Root chakra: meaning, blockage signs and the body

The root chakra is the first of the seven chakras, placed at the base of the spine. It stands for safety, survival and the feeling of having solid ground under your feet. In the body it is linked with the legs and feet, the lower back, the hips, the bones and the adrenal glands, and among feelings with fear, anxiety and the fear of being left alone. When people say their root chakra is "blocked", they usually mean they feel unsafe, scattered or ungrounded.

That last idea belongs to spirituality, not medicine: there is no scientific evidence that chakras exist, so nothing can be measured or unblocked. What you feel, though, is worth listening to, and this guide shows where to look on our site. For the whole system, start with the seven chakras and the body.

Where is the root chakra, and what is it called?

• Sanskrit name: Mūlādhāra (Muladhara), usually translated as "root support" or "root of existence", from mula, root.
• Location: the base of the spine. Traditional descriptions place it near the tailbone (coccyx), with its point on the surface of the body between the perineum and the coccyx.
• Colour: red in the modern Western system. Traditional images show a red (or pink) lotus with four petals around a yellow square.
• Element: earth. Its seed syllable is lam.

In Hindu tantric yoga, Muladhara is the foundation of the "energy body", the place where the dormant energy called kundalini is said to rest, coiled like a snake, before it rises through the other centres. The modern lists of emotions, organs and "blockage symptoms" were added much later, in the 20th century, as the chakras and the body guide explains.

Which parts of the body are linked with the root chakra?

The root chakra is the part of you that touches the ground and carries the weight. In the modern map, and in the French tradition our site draws on, it is linked with:

• The legs and feet, which hold you up and take you forward. See legs and feet, leg pain and foot pain.
• The lower back and the tailbone, the base of the body's support. The tailbone is read as the seat of survival: food, shelter, protection, love. See lower back pain and sciatica.
• The hips, which join the trunk to the legs. See hips and hip pain.
• The bones, the most solid part of you, the body's own "earth". See joints and bones and osteoporosis.
• The adrenal glands, which make adrenaline and cortisol, the hormones of alarm. They are tied to the base centre and to the body's response to danger. See glands.
• The end of the bowel and elimination: holding on and letting go. See constipation and haemorrhoids.

Some French-language sources also place the genital organs and sexual energy with this base centre, where most Western books put them in the sacral chakra. The maps were drawn by many hands and do not always agree.

Which feelings are linked with the root chakra?

The root chakra concerns the most basic question of all: am I safe? The feelings tied to it follow from that.

• Fear: for your survival, your health, your money, your home. Spiritually, the adrenal glands are read as the body's alarm, ringing whether the danger is real or imagined.
• Anxiety: the constant background worry that something will run out or go wrong, and the restlessness that comes with it.
• Abandonment: the fear of being left without support, or of having to carry everything alone. It can feel like being a sheep far from its flock: lost, on the margins, without landmarks.

Close to these sit stress, worry and dependence, the feeling that your survival rests on one person or one job.

Emotions stored in the root chakra

Emotions are not literally stored in a chakra, or in an organ. "Stored" is a way of speaking about feelings that stay with you and seem to sit in a particular place. With that said, these are the themes most often placed at the root:

• Material insecurity. "I will run short", "I will never manage it". Spiritually, the lower back carries the fear of lacking money, work or possessions, and sometimes the habit of measuring your worth by what you own.
• Life changes that pull the ground away. Losing a job, retiring, a child leaving home, a separation: moments when the base you stood on moves.
• Mistrust and never feeling satisfied. When the base centre is out of balance, you may watch over your belongings, distrust others and always want more.
• Feeling lost. Fear of having taken the wrong road, of wasting time or money, of "losing your compass", and the stress of never allowing yourself a mistake.
• Dependence and being dominated. Staying in situations that should have ended long ago, out of doubt, or leaning on someone to meet needs you could meet yourself.
• Carrying everything. Feeling you are the pillar who can count only on yourself, or taking other people's problems "on your back".

Signs people describe as a blocked root chakra

In the chakra tradition, a root chakra that is out of balance is said to show in the body and in the mood. People commonly describe:

• feeling ungrounded, scattered or "not in your body";
• constant worry about money, food, housing or health;
• restlessness, or the opposite: heaviness, inertia, not wanting to face problems;
• distrust of others and difficulty feeling at home anywhere;
• low energy and discouragement, putting things off;
• tension or pain in the lower back, legs, feet or tailbone, constipation, or cold hands and feet.

Read these as the tradition's way of naming an experience, not as a checklist for your health. Every physical sign on that list has ordinary medical causes, and some need prompt care. Back pain with numbness around the genitals or anus, weakness in both legs, or new trouble controlling your bladder or bowels needs emergency care (999 in the UK). Blood in your poo, constipation that does not settle, unexplained weight loss, bone pain or swelling in a leg all deserve a GP. Lasting fatigue, low mood or anxiety are also reasons to see a doctor, not signs of a chakra.

A gentle practice for the root chakra

These practices are about feeling safe and grounded in your body. They do not treat any illness, and they need no belief in chakras to be pleasant.

Breathe low and slow

Sit on a chair with both feet flat on the floor, roughly hip-width apart, or lie down with your knees bent. Let your breath go down into your belly without forcing it. The NHS suggests breathing in gently through the nose and out through the mouth, counting to five each way if that helps, for at least five minutes. On each out-breath, feel the weight of your body resting on the chair or the floor.

Ground through your feet

Stand still for a minute. Notice your heels, the balls of your feet, your toes. Let your knees soften. Imagine roots growing down from the soles of your feet into the earth, the image most chakra teachers use for this centre. A slow walk, paying attention to each step, does the same thing on the move.

Write down what you need

Take a page and finish three sentences:

• "What makes me feel unsafe right now is…"
• "What I actually have today is…" (a roof, a meal, one person I can call)
• "One small thing that would make me feel more secure is…"

The middle sentence matters. Fear of lack often looks forward; writing down what is already there brings you back to the present.

Move the lower body

Gentle movement that uses the legs and hips is a natural fit: walking, climbing stairs, stretching the backs of the legs, yoga postures done close to the floor. Stay within what is comfortable, and stop if anything hurts. If you have back pain, the NHS advises staying active rather than resting in bed, and suggests seeing a GP or physiotherapist if it does not improve.

If you like sound

In the tradition, the seed syllable of Muladhara is lam. Some people like to hum or chant it slowly on the out-breath. Others prefer a low hum with no syllable at all. Either is a way of feeling the breath vibrate in the body.

What the root chakra asks of you

Spiritually, the turning point at the root is trust: that you can meet your own basic needs, that support can come from others in their own way rather than yours, and that a mistake is an experience rather than a catastrophe. In balance, this centre is described as waking up with energy, a taste for life and the courage to act, feeling at home among other people and on the earth.

You might ask yourself:

• Where in my life do I feel I have no ground under my feet?
• Whom or what am I depending on to feel safe?
• What would I do differently if I trusted that I will have what I need?

The next centre up is the sacral chakra, the seat of pleasure, desire and relationships. To see all seven at once, go back to the seven chakras and the body, or look at the emotions body map.

This guide is for reflection and general information. It does not diagnose or treat any condition. If you have a symptom that worries you, please see a doctor. In an emergency, call your local emergency number (999 in the UK).