विशुद्धviśuddha · purified
Viśuddha, the purified
2 min read · Updated October 16, 2026 · sources checked October 16, 2026
In short
Viśuddha, the throat chakra, is the fifth centre of the subtle body, at the base of the throat. Its name means purified. In the Ṣaṭ-cakra-nirūpaṇa it is a lotus of sixteen smoky purple petals carrying the sixteen vowels, with the white, moon-like circle of ether, the seed syllable HAṂ, Sadāśiva as half-man half-woman, and the goddess Sākinī.
The fifth of the chakras is at the base of the throat. विशुद्ध (viśuddha) means "purified"; the Kubjikāmata Tantra calls it viśuddhi, "purification".
According to the Ṣaṭ-cakra-nirūpaṇa
| Feature | Description (verses 28-31, tr. Avalon 1919) |
|---|---|
| Place | at the base of the throat (kaṇṭha-mūla) |
| Petals | sixteen, of a smoky purple hue |
| Letters | the sixteen vowels, अं आं इं ईं उं ऊं ऋं ॠं ऌं ॡं एं ऐं ओं औं अं अः, red |
| Element | ether or space, आकाश (ākāśa) |
| Yantra | the region of ether, circular and white like the full moon |
| Bīja | हं HAṂ, white, seated on a white elephant |
| Deity | Sadāśiva in the form of Ardhanārīśvara, half man and half woman, half snow-white and half golden, with five faces and ten arms |
| Śakti | Sākinī, white, five-faced, three-eyed, dressed in yellow |
The vowels at the throat
The sixteen petals carry all sixteen vowels of the Sanskrit alphabet, the sounds that can be pronounced on their own; the consonants are spread over the lower centres. It is fitting that the vowels, the breath of speech, should sit at the throat, through which every sound passes. In the tantric view the letters are powers, and the subtle body is a body of mantra.
In other texts
- Kubjikāmata Tantra (11.35-11.36): "viśuddhi is in the region of the throat", with sixteen divisions, the same number as in the later standard.
- Gorakṣaśataka (verse 83): the yogi meditates on viśuddha within the ghaṇṭikā, the "little bell" at the back of the palate, as the source of nectar, the gaze at the tip of the nose.
- Yoga Sutras (3.30): Patañjali names the "pit of the throat" (kaṇṭha-kūpa) as an object of saṃyama, through which hunger and thirst cease. He does not call it a chakra.
Ether: space
In the dissolution at the end of the Ṣaṭ-cakra-nirūpaṇa, the air of anāhata dissolves into the ether of viśuddha, and ether then into the mind at ājñā. Ether, ākāśa, is in Indian thought the element whose quality is sound: another reason this centre is linked to the voice.
What modern books added
Modern charts make viśuddha sky blue, link it to the thyroid, to "communication and self-expression", to turquoise or lapis lazuli and to a musical note. The thyroid link and the psychological theme are twentieth-century Western readings; the Sanskrit texts describe purple petals, a moon-white circle, the vowels, HAṂ and Sadāśiva.
A simple meditation on viśuddha
- Sit upright, relax the jaw and the throat.
- Bring attention to the hollow at the base of the throat.
- Picture a lotus of sixteen smoky purple petals, and in its centre a white circle like the full moon.
- Silently repeat HAṂ a few times; you can also hum softly and feel the vibration in the throat.
- Let the sense of movement open into a sense of space. Stay a few minutes, then let go.
Good to know
The chin lock of haṭha yoga (jālandhara-bandha) works at this level of the throat. It belongs to breath retention and is taught by a teacher; it is not needed for this meditation.
Below is anāhata, above is ājñā; the whole system is on the chakras from the sources.
Questions people ask
What does vishuddha mean?
Purified, from vi-śuddha, thoroughly pure. The Kubjikāmata calls it viśuddhi, purification.
What is the throat chakra mantra?
Its seed syllable is HAṂ, the seed of ether or space, pronounced close to hum with the u of but.
Is the throat chakra blue?
Sky blue belongs to the modern rainbow sequence. The Ṣaṭ-cakra-nirūpaṇa gives smoky purple petals and a white circle like the full moon.
Sources
- Arthur Avalon, The Serpent Power (1919): Ṣaṭ-cakra-nirūpaṇa, verses 28-31, online edition (Wisdom Library) checked October 16, 2026
- Gorakṣaśataka, edition Kuvalayananda and Shukla, verse 83, Sanskrit text (GRETIL) checked October 16, 2026
- Kubjikāmatatantra, ed. Goudriaan and Schoterman (1988), verses 11.34-11.37, Sanskrit text (GRETIL) checked October 16, 2026
- Patañjali, Yogasūtra 3.30, Sanskrit text (GRETIL, University of Göttingen) checked October 16, 2026