Are your beliefs benefiting or harming you?
The answer depends on:
- If we even know they’re there
- How well we know them
- Where they came from
- How we use them
In the previous article in this column, The Alchemy of Transformation: Meet Your Shadow, I shared an important part of the personal transformation life cycle: Facing the Shadow.
This month, we’ll discuss another important step in this sacred process: Exploring and untangling from beliefs.
If beliefs were objects that we carried around with us, most of us would need a wheelbarrow or two to carry them all in. Some of our beliefs, we know well and feed regularly. Others work in our subconscious, silently shaping our behavior and decision making.
An important part of personal transformation is releasing thoughts and ideas that no longer serve or support you. To do this, we need to take some time and understand just how many beliefs we hold, where they came from, and whether we want to keep them around.
Beliefs can be good when they help us formulate, understand, and express our values. They are beneficial when they guide us in our creative pursuits, relationships, career choices, etc.
But when we’re not mindfully sorting through and managing our belief system, it begins to manage us. Instead of us holding beliefs, they begin to hold us. And instead of beliefs giving us something strong to stand on, they can make us rigid and inflexible.
Let’s explore these beliefs, chakra by chakra.
Image by Okan Caliskan from Pixabay
1st Chakra: Root
When we were young, we inherited most of our beliefs from our family of origin, extended family, our first teachers, and, to the extent that we were exposed to it, the culture at large. These beliefs built a scaffolding for us, a place to stand on in a busy world. These beliefs are about your place in the world and as such, tell who you are, where you belong, and what matters to you. These beliefs “ground” you in the world.
To find out what your root chakra beliefs are, complete the below sentences:
“In our family, we believed…”
“In times of personal crisis, loss, or hardship, our family of origin should…”
2nd Chakra: Sacral
Second chakra beliefs are about sexuality, creative expression, and the purpose/place of human emotion. These beliefs are also partially inherited from your family of origin, but also come from peer groups, teachers, and others outside of the family as you began to relate to others.
To find your second chakra beliefs, consider the following questions:
“The first things I understood about human sexuality were…”
“Human expressions and longings, in the form of art, emotion, or sexuality, are…”
3rd Chakra: Solar Plexus
Your third chakra beliefs are those that developed as you tested your independence, power, and self-esteem in the world. These beliefs shaped your self-confidence and willingness to express yourself. These beliefs were likely formed from bosses, co-workers, employees, or customers you’ve met along your journey, and give you messages about the worthiness of your work and of yourself.
To find these beliefs within you, ask these questions.
“My bosses often told me that my work was…”
“The key ingredients to a successful job/career are…”
4th Chakra: Heart
The heart chakra builds on the beliefs of the second chakra – how you relate and interact with others – but goes deeper as we explore long-term romances, friendships, and other deeper, passionate relationships. The beliefs here have to do with higher kinds of love and connection and relates to your ability and willingness to offer compassion and empathy. The heart chakra also holds your beliefs about boundaries.
Here are the kinds of questions you can ask to discover your heart chakra beliefs:
“When people around me are in pain, I believe I can/should…”
“The role of forgiveness/boundaries in long-term relationships is…”
5th Chakra: Throat
The throat chakra contains your beliefs about the role of your voice and truth in the world. This is shaped by your experiences of testing your voice, such as offering an opinion in a meeting, telling someone the truth about how they hurt you, or speaking truth to power. Like the third chakra, these beliefs are about your worth, but whereas the third chakra was about your work and efforts, the throat chakra is more about the worthiness of your ideas and truth.
Explore these statements to hunt for your fifth chakra beliefs.
“When others feel uncomfortable about what I say, I believe I can/should…”
“I believe that keeping the peace is <more important/less important> than speaking my truth.”
6th Chakra: Third Eye
The beliefs of this chakra, centered between the eyebrows, relate to intuition, insight, and connection to inspiration. These beliefs can either open you up or close you down to receiving and understanding the signs and signals of the universe. These beliefs were formed during times when you “went with our gut” versus what your logical/rational side told you to do.
To find some of these beliefs, consider these sentences.
“I believe intuition is…”
“The universe is <completely separate and chaotic> or <always guiding me on my path>”
7th Chakra: The Crown
Beliefs of the crown chakra are related to your relationship to God, the Universe, or Higher Power. These are formed and shaped throughout your lifetime, from your earliest experiences with religion, to your later searches for meaning. These beliefs also speak to the reason why you are here on this planet, and what you are supposed to be doing with your life. As this is the crown chakra, these beliefs “crown you”, and affect your relationship to all other beings and lifeforms on the earth.
“My idea of God/Universe/Higher Power is…”
“I believe we human beings are here in this world because…”
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Now that you’ve explored some of your beliefs, you can determine whether they still serve you, or if they’ve created more harm than good in your life.
With each belief, you might decide:
- It’s helpful and reminds me of my values and purpose in life
- It’s harmful and keeps me from my power and voice
- It was never mine to begin with and I’m releasing it
- It was good when I was young, but now it’s holding me back from growth
- It’s become too complicated, and needs refinement
- It’s become too black and white, and needs nuance
- It’s become too divisive, and need inclusivity
This process of discernment, sorting, untangling, and discarding beliefs is a sacred and critical part of becoming a wiser, more whole human.
Beliefs are not who you are. They were just ideas that resonated at one time. So, begin at the root, and explore and untangle from your beliefs. Use them as you need—just don’t let them use you.
Keri’s first book, Embodying Soul: A Return to Wholeness won several awards, including the 2020 IPA award for Mind, Body & Spirit and the 2020 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal in Non-Fiction Spiritual and Supernatural.
Enjoy reading this article? Read more from Keri Mangis in her Healthy Lifestyle Tips & Tricks and Secrets to Personal Transformation columns
