Maybe your yoga teacher has mentioned chakras mid-session, or that crystal healer you follow on Instagram talks about them all the time. But while you might have a vague idea that they have something to do with different parts of the body, chances are you’re still scratching your head. What are chakras, anyway?

In Sanskrit (the ancient language of India), “chakra” literally translates to wheel or disk. “The chakra system is a way that our human ancestors in India organized and made sense of our design,” says Joyce Englander Levy, Director of Mindful Movement at THE WELL.

The term is also used to refer to energy throughout your body. In Ayurvedic medicine, one of the world’s oldest health systems, originating from India, chakras are invisible wheels of medicine that go up from the bottom of the spine through the throat and forehead, adds Heather Askinosie, crystal healer and co-founder of Energy Muse.

That’s the reason so many meditation and yoga teachers focus on these power systems during classes: It helps people connect to their bodies and find peace and calm. “The chakra system is a way that our human ancestors in India organized and made sense of our design,” says Joyce Englander Levy, head of mindful movement at THE WELL.

“People from all over the world continue to experiment with this system today, and as a result they make their own personal discoveries into the relationship between their body, their mind, the deep currents of their spirit, as well as how to heal and build more balanced connections not only within themselves but with others in their community.”

To help familiarize yourself with the energy systems at work throughout your body, we’ll start from the bottom of the spine and work our way through the crown of the head.

THE 7 MAIN CHAKRAS AND WHAT THEY REPRESENT

HOW TO BETTER UNDERSTAND YOUR CHAKRAS

Levy recommends reading about your chakras to get a better understanding and suggests starting with the book, Eastern Body, Western Mind: Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self, by Anodea Judith. “Meditation on the chakras is a great way to develop a relationship with these subtle power centers that run along the central column of the body,” she says. “Once you have a basic understanding of where each of these centers are in the body, you can begin to explore them with your breath and attention.”

You can also use mantras to help balance out each energy, Levy says. “Each of the main chakras have what's called a Bija Mantra associated with it. Bija means seed in sanskrit. So, chanting the Bija Mantra is like planting a seed to balance the forces controlled by each center in the body,” she adds. Levy suggests a single word for each chakra: "lam" for balance in your roots; "vam" for balance in your sacral center; "ram" for balance in your solar plexus; "yam" to balance your heart; "ham" for balance in your throat; "om" to balance your third eye and crown chakras.

To incorporate crystals, place them on the part of the body you’re working on, says Askinose. Once you realize what’s off in your energy — simply by learning more about chakras and even more importantly, about yourself — you’ll be able to find alignment and peace.