Getting to the Heart of Matters

People come to yoga for all sorts of reasons. Some want to feel more fit, some are seeking community, some want to connect with their body, some have conditions that no other therapy has helped, and some come for spiritual purposes. Regardless of the reason, if you come to yoga and stick around long enough your heart will be touched. 

The heart is where you feel the most. You’ve likely had your heart broken a time or two and know that deep aching feeling in the chest. It’s real. And while we feel it in the chest, and often associate the feeling with the physical heart, it’s actually the heart centre that’s at play.

The heart centre is fascinating because it really is the crossroads to your higher self. Think of the body as a cross - the spine is the vertical bar of the cross, extended arms are the horizontal bar. The intersection of the bars of the cross is at the heart. According to the yoga teachings, what’s below the intersection is the more primal and ego-based aspects of you. What’s above the intersection is the more evolved you. Through spiritual practice, including yoga, you are attempting to [re]connect to the more evolved self. A blocked heart centre impedes this work.

Have you been to a heart-opening yoga practice? These are almost as popular as hip-opening classes! Not to belittle the good intentions of the teachers, but doing chest opening poses, and focusing on the chest isn’t the way to heal what ails the heart. In fact, opening these energies when someone does not have a good foundation in the practice, let alone their life, is actually counterproductive.

What I’ve learned through my years of study is the complexity of the body, mind, spirit aspects of your being. It is fascinating. I’ve learned that in order to do the work of healing the heart - be it from heartache, heartbreak or grief - there is a specific approach to this work. Are you ready to learn this secret to healing the heart?

First, when you come to yoga practice - or even if you’ve been at it for a while - you need to be connected to your heart. Introducing you to the heart centre and getting you tuned in on this subtle level is step one. You begin to feel your heart's energy, to connect to the intelligence that’s there, to know your heart is as important as your head when it comes to life choices. You may have built a protective wall around your heart and need to begin to penetrate it so you can really, really feel and heal. 🧘🏽

With that connection established the focus shifts to the abdomen and pelvis. Does this surprise you? This is because your subtle body holds experiences, let’s call it your subtle data, which informs how you be in the world. This is data, or chitta, is your storehouse of memories and experiences. Specific chitta is held in specific energy centres, known as chakras.

At the root centre, the muladhara chakra, you store all the primal chitta. These are the necessities of life - eating, sleeping, reproduction, staying alive. There is also the connection to your tribe at this level. Your tribal nature is root-centred energy. Think of groups you are affiliated with, religions, ethnicity, political parties, etc.

Can you think of any issues related to this chitta that you need to address and heal?

Another centre is in the area of the sacrum. Here you find the vishuddhi chakra and the related chitta. This energy centre is often linked to sex and eros. But it also involves attachments; how you set yourself apart as you evolve from the tribe. Think of the material stuff you use as signifiers to identify you - your clothes, your hairstyle, where you buy your coffee, the type of music you listen to, the areas you hang out at, the car you drive, the neighbourhood you live in, the university you choose to attend, the type of work you do, the things you do to socialize, for example. Aside from the material signifiers it also includes your beliefs, values and thoughts of who and what you are.

When any of the above are challenged, you respond. Think of the last time someone challenged your political beliefs; questioned a lifestyle choice; mocked your spiritual beliefs; wanted you to participate in an event that doesn’t align with your interests; gave you an article of clothing that didn’t meet your expectations. How did you respond?

The last major energy field below the heart centre is the abdomen, manipura chakra, where much of your ego-based chitta resides. Your pride, power and self-concept are centred here. This is the domain of individualism. When you're riding high on pride and buoyed in self-confidence, that is gut energy stuff. Conversely, when esteem is diminished and self-doubt is pervasive, that too is the energy of the navel centre. There is intelligence in this area, just as there is in the mind and heart. The gut can guide us, thus it’s important to heal unresolved issues affecting your power and sense of self, be it embellished or diminished.

The beauty with all of this is that an integrated approach to yoga addresses these three lower torso issues effectively and efficiently. It’s important to have teachers who work at this level.

I use a range of yoga techniques strategically to break through these layers of chitta: asana, pranayama, bandhas, mudras, meditations. These can affect heart-healing if done properly.

What does this all mean? To positively impact the conditions of your heart you need more than heart-centred practices. My teacher says if you do too much heart-centred yoga without dealing with the lower levels of chitta you actually create a big mess. Think of the many people who have been doing yoga for years and still suffer from so much heart-centred pain. If not to heal the heart, what’s the point of it all?

I spent the first number of years of direct study with my teacher doing the work of healing the lower energy centres. My guru mantra was one that has a powerful healing punch. The focus of my meditation was on the gut. I used agni-sara (abdominal churning) to work through the layers of energy of the gut - physical, mental and spiritual - for years, and continue to use this important technique.

As you evolve in your journey you connect with the lotus of the heart. As you connect with this energy the mind becomes so clear. You still exist in the world but you no longer identify with the objects of the world – work, emotions, goals, etc. The light in the heart is the ultimate glory, to know yourself and to live in the light of your creator, to know yourself as the source of life. This is the ultimate path of yoga. This is the path to greater freedom, fulfillment and joy.

Are you interested in connecting to yourself on this level but not sure of the pathway there? Book a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your next steps.