What Do You Need? What Do You Want?
What is the difference between Need & Want?
From a chakra perspective: Needs are of the Root Chakra. Wants are of the Sacral Chakra. Need & Want are impulses that drive & motivate us
on deep, primal levels and greatly influence the vitality
of our body, mind and spirit.
Abraham Maslow defined a Hierarchy of Human Needs that lists physiological needs
such as food, water, shelter and sleep
as core motivators in life. Once these base needs are met, we are then motivated
and better able to attain higher level needs such as esteem, love & actualization.
Maslow points out we do not advance through these levels in order, one after another. Many of us oscillate back & forth through these layers
throughout the course of our lives, with very few reaching top levels of actualization.
Maslow’s model is similar to the Chakras
in that the stronger your foundation,
the more you are able to rise up into
higher frequencies of consciousness,
expanding into wider levels of liberation & freedom.
Working with the Root Charka,
which governs the manifest, physical realm of being,
calls for you to examine how you get your
base needs met in life.
Getting your needs met in healthy ways
supports more vitality in your life.
Take a moment to reflect on these questions:
- What are your fundamental needs?
- How are you getting your needs met?
- What needs are not getting met in vital ways in your life?
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You may have your base needs met of water, food, shelter and sleep...
however, how healthy are the inputs?
- Yes, you have food, but what quality of food you are eating?
- Yes, you have oxygen, but are you harnessing the full power of your breath?
- Yes, you have shelter but how safe and nourishing is your home?
These are powerful contemplations for working with the Root Chakra
and increasing the vitality of your physical health & well-being.
Personal Share
Throughout the pandemic, I decreased the quality of inputs
into how I got my base needs met.
My depression kept me stagnant in my body and diet,
my breathing became shallow & covered by masks,
and my need for human touch went greatly unmet
as I isolated in solo quarantine.
As a result, I experienced a decline in my overall vitality.
Because my body was not as healthy,
I felt a decline in other areas of my life,
such as esteem, motivation, and feeling like
I had a valuable purpose to offer humanity.
As things start to open up
I am coming back to the fundamentals...
with my diet, daily movement,
and how I get my core needs met.
It's a process and commitment
I need to make over & over again everyday.
As I take baby steps at increasing the quality
of my diet, breathing practice, and physical vitality,
I hope to once again be motived and inspired
to expand & engage other areas of my life,
and engage my soul purpose in more vibrant ways
that better support humanity through these powerful days.
The healthier you are, the more of your magical being
you can offer to world
as a result of your presence in it.
Thanks for giving words to what I've been experiencing. Base needs have certainly not been met in the past year! What's been interesting though is that now I feel like I have a blank slate to work with and to rebuild in a healthier way...from the bottom (core) on up. The baby steps that you outline are spirit-sent. Thank you... 🌻