A strong heart is able to forgive the wounds of the past, find joy in the moment, and step into the world to make it a better place.
Our path toward love keeps us light, positive, and open to our highest good. The great Satguru, Sri H.W. L. Poonja, says our spiritual challenge is to love the self and have the heart of a lion through the thick and thin of life.
As we gracefully surrender to life we allow it to move us and with an open heart we accept ourselves and others with grace.
The heart is nourished and kept happy and stable by peace. It is important to nourish the heart by spending time in silence, in nature, and with positive people. It helps to read uplifting books and to cultivate laughter and play in one’s life. Doing what makes your heart sing keeps the heart strong and alive. An open heart receives as much as it gives.
We revive a wounded heart by our ability to see the good, and forgive the past. This helps us regain energy that has gone into suppressed feelings. Each step toward reconciliation with our self helps release vitality that we can use for creative living. Reconciliation means forgiving the past and living in the present.
The heart chakra is made up of two distinct components. The heart protector corresponds to the pericardium (a double walled sac that surrounds the heart) and acts to protect the heart from external assault. It keeps unwanted criticism, negative thoughts, and impure intentions away from the purity and innocence of the heart.
We forge a strong heart protector by developing an uncompromising love of Self which is reflected in healthy boundaries, and knowing who and what are for our highest good.
Our hearts are nourished by love of nature, animals, children, and the elderly.
Loving our lives, loving others, and sharing this light heals us and heals the world.
Below is a practical exercise to let you review some of the harmful attitudes associated with the heart chakra. This exercise illustrates a way of reframing negative attitudes into more positive and life-affirming ones.
Negative attitudes: The fear of giving and receiving love blocks health, joy, and goodness from coming into our lives. Fear is the opposite of love. It prevents the heart from being happy and joyful and corrodes the spirit. Avoiding doing what delights us and suffering over loss weakens the heart. Failing to do what we love deprives the heart of its main purpose, which is to love.
Positive attitudes: Allowing love to be the core of our life carries us through difficult and challenging times. It keeps our spirit open and our heart alive. Loving who we are, what we do, and how things are raises the spirit and heals the heart. Knowing that we are love is part of the very fiber of our being. It helps us create a positive, generous attitude toward others and heals wounds of pain, loss, or separation. Love is the greatest gift we can give ourselves. It makes us whole.
Affirmations for the Heart Chakra
I love to be loved.
I am love.
Love is at the center of my life.
Love heals me and makes me new.
Love is all that truly matters in life.
Love connects me to the infinite and makes me whole.
Love restores my faith in life.
I Am Love Meditation
There is a general misconception that we must go find love, that it exists outside of us. The truth is that we are nothing but love, and we don’t have to do anything to get it, for it is already within. Journey inward with this meditation and feel the love that you are.
Safe in the Light of Love Meditation
A lovely way to begin or end the day, this is a guided visualization to feel safe, centered, able to express light and love to oneself and radiate love out to others.
Centering Yourself in Love Heart Chakra Journal Prompts
I invite you to ponder the following suggestions to help you center yourself in the love that you are, and write in your journal what you feel called to explore further…
- Finding the love for oneself, in spite of whatever may have happened in the past, brings healing and releases the past.
- Being able to forgive the past, including those who were hurtful, abusive, or destructive, helps keep the heart open.
- Accept the present as the point of power where love can heal our wounds and restore our sense of wholeness.
- Learning to accept ourselves as we are, without pride or pretense, keeps the heart open and allows the good to come to us.
- Make a list of what makes your heart sing. Commit yourself to the process of reanimating joy by doing what you love, with people you love.