We all know that pregnant women glow, but do you know why?

Think about it. The average Yogini has about 72,000 Nadis, or energy channels. The pregnant goddess has double that, 144,000 Nadis—she is literally glowing with energy! And all that extra energy courses through her veins making her one hot mama with super powers!

Let’s take a tour through the Chakras, or vortexes of energy, of the pregnant goddess, and see what we’re talking about here. Get ready to have your mind blown and be ready to see women, in general, as powerhouses of awesome-ness!

1) Let’s start with the foundation of our Chakra system, the Muladhara. This first Chakra is related to the earth element and is considered to be our root system connecting us to our past. While pregnant, the Goddess becomes much more aware of her family history, ancestry and literal family tree. Thoughts shine back into the mother-daughter and/or mother-granddaughter relationships. During this time of great change, feeling the earth element through rooting, anchoring and stabilizing is important for balance. Earth is expressed through the Goddess by her growing size, belly and breasts. She literally begins to take on the characteristics of Mother Earth, and she begins to really own her experience and grow into the role of a mother.

2) Moving up the Chakras, we find ourselves in the watery tide pools of Svadhisthana. This chakra is as you guessed, related to the element of water. By our nature, humans are very watery creatures. We are all about 70% water, and when pregnant, this increases drastically. I’m no math wizard, but let’s look at what’s happening. While pregnant, a woman’s blood volume increases by up to 50%. In addition to that, there’s the amniotic sac and fluid, which is the baby’s own personal jacuzzi. Put all that together, and that equals lots of water! This means the pregnant Goddess takes on the reflective qualities of water, and is very sensual, fluid, and adaptable during this time. It’s not all rainbows and butterflies though, because there can be a down side to all that water-fluid retention. But ironically swimming can help take care of that, as can some yummy watermelon (which is a natural diuretic).

3) Our next Chakra is our fire center, Manipura—the power of transformation. As you can imagine, this center is certainly all lit up as the Goddess literally transforms herself into a baby garden! Not only does she transform herself into this fertile soil and home for growing her baby, at the end of her pregnancy she must transform into a Warrior-like Goddess in order to push that baby out! After her baby arrives, wham-bam, she transforms again into a loving and nurturing creature who nourishes her baby with her own milk. It doesn’t get any more kick-asanathan that.

4) As we move into the element of air, we find Anahata, the heart center. This element expresses itself through love and through our breath. Breath is life. And through yoga we know that breath is the link between body/mind/soul. During pregnancy mother and baby share their breath. That miraculous umbilical cord, which Mama created all by herself, gives the baby everything they need to grow and thrive. It’s literally a life line, the baby’s first taste of being an astronaut!

5) Moving up the Chakras, they become more subtle. Subtle doesn’t mean less awesome, let’s be clear! Because as we enter Vishuddha, the element of space, we can see how important it is for the mother to share her space (her body) with another being. I mean, it’s hard enough to share a bathroom with someone. Let alone your body! Try having a six pound creature hanging out in your stomach for awhile. Or maybe love-tapping your ribs. Believe me, it’s the most magical thing ever, but it is sharing space and it takes some getting used to!

6) Ajna is our third eye center, the whisper-thin element of ether. Mother’s intuition. That unbelievable way that Mom’s can touch a child’s forehead and know instantly if they are even 1.08 degrees warmer than usual. You think you’re intuitive now, wait until it really kicks in with pregnancy hormones! Superpowers, activate! It’s like you grow a Mama antennae and you can almost read minds!

7) Our last destination on the tour today, is Sahasrara, the crown. Check it out. Best case scenario, baby enters the world crown first right through Mama’s root! I mean talk about things coming full circle! Talk about what comes around goes around. Makes me think of that lyric from a Semisonic song, “every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end”. The cherry on top is that the crown chakra is right where babies have their “soft spot” when they’re born. Their crown’s are literally wide open. So amazing.

Just so you know, I’ve experienced all this myself—three times. Not only survived but loved every minute of it. I sometimes even think I might wanna do it all again.

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Editor: Kelly Brichta

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For Carole, yoga and her family are her true passions! She strongly believes in the mind-body connection, and uses her experience as a Psychologist to help bridge the two through heart-centered teaching; weaving together body, breath, and mind through the power of movement and the vibration of music. Carole is a happy and joyful member of Shiva Rea’s Prana Flow® Yoga Tribe, and am a mentor in her Teacher Training Program as well as an assistant for both Shiva Rea and Twee Merrigan. Anyone that knows Carole, knows that she whole-heartedly believes in the power of Shakti! Therefore she is dedicated to empowering women through their female life cycles and birthing experiences, and is honored to be a Childbirth Educator, Doula, and Prenatal Yoga Teacher. You can find out more about Carole and her Prenatal Yoga Trainings on her website: www.CaroleWesterman.com And keep an eye out too, as Carole is currently working on a Prenatal Yoga DVD and book with r.r. Shakti!