Glossary · chakra
Vishuddha
Also written the throat chakra
Vishuddha (‘purification’) is the throat chakra. Its element is space (akasha), it is drawn with sixteen petals, and its seed sound (bija) is HAM. It is the fifth of the seven chakras.
It is about expression: turning what is inside you into words others can hear, and hearing what is true in what they say back.
In balance and out of balance. In balance, people speak plainly and are believed, and they listen as well as they talk. Out of balance, words come too late, too much or not at all: holding back what needs saying, or talking over the moment.
Its planet is Budha (Mercury), the planet of speech, learning and trade. Mercury stays close to the Sun, so it is often combust, and it turns retrograde about three times a year for around three weeks, the familiar season of crossed wires, delays and second drafts. This pairing of planets and chakras is a modern bridge between yoga and Jyotish, not a rule from the classical texts, and the familiar rainbow colours are modern too.
A simple practice. Sit for five minutes and sound HAM softly on each out-breath, attention resting at the base of the throat.
Questions
Which planet rules the throat chakra?
In the pairing used by withAshoka, Mercury (Budha) rules the throat chakra, Vishuddha: the planet of speech for the centre of expression. The pairing is a modern bridge, not a classical rule.
What is the seed mantra of the throat chakra?
HAM, sounded softly with attention at the throat.
How does Mercury retrograde affect the throat chakra?
Read through the chakras, Mercury retrograde is felt at the throat as misunderstandings, delays and words that land wrongly. It suits rereading, revising and saying less, more carefully.
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