In February, the world focuses a lot on romantic love, which is great. But there’s so much to discover about ourselves by looking deeper at the qualities of the heart. The human heart is an access point to a deep well of guiding wisdom. It has an intelligence that can help us live our lives with greater joy, intuition, creativity, and flow.
The ancient Sundo tradition of Korea, a mind-body-spirit training system that sought to elevate humanity to its highest expression of the divine, identifies three major internal energy centers of the body, called dahnjons. They are associated with the second, fourth, and sixth chakras. They also correlate to the three “brains” that western science is beginning to recognize: the gut brain, the heart brain, and the head brain.
Of these, we find the heart at the center, connecting the lower chakras of our physical body and the higher chakras of our intellect and spiritual consciousness. Because of this, mystics throughout the ages and religious teachings from all over the world commonly name the heart as the seat of wisdom.
And now, modern science is starting to pick up on what these ancient traditions have always known: Your heart is a guiding force for the Life within you, and it communicates in profound ways with the world around you.
In this article, I’ll share some beautiful science about your intuitive, connected heart. Then, I’ll share a meditation to help you listen to your heart and receive its guidance about your life.
Facts about the Heart
These facts are from the
HeartMath Institute, a research and educational organization that scientifically studies the emotional and relational aspects of the heart.
- • The heart has its own system of neurons, and it sends more information to the brain than vice versa.
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• Heart-brain coherence is a measurable state in which the heart and brain’s energies are working together optimally. This collaboration between the heart and brain is required for optimal physiological, emotional, and mental conditions.
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• The heart generates the largest magnetic field in the human body, and emotional information is encoded within that magnetic field.
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• Negative emotions produce chaos in the nervous system, but positive emotions increase heart-brain coherence and create nervous system balance.
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• The human heart field can be measured up to 5 feet away from the body. People standing in proximity to each other are communicating at a subconscious level through their heart energy fields.
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• A state of coherence radiates a heart energy field that is beneficial to other people, animals, and plants around you.
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• The human heart syncs to the Earth: People anywhere around the world, when in a healthy state, have a heart frequency that is precisely the same as the Earth’s main frequency, 1 Hz.
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• Heart cells in a Petri dish will find a common rhythm and beat together.
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• A mother’s brainwaves can sync to her baby’s heartbeat.
The Intuitive Heart
Various research studies have correlated participants’ heart-rate variability to a “pre-stimulus.” In other words, the heart is responding to certain kinds of information in a fraction of a second, or seconds before the information is actually presented. For example, in a gambling situation in which someone has placed a losing bet, the person’s heart rate might increase ten seconds before they are informed that they have lost.
Rollin McCraty, Ph.D., HeartMath Institute Director of Research, says:
“We found that from the body perspective, the heart is the first to receive these non-local signals or intuitions, then they are passed to the brain. It’s a result I wouldn’t have predicted. The heart has access to information outside the boundaries of time and space. It’s been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.”
So both modern science and ancient wisdom agree that the wisdom of the heart is vast and far-reaching in its effects. But connecting to your heart is not complicated. It can be as simple as quietly tuning in to the sensations in your heart, and maybe
noticing how different thoughts create changes in your heartbeat.
Try the meditation below to get your heart’s guidance on a specific issue, or simply see what it wants you to know.
Heart Wisdom Meditation
- 1. Sit comfortably with one or both hands over your heart. Bring your focus to your heart and feel its beating rhythm.
- 2. Imagine you are breathing in and out of your heart, as if it were the place in your body where air enters and leaves.
- 3. As you continue to feel and breathe through your heart, think of someone or something you love. Feel your heart energy expand, and notice how your heart listens to your thoughts and responds. Continue until you can feel your heart strongly.
- 4. Now you can let go of thinking of the person or thing you love. Staying with the energy of your heart, speak to it out loud or in your mind. You can ask it any question you have about your life. If you don’t have a specific question, you can ask, “Heart, what would you like me to know?”
- 5. Listen with your inner ears. This means that you probably won’t hear an audible answer (though it is possible). Your heart may answer with sensations or feelings, images, or an intuitive knowing. Tune in to whatever arises.
- 6. Resist any urge to start thinking about it. Stay connected to the energy as long as you need.
It’s okay if you don’t get an answer from your heart during your meditation. It can appear sometime later when you least expect it. Trust that your heart is listening and working for you in the background. It wants to help you, and it will share its message when it (and you) are ready.
There are many other ways to listen and speak to your heart,
such as telling it what you’d like to create in your life so it can support you. You can also come up with your own.
The Change Your Energy Premium Membership has hundreds of courses and other resources to help you stay connected to your heart.
If you’d like to deepen your experience and learn to live from your inner guiding wisdom, you can learn more here.