Have you ever felt lost, stuck in indecision, or disconnected from your inner guidance? Or like you’re spinning in circles, repeating the same old habits or making choices that don’t feel aligned with who you truly are? If this resonates, it may be a sign that your Ajna chakra—the energy center responsible for inner vision and insight—needs some attention.

The Ajna chakra, located at the third eye center, is the gateway to clarity, intuition, inner wisdom, and visionary insight. I think of it as our center of inner and outer seeing and knowing. When balanced, it helps you break free from confusion, see your life’s bigger picture, and make decisions aligned with your higher self.

Ajna Chakra is our sixth chakra and it is located at the midbrain, while its granthi, or psychic knot, is at the third eye center. Most consider its location to be at the Third Eye, right between the eyebrows (not the center of the forehead)… perhaps for simplicity’s sake. In Sanskrit, Ajna means “command” or “beyond wisdom” and it is considered our seat of visionary perspective, intuition, insight, and wisdom.

Your Sixth Chakra Improves Your Ability to Envision A Future That is Aligned With Your Higher Self

Why Aligning Your Ajna Chakra Matters

When your Ajna chakra is blocked or imbalanced, it’s easy to feel stuck in life’s repetitive cycles. You might find yourself:

• Caught in old habits that no longer serve you
• Unsure of your purpose, feeling like something’s missing but unable to identify it
• Overthinking and second-guessing, unable to trust your inner voice
• Disconnected from your intuition, relying on outside validation instead of your own wisdom

Aligning your Ajna chakra helps you reconnect with your higher self, the part of you that knows what’s right for you. It’s about gaining clarity, trusting your intuition, and creating a life that feels deeply aligned with who you are at your core. After all, you have to be able to see it to create.

The Transformation: Living in Alignment with Your True Self

When your Ajna chakra is in harmony, the fog lifts, and you gain a new perspective. You stop living on autopilot, reacting to life’s demands, and start intentionally creating a life aligned with your higher self. You become a conscious creator.

Here’s what that transformation looks like:

How to Align Your Ajna Chakra and Unlock Its Power

Ready to unlock the power of your third eye chakra and live in alignment with your higher self? Here are a few powerful practices that can help you balance your Ajna chakra and invite deeper clarity into your life:

1. Meditation for Insight
   Meditation is one of the most effective ways to open the Ajna chakra. Sit in stillness, focusing your attention on the space between your eyebrows, imagining a bright indigo light growing stronger with each breath. This practice helps clear mental clutter and invites deeper wisdom. Check out my Ajna Kriya Meditation on YouTube.
2. Journaling for Clarity
   When you’re feeling lost or stuck, writing out your thoughts can be incredibly illuminating. Ask yourself questions like: What old patterns am I ready to release? Where in my life am I seeking clarity, and how can I invite it in? What is the life I truly desire, and what steps can I take to create it?What does my intuition want me to know right now? Journaling creates space for your subconscious to surface insights you may not be aware of.
3. Visualization for Purpose
   Visualization is key to working with the third eye. Imagine your ideal life—the people, places, and experiences that feel deeply aligned with your soul. How do you feel in this life? What steps do you need to take to get there? This practice strengthens your ability to see beyond the present moment and move toward a future aligned with your true self.
4. Yoga and Breathwork
   Practices like yoga and pranayama (breathwork) help balance the mind and awaken your intuitive faculties. Gentle forward bends, child’s pose, and alternate nostril breathing (Nadi Shodhana) are especially beneficial for calming the mind and activating the third eye. Balancing poses that cultivate unwavering focus are another great way to activate your third eye.
5. Connect with Nature
   Nature has a way of bringing us back to our true selves. Spend time outdoors, observe the natural world, and tune in to the subtleties of your surroundings. This quiet, grounded presence can help you reconnect with your intuition and bring clarity to your life.

Practical Practices for Your Third Eye Chakra

I know some of you want practical, actionable, quick acting practices. If you tend to live in logic and reasoning, the following practices will help you clear mental clutter, release anxiety, and create greater clarity and focus.

1. Brain Dump for Mental Clarity

One of my favorite ways to create clarity and release anxiety is by doing a brain dump. This practice helps clear out all the noise from your mind. Simply set a timer for 15 minutes and write down every thought, no matter how big or small. Let your mind flow freely without filtering. When you put everything on paper, you can release what’s cluttering your mind and gain a clearer perspective.

For a more organized approach, mind mapping can be incredibly helpful if you’re juggling multiple projects or have a task with a lot of moving parts. Visualizing your thoughts in this way really helps bring everything into perspective.

2. Fear Setting for Removing Blockages

It may sound counterintuitive, but fear setting is one of the most powerful tools for releasing what holds you back. Write down your worst-case scenarios—what you’re truly afraid of—and walk yourself through them. What’s the absolute worst thing that could happen? Then, outline the consequences and what steps you could take to move past them. This process not only helps you face your fears head-on, but it also neutralizes them, giving you more freedom to trust your intuition.

3. Visualization to Energize the Ajna Chakra

Visualization is a potent practice for working with your third eye. You can visualize a beam of light or prana flowing into your third eye to clear out any blockages or stagnant energy. Or, you can envision your future—what does it look like when you’re fully aligned with your higher self? How does it feel? The sky’s the limit when it comes to visualization.

4. S.M.A.R.T. Goals for Focus and Prioritization

Setting clear, S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals helps you focus on what truly matters. I’m a huge fan of using the 12 Week Year for planning and prioritizing my goals. Another tool I love is my WIZE planner, which helps me stay on track and organized. These tools are practical, but they also support your Ajna chakra by creating structure and clarity in your day-to-day life.

5. Cultivating Intuition Through Deep Listening

Your intuition is always working for you. It’s always providing information and guiding you—you just need to learn to listen deeply. Some ways to strengthen your intuition are through meditation, intuitive journaling, being in nature, and prayer. All of these practices help you tune into your inner wisdom and align with your higher self.

6. Rest for Insight and Clarity

Rest is vital for your third eye chakra. I personally have some of my most profound insights not when I’m pushing through tasks, but when I give myself downtime to process and reflect. We often overlook rest, but it’s essential for cultivating clarity.

Make time for meditation, yoga nidra, or simply taking a nap. Prioritize getting good sleep each night, and establish a bedtime ritual that supports your nervous system—such as avoiding screens, sipping calming tea, or journaling. Even cuddling with a loved one or pet can help you relax into a state where your third eye is more open to receiving insights.

When you take time to nurture this energy center, you unlock the potential to live a life filled with clarity, purpose, and alignment

Nurture Your Spirit with Mantra, Mudra, and Prayer/Intention

1. Mantra for the Ajna Chakra

Mantras are powerful sounds or vibrations that help focus the mind and align energy. For the Ajna chakra, specific mantras can enhance clarity, intuition, and insight.

• Ajna Chakra Bija Mantra: “OM” (ॐ)
  The bija (seed) mantra for the third eye chakra is “OM.” Chanting OM helps clear mental clutter and creates a deeper connection to your inner wisdom. The sound of OM represents the universe and the vibration of creation itself, helping you tap into higher consciousness.
  • How to Use: Sit in a comfortable position, close your eyes, and bring your awareness to the space between your eyebrows (the location of the Ajna chakra). Begin chanting “OM” either aloud or silently. Visualize indigo light glowing at your third eye with each chant. Let the sound vibration resonate through your entire being.
• Affirmation-Based Mantras: Affirmation based mantras may resonate with you if you are already into manifestation. Repeated affirmations help create new grooves in the mind. These grooves, or thought patterns are called samskaras in Sanskrit. You may have also heard the saying, “What fires together wires together.” The same goes for your thoughts, affirmations and the words you speak over yourself. Affirmations are particularly powerful when combined with yoga nidra, yogic sleep. You can use affirmation-based mantras like these to activate the Ajna chakra:
  • “I trust my intuition.”
  • “I see clearly.”
  • “I am connected to my higher self.”

2. Mudra for the Ajna Chakra

Mudras are hand gestures that help direct the flow of energy through the body. For the sixth chakra, mudras can assist in stimulating the third eye and deepening intuitive insight.

• Mudra of Knowledge (Gyan Mudra)
  This is one of the most common and effective mudras for activating the Ajna chakra. It involves connecting the tip of the thumb (representing universal consciousness) with the tip of the index finger (representing individual consciousness), while keeping the other fingers straight.
  • How to Practice: Sit comfortably with your hands resting on your knees or thighs. Touch the tips of your thumbs to the tips of your index fingers. Keep your palms facing up, fingers relaxed. Focus on your third eye and breathe deeply. As you hold this mudra, visualize light or energy flowing through your third eye, clearing any blockages and enhancing clarity.
  • Additional Mudra: Shambhavi Mudra
    In this mudra, the focus is on directing the gaze towards the point between the eyebrows while keeping the eyes softly closed. This subtle practice helps stimulate the third eye and access deeper states of consciousness.
    • How to Practice: Sit comfortably and gently close your eyes. Shift your internal gaze toward your third eye, focusing on the space between your eyebrows. Breathe deeply and keep your gaze soft. This practice helps bring awareness to your inner vision and strengthens the Ajna chakra.

3. Prayer and Intention for the Ajna Chakra

Prayer, when used for the Ajna chakra, is a way to ask for divine guidance, clarity, and deeper insight. It is a way of connecting to your higher self, the universe, or whatever higher power you believe in. The key here is setting clear intentions and focusing on expanding your inner vision.

• Prayer for Insight and Clarity
  You can create a prayer to ask for guidance and support in opening your third eye. This could be something simple like:
  • Example Prayer:
    “Divine Source, I ask for clarity, insight, and guidance. Help me open my third eye and see the truth with wisdom and compassion. May I be guided by my intuition and live in alignment with my higher self.”
  • Affirmative Prayer for Inner Wisdom:
    “I trust the wisdom that flows from within me. May my vision be clear, and may I always follow the guidance of my highest self.”
  • How to Use: You can integrate prayer into your meditation practice or use it at any time during the day when you feel a need for insight or clarity. Speak the prayer aloud or silently in your heart, and visualize your Ajna chakra glowing with indigo light, symbolizing your connection to higher wisdom.

Combining the Practices

For a more powerful effect, you can combine these practices into a daily ritual:

1. Start with Prayer: Begin by setting a clear intention or offering a prayer for insight and wisdom. Ask for guidance as you work on opening your Ajna chakra.
2. Chant the Mantra “OM”: Chant the mantra OM while holding Gyan Mudra, focusing your attention on the third eye. Visualize indigo light shining through the space between your eyebrows.
3. Practice the Mudra: As you continue to meditate, hold the Gyan Mudra and, if desired, incorporate Shambhavi Mudra by directing your inner gaze toward the third eye. Focus on receiving clarity and intuitive guidance.

What’s Waiting on the Other Side?

By aligning your Ajna chakra, you unlock the power of insight and tap into your higher wisdom. You’ll stop feeling stuck in old patterns, stop second-guessing yourself, and start creating a life that feels aligned, purposeful, and true to who you are.

Imagine waking up each day with clarity and confidence, knowing that every decision you make is guiding you toward your highest potential. This is the power of living in alignment with your higher self—and it all begins with balancing your Ajna chakra.

When your third eye chakra is balanced, you’ll likely experience:

• Clarity and Focus: Decisions feel easier, and you can see the broader perspective.
• Strong Intuition: You have a clear sense of direction and trust your inner wisdom.
• Enhanced Imagination and Creativity: You’re more in tune with your creative energy and can easily visualize future possibilities.
• Mental Calm: A quiet mind, with less overthinking and mental chatter.

Ajna Chakra: Pronunciation, Elements, and Physical Connections

Understanding the Correct Spelling and Pronunciation of Ajna Chakra

The Ajna Chakra is commonly known as the “third eye chakra” in the West, but its correct spelling is Ājñā. The proper pronunciation is “agnya,” with both “a’s” sounding like the “au” in Autumn. However, here in the West, it’s typically pronounced as “aj-na,” where the first “a” resembles “au” in Autumn, and the second “a” sounds like the “a” in about. Even Western Sanskrit scholars often use this pronunciation.

In India, the pronunciation can vary based on the region. In the southern parts of India, you’ll hear “jna,” while the northern areas may use “gnya,” adding another layer of complexity to the word.

Ajna Chakra Elements: The Bridge Between Worlds

The Third Eye Chakra is associated with Mahat Tattva or the “supreme element” which is made up of all of the other elements in their pure form and it is considered the bridge between the material world and spirit.

Due to Ajna’s deep connection to vision and sight, some would consider Light or illumination to be its corresponding element. Light is sometimes considered to be a combination of the other elements – earth, water, fire, air, and ether. But when I think of shining a light on something– whether a physical object or thought, emotion, etc. we are able to see the object of our perception with eyes wide open — we’re able to see all of it, both the light and the dark and we’re able to find a deeper understanding.

The Pineal Gland: Ajna’s Physical and Spiritual Connection

The Ajna Chakra is often linked with the pineal gland (and sometimes the pituitary gland). The pineal gland governs our circadian rhythm—our natural sleep-wake cycles—and produces melatonin and serotonin, which regulate mood and rest. It also plays a role in the production of DMT, a chemical involved in vivid visual experiences, often referred to as the “spirit molecule.”

The pineal gland is sometimes considered the “seat of the soul,” a portal to connect with the divine, source, or higher states of consciousness like love and compassion. This spiritual connection further emphasizes Ajna’s role as a guide in transcending the material and tapping into our intuitive, higher self.

As you explore the power of your Ajna Chakra, remember that it’s more than just enhancing your intuition—it’s about aligning your life with your higher self and true purpose. Whether it’s through practical tools like visualization, meditation, or simply taking time for deep rest, nurturing your third eye chakra can help you break free from old patterns and gain the clarity you need to move forward in life. When you step into this alignment, you create a life that’s not just seen through your inner vision, but felt deeply in your soul.

If you’re ready to dive deeper into your personal transformation and experience powerful shifts in your life, I invite you to join us at our upcoming Rooted & Wild Women’s Retreat in Sedona. This retreat offers a sacred space for you to reconnect with your intuition, heal, and live in alignment with your higher self. Learn more about how this transformational journey can help you unlock the potential of your Ajna Chakra and live a life of purpose, clarity, and joy.

Click here to explore the retreat and reserve your spot today!