What are chakras and how do they relate to Reiki?

If you’ve had a Reiki session, or looked into having one, you’ve probably come across the word chakra. It comes up a lot in energy work, and it’s worth understanding what it actually means, because once you do, what happens during a Reiki treatment starts to make a lot more sense.

Where the idea of chakras comes from:

The chakra system has its roots in ancient India. The word itself comes from Sanskrit and means “wheel” or “vortex.” The concept first appeared in the Vedas, a body of Hindu scripture written somewhere between 1500 and 500 BC, making it one of the oldest frameworks for understanding the relationship between energy, the body and wellbeing.

The basic idea is that the body isn’t just physical. Alongside your bones, organs and nervous system, there’s an energetic layer and within that layer are specific centres where energy concentrates and moves. These are the chakras. When they’re open and flowing well, you tend to feel balanced, grounded and clear. When they’re blocked or out of alignment, that imbalance can show up as physical discomfort, emotional heaviness or a general sense that something feels off.

The seven main chakras

There are seven major chakras, each positioned along the central line of the body from the base of the spine to the top of the head. Each one is associated with particular aspects of physical and emotional health.

• Root chakra (base of spine): grounding, safety, stability and a sense of belonging

• Sacral chakra (lower abdomen): creativity, emotional expression and relationships

• Solar plexus chakra (upper abdomen): confidence, personal power and self-worth

• Heart chakra (centre of chest): love, compassion, connection and emotional balance

• Throat chakra (throat): communication, self-expression and the ability to speak honestly

• Third eye chakra (centre of forehead): intuition, clarity and inner knowing

• Crown chakra (top of head): spiritual connection, awareness and a sense of greater purpose

Each chakra also corresponds to areas of the physical body, including major glands in the endocrine system, which regulates hormones and plays a central role in how we respond to stress, how we sleep and how we heal.

What happens when a chakra is out of balance

Think of each chakra as having an optimal state, one where energy moves through it freely. When something disrupts that flow, whether it’s sustained stress, emotional difficulty, physical illness or simply the accumulated pressure of a demanding life, the chakra can become blocked or sluggish.

That imbalance doesn’t stay purely energetic. A blocked heart chakra might show up as difficulty connecting with others, a tendency to withdraw, or persistent feelings of grief or loneliness. A disrupted solar plexus chakra might leave you feeling indecisive, low in confidence or anxious about things that wouldn’t normally trouble you. This isn’t abstract. Most people recognise those feelings immediately.

The reverse is also true. When your energy is flowing well through each centre, there’s a quality of ease that’s hard to describe but easy to notice. Things feel clearer. You feel more like yourself.

How Reiki works with the chakras

This is where [Reiki](https://homeofreiki.co.uk/) and the chakra system come together. Reiki works by channelling life force energy (Ki) through the practitioner’s hands and into the recipient’s energy field. During a session, the practitioner moves through a series of hand positions that correspond closely to the location of the major chakras.

They’re not forcing a result. The energy goes where it’s needed. A practitioner may spend longer at certain positions because they sense more resistance or imbalance there, and the Reiki works to gently clear and rebalance those areas. It’s a responsive process rather than a fixed one, which is part of why sessions can feel quite different from one visit to the next, depending on what’s happening in your life.

Reiki and the chakra system come from different traditions. Reiki originated in Japan in the early twentieth century, while the chakra system is rooted in Indian philosophy. But they share the same foundational understanding: that we are energetic beings, that the state of our energy affects how we feel and function, and that restoring balance to that energy supports healing on every level.

What this means for you in practice

You don’t need to have a deep knowledge of chakras to benefit from Reiki. Many people come to a session simply feeling exhausted, overwhelmed or emotionally flat, without any particular framework for understanding why. The practitioner’s job is to work with your energy as it is, not as you’ve described it.

That said, understanding the chakra system can give you a useful language for what you experience. If you regularly feel disconnected from your body, anxious without a clear cause, or find it hard to express yourself, those are all things that Reiki can work with directly. Knowing which chakras tend to be involved can help you make sense of shifts you notice after a session, and why some sessions leave you feeling deeply calm while others bring up unexpected emotion.

If you’re curious about how energy work might support you, the best starting point is simply to experience it. Understanding comes quickly once you do.

Find out more or book a session

Whether you’re new to Reiki or looking to deepen your understanding of energy work, the team at Home of Reiki is here to help. You can explore our treatments, training courses and resources at homeofreiki.co.uk.