Living from the Heart

 Living from the heart really reaches depth when I have emotionally healed from past life wounds, and shadows. The virtues increase. Until then living in the heart is just a concept.and the heart center is not fully open.

Once the heart center is open, it has the power to stop accidents on the road by your command.

Once I come to this state, and continue working on myself to face shadows that need releasing, I can live from the heart. When someone hurts me I stand up fearlessly without anger. This means standing up to Corporate Vice Presidents and Managers who are abusing their power, lovingly and fearlessly,, without the fear of being fired stopping us.

Living in the heart means, I feel the sadness about what did not work in my life. I feel the sadness for the loss caused by my shadows. I feel sadness for the poverty and the corruption and I can cry. It also means I need to open my heart more to KNOW in by being that God is in charge and everyone is allowed their creation of drama and loss.

It means I accept what is happening in my life, and the world and know I can manifest from my open heart quickly and I can change my reality in partnership with the Supreme Creator.

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 The author emphasizes that maintaining our love for others does not necessarily imply condoning their behavior - how do you relate to this notion? I agree. The example of a mothers’ discipline for a child is the essence of practice of love in nature. This conditional or tough-love is designed to make children peaceful and productive citizens of community. This also applies to religions, cultures and communities, if we are to coexist peacefully on this planet. The world evolved with three layers of brain-mind, Tamas/body, Rajas/emotions and Satwa/Love. These need coordination and discipline. Unconditional love and nonviolence encourages oppression of the peaceful by the aggressive, as in colonialism, terrorism and wars. The world is in transition from ignorance/selfishness based survival and competition, to survival based on     awareness, mutual respect and cooperation. Some religions and cultures are ahead of others in this process. For some, this transition appears to be painful, as recent violence in the middle east indicate....Can you share a personal story of challenging someone without withdrawing your love for them?  As I evolve in awareness by being more heart centered, I responded more than I react. There is no need to withdraw love at anytime. Most people respond to love and reason. When this does not work, I walk away. When Tamasic/intolerant religions and organizations encourage wars, oppression and terrorism, I respond responsibly as the Gita recommends…. How can we inculcate the strength and wisdom to be able to do that? What does "Living from the Heart," mean to you? As the author points out, the heart unites and the mind divides. When we keep our attachment and needs to a minimum we can afford to be truthful and courageous. Further, if we meditate on love, develop compassion, and treat others as an extension of ourselves, we can live from the heart. We can support loving, compassionate institutions and oppose heartless, divisive and destructive religions and institutions, as responsible world citizens.
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 I very much agree with maintaining our love for others when not condoning their behavior.  The opportunity to do this occurs frequently in raising children, and it is easier to maintain the love because they are out children, though sometimes the love may not come across.  I have found the bigger challenge to be in dealing with other people.  What helps me be able to maintain love while not condoning the behavior is the awareness that we are one, which has helped me be more compassionate and patient.  Living from the heart means having the awareness that we are one and maintaining love for the other while not condoning their behavior.  Someone said, "There's something about that guy that I just don't like about myself."  For me, that attitude helps me live from the heart.  I love the story about the Dalai Lama -- it's beautiful and profound.  It reminds me of the scripture passage about pray for those who persecute you, and the AA message to pray for those who you are angry at -- it's directly opposite to the attitude of "Bring em on" and go to war.  We so much need to have the attitude and response of the Dalai Lama.  Hide full comment

I have come to realize I can’t live any other way, than from the heart.  Nothing else has meaning.  We are all connected as One.  The Four Immeasurables, the Four Qualities of the Heart, are a most outstanding guide for this way of living.  The four are Maitri, friendliness; Karuna, compassion; Mudita, delighting in the joy of others; and Upeksha, practicing equanimity.  In some circles, the heart is center for the Big Mind.  The Heartmath Institute (highlighted in the documentary ‘I AM’) shares that the heart is the energetic center of us, and has more radiant vibration than any other area.  This would make sense on a physiological plane, but when you live from the heart, you recognize it from a deep connection with the emotional, mental, intuitive, and spiritual plane as well.
 
Every day I wake up with gratitude for another opportunity to share my life with all others around me.  And there are a lot of others around me.  The teenagers I share my life with exhibit all types of behavior.  I have begun to change from addressing the behavior to addressing the energy imbalance many of these behaviors exhibit.  I have the privilege of teaching yoga in high school as a PE elective, and one student asked to be able to join the class several days after the semester started.  I invited her in.  She did not connect.  She distracted all others around her, including me.  After a couple days, she was tardy to class, and I asked where she had been.  She said she was talking to the basketball PE teacher about transferring back into his class.  I said, go, you need to do that.  And she left.  I emailed the basketball teacher, who was not thrilled with having her return to his class.  I caught her the next day in the hallway, and asked what was going on.  She said she had talked with him because she thought I didn’t like her.  I smiled and said, What’s not to like?  She started to tear up, as I did.  I said she was welcome back any time she wanted, just as long as she was committed to practicing the art of yoga, and to let go of the art of conversation, at least during class.  She smiled, and has been with me a year and a half now (three semesters).  She is gentle, kind, and smiles a lot, and does this around campus.  She says yoga has changed her life.  Her favorite quality is Mudita, delighting in the joy of others, which I watch her do.  And she has changed my life.
 
The students who are in my care nurture me and teach me much more than I can offer them.  When the behavior drops, the heart can open and be free.  One of the conversations I have with them is about bullying.  We discuss the ramifications of bullying, and I am always so relieved when the students who are actively bullied share about how they feel.  After a while, I ask them what they think is going on with the bully to feel that they need to bully.  Usually the students sit in stunned silence.  Then I give them information about how bullying affects the nervous system, the digestive system, the tearing down of emotional health, in both victim and perpetrator.    We discuss Karuna, compassion, and there continue to be skeptical and quizzical looks.  So, I let them know that I understand how this next statement will be hard to hear, but I say ‘It seems very little is done to mitigate the circumstances and the suffering of the person who bullies’, which is a great lead in to Upeksha, equanimity.  I always discuss with them that bullying is never okay, but perhaps there is something missing in that way of living that kindness and wholeheartedness can help ease.   Students report during their four years of high school that many times the person who picked on them eventually becomes a friend.
 
Living from the heart opens possibility.  If I notice there are a series of events that are coming together like a perfect storm to slow my shopping agenda to town, I am ready to meet the homeless person(s), the long lost friend, the parent of a student, witness an act of random kindness, see a beautiful sunset, watch a moonrise, have an excellent conversation with a cashier, and remember ‘the art of possibility’ (Ben Zander) which lives within the heart.  Nope, can’t imagine living any other way.    
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 Thank you for the opportunity to respond.  "Living from the heart", to me, means noticing that I am one with everyone and everything.  That is beyond "philosophical."  As a Western student, I have been taught that being philosophical is being somewhat different from living from the heart as St. Exuperey's "Little Prince."  I have been told that the ancient Chinese word "hsin" means "heart/mind."  I find that useful, as I find it useful to notice that the ancient Chinese never separated philosophy from poetry.  I notice that at one time I hated Richard Nixon.  I am now sorry about that hating and while I do not love him as I love my wife and family, I intellectually love him without a lot of feeling because I think that is best and because I am one with Richard Nixon.  Karl Rove and some Republicans are difficult to love, but when I stop to think about it I find that I too have some of his and their tendencies.  I forgive and love them too even though much less so than my wife, family and other members of ServiceSpace.org.  Warm and kind regards to everyone. Hide full comment