVNVNVNVNANANANANANVANVANVANVAMVA

MVAM

The duration as to how you can recite the mantra at one go,
would entirely depend upon the strength of this chakra. You can
start by reciting small notes of this mantra and continue as per
your comfort level.
Naad Kriya नादयोग़
In this, the focus has to be drawn towards the swadisthana
chakra and subsequently, the confluence is observed and
recognized by hearing to the phonemes created by the
handshake and handoffs. To recognise the same, the chakra
has to be activated and should be in full strength.
Anything deficient won’t bring in the desired
results—either you won’t be able to hear anything at all and
even if you do hear by forcing yourself onto it, it would be
nothing more than a “hallucination”.

15 Swadisthana Chakra: Controlling the Water Element of…

Yantra Sadhna यंत्रसाधना
The physical body yantra for this chakra and in fact for all
the chakras is the same. You may prefer doing the physical
exercise of forming the yantra, and then implement any of the
prescribed ways to activate your swadisthana chakra.
Tantra Sadhna तंत्रसाधना
As mentioned in the previous chapter, while administering
this procedure, it would be better to have the physical presence
and guidance of a teacher. I would abstain in highlighting any
of the tantric procedures out here because these procedures
don’t leave you with the levy of error, and anything performed
inaccurately would be detrimental in nature. Kindly seek the
advice of your teacher/guru, and attempt to do this step in their
presence.

​