Heartfulness

Heartfulness is a term I like to use for the practice of mindfully attending to the heart, to our emotions. By learning to relax into an open knowing of the heart, we can be spacious and non-reactive to all our emotions, whether pleasant or unpleasant, positive or negative. Through this balanced attention, we can nurture wise discernment of emotions.

We can touch the peaceful freedom of our heart, spacious like the sky through which clouds of emotion come and go, and be at rest luminously.

Transcript

Hello dear friends,

Namaskar.

Thanks for joining me again at Aware Zen for another guided meditation.

Today I'd like to share with you a method of meditation which is about attending mindfully to our emotions,

Attending mindfully to our emotional states,

Or we can call that being mindful of our hearts,

The state of our hearts.

So a nice term that has been coined which I like to use for this practice is heartfulness.

Being mindful of the heart and thus heartfulness.

So in this practice we will nurture a gentle,

Open,

Kind and non-reactive attitude towards our emotional states.

As we all know very well,

We can experience all kinds of emotions in our everyday lives.

Some of these emotions are pleasant,

Some are unpleasant,

And yet others are simply neutral.

It's neither pleasant nor unpleasant.

There are emotions that we might call positive or skillful,

And emotions we might consider negative or unskillful.

Positive,

Skillful emotions tend to be quite pleasant,

Though not always,

And they lead to a reduction of suffering,

They lead to an increase in happiness for oneself and others.

While negative,

Unskillful emotions are often quite unpleasant and lead to suffering,

An increase of suffering and conflict within ourselves or in our relationships.

So in this practice we learn how to discern or distinguish between what are skillful emotions and what are unskillful emotions,

And what are emotions that we might consider quite neutral,

Neither skillful nor unskillful.

And in this practice we learn how to be in open contact with our emotional states,

Without getting attached or involved,

And without resisting or being rejecting of our emotions.

So that can be quite a balancing act,

Because the tendency for us is to get completely involved in our emotions.

Whatever emotions come up,

We get totally sucked in,

We get lost in them,

So we become identified with what we feel.

So by so,

That in this tight identification,

We often react unskillfully,

And thus bring about greater suffering in our situations.

And one common example is the emotion of annoyance that might lead to anger and ill will.

So if we get,

For example,

Irritated by an unpleasant situation,

Or an unpleasant person,

Or an unpleasant object,

Something that triggers annoyance and irritation in us,

That can also very easily build up into anger.

Anger is an intensified annoyance,

An intensified sense of rejection of what is,

Leading to even a desire to harm,

Which we can call ill will,

A desire to cause pain or hurt on the person that has annoyed us or angered us.

So we can see this sequence of events,

From annoyance,

Anger,

To ill will,

Leading to unskillful actions that increase conflict and suffering for ourselves and for others.

And interestingly,

When we act or speak with ill will,

Anger,

That has a very direct impact on our own sense of well-being.

Immediately our sense of peace is lost.

So in this practice of heartfulness,

Attending mindfully to our hearts,

We learn how to cultivate space and openness for various emotions to arise,

To abide,

And to pass away,

Without getting involved,

Without indulging in them,

And also without resisting or rejecting them.

Just seeing them for what they are,

And letting them pass away.

We also learn from this practice of heartfulness how to consciously nurture wholesome,

Skillful emotions,

So that they become more and more a part of the way we relate to ourselves and others.

Wholesome emotions like gentleness and kindness,

Joy,

Equanimity.

So nurturing these wholesome states and strengthening them in our hearts.

So let's practice this meditation together.

And to begin with,

I'd like to invite you,

Once again,

To adopt the meditation posture,

Sitting on your chair,

Being upright,

Alert,

And yet relaxed.

So let's begin.

Closing your eyes gently,

Hands on your lap,

Feet flat on the floor.

Just coming back to the present moment,

And allowing the body to settle into the now.

Allowing your mind to settle into the now.

Settling into the now,

By first of all being aware of your breathing.

Your breathing that is happening right now.

Being aware of not only your breathing,

But also your body,

Sitting here.

A sense of contact between your body and the chair that you're sitting on,

Or between your feet and the ground that you're resting on.

Sitting here quietly,

Breathing gently and naturally.

As you settle more and more deeply into this present moment,

Let your attention now sink into the heart.

Center of your chest,

Center of your being.

Sense the feel of experience within your heart.

What we might call the space of the heart,

Where you experience emotions.

Emotions of joy,

Emotions of sadness,

Emotions of warmth and friendliness,

Emotions of annoyance and anger.

You may see these emotions like clouds,

Appearing out of the sky,

Passing through the sky.

The sky being the space of your heart.

The field within which your emotions arise,

Abide and pass away.

Just as the clouds might have different shapes and sizes,

Different degrees of density.

In the same way,

Your emotions might come in different shapes and colors and degrees of density.

Sometimes the emotions are very dense,

Very dark.

At other times,

Your emotions might be very light and fluffy.

So attend to your space of the heart and notice what you're feeling right now.

Do you feel happy?

Do you feel sad?

Do you feel annoyed?

Or do you feel bored,

Indifferent?

Or perhaps you feel calm.

Whatever it is that you feel,

Just notice it for what it is,

Without identifying with it and without rejecting it.

Allow your emotion to be there as it is,

Or you remain as that space,

That sky.

The sky that is aware,

That is illuminating your particular emotion,

Whatever it might be.

If you do not feel anything particular,

Just a rather neutral and bland state or sensation,

Then be aware of that.

Just notice that sense of neutrality or blandness,

Without wanting it to go away and without identifying with it.

Remain open,

Spacious and clear,

Knowing that there is enough space in your heart for all the clouds of emotions to come and go.

Now let's think of a pleasant situation or experience.

Perhaps you have recently enjoyed a delicious meal or a wonderful conversation with a dear friend.

Or whatever situation that brought you joy,

Happiness,

The emotional state of happiness,

Joy.

Call that to mind and allow that same joy and happiness to emerge,

To arise in your heart.

Notice that pleasant emotion.

Just notice without getting lost in it or identified with it,

But you are in touch with that pleasant emotion that comes.

Breathing in,

Noticing the emotion,

That positive joy,

And breathing out,

Letting it be.

It's like a beautiful cloud in the sky.

Now let that go,

Let that memory fade away.

And now call to mind an unpleasant experience you've had recently.

An experience that gave you unpleasant emotions.

Maybe you felt annoyed,

Maybe you felt tensed,

Or worried,

Stressed,

Anxious,

Sad.

Perhaps you had an argument with a workmate,

A colleague,

Or you felt unfairly treated by your boss.

Or you got impatient with someone on the street.

Whatever it might be,

Recall that incident and allow that unpleasant emotion to arise.

Be it irritation,

Or impatience,

Or annoyance,

Or worry.

But let it arise like a cloud in the sky.

You are the sky.

Let unpleasant emotions like the cloud.

You are not the cloud.

Feel that emotion without getting identified with it,

And without trying to avoid it or push it away.

Letting it be.

Know that there's enough space and openness in your heart to allow that dense,

Dark cloud to be as it is.

Which in time will pass away.

Clouds of whatever shape and size and density,

They arise and they pass away.

Everything passes away.

Everything is transient,

Including your emotions.

So breathing in and breathing out.

Relaxing and releasing into that openness of awareness.

Open sky.

And letting this negative,

Unpleasant emotion to abide,

To dissolve in its own time.

Now let that go.

Let that image,

That memory,

Unpleasant memory,

Disappear.

Fade away.

Continue breathing in and out naturally.

And returning to this present moment.

And as you breathe out,

Release and relax more deeply into the sky of awareness in your heart.

The space of your heart is not confined,

Has no dimensions.

And you are resting as that space.

Open and clear.

The cool breeze of your in-breath and out-breath blowing through the sky of your heart.

Ever so gently and quietly.

And as you conclude this meditation,

Just affirm a prayer in your heart.

May I be well.

May I be happy.

May I be peaceful.

May my heartfulness allow me to be more present to myself and to others.

And bring about more peace and freedom in my life.

So with that you may finish up your meditation and open your eyes.

So thank you,

Dear friends,

For joining me in this mindful meditation on the heart,

On our emotions.

May this heartfulness be a source of peace,

Of joy,

Of openness,

Of freedom for you.

And may it allow you to become more and more aware and wiser in relation to your emotional states.

So thank you,

Dear friends.

Till next time.

Namaskar.

Shalom.

Aum Shanti.

Shanti.

Thank you.