| "There is a wisdom of the head, and...a wisdom of the | | | | detected and measured five feet away from the |
| heart!" - Charles Dickens, Hard Times | | | | body. |
| "Where my heart lies, let my brain lie also." - Robert | | | | And one person's heart waves can affect and show |
| Browning, "One Word More" | | | | up in someone else's brain waves when they touch |
| "It is the heart which experiences God, and not the | | | | each other. |
| reason." - Blaise Pascal | | | | There is also an intelligence and consciousness in the |
| There is a new trend these days toward becoming | | | | heart: "...the heart has unusual perceptual and intuitive |
| more heart-centered, one that is a positive trend in our | | | | information-processing capabilities....and has its own |
| move toward wholeness. | | | | frequency range of intelligence that is not controlled by |
| What do we mean by "heart-centeredness?" | | | | the brain or the autonomic nervous system. The heart |
| Actually, the term "heart-centered" may be a bit | | | | is autorhythmic, which means that it beats on its own |
| misleading, as it might indicate a move from the head | | | | without requiring input from the brain or nervous |
| to the heart. I prefer, instead, to look at it as opening | | | | system." The heart and brain communicate with each |
| the heart up, a "heart-openness." (And, as we shall | | | | other via nerves and hormones, and the heart's |
| soon find out, current scientific research shows that | | | | communication to the brain "directly affects perception, |
| we may already be more "heart-centered" than we | | | | reaction speeds, balance, intuition, and decision-making |
| know.) | | | | ability...." The "feeling and emotional perceptions of the |
| As a believer in wholism and in being whole, I feel that | | | | heart," when communicated to the brain, trigger |
| we are healthier and more whole when we develop | | | | "chemical changes in neurotransmitters and hormones |
| and use more of our faculties and abilities. In the | | | | throughout the body." (All italics mine) (Doc Lew Childre, |
| present context, this means that we want to use our | | | | IHM, "A White Paper: Women Lead with Their Hearts") |
| heads and our hearts (as well as our guts, our intuition, | | | | This means that the heart affects our consciousness |
| etc.) - and have them all working together in a | | | | and our understanding, so that, in order to truly |
| seamless whole. So, in order to become more | | | | understand, we need to have our hearts open while |
| heart-centered, we don't want to stop thinking! We just | | | | we are thinking. Thinking with the mind alone (extreme |
| want to open up our feeling center more and feel | | | | intellectualism), while divorcing the heart while in the act |
| while we think and think while we feel. (We may not | | | | of cogitation, leads to sterile thoughts devoid of true |
| need open-heart surgery, as much as we may need | | | | understanding. |
| heart-opening surgery!) | | | | The heart also affects the health of the immune |
| The move toward "heart-centeredness" in Western | | | | system, hormonal balance (including the production of |
| industrialized societies is truly a step toward | | | | DHEA), thinking ability and creativity, DNA, entrainment, |
| wholeness. And it is not just Western societies that | | | | healthy cell growth, and inhibition of tumor cell growth! |
| are starting to inch toward wholeness: interestingly, | | | | When you actually read some of the results of IHM's |
| there is also a move in less industrialized "third-world" | | | | research, you feel blown away by the importance of |
| societies that have traditionally been more | | | | that little bitty organ located in your chest. |
| heart-centered toward developing their rational, | | | | Now, what makes the difference in whether the |
| head-oriented faculties more (technical, analytical, etc.) - | | | | heart's effects are positive or negative? |
| and thus embracing their wholeness. | | | | Interestingly enough, it is the type of emotions we have |
| So, why aren't we already "heart-open?" | | | | that affect our heart function - and, thus, how they |
| The Age of Reason has propelled our Western | | | | entrain our whole physical system, how they affect |
| society increasingly into our heads. And our | | | | others, and how they affect our own health. |
| contemporary materialistic focus has served to | | | | Because emotions affect the wave patterns of the |
| cement us there. As we have become more "rational," | | | | heart. |
| we have tended to discount and dismiss the | | | | Dan Winter, a psychophysiologist, has mapped |
| "non-rational" (i.e., heart-centered faculties) as beneath | | | | emotions in the heart. He has twice spoken at SFF |
| us or as lesser attributes, and not to be relied upon. | | | | (Spiritual Frontiers Fellowship) meetings, and I was |
| The rational, empirical, and pragmatic alone are to be | | | | serendipitously fortunate enough to hear him both |
| trusted. Interestingly, even if we have tended to see | | | | times. He has shown how coherent emotions (creating |
| ourselves as left brain or right brain, we are still viewing | | | | a wave pattern with waves that are in phase with |
| ourselves as in our heads, as these are still | | | | each other) - i.e., love, appreciation, etc. - affect the |
| head-centered faculties. (Of course, if we want to be | | | | braiding of DNA. |
| head-centered, we could always be whole-brain, rather | | | | At IHM they have researched how coherent emotions |
| than half-brain!) | | | | affect the heart and health. Coherent emotions |
| Thus, our "rationalism" has led us to disown our feelings | | | | produce a heart wave pattern that is smooth and |
| and live in our heads. And, if we do get into our | | | | symmetrical; noncoherent emotions (anger, frustration, |
| feelings, we tend to talk about them, rather than | | | | resentment, caustic humor, etc.), by contrast, produce a |
| genuinely feel them. | | | | jagged wave pattern. |
| Certainly our age of specialization has led us to be | | | | Coherent emotions produce heart rate variability, vital |
| more one-dimensional, relying on only one facet of | | | | for life and health, whereas the negative emotions do |
| ourselves and leading us to be less than we can really | | | | not. Noncoherent, or negative, emotions close the heart |
| be. | | | | down and cause constriction. (There's that "flow" |
| When we layer in on top of these factors another | | | | factor again!) |
| influence that we have seen in our society in the last | | | | As if it weren't enough just to feel those noncoherent |
| 30 years - that of hiding our feelings - it is easy to see | | | | emotions and feel angry, resentful, etc., they also have |
| why we are not more heart-open. There has been | | | | the following ill effects: suppression of the immune |
| increasing pressure in our society not to show our | | | | system; hormonal imbalance; inability to think clearly; |
| emotions (or "wear our hearts on our sleeves") and | | | | cardiovascular strain; negatively impacting others; tumor |
| thus be vulnerable. We must protect ourselves by | | | | growth; and a negative impact on DNA. Indeed, |
| appearing "cool." This tendency has been further aided | | | | recalling an angry memory for just five minutes can |
| and abetted by our advertising and popular media that | | | | suppress the immune system for five hours. (On the |
| have encouraged us to be image-conscious. In addition, | | | | other hand, just suppressing anger can also have ill |
| increasing urbanization and crowding, and an increasing | | | | health effects.) |
| crime rate have led us to protect ourselves by putting | | | | It is through feeling - not thinking about, but really feeling |
| our emotional armor on and erecting walls between | | | | - coherent emotions that we optimize health, reduce |
| ourselves and others. | | | | stress, promote longevity, optimize our thinking and |
| And, if we're not image-conscious or acting cool, we | | | | creative faculties, have intuitive intelligence, have true |
| may have closed down emotionally. The extreme | | | | understanding, entrain our physical system (for |
| emotional sensitivity and past pains of some of us | | | | wholeness), have a healthy flow of energy, and |
| may have led us to feel pain more easily than pleasure | | | | positively affect others. (And we now have some |
| or happiness. Our hearts may have become | | | | scientific justification for ideas about wholeness and |
| figuratively scarred (because we're scared?) - and | | | | energy flow!) |
| closed off. | | | | And, if that weren't enough, coherent emotions and an |
| It's no wonder, then, that some of us close our hearts | | | | open heart allow for more connection to others and to |
| off, live in our heads, or fall into habits of negative | | | | our world. |
| thinking (cynicism, fearfulness, etc.). | | | | But wait: there's more! |
| So, why should we even want to become more | | | | IHM research also indicates that "the quantum electrical |
| heart-centered? What is so special about the heart? | | | | field of the heart is where love, or Spirit, enters the |
| Physically seated in the chest, protected by the ribs, | | | | human system...where Spirit meets matter." (Doc Lew |
| and actually fairly tough, the heart is pear-shaped and | | | | Childre, IHM, "Building a Bridge Between Science and |
| consists of four chambers. It is composed of muscle | | | | Religion") So an open heart also opens us more to |
| and is a little bigger than a fist. Health-wise, the heart | | | | "Spirit"uality. |
| can be affected by hypertension, clogged arteries, etc. | | | | All of this - health, wholeness, flow, true understanding, |
| A healthy flow in the heart is vital to its health (just as | | | | connection to others, spirituality - from feeling love, |
| a healthy flow is desirable in our overall energy flow). | | | | appreciation, etc.! |
| Figuratively, we know the heart as "the seat of | | | | But how do we start to feel coherent emotions more |
| emotion," the place where our "inmost thoughts and | | | | in our stressful contemporary lives? |
| feelings" reside. It is also seen as "the vital or most | | | | Well, there are two techniques that I am aware of at |
| essential part; the real meaning; the core." (Webster's | | | | the present time. One is the "Freeze Frame" technique |
| Unabridged) | | | | devised by IHM (and delineated in the book, Freeze |
| Interestingly, we have always accorded the heart a | | | | Frame by Doc Lew Childre), which incorporates |
| special place in our world, almost as if we have an | | | | recognizing the stressful feeling by becoming |
| innate sense of its complex importance. We use | | | | consciously aware of it (conscious living), shifting your |
| phrases like "with all one's heart," or "to set one's heart | | | | focus to your heart for ten seconds, recalling a |
| on." While we have apparently always had an intuitive | | | | "positive, fun feeling" and re-experiencing it, asking your |
| awareness of the key role of the heart in our | | | | heart what would be a more efficient response to the |
| emotional well-being, scientists may have tended to | | | | stressful situation, listening to your heart's answer, and |
| dispute the validity or empirical value of these idioms | | | | writing down your response. Please note that this is a |
| and have therefore discounted this folksy wisdom. | | | | bare outline of the technique and does not give full |
| It is interesting that we have traditionally viewed the | | | | justice to it. IHM conducts workshops in this technique |
| heart in these two ways, both as a physical organ and | | | | and also provides consulting services to corporations, |
| figuratively as vital and involved with emotion, because, | | | | the military, etc. (You may contact them at (408) |
| ironically enough, recent scientific research has yielded | | | | 338-2161.) |
| some provocative findings that show a basis for such | | | | The second technique is called The Natural Process |
| a wedding in terms. | | | | technique. It, too, is more of a meditative technique, but |
| I was fortunate enough last summer to attend the | | | | contains more elements of spirituality in it. |
| annual IONS conference (Institute of Noetic Sciences), | | | | Information on The Natural Process technique was |
| where I was introduced to the work of the Institute of | | | | received by Margaret Keen in a near-death |
| HeartMath (IHM) in California. Aside from research into | | | | experience (NDE) she had in 1978. She was told, |
| phantom DNA and subtle energy (they've also | | | | however, in her NDE not to release the technique until |
| invented an instrument that measures subtle energy), | | | | 1993. I was fortunate enough to learn it in 1994. |
| they have done extensive research into the heart, | | | | The Natural Process simulates a near-death |
| which sheds light on the question of | | | | experience and through it one experiences love, |
| heart-centeredness. I'll share some of their research | | | | peace, knowing, the light, perfection, and oneness. It is |
| here, but, should you want more detail, you can visit | | | | truly a technique that enables one to move towards |
| their web site ( and read their research for yourself. | | | | "heart-centeredness" and heart-openness in a positive |
| They point out that the heart is the largest wave | | | | way, facilitating one to feel coherent emotions and |
| generator in the body. The waves it generates (as | | | | experience positive benefits in one's body and feeling |
| measured by an EKG) can actually entrain the brain's | | | | pattern. And one can experience transformative and |
| waves (as measured by an EEG)! (Entrainment | | | | lasting effects from it as well. |
| involves a synchronizing of two wave or energy | | | | I'm sure, as time goes on, we'll see more techniques |
| systems.) And the heart's waves can actually entrain | | | | facilitating the opening of our heart and allowing us to |
| our whole physical system (brain, immune system, etc.). | | | | move more toward wholeness. |
| Shades of wholeness! | | | | What an exciting time we're living in! And who would'a |
| "The heart generates an electrical information field that | | | | thunk we'd see science giving us more and more of a |
| not only permeates every cell in the body, including the | | | | basis for and validation of spirituality? What more lies |
| cells of the brain, but also radiates out into space." | | | | ahead??? |
| (Joseph Sundram, IHM, "The Heart of Change | | | | This article was first published in "Innerchange |
| Management") The heart's electrical field has been | | | | Magazine" in the April-May 1997 issue. |