In this article: Discover the best yoga poses for the Crown chakra and their benefits!
Do you feel blocked or disconnected from your higher self? Looking for a way to be more in touch with your spiritual side and live up to your highest potential?
Consider balancing your crown chakra through yoga! Believe it or not, certain poses can help open the energy pathways within you to access your inner wisdom and creativity.
Whether you’re new to yoga or an experienced practitioner looking for an extra push of insight into their practice, mastering the art of connecting with your crown chakra is a great place to start.
Read on to discover the ten best yoga poses for the crown chakra and their benefits!
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Crown Chakra Characteristics
Color: White, Gold, Violet
Element: Pure Spirit
Quality: Fulfillment
Gland: Pituitary
Nerve Plexus: Central Nervous System
Body Parts: Transcends the physical body and controls esoteric anatomy
Physical Ailments: Depression, Paralysis, Multiple Sclerosis
Signs of a Crown Chakra Imbalance
As with all of the other chakras we’ve discussed, the crown chakra may become imbalanced. When the chakra is overacting, it’s said to be excessive.
Signs of an excessive crown chakra include a tendency to idealize others and the world, an inability to set boundaries and say no to others, spiritual arrogance or a desire to be ‘better’ than others, a strong identification with the mind and intellect, or a disconnect from the natural world around you.
On the other side of the spectrum, a chakra can be deficient if it is underactive. Signs of an underactive crown chakra include a tendency to think and feel negatively, a disconnect from your authentic self-expression, a lack of trust in life itself, and a general sense of pessimism.
You may also experience difficulty in accessing your intuitive abilities and a disconnect from inner guidance and your heart.
10 Best Yoga Poses For The Crown Chakra
Now that we know more about the seventh energy center and its function, let’s find out what are the best yoga poses for opening your crown chakra.
1. Alternate Nostril Breathing – Nadi Shodhana
Alternate nostril breathing, or Nadi Shodhana, is a powerful pranayama technique that has many benefits for balancing the crown chakra. It involves inhaling and exhaling through one nostril at a time in alternating cycles.
This helps to oxygenate and clear your energy channels which can help promote feelings of peace, stillness, clarity, and calm.
To practice alternate nostril breathing, sit comfortably with your back straight and your eyes closed. Take a deep breath in through both nostrils before closing off your right nostril with your hand or thumb.
Exhale slowly through the left nostril while keeping the right one closed. Inhale again through the left nostril and then close it off. Exhale slowly through the right nostril before inhaling again through the right one.
Continue this cycle for a few minutes, breathing deeply and fully with each inhale and exhale. Continue alternating until you feel ready to end your session.
Alternate nostril breathing can be practiced anytime, anywhere as a way to promote feelings of peace, clarity, and calm in your life. If you experience any difficulties or discomfort during your practice, simply stop and try again another time when you feel more comfortable.
Over time, you may find that alternate nostril breathing becomes an excellent tool for balancing your crown chakra and promoting feelings of serenity and stillness in your life.
2. Lotus Pose – Padmasana
Lotus pose is a yoga pose that opens and stretches the hips, knees, and ankles. It also stimulates and balances the crown chakra, which is located at the top of your head.
It’s a great pose for beginners because it can be modified in several ways to make it more accessible and comfortable.
The first step to doing lotus pose is to sit on the floor with your legs straight in front of you. If needed, you can use a rolled-up blanket or yoga block under your hips for extra support.
Then, bend the right leg so that the ankle crosses over the left leg’s thigh (this will depend on how flexible your hips are). Then take your left ankle and nestle it in the crook between your right thigh and your torso.
If this isn’t accessible to you, you can do a half lotus pose, only working with one bent leg at a time.
Lotus pose offers a lot of benefits to both beginners and more advanced yogis. It stretches out tight hip muscles and opens up your hips in a gentle way, which can help relieve tension in this area and boost flexibility overall.
It also stimulates and balances your crown chakra, which helps improve mental clarity and focus, especially during stressful times.
3. Seated Forward Bend – Paschimottanasana
Paschimottanasana, or seated forward bend, is a great pose for balancing the crown chakra. To practice Paschimottanasana, start in a seated position with your legs straight out in front of you and your hands on the floor beside you.
Inhale deeply, then exhale as you begin to slowly lower yourself towards the floor.
Allow your spine to curve naturally as you fold over from the hip joints, keeping your back straight and your head in line with your spine.
If it’s difficult to reach the floor with both hands when lowering yourself down, try placing one hand on top of the other or using a yoga block to support yourself until you build up strength in this area.
You should focus more on maintaining length in your spine rather than trying to reach your toes.
4. Tree Pose – Vrksasana
To do tree pose, stand with your feet together and arms by your sides. Shift most of your weight onto one leg, and bend the other knee so that the sole of your foot reaches the inner thigh of your standing leg.
If you can’t bring your foot up so high, don’t worry – you can bring your foot to your shin instead or use it as a kickstand. Just be sure to not put your foot on your ankle or knee joints.
Bring your arms up, bending at the elbows until your hands meet above you, palms facing each other. Hold this pose for as long as you are comfortable.
Tree pose can be done before meditation to help prepare the mind for centering and focusing on spiritual matters. It helps to open up the crown chakra so that energy can flow more easily in and out of the body, which makes it easier to connect with higher spiritual truths.
When you are finished with the pose, slowly lower your foot and stand with both feet on the ground, arms by your sides again. Take a few deep breaths to bring yourself back into balance after holding this pose for a while. Repeat on the other side.
5. Plow Pose – Halasana
Plow pose is another great pose for opening and balancing your crown chakra. This pose involves lying flat on your back, with your legs reaching back behind your head.
This position helps to stretch the muscles and ligaments around your neck and shoulders, which can be beneficial for releasing tension in that area.
In addition, it can help soothe headaches caused by stress or tension in those areas. Finally, this position opens up your upper spine and stimulates the nerves at the base of your skull, helping to energize you and clear any blockages in your crown chakra.
To do plow pose, lie flat on your back with your arms resting at shoulder height. Stretch both legs straight into the air, and raise your legs over your head.
Rest your legs on the floor behind you, with your toes pointing toward the ground. Hold this position for one to three minutes at a time, breathing deeply while in the pose.
To come out of plow pose, bend both knees into your chest and rest there for a few moments before returning to a normal sitting or standing position.
6. Shoulderstand – Salamba Sarvangasana
Shoulderstand pose is a great way to balance the crown chakra and increase your energy levels. This pose involves lying on the floor, then raising up onto your shoulders while keeping your legs straight.
You can either keep your hands interlaced behind you to help support this position, or you can place them on the ground next to your hips for extra stability.
Once you’re in shoulderstand position, focus on breathing deeply and relaxing into the posture. This will allow you to reap all of the benefits that this pose offers, such as increased circulation throughout the body, better digestion, and better moods.
If possible, hold the shoulderstand position for at least five minutes, breathing deeply throughout the entire time. Afterward, rest in child’s pose to gently ease yourself out of the posture and let your body naturally return to its normal state.
Over time, you may find that shoulderstand becomes easier and more comfortable for you to perform, helping you gain all of the benefits associated with this powerful yoga pose.
7. Rabbit Pose – Sasangasana
Rabbit pose is a yoga posture that helps bring balance to the body. To do rabbit pose, start by sitting on your heels with your knees slightly apart and your toes tucked under.
Then, place your hands behind you with the palms facing down. Next, slowly lower your chest towards the floor while keeping your arms straight, until you are lying on your back with only the top of your head touching the ground.
Hold this position for up to one minute before slowly releasing it and returning to a seated position.
This yoga posture can help to stimulate and open up the crown chakra, which is thought to be associated with feelings of spiritual connection, clarity of mind, wisdom, happiness, and bliss.
By practicing rabbit pose regularly, you can help to balance and open up this important chakra, while also increasing flexibility in the spine, hips, thighs, and calves.
8. Headstand – Sirsasana
There are many different yoga poses that can help to balance your crown chakra. One of the most beneficial poses for this purpose is the headstand. This pose will help to open up and energize your upper chakras, helping you achieve greater mental clarity and awareness.
To do a headstand, start by sitting on the floor with your legs in front of you and your feet together. Place your arms shoulder-width apart with your hands down in front of you.
Slowly lift yourself off the ground, bringing your legs toward the ceiling as you straighten them out so they are perpendicular to the floor. Keep both hands firmly planted on the ground beside you as you use your core muscles to raise both legs over top of your head and bring them toward the ceiling.
Keep your core engaged throughout this process and make sure to keep your elbows close to your ears so that you don’t strain or pull on the joints in your arms.
Once you’ve brought both legs straight up above your head, rest them gently against a wall for support until you feel steady enough to hold this position on your own.
9. Reclined Bound Angle Pose – Supta Baddha Konasana
Reclined bound angle pose is an easy pose that gently stretches the spine, hips, and inner thighs while massaging the organs of the gastrointestinal system. It also encourages better circulation throughout the body and can help relieve stress and tension.
To perform this pose, lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Bring your heels in toward your seat, as close as can comfortably come without causing any discomfort or pain.
Allow your knees to fall open and the soles of your feet to open toward the sky.
Once you’re in position, reach behind you with both arms and clasp each other or interlace them behind your head if that feels more comfortable. Alternatively, arms can lay down by your sides.
Stay here for several breaths, focusing on deep, steady breathing as you relax into this pose. To make this even more beneficial, envision a stream of healing white light flowing down from the sky into your head and filling up your crown chakra with its energy.
Feel it spreading throughout every cell in your body, creating balance and peace within you from the inside out.
10. Corpse Pose – Savasana
The corpse pose is a relaxation pose that is very helpful for opening up the crown chakra. It involves lying on your back with your arms and legs relaxed and slightly separated from your body.
Place one hand on your heart, and one hand on your belly as you breathe deeply and let go of any tension or thoughts that may be distracting you from relaxing.
As you breathe, visualize the crown chakra opening and becoming brighter. Stay in this pose for a few minutes to fully experience the benefits of balancing your crown chakra.
Bottom line
The crown chakra is associated with universal connectedness, spirituality, and pure consciousness. If your crown chakra is imbalanced, you may feel disconnected from yourself or others.
Luckily, there are a number of yoga poses that can help rebalance this vital energy center. Give some of these poses a try the next time you need to restore harmony to your mind and body.
What are your favorite yoga poses for the crown chakra? Let me know in the comments below!
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