When is it used?
You may have experienced the soothing feeling of sitting on the bank of a river, or standing on an ocean shore, with your feet in the cool water on a hot day. Maybe you were chatting with a friend and enjoying the view, not really paying attention to your state of being, but nevertheless the water would have cooled you down, relaxed and invigorated you.
When you want to wind down after a hard day’s work or calm yourself before going to bed, doing a foot-soak is one of the easiest and most effective techniques out there. Whether you are feeling down, or hyped up and restless, soaking your feet in salt-water helps to restore balance within. Once you get into the routine of enjoying this simple 10-minute method, it can become as important to you as brushing your teeth.
How is it done?
You will need a plastic tub designated solely for this purpose. Fill it with enough water to cover your feet with water up to your ankles. The water should be cool if you are feeling overactive, and warm if you are feeling more lethargic or emotional. Take lukewarm water if in doubt. Add a handful of salt to your water (we recommend sea salt). Prepare a chair to sit on, a towel to dry your feet and a jug of water to rinse your feet after the 10-minute foot-soak. Once all this is in place, you are ready to begin.
First, to start the foot-soak raise your Kundalini and give yourself a Bandhan, then sit with your palms facing upward and your feet immersed in the salt water. Try to keep your eyes closed, with your attention resting at the top of your head. You can combine other methods of cleansing with your foot-soak e.g.: keeping ice on your liver and/or listening to music or saying Bija mantras. At the end of your foot-soak, raise your Kundalini and give yourself a Bandhan once more. You will then need to rinse your feet over the bucket, dry them off with a towel, and simply throw the foot-soak water down the toilet.
Note: Doing a foot-soak in a lake, river, or in the ocean can be even more effective because of the additional soothing and cleansing effect of being outdoors and in the nature (in this case no salt is added, because the qualities of Mother Earth are present already).
Why does it work?
A lot of nerves end in our feet and soaking them in salt water can help soothe those nerves, relax our muscles and improve circulation.
Apart from the rewarding physical benefits, the salt water foot-soak quickly and efficiently clears out energetic blockages in our subtle system, especially those linked to the first three Chakras. How so? Water is the element of the Nabhi Chakra, based at the solar plexus. While perhaps a seemingly simple fact, water has a powerful capacity to cleanse and soothe us. Salt represents the earth element, which is related to the first center, the Mooladhara, located at the base of our spine or the pelvic plexus. The earth element also has the power to absorb and restore us, which is often why we might suddenly feel more at ease and relaxed when sitting in nature. The combination of salt and water thus has an immense power to absorb and revitalize us no matter what state we are in.