Ajna Chakra - The Third Eye Centre

The Ajna chakra is situated in between the eyebrows, in the midbrain near the pituitary gland.  It is sometimes called the third eye as it is said to be the source of inner vision.  Science now tells us that where the yogis located Ajna happens to be the point where the right and left optic nerves cross in the brain so it literally is a third eye of sorts. 

The third eye is where Ida, Pingala and Sushumna meet. Ida is a nerve channel on the left side of Sushumna (the central channel) in which vital air passes through. It is also related to the left nostril, to the feminine, to Shakti, and to the coolness of the moon. Pingala is a nerve channel on the right side of Sushumna in which vital air passes. It is related to the right nostril, to the masculine, to Shiva and to the sun. 

The Sushumna nadi (channel) is the body’s great river, which runs from the base of the spine to the crown of the head, passing through each of the seven chakras. It is the channel through which kundalini and higher spiritual consciousness rises from its origin at Muladhara (root chakra)to its true home at the Sahasrara chakra at the crown of the head. In subtle terms, Sushumna is the path to enlightenment.

Ida and Pingala spiral around the Sushumna, crossing each other at every chakra, and all three meet at Anja, the command centre, between the eyebrows. The interaction between Ida and Pingala corresponds to the internal dance between intuition and rationality, consciousness and vital power and the right and left hemispheres of the brain.  

If your head is tilted too far upward then Ajna will become too open and you will be spaced out and prone to accidents (although very insightful spiritually).  If the head is too far forward (because of stress and tension) Ajna will stay closed.

Essentially this chakra is associated with the brain, and when this chakra is in balance, you can exhibit extraordinary clarity of thought, combining logical reasoning with intuition, knowingness and inspiration.  The third eye chakra strives for completeness. In terms of the self this means inner harmony between body, mind and spirit, and in terms of the Divine, this means harmony between the creator and the whole of creation itself.

As with any spiritual development opening the third eye chakra requires a level of intense honesty with both yourself and others.  Unflinching honesty can make your life – and other’s lives – quite uncomfortable at times.  When the third eye chakra is open and balanced, it accepts no excuses.  So, however difficult a choice may be if the third eye chakra knows it is the right one, you are compelled to follow that path.  Absolving yourself from responsibility by blaming your past on other people or things, simply will not work.  

Because the third eye chakra can make our lives so uncomfortable, most people find it easier to close it down.  By doing so you don’t need to worry about the path you are taking in life or about the effects of your words and actions on others – an opposite state to mindfulness, in which you examine the motivation behind every thought, deed, word and action.

However, when you close down the third eye a series of muddles and poor choices; you can lose your sense of purpose and become so self-absorbed that your relationships become dysfunctional. You might also suffer with headaches, sinus issues, blurred vision, eyestrain, seizures, hearing loss and hormonal issues. Emotionally you might suffer with mood swings, volatility, an inability to look at your own fears and an inability to learn from others. 

The spark of inspiration that is ignited by opening the third eye chakra exists in all of us.  When the third eye chakra’s energy is very strong, inspiration takes many positive forms: from flashes of intuition to sudden insights about how to solve a problem, from a sense of the Divine in all things to moments of pure clairvoyance.

Ajna is not thought of as being balanced or imbalanced the way the other chakras are.  Rather, Ajna is either open or closed.  When the mind is still and the lower chakras are in balance, then Ajna chakra opens to communicate with the higher intelligence of the crown chakra and brings you to that place of inspiration, clarity of thought and healing.  When the lower chakras are out of balance, it remains closed and you lose your ability to connect to the Divine.

 So in a sense there does need to be balance, a mix between the internal and the external.  The start of actually beginning to see what has always been there, though you never noticed it before – reading the energy, seeing the aura, sensing the person, place, thing etc.  The best way to do this is to be quiet and simply observe, see the colours, movements, shadows, mannerisms, spaces, time, grass grow, hear the noise, the silences, whispers on the wind, emotion on the breath, your inner voice.

 But remember that you are a spiritual being already, fully enlightened and already Divine so don’t spend all your time in meditation trying to become what you already are...get out and enjoy life physically, it is after all why you are here.

It is worth mentioning that on a hormonal level, the Ajna chakra is associated with the pituitary gland, which is often called the master gland, as it secretes hormones that control the activity of other endocrine glands and regulate various biological processes.  Ajna is therefore also thought of as the command centre of the glands that relate to each of the chakras.

There are various things you can do to connect more fully with this centre

·       Wear purple

·       Wear/hold/place amethyst in the third eye.

·       Alternate Nostril Breathing

·       A balanced yoga practice

·       Ayurveda – especially Shirodhara

·       Receiving Reiki, but also becoming Reiki attuned. Reiki will heighten your connection to your intuition.

·       Transcendental meditation;

·       Burning sandalwood;

·       Sound healing – gong baths or listening to someone chanting ‘Om’.

·       Chanting ‘Om’ yourself.

Colour: Indigo

Element: Ether

Bija Seed Mantra: Om

Yantra: Two petals of pure white colour.

Related organs: Hypothalamus, limbic system and the neighbouring region with connections to the pituitary gland. 

Balanced attributes: Intuition, clairvoyance, imagination, trust in life, discernment.

Examples of possible chakra deficiency or excess: Absent-mindedness, mental confusion, inability to cope with day-to-day life, self-hatred, nightmares, headaches, accidents.