The Heart’s Intelligence
The physical heart is on the left center side of the chest. It continually pumps blood, bringing oxygen to the cells of the body. The physical body cannot survive without a functioning heart.
The heart chakra is located at chest level around the cardiac plexus. Some refer to it as the energetic heart. It has no physical form and, therefore, is invisible and unbounded. It corresponds to the nerves and organs that impact our physical and emotional well-being.
Chakra is a Sanskrit word that means disk or wheel. While Chakras are not physical objects they have a strong effect upon the body’s glandular processes, shape, ailments, thoughts and behavior. Chakras are energy points through which we organize and express the life force (also called prana, chi, qi, in different cultures) Each chakra has a vibrational frequency, color and sound to which it is attuned. Each chakra’s balance can be disrupted by stress, trauma, grief and physical toxins among others.
These seven wheels of bioenergetic activity emanate from the major nerve ganglia branching upward along the spinal column. They move from the base of the spine to the top of the head. There are also numerous minor chakras throughout the body. The seven major chakras represent areas of psychological health and are created from the combination of energy and consciousness. Consciousness can be thought of as being aware of oneself and reflecting on one’s experiences. Each chakra represents a fundamental aspect of life: to know, see, speak, love, act, feel and be grounded.
This article focuses on the fourth chakra located around the physical heart space. The heart chakra represents the right to love and be loved. It is also reflective of the persona or personality. It is about how we interact with others and form intricate relationships. Learning to harmonize with others is a primary task for all humanity. Our relationship with others reflects our relationship with ourselves. Relationships form early in life beginning with mother and infant. They ideally continue to include self-love and then expand to include all others. Intimate relationships develop as the adult matures. True intimacy with another is created through honest exploration, connection and exposure. Relationships with peers, subordinates, superiors, family and friends are also extremely important. They offer significant challenges and learning opportunities. Relationships are the ideal way to evoke life’s tests and trials as well as offer significant possibilities for growth. As Carl Jung said, “Everything that irritates us about others can lead to an understanding of ourselves.” Without honest and full communication, however, relationships wither and die.
When one is drawn to understanding the mysteries of life and is sincere in their quest for self-knowledge, a relationship can be developed with the spirit world. This includes the higher self, the soul and spirit guides. I was in my forties before I had a serious commitment to the spiritual path. At the beginning of my journey, I had no idea of the experiences I might find along the way. I certainly wasn’t thinking of connecting to spirit guides. To my delight and amazement, non-physical opportunities gradually began to emerge. One such experience involved a reincarnation in the same lifetime/body (RSB). I learned that the purpose was to extend my life to complete some work I had begun earlier. (This process is explained in more detail in my latest book, Know Your Soul: Bring Joy to Your Life). Suffice it to say that the experience, which extended over many years, was one I will never forget. Another experience that started over 25 years ago and is ongoing, is that of connecting to my spirit team and communicating with them. I can ask any questions and get clear, forthright answers. Since life is rich and multifaceted, I never run out of questions. Not all the information I receive, however, is relegated to higher realms. I receive practical assistance as well and have been helped to accomplish challenging tasks that my soul set for me in China and elsewhere. What I now know, is that this spiritual connection is available to anyone willing to search for it with diligence and persistence.
Self-exploration is essential to a balanced life—a central pillar of the heart chakra. We need to love ourselves before we can freely offer love to others. Self-love requires honoring our boundaries and speaking our truth with humility, patience and compassion. This includes the balance between our mind and body and our masculine and feminine attributes. Then we can turn our attention to balance in the outer world: between work and play, giving and receiving, socializing and isolating. The result is healthy, loving and enduring relationships.
Love expands, fear contracts. At this time in humanity’s evolutionary journey, a shift is occurring from a belief in separation and an exploration of fear to one built on connection and love. True love is unconditional and never judges. Life doesn’t happen to you; it happens for you; specifically, for your growth and understanding. That is why it is said there are no mistakes; we learn from everything. The heart is always available to dispel negative thoughts and to guide us in making choices. Our spiritual journey is about expanding our love for everyone and everything. The goal is to make love the alpha and omega of all thoughts, words and deeds.
Love is a spontaneous activity of the heart. It is a feeling that results from an act of will, motivated by intelligence. Thus, love incorporates reason, will and emotion – it is all encompassing. Love is intelligence and hate is lack of intelligence. In other words, when you are in a state of love, you are being realistic and vice versa. Love is the medicine that heals all illness and sorrow. Whatever the question, love is the answer.
Love is unity. It is connection. It is beauty. It is oneness. Love is the glue that holds the world together. When you are centered in your heart you are in a state of unity and connection. This is where all creation is destined to be, dependent only on each one’s intention and effort.
The heart is directly tied to Soul and from there directly to Source. Always look to your heart before acting. It will point you in the right direction. Be grateful for that which you receive; trust it without hesitation. The heart is the key to all loving thoughts and actions. Without a heart centered life, love is transient and ephemeral. Connect to your heart and surrender to your Soul. Life will flow easily, and you will enjoy an elevated state of consciousness.
Cardiologist Mimi Guarneri, in her book The Heart Speaks, describes some of the little-known characteristics of the heart. For example, she states that the electromagnetic current of the heart is sixty times greater in amplitude than the energetic field of the brain. It also emits an energy field five thousand times stronger than the brain. This energy field can be measured more than ten feet from the body.
When our heart is attacked, either emotionally or physically, we protect it from what or who we think caused us harm. If we saw the big picture, we would have a different view of many of our emotional reactions. Nonetheless, we need to understand that forgiveness is crucial to heal from physical and emotional disturbances. We can start by remembering that human beings aren’t expected to be perfect. The compassion of the heart restores balance and conscious self-responsibility. Forgiveness softens the heart and allows it to heal.
We can’t always forgive something a person has done, but we can separate the person from the hurtful act. Forgiveness can’t be done half-way; you forgive completely, or you don’t forgive at all. Forgiveness is akin to opening a door to set someone free and realizing you were the prisoner. Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past. It frees us to love freely in the future. To paraphrase Ghandi, the irrational act of exchanging an eye for an eye will eventually make the whole world blind.
Compassion is closely related to love; it is evoked by identifying with others. Compassion means being distressed by another person's misfortune. Times of extreme divisiveness and discord, such as we witness today, call for compassionate responses. We never know what traumas or painful experiences another has endured nor what Karma or distorted beliefs caused their thoughts and behavior. Any troublesome personal history is usually unknown even if we have had a relationship with them. Compassion doesn’t mean we have to fix something. Realizing that makes it easier—and more important—to offer compassion towards those who have wronged us.
Unconditional love is a precondition for compassion which comes directly from our heart. Compassion toward self is a prerequisite for compassion for others just as self-love is needed before one can fully love others. Compassion is at the head of the list of things that would most benefit humanity during these transitional times.
Remembering the Golden Rule—what we do for another we do for our self and what we fail to do for others eventually harms us—evokes our compassion and the desire to do something to help the sufferer. In the face of today’s anger and hate, we must understand that we are all struggling human beings worthy of forgiveness and empathy.
Effective personal interactions are based on recognizing our interdependence and interconnection whether at home or work. When we forget our unalterable connections, we become selective in our treatment of others. As an example, we usually have compassion for our immediate family but often fail to do the same for our extended human family. It is equitable and proper that we extend feelings of compassion to all who are going through difficulties.
Negative emotional responses are usually motivated by unrealistic fears that are based on the past or future and are not relevant in the present. The shift from fear to love results in compassion for the human condition and is our ultimate salvation.
The HeartMath Institute, (HMI) is a decades old nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to helping people become aware of the heart’s intuitive guidance. According to HMI, achieving heart coherence is key to bringing the mind and the emotions into alignment with the energetic heart. Coherence can be defined as a harmonious relationship among parts of a system; signifying order, structure and cohesion. There is an alignment within and among systems: be they particles, organisms, social groups, planets or galaxies. It demonstrates connectedness among the various segments. It also assumes that a system is greater than the sum of its individual parts. In a body, coherence occurs when systems are aligned with each other. The term can also describe harmony in our physical, mental and emotional interactions and our adaptations to life’s challenges.
Health can be seen as a process by which an individual maintains a sense of coherence—belief that life is rational, manageable and meaningful. By sustaining heart-focused emotional states such as acceptance, compassion and kindness, the brain is brought into alignment with the heart. The heart is also extremely sensitive to negative thoughts and feelings such as anger and fear. These emotions change the heart-rate variability (HRV) pattern—the beat-to-beat variability between each heartbeat. They determine the cadence of the brain and respiratory system. The rhythm set by the heart enables other organs to oscillate in a coordinated pattern leading to coherence.
Coherence also pertains to social interactions. When members of a group are in harmonious alignment, relationships are said to be stable and coherent. An individual’s state of coherence effects group cohesion and cooperation. The HeartMath Institute has theorized that higher vibrational states—generated by greater coherence—accelerate individual, societal and global coherence. We become better able to regulate our thoughts and emotions. A more peaceful, loving world becomes increasingly possible; the implications are far-reaching.
To intentionally shift to a state of heart coherence, recall positive thoughts, such as love, appreciation and gratitude. This will naturally produce more heart coherent rhythms. Next, start developing more fulfilling relationships, show compassion for all who are suffering and offer unconditional love and forgiveness to all who pass our way. Following these guideposts, we can better use the heart’s profound intelligence and positively influence life beyond what we can see.