Accessing your Heart’s Wisdom
Most of us tend to use our brains a lot throughout the day. It is necessary to survive and complete tasks. Our brain is a wondrous, though often a confusing place. It can do a lot for us and help us figure out even the most complicated puzzles and predicaments. There’s no denying the necessity of the knowledge stored in the brain and how we use it each day.
However, there is another type of wisdom we all have: our heart.
What is Heart wisdom?
When we really know something deeply, we say we “know it by heart.” There is a knowing in our heart we can access at any time. The wisdom we find here is different than the knowledge of the brain.
Our heart wisdom can tell us truths that we don’t have proof to show us, like you are strong and worthy of love. There is nothing to prove this is true, and yet it is the truth. Because when we get real quiet and sit with ourselves, we can hear this voice within that can help us find the answers we seek. You may need to listen well, and for a while for this voice to come. It is used to you ignoring it.
How to hear your heart’s wisdom…
When we have been ignoring our heart wisdom for a long time it will be hard to hear at first. You must take time to sit with yourself in peaceful places, like out for a hike in the woods, in a bath, in your backyard, near water. Being in nature allows us to slow down and connect more deeply with ourselves. Nature is the perfect backdrop for doing deep personal work. Nature is extremely resilient, and it grows exactly where it is planted. It does it’s best to fulfill its purpose in its environment. We can use these metaphors to see how we are resilient. How we can grow through hard places, even when we might not have the most perfect environmental conditions.
It is best to be alone when you are learning to listen to you heart wisdom. When we are with others it can be hard to tell where our energy ends and theirs begins. Our energy gets mixed and it becomes harder to distinguish what is coming from us and our hearts, verse what you are feeling from another. Learn what it feels like to be in your own energy field. Imagine a bubble around you in a color that represents what you need. For example, blue for hope, or yellow for courage, or green for peace…Change it up by checking in each time to see what you need.
How do our hearts guide us?
Our heart wisdom can help us make sense of situations from the past and what we were meant to learn from those experiences. When we tap into our heart wisdom we can see where these situations may have created blocks in our emotions or body that continue to be stuck. We can sit with our heart wisdom and receive information about what may be blocked within us. We can get to know our heart and tap into the messages it sends to us.
When we are connected to our heart wisdom we can tell what is good for us and what is not meant for us. For example, when we are meeting a new person for the first time, practice paying attention to how your heart and body responds. Do you feel expanded around this person, open-hearted, safe, and/or energized? Or do you feel small, scared, nervous, on-edge, or shut down? If the first, your heart may be telling you “this is a person worth getting to know more. This person is safe and seems cool.” On the other hand, if you feel the second set of emotions, then this person may be someone you want to be aware of and observe. This may be a person you want to detach from and not take their words personally.
You can use this technique with job interviews and new jobs, with dating, and many other situations in life. Just practice paying attention to how your heart center responds to people, places, situations, and opportunities. Start to learn what makes it feel expanded and full of passion? What makes your heart feel fulfilled? Happy? Joyful? What makes your heard feel sad? Drained? Lost and scared? Move towards things that make your heart feel content and empowered, move away from people and situations that make your heart feel small and powerless.
Meditation to connect to your Heart:
Sit quietly at home or in nature; in the woods, at the beach, at a park…Wherever feels right for you!
Close your heart and take three to six deep breathes from the bottom of your belly to the top of your lungs. Breathe in through your nose and out through your lips as slowly as possible.
Notice where there is tension in your body. Notice where there is relaxation in your body. See if you can extend your relaxation to the parts of your body that feel tense.
In the center of your chest bring your awareness to this point, known as your heart center. This is where your heart Chakra is located. Notice what the energy feels like here…is it light? Dense? Heavy? Fluttery? If this space feels tense or heavy, bring your breath to your heart center. Imagine your breath is clearing away the heavy energy that is lingering there. You can imagine a ball of light in any color entering your heart space and clearing away any negative or painful energy or emotions. Let this ball wash over your entire body, cleansing your whole being.
Once you feel relaxed, asked yourself in your mind or out loud “What does my heart want me to know?” “What does my heart have to tell me?” “What does my heart need from me?” “How can I connect to the wisdom of my heart each day?” Ask yourself where there is still healing to do. Ask whatever else you would like. You can ask about a specific person or situation.
Then thank your heart. Thank your heart for being strong. Thank your heart for being courageous. Thank your heart for trying so hard. Thank your heart for all it does for you and for all the wisdom it has to share with you.
See what comes into your awareness as you ask these questions. See how your heart center responds each time you ask a question. Notice what it feels like to connect to your heart center.
When you feel ready come back to your body and the environment you are in. Take some breaths, and wiggle your fingers and toes. Open your eyes and take a minute to come back into the space.
You can spend as long as you would like connecting to your heart center, but I recommend 10-30 minutes a day or a couple of times a week. You’ll be surprised by how powerful this practice is. Remember, it’s always practice. Don’t expect yourself to be an expert or be able to be in a Zen-like state each and every day.
You have a beautiful heart. It wants to help guide you. Surrender to the wisdom that exists for you here. I hope you find some great insight from this blog. Get support in accessing your heart — Learn more here.
Happy heart journey to you!
Sarah Lustig is a Licensed Therapist in Colorado and a Holistic and Spiritual Coach living in Asheville, North Carolina. She is the owner of a Nurtured Essence, a healing center, aimed at helping people overcome their fears and live with more purpose and lightness. She specializes in working with wounded healers, empaths, and lightworkers.