Muladhara: Befriending the Body

Safety is not something we think our way into.

It’s something we feel—or don’t—in our bodies.

In yoga therapy, the root chakra, or Muladhara, i

s often described as the base of support. Located at the pelvic floor and base of the spine, it relates to survival, grounding, belonging, and our most basic sense of safety in the world.

When the root is supported, we tend to feel steady, present, and able to meet life with confidence and choice. When it’s under strain, fear, anxiety, hyper-vigilance, or self-doubt can arise—not as failures, but as intelligent strategies developed by the nervous system to protect us.

Early Learning, Lasting Patterns

Muladhara is often associated with early development—roughly birth through age seven—when our nervous systems are learning foundational answers to questions like:

• Am I safe?

• Do I belong?

• Will my needs be met?

  
  

During these early years, we don’t learn safety through logic or language. We learn it through felt experience: through caregivers, environment, consistency, unpredictability, attunement, and rupture. Our bodies learn before our minds do.

From an Internal Family Systems (IFS) perspective, we can understand these early adaptations as parts of us that learned how to survive. These parts may have developed beliefs about safety, connection, or belonging that were absolutely necessary at the time—even if they feel limiting now.

Rather than trying to override or correct these patterns, yoga therapy invites us to slow down and listen.

Safety Is Relational

One of the most powerful shifts happens when we stop asking, “Is this belief still true?” and instead ask,“How am I relating to the part of me that learned this?”

When parts of us question whether we truly belong—whether in relationships, communities, or even in our own bodies—the goal is not to argue with them. It’s to meet them with curiosity and care.

This relational stance is deeply aligned with both IFS and somatic practice. Safety emerges not from forcing change, but from being with ourselves differently.

Grounding as a Practice, Not a Performance

Root-chakra practices are often simple by design:

• Feeling the weight of the body through the feet

• Softening the knees and allowing the pelvis to be supported

• Slowing the breath and letting it move downward

• Visualizing roots connecting us to the earth

  
  

These practices are not about “doing it right.” They are invitations to notice:

• What happens when I let myself be supported?

• Which parts relax—and which stay alert?

• Can I allow what’s here without pushing it away?

  
  

Even a few moments of grounded attention can help the nervous system shift out of survival mode and into greater choice.

A Gentle Inquiry

If you’re curious to explore this work on your own, here are two reflective questions drawn from recent group work:

• Are there parts of me that learned early on what safety meant by watching or adapting to my family or environment? What did those parts come to believe about how to survive?

• When parts of me question whether I truly belong, how do I relate to them? Can I notice their concerns with curiosity and care?

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There is no need to answer these fully—or at all. Sometimes simply noticing what arises is enough.

Rooting Into Support

Safety is not a destination.It’s a relationship—one that unfolds slowly, through the body, over time.

Yoga therapy offers a way to return to this relationship with patience and compassion, honoring the intelligence of our nervous systems while gently expanding what feels possible.

Your body already knows how to root.

The work is learning how to listen.