Muladhara

Muladhara (Sanskrit: मूलाधार, Mūlādhāra), meaning root place, is the first chakra. 

Color: red. 

Element: Earth

Location: The base of the spine, beneath the sacrum.

Yantra symbol: Square surrounded by four red petals

Characteristics:

Connected to the basic animal instincts of self-preservation: food, shelter, health, security.  

It is the foundation of our being. It is associated to the sense of smell, and thus the nose.  

Emotionally connected to feelings of belonging, desires to live, and the strive to own necessities.

Unbalanced / Blocked Root Chakra:

Feelings of isolation, abandonment and fear may take hold of emotional and psychological health. One might feel uncomfortable, a sense of being alone; material wealth becomes crucial through greed and self-esteem issues.  One may have excretion problems, since the chakra is linked to the anus.

Balanced Root Chakra: We feel safe; we feel a sense of belonging.  We connect well with others, because our ability to trust and accept them is strong.  We feel alive and peaceful.  Our actions of excretion and our sense of smell work constantly.

Food that fuels this chakra: Lots of root vegetables (especially red ones like beets!) and other red vegetables and fruits (apples, pomegranate).  Root vegetables grow deep in they Earth, and so they're full of the grounding energy. http://agrainaday.com/?p=1962

Deity: Indra, 4-armed, who holds a vajra and blue lotus in his hands and is mounted upon the white elephant Airawata who has seven trunks that denote the seven elements vital to physical functioning.